Happy Monday, friends! It was a busy weekend of socializing here at Carole Knits and I’m happy to share it with you today.

There was the usual Friday Night Snacks.

We’re so grateful to still be enjoying at least part of our evening on the deck. The heaters are invaluable now and make it cozy and inviting and do a good job of keeping the chill away.

On Saturday morning I met a friend for coffee. She’s establishing a photography business and killing it and we talked about pricing guidelines, local politics, juggling work, family & motherhood and more. It was a great visit.

Dale’s class reunion was in Plymouth and, since he had a band job in the afternoon that was closer to Plymouth than home, I had a friend bring me to the hotel and then Dale met me there later. I had a wonderful few hours to myself in the afternoon in that hotel room, knitting and gazing out the window and just generally enjoying some time with nothing I had to do.

The reunion was delightful. Dale’s class is small and I know many of his classmates from other gatherings over the years. I enjoyed catching up with friends and particularly loved hearing from so many of them about what a kind person Dale was in high school – and still is.

On Sunday morning we had brunch with everyone and then stopped at the beach before heading home.

I do love that portrait setting on the iPhone. I took a photo of Dale.

And Dale took a photo of me.

We spent the rest of the day catching up on football (Yay for another Pats win!) and even managed to enjoy some more time on the deck before heading in to watch the season premiere of This Is Us. I can’t say yet how I feel about these new characters but I’m hoping it will all come together in a good way that only that show seems to be able to pull off.

And that was my weekend. What did you do?

If you thought last weekend was busy, well, hold on to your hats because this weekend was actually quite busy! Busy with fun, that is.

It started on Wednesday night when we went to see Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. This was on Kym‘s recommendation and I’m going to tell you what she told me: don’t read anything about it first, just go see it.

On Thursday we headed into Boston. We had a fun tour of the State House with our friend Steve, who works for our local NPR radio station and has his office in the building. After that we went to see the Downton Abbey Exhibit. It was wonderful – the sets of the kitchen and dining room were recreated beautifully and so many of the iconic costumes – including all of the wedding gowns – were on display. I’m really glad we made the time to go see this.

We walked back to our car through the Public Garden and actually rode the Swan Boats for the first time ever for both of us. It was reasonably priced ($4 for me and $3.50 for Dale with his . . . ahem . . . old man discount) and it was old fashioned and fun. The sun was hot but there was a breeze and it was just sweet to be out on the water on that little paddled boat.

We knew rush hour would be starting soon so we headed south towards home and stopped at a local golf course restaurant I’ve been wanting to try. The drinks were good, the food was even better, and the view of the Boston skyline was spectacular.

Friday was a busy day of getting ready for company (Doreen and Mark were with us for the weekend) and also getting our tailgating stuff together for Jimmy Buffett. Lobsters were on sale for cheap money at our local grocery store so I got a bunch, had the store cook them, and then let them cool. Dale and I shucked them and set the meat aside and we had lobster rolls and local sweet corn for dinner. I can’t think of a better or more iconic summer New England meal!

Saturday was Jimmy Buffett Day. We headed over early so that we’d be in line to get into the parking lot at 1pm when it opened. That’s right, friends, we started tailgating at 1pm for a show at 8pm. This day is not for amateurs! It was super fun with lots of time to hang out and drink some beer and tequila, eat delicious cheeseburgers (what else?!?) and play some games. The show was terrific and I’m so glad we got to go since we haven’t been since 2015. This was our 10th time attending a Buffett show and I sure hope it won’t be our last.

Sunday was a day of hanging out and relaxing. We said goodbye to Doreen and Mark, emptied coolers, put away our tailgating gear, and read a lot on the couch. That first part was me since they left before Dale got up, the stuff in the middle was Dale, and the last part was me again, in case you don’t know how work gets divided up around here.

We ended the evening on the deck with drinks and burgers and lots of thoughts of a very happy weekend.