NYC was fun but our journey continues on in Massachusetts. Massachusetts is the main reason we came to New England & why Chris joined us this year, or at least the family business we have to take care of while there in Massachusetts.When our mother passed away a year ago July 8th, she had donated her body to science. When her ashes were returned, it was decided we would place most of them on our brother Jon's grave in Batavia,Illinois, some ashes were sprinkled in other places.....the rest of the ashes it was decided would be sprinkled on the grave of our sister Roberta, that we never got to know...... We will also be meeting our cousin Muriel Follett Slack for the first time! Sooooo we're off on a mission!
We arrived in Carver, Ma in the afternoon of October 2nd. I had called Muriel en route to our destination of Shady Acres Campgrounds & we are going to meet up with her tomorrow! I'm excited & nervous all at the same time about meeting her. Tho we've never met face to face....we do have a email relationship! That's where my problem comes in! I can write a 10 page letter to a total stranger but when it comes to talking face to face.....I'm usually at a loss for words... Good thing Chris & Lennie will be along. Lennie knows NO strangers & Chris doesn't have a problem talking to people either!
Shady Acres is a nice campgrounds! I can see how it earned it's name!
Tho we didn't spend much time at the campgrounds, I could see why people would!
Adjacent to the campgrounds are a private cranberry bog. The night before we checked out, the bog was flooded, & the day when we checked out, the owner told me we were going to miss the cranberries coming to the top of the flooded bog just by hours!!!! Sorry to have missed that, but.....I still got to see a cranberry bog when we were over in Wareham,Ma finalizing our grave stone dilemma......
I expected to see those guys from the OCEAN SPRAY commercial out there working the bog! 75 % of the cranberries grown in Massachusetts are harvested for Ocean Spray.
We are now meeting our cousin Muriel & I don't know why I was so nervous, she was sooooo friendly & easy to talk to, upon meeting her & husband Joe, the first thing she did was put food in front of us! It's a shame we're just meeting for the first time!
"Hello Cousin Muriel! It was so nice to finally meet you!"
After some long awaited & overdue conversation, plus looking at pictures, Muriel is going to take us on a little family tour, as we know little to nothing about our Follett family side! First stop is the home our mother grew up in, on Putnam Street, in Quincy,Ma.
It was important for us to see this house, as the last few months of mom's life all she talked about was her family home on Putnam Street. We knocked on the door of this home, so the owner would know why a group of strangers were outside taking pictures! When no one answered....we just started snapping pictures!
Our next stop was the cemetery where our Great Grandparents are buried.
Then....the house on Norton Street where our grandmother & Aunt Nancy lived till Grandma's passing in 1964.(our grandfather passed in 1941)
The now owner or this house, was home & actually let us come inside! He did tell us that he completely gutted the inside. Since Chris & I had never been in the home we had nothing to compare it to. Muriel on the other hand, knew the house & told us it was nothing like the home she had visited in her childhood. At least she has the memories of the old home. This is the home grandma was living in when I use to write to her. I wanted to tell the owner that his garden was flourishing so well because grandma's ashes were placed in her garden all those years earlier!?! That is the beach behind the house. Muriel told us that our Uncle George would sail his boat from New London,Conn & moor up behind the house. I'm sure they all had great times there!
That wonderful coffee cake & apple cider Muriel gave us when we arrived has worn off! We are stopping for a bite to eat at The Crab Box!
I need to correct that, it wasn't just a bite to eat......it was a full fledged meal!
I had the scallops!
After our wonderful meal.....we headed back to Muriel's house, & all too soon back to the campgrounds. It was a great day!!!
Now a new day, & this is the day we are going to take "mom" in ash form,to the cemetery & place her on the grave of Roberta. Little did we know what we were going to run into at the cemetery!!!!We discovered that the stone we had placed on Roberta's grave just 2 years earlier, was not there????The rest of that story is too long, too confusing & too personal post on the blog. I will only say that the stone was located on another grave plot.
This Erickson, who is not related to us, but there her stone lay????
After a lot of back & forth, the bottom line is....Roberta's stone is going to be unearthed & placed on her real grave site. Sooooo we did not leave mom's ashes there......At this point we didn't have a strong plan B & decided to make the best of what time we had in Massachusetts while still deciding what to do with mom's ashes.....
We drove to do some sightseeing, winding up in Provincetown. We saw a lot of growth in this beach town since the last time we were here & on the right weekend you can see a lot of "friendly" couples here!
It's a definitely a fun place to walk around in!
We stayed longer than planned,
Today we are taking the HOP ON HOP OFF Tour of Boston. It's a two day tour. First we are going to ride the complete circuit then decide on the hop off points of interest!
Flat Stanley is going with us!
One of the many buildings at MIT
our Aunt Nancy worked in the labs at MIT.
Our tour also included a boat ride down the Charles River.
I hope Stanley doesn't get sea sick!
We were so lucky with the nice weather!
A nice view of the Boston skyline!
Looking at the Hancock & Prudential building.
We did run into a few closings due to the government shutdown. One in particular that we definitely planned to see was the Kennedy Library.
The second day of our tour we were not quite as lucky with the weather! We had a gloomy,rainy day. But.... we had umbrellas & a tour already paid for, so......what's a few rain drops!?!
A good place to go while it's raining is Faneuil Hall or Quincy Market.Especially if you're hungry!
It was at Faneuil Hall that I had my 2nd Thanksgiving sandwich! But I didn't have the RED VELVET CAKE even tho it's my favorite!
Time to face the rain drops.....
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| Boston Commons |
We weren't the only ones dodging the raindrops!
Statue of Paul Revere
&.....the great NORTH CHURCH
One if by land....two if by sea.....
There's lots more to see in Boston in the rain or on a nice day. Our last stop before we caught the Hop on Bus was.....a pastry shop! Where we each chose a "goodie" to enjoy after dinner! And enjoy we did!!!
Our last day together in Massachusetts, this early evening Chris catches a plane in Boston & heads back to Chicago. Those 10 days together went by too fast. We have to cram in as much as possible today!! After breakfast, we head to Plymouth, Mass. Guess what??? It's raining & we didn't bring our umbrella! Oh well....we won't melt???? We're going to Plymouth Rock. Lennie & I have been there before, Chris has not, but was forewarned about the size of Plymouth Rock!
It is protected from people chipping away at the stone by this encasement....
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| Replica of the Mayflower We still mom's ashes to take care of....We drove back to Quincy, back to her childhood home on Putnam Street. 
Again I knocked on the front door & no one answered. I don't know what I would have done if someone wo had answered, because when no one answered, we went to the tree at the side of the house & sprinkled some of mom's ashes at the base of the tree.
I wanted to leave some of the ashes by the garage, because mom talked about the birthday parties they had as kids in the room above the garage. it was obvious to Chris & me, that the attached garage was now a separate residence!
 We decided to take the rest of her ash remains to the beach. Mom LOVED the beach! We chose the beach that was close to where Grandma & Aunt Nancy lived. We didn't really know at what spot to release her ashes, Chris & I just kept walking along the beach & suddenly the sun came out & we stopped & let mom swim out into the ocean. It was a peaceful Good-Bye.... So there she goes.... But.....I did save a small amount of her ashes & left them with Barnicoat Monuments. When he places Roberta's grave marker on her grave, he's going to place the last of mom there too....
We're heading for a late lunch, we want to fill Chris up before she boards her plane! We went to Hilltop Steakhouse.
 (Flat Stanley was hungry too!)
This is a huge restaurant, it can seat 1200 people. Lennie & I have been here before years ago. They are known for their steaks, but since we were here after lunch but before dinner, none of had or wanted steaks! A day or so after eating here, Muriel informed me that the great Hilltop Steakhouse was closing down before the end of October after 52 years in business!!!! Joe said it might be closing tdue to too many people going there but NOT eating steaks!?! I feel bad now, give me another chance, I'll have a steak! Even Otis enjoyed our leftovers from the restaurant!
Salem, Massachusetts is not out of our way to Logan Airport. Since Chris has never been there.....why not stop!?! It's a very interesting historical town, & during Halloween season they really go all out in decorating!
 . House of Seven Gables Hello Handsome! Don't pee on Mr. M&N !?!
We walk around Salem a little bit more, then it's time to head to the airport & before we know it, we're saying "Good-Bye" to Chris.
Lennie & I had one last day in Massachusetts after Chris returned to Illinois but it wasn't a day of sight seeing & fun. It was a day of cleaning the RV, doing the laundry, bringing some paperwork to the Wareham Municipal Building, & bringing the last of mom's ashes to Joseph Barnicoat.....the day ends & tomorrow's another day, another adventure.....we're going to Vermont!
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The Clam Box, Wendy, clams!!! Since finding out the Hilltop was closing, things are disappearing, dinner plates with their name on it, leather bound menus, vases some worth $600 each. Next the cows and cactus will disappear and it won't be the first time either. Makes you wonder how these things can go on unnoticed. They sure did have good food there too.
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