Boardwalk

For the Labor Day weekend we headed north for a friend's wedding in NYC and to visit family in NJ. To beat traffic, we drove home on Sunday but along the way we stopped at Pt. Pleasant for Cole's introduction to the Boardwalk. We hadn't been to Pt. Pleasant in at least 2 years and I've really missed it. As a kid, I spent nearly every summer weekend at the beach and 2 full weeks in August, and sometimes I just need to smell the salt in the air. Oh and when that salt air mixes with the aroma of the cheesesteaks, pizza, zeppoles, fresh cut fries, fudge and taffy it's magical. Food aside, Pt. Pleasant is one of my favorite places ever.

The main reason I was hell-bent on making the stop at the boardwalk though was my MRI scan last year. Ever since, I have been looking forward to taking Cole to the boardwalk as a way of healing that difficult time. When I was in the MRI tube, I couldn't help but think of the what ifs. The whole reason for the test was to rule out the scarier options like a stroke or brain tumor. But I told myself that it didn't matter because nothing was going to keep me from bringing my little boy to the Boardwalk for his first trip on the same train I used to ride with my great grandfather.

We rode the train, and Tony took Cole on the carousel, and it was so much fun. I heard all the sounds of the MRI machine again but this time with a full beaming smile on my face.