feature story / 33 keep her busy. But the payoff is being able to spend magical weekends in As- bury Park with her family. “It’s a lot of work to set up a home and, like a first home, there’s no end to the to-do list. But I’m highly moti- vated by the belief that when my boys leave the nest, a house at the beach will keep them coming back to visit dear old mom,” Whalen says. The Whalens have two boys, aged 5 and 7, and although the days are long, the years seem to be slipping by quick- ly. With their youngest headed to kindergarten in the fall, Meg Whalen found herself dreaming about a family getaway – a place to make memories, a home base, a p r o j e c t for her to work on while the kids are at school. “I had Home Away How some local families are living the dream both here and afar BY MALIA RULON HERMAN been holding onto this idea of a home in Asbury Park since about 2012, af- ter spending a night in Asbury to see a show at the Stone Pony,” she explains, adding that she had been watching real estate in Asbury Park ever since, and realized it was now or never. “The idea of the beach and music in one spot, just a quick ride down the Garden State Parkway sold me,” she says; with no traffic, she can get from her Maplewood home to her Asbury Park residence in less than an hour. Once you’re there, she adds, you can park your car for the whole stay. “We walk and bike or scooter to the beach and to all the best restaurants, shops and music venues in town,” she says. “There’s live music just blocks away every night throughout the entire year.” Whalen says buying a house – a four-bedroom retreat just four blocks off the bustling Asbury Park board- walk – has been a learning experience. There are permits to secure, renters to please, and details to take care of that M eg and R i c h W h a l e n wanted to vacation at a beach with a vi- brant live music scene. Ricky Cortez loves sailing and has always dreamed of owning a house on a lake with a sailboat. Lisa Landers and her family fell in love with the broad beaches of an island off the coast of Florida. These Maplewood families all have one thing in common: They have tak- en a leap of faith in the last year and purchased a vacation home. What if you could own your own piece of paradise? Would you buy a cabin in the woods or an airy beach house on the shore? As summer va- cations kick into high gear, we asked these SOMA residents for some tips on buying that second home. At home in Asbury Park The Whalens like the convenience and proximity of Asbury Park to Maplewood. Meg enjoys time with her boys at the beach, even when it's chilly.