Labor Day Weekend in NJ

Had a health scare with Tom's mom this week and she spent a few days in the hospital so as soon as he finished up with Coast Guard work on Saturday afternoon we took off for the 3 1/2 drive to New Jersey.  We stayed with Tom's sister Marie and then got up Sunday morning and went over to see if we could get Eleanor to go for a ride with us.

Eleanor with her beloved cat "Bows".  There was a "Buttons" at one time as well.

I love going into Eleanor's bedroom and finding one of my grandma Lola's quilts on her bed.  Mine have been used to death and are very tattered so it's nice to see one that's in great condition.

It takes quite a bit of cajoling to get her to leave her house anymore but we thought the fresh air would do her good.  She finally agreed to go see the ocean so we headed to Atlantic City and made our way through Caesar's Palace but not without first stopping at the yummy pastry and gelato bar before going out on the boardwalk.

I know.  Gorgeous, right?

One of the problems has been getting her to eat anything but she was all about a dish of chocolate gelato....and ate the whole thing!

It was overcast but still plenty warm and humid.  Tom and Marie visited the Apple Store while I walked Eleanor down the boardwalk.  Last time we tried this we didn't have the wheelchair and it was very difficult for her.  Marie's late husband had this very nice chair and it made everything so much easier!

We took a walk into the city where Eleanor had lived growing up.  After her mother died she went to live with her older sister May in Atlantic City.  Tom and his siblings remember spending a lot of time there while growing up as well, including Sunday dinners with Aunt May.  On this day Eleanor did not remember it but was still fine having her photo taken in front of it.

This is Karen, Eleanor's care taker who lives with her.  She does lots of crafts, puzzles, etc. with her and she gave me this mosaic to bring to the new apartment.

Karen's dog Cody who loves Eleanor!

After we spent the afternoon with Eleanor we headed out to Joey and Karen's boat where they had spent the weekend.  Just 30 minutes away but they spend a lot of time there with their dogs....

Yes, those ARE doggy life jackets

Joe's boat is really nice (kitchen, living area, bathroom, shower) but they're upsizing next season because they want one with two staterooms (bedrooms) as opposed to one. We got to meet a lot of their friends who they've gotten to know there on the dock and then walked across the street and had dinner  at a little place called The Patio.  Only opened seasonally then the owners take off for Florida.  Sounds like they're primarily open for all the people who dock their boats there.

The next morning we went back over to see Eleanor but she was just getting up and wasn't in the mood for going anywhere with us.  We spent a little time with her then headed to Smithville to have lunch with Tom's other brother Dennis and his wife Kathy. When I first met Tom and he took me home to meet his family we went to Smithville, which at the time was VERY run down.  We've been back many times since while the kids were growing up because there are many cute shops and they always loved the ducks that live in the pond.  However, the place as a whole was never really finished and kept up.  Well this time, it looked great!  In fact they brought in a train that goes around the property and Dennis is the one who got the train up and running for them.  The owner was actually there and came over to meet us and we told him what an awesome job he's done.  Now they have bed and breakfast lodging, lots more boutiques, restaurants, etc.  It's really wonderful.

After we had lunch with them at Costello's we wandered around Historic Smithville some more before heading back to their mom's.

Again, it took us about an hour to get Eleanor to go outside with us.  I played a matching game with her then finally Tom told her we had to get ready to go back to Washington and she agreed to go for a short walk with us.  We took her around the pond she used to walk around every day then headed to Veteran's Park.

Tom's dad has a brick there so we wheeled her around to see if she could find it.  She did...with a little help.  She's just so much more alert during and after a walk but it takes a lot of time and patience to get her to go.  It will be really hard when the weather changes.

Got her home and settled then ran back to Marie's to get our stuff before heading out to the holiday traffic.  Fortunately it wasn't too bad except for the back up at the toll booths but we took advantage of  a Rita's Italian Ice Gelati and got home around 8:30. Busy but fun weekend!