Friends in May, and the Boston Ballet

 I got to spend an afternoon with Melanie Hansen, one of my best friends from Iowa, when she and her husband (my former stake president, and an ear-nose-throat surgeon) were in Boston for some medical conferences he was attending. I was working at the temple that morning so she met me there at lunchtime, and then I drove her to my town where we had lunch and then went to my house and spent some time there before I drove her back to the temple that evening to go back into Boston. It was wonderful to spend time together again. Melanie has been such a good and supportive friend to me over the years and she's so much fun. I really miss her and all of the walks we used to take together in our neighborhoods. I love that we can get together after not seeing each other for a couple of years and it feels just like old times again.

I had to go to the Cape for a quick overnight trip to do some work on the house and one of my other BFFs, Meredith, joined me. We talked a lot, walked to the beach twice, and went out for a nice dinner and lunch. It made a work-related trip feel more like a relaxing escape to the Cape instead.

And finally, I spent a fun evening in Boston with Meredith and Shelly. We went out to dinner and then went to Boston Ballet's production of Sleeping Beauty, which was good, but honestly, I like the animated Disney movie a lot more. 😆 But it was good to get some nice classic culture in. I hardly ever go to shows and theaters like I used to, and I miss it, so this really felt like a special treat. 

The Boston Opera House is so beautiful!

A lady on the side kind of ruined this shot!

Meredith was doing something funny with her chin and it was making us laugh.

I'm grateful for the good friends in my life and for the fun times we have together!

A Weekend of Good Food

 While John was at the prom on the evening of May 5th, I was out celebrating Cinco de Mayo at a new Mexican restaurant in town that I'd been wanting to try. I worked at the library that day and after work, I walked down the street to the restaurant. My mom and her "special friend" boyfriend, John, met me there and we had a delicious and enjoyable dinner together.

La comida era muy deliciosa and was cooked in the authentic Mexican style. 😋

We got chips and guac for an appetizer.

I got chicken tacos for my entree. They were so good!

John is a really great man, one of the best I've ever known. He's very kind and genuine and fun and so helpful and caring. He came over and gave me a beautiful priesthood blessing the day before I was going to court for my divorce in March, and I know it helped me and the situation. The next day, the divorce finally came to pass, and the judge was fair and reasonable, just like he'd prayed for. He's been so helpful in many ways to me and to my mom. He's also the stake patriarch and he gave John his patriarchal blessing a few months ago. He also happens to be the father of one of my best friends. So it's an interesting situation. I'm happy for my mom (she deserves someone good like him after being alone for so long), and for him. We'll see what happens!

The next day, my mom and I drove up to New Hampshire and met my sister Jennifer and her husband Adam and their daughter Hayley (my one and only niece) and her boyfriend Kyle. We went out to lunch at a unique and historic restaurant called Pickity Place for Hayley's birthday.

It had enchanting gardens and grounds...

I like owl trios like this. They always make me think of me and the boys: the mother owl and her two owlets.

This was the coolest free library I'd ever seen. It was in a tree with a stained glass window in the back!

😍

Check out that beautiful, fluffy, giant cat!

Old-fashioned things that make me wish I'd lived in the 1800s (kind of):

Hayley, Jennifer, and me

They seat by reservation by the hour here, so we all went in at the same time for that hour.

Pickity Place does a different menu each month. I think this is such a good idea. It would keep me coming back each month if I lived closer.

Everything was delicious!

I love a good salad and dressing.

I decided to go vegetarian for my entree and chose the ratatouille. I'm not sure I'd ever had it before (though I'd seen the cute Disney/Pixar movie years ago!). It was delicious and I ate every last bite. The veggies and herbs they use are grown in their own gardens.

This was the best key lime pie I've ever had. It being edible, I ate the flower too.

We walked around the grounds a bit more after our meal and went to the gift shops.

I bought Jennifer this pretty outdoor decoration that she liked for her birthday on the sly.

A cute little fairy garden

Aren't we cute too? 😄

On the drive back, we stopped and took a few pictures of the mountains in the distance. It was beautiful scenery. New Hampshire is an untapped treasure for me that I'd like to get to know better in the years ahead. Vermont and Maine, too. 

It was a really nice weekend of good food and even better company.

Another Prom for John!

 John's junior prom was last year and Hopkinton High only has a junior prom, but he lucked out and was invited to go to a prom at a high school in Rhode Island with a bunch of church friends and some of their non-member friends at the beginning of May. He had a great time and he had more fun at that prom than his own! I wasn't there but two of my fellow mom friends of these prom-goers sent me these pictures, and they're beautiful!

Here's John with one of his best friends, Ben. 

One of the cool things about Ben is that he's my friend Kevin's stepson. Kevin and I have been friends from church since middle and high school, and I'm still friends with him along with his wife, Vera (Ben's mom). And now our kids are good friends. This is one of the things I love about living in Massachusetts again!

Just da boyz

I think John looks so handsome! They all do!

I love these barn shots!

Such fun times, and I'm thankful that John gets to have them!

Updates!

 I'm guilty of blog neglect this month because life has been so crazy-busy with John's graduation and party and getting ready to move and many other things in between. Somehow though, my blog stats have gone way up and I'm at over 10,000 hits so far this month, which is quite a bit higher than usual. I guess my readership goes up the less I write, ha ha! 

I'm moving next week! In nine days to be exact! There's still so much to do, but I'm going to try to squeeze in a few blog posts this week. I'm worried that I won't be able to access my blog for awhile with the move, and I'm also getting a new computer because my current one is around thirteen years old and is dying. I'm concerned that I won't be able to get all of my files and things transferred to my new computer because I don't know how to do that, but hopefully I'll figure it out. I'm planning on hiring a business to come help me with it after I move, but I'll probably be offline for awhile with the blog until that happens.

But I digress! I'm nervous about the move but I'm also excited about it. It will be a fresh start in my new life as a single woman and mother. The divorce is final and legal this coming Sunday, and I move three days later. Things are falling into place. These are major life transitions and it's not always easy, but I feel at peace and happy, and I'm grateful that things are working out for the best for me. The Lord is on my side and continues to be with me through the ups and downs of this crazy but essential thing called life.