End of May Faves

 

It's the last weekend of May 2026!

It's also time to look back on the week and find the blessings in it...those things that made us pause and say "Thank You, God". Susanne is the host for this so to join in or learn more, head to her blog!   This meme is called the Friday Fave Five.  Five blessings that made us take note. 

FIVE FAVES

The rolling hills of the Berkshires
from the Vista on Burbank Trail
western Massachusetts

• BERKSHIRES HIKE: There was rain predicted for Saturday evening in our area of eastern NYS. I had a SoulSteps hike scheduled for that morning in the Berkshires and the trail was only 45 minutes from my house so I decided not to cancel it as that area was supposed to be partly sunny all day. I'm thankful I didn't cancel because the hike was just lovely with really good weather, temp wise. There were no black flies in this area which was also a blessing.  Although 5 people signed up originally (2 backed out), it ended up being 3 of us: My friend Evelyn and a new member named Becky who is literally 30 yrs younger than us. The hike was a lollipop trail and since Becky was new I had her choose which part of the loop we were going to hike first. She chose the left side which also turned out to be a blessing as there was a steep descent after the vista point to Monks Pond (the final destination). The entire loop was 3.8 miles and the trail was very well marked and nicely groomed. I'm thankful we were back by 1 pm and that the rain held off!  Here are my fave pics from the day: 

The trail widens out after the Vista

a lovely part of the trail after a steep descent

Monks Pond
on the Burbank Trail

SoulSteps Hikers: Becky, me, Evelyn 
Burbank Trail
Memorial Day weekend 2026

• RELAXING WEEKEND:  Our Memorial Day Weekend was mostly a rainy one: the rain came in around 6 pm Saturday evening and stayed until Monday morning.  Monday afternoon was beautiful so we had our youngest daughter (Claire) over for grilled vegan burgers, pasta salad with lots of fresh, raw veggies, and watermelon/blueberries/cantaloupe. Dave opted for strawberies.  It was very nice to have Claire with us for the evening. Our oldest daughter and her boyfriend were away for the long weekend due to a wedding so couldn't join us. I'm thankful we got to spend some time with Claire, and also that the weekend gave Dave and I time to firm up our vacation plans for the end of June/beginning of July. 

photo by Claire

•  ERRANDS DONE!  Tuesday was a day of several errands which began with a hair cut appointment with my long-time stylist, Robin.  When I saw in several Summer Fashion articles that pixie cuts are back  on trend for 2026 ....they are especially popular in France....as well as here on the East Coast, I had Robin cut it pretty short because it grows so fast and this way it will last until after we are back from vacation.  After the haircut, I grabbed an iced coffee from *$ and then went and picked up my new sunglasses as Claire had texted me that they were in! She wanted me to pose for a pic thus the photo. 😁 I then dashed over to the town park to get in a walk before having to go home and do some chores. I'm thankful I was able to get so much done on Tuesday. Here's a pic of where I did my power walk after the errands: 

The Crossings Park 
Tuesday

• LAKE DAY! Thursday was a day that I had a scheduled SoulSteps hike in the morning.  There were 4 of us to hike the Nature Trail at my fave state park that features a lake. We walked 3.2 miles and then 3 of us took our beach chairs and sat on the beach trying to get some sun.  It started to rain but then stopped after about 2 min so we stayed another half hour but when it began to rain in earnest, we packed up to go home. I only live about 35 min south of this lake so I do go often in the summer. Anyone ages 62 and older can go for free (if you camp, you still have to pay for the  campsite) to any of the NYS Parks M-F.  For the weekends, I have  an Empire Pass which is worth every penny. It's good for one calendar year and because I've been a member for more than 20 years, I get a discount! After time at the lake, I enjoyed a late lunch on the deck and did some chores around the house. It was a lovely Spring day.  I'm thankful for lake time with good friends after a good hike! I didn't take a lot of photos on this trail as I've hiked it numerous times over the last 30 years but here's a couple of my faves from the day: 

SoulSteps Hikers
front: Joan, Shawna
back: me, Annette

Moreau Lake from the lookout

Moreau Lake from the more private beach 
on the left side of the lake 

• ANSWERED PRAYERS: There were several prayer requests from friends, family, people I know and I found out this week that many of them were answered in a positive way.  One friend has a son who recently graduated from college and was having trouble finding a summer job. Well, he was just offered a permanent job in his field so her prayer that he work and save for grad school was answered. Another friend, and my neighbor, had a very good test result after a scary biopsy.  I can't go into details as don't have her permission to share.  Our oldest daughter and bf had safe travels both ways on their mountain getaway.  Our youngest daughter had safe travels and made excellent time on her one day visit to Dave's mom out in Plymouth County, MA. Another friend of mine has had some positive  communication with her oldest daughter  which there has been a bit of a strain in their relationship.  I'm so thankful that we are seeing positive answers to prayer and that God is at work in the lives of my friends and family. 

Have a great weekend, everyone!