It is Wednesday night and we are having dinner at the Olive Garden in Clackamas. In case you are wondering I didn't make it out on Sunday as I had things to do dealing with my water heater. Now I have gone to this Olive Garden many times for lunch to meet friends but this will be my first dinner here. We picked this one so some of the girls could go shopping first if they wanted. I got home from work at 5pm and started getting ready. Tonight was a red lipstick and a smokey eye look with a silver shadow on my lid. I also wore my black dress with a red plaid back and vest which is one of my favorite casual dresses. I was ready a little after 5:30, took some pictures and was on my way to pick Julie up.
I got to Julie's at 6pm and she was ready and had on a beautiful black and white dress. Now traffic was light tonight so we had time to sit and talk which I always enjoy. It may sound simple but it really is enjoyable. When I first started going out it was all about being out as my female self which don't get me wrong is fun but now days it is more about incorporating Susan into my daily life and yes that means simple things like grocery shopping, going to Starbucks and yes most important socializing with friends and I really do have wonderful friends, some are more like family. I feel like I can tell Julie anything and she is one of a hand full of people who know everything about me. We left about 6:20 to head to Olive Garden.
The drive was nice and we had a great time talking on the way. We got there about 6:45 and went in, several of the girls were there already and seated at a table. tonight we had 11 of us, Julie, me, Kris, Jade, Sara, Aiden, Hailey, Nicole, Jennifer, Patty and Trish. Nicole came down for a couple days so she could go to dinner with us, it is her birthday vacation as tomorrow is her birthday, but whatever the reason it is always great when she can join us. It was also great to see Trish out again and talking to her, things have changed in her life and it looks like she will be able to get out more with the group. Our waiter came and took our order and by the way he was awesome tonight. Yes I ordered the Chicken Parmesan as always. We had a nice time talking and catching yup and yes we did talk a little about Diva Las Vegas as Jennifer is going, I have my vacation request in and waiting to hear on it and Trish is also thinking of going again this year. We also talked briefly about the group, specifically small kids joining us for dinner. Now we do have a lot of ladies with kids and we are trying to figure that aspect out and find a balance. Tonight was a casual dinner option but we do have a few different views in the group about this. one being an adult outing as some of the girls like to drink and sometimes the conversation can be more adult. I also know when I was young the last thing I wanted to do was go out with my parents and a bunch of their friends and be the only child there so I do wonder how the kids feel. The other thing some girls worry about is what other people would think seeing a group of transgender women with one child with them. Now as I said tonight was more casual or a family style place and it was the whole family that joined us verses just the transgender parent bringing 1 child with them and it may be a thin line but I think there is a difference. The other thing is we are all on the more mature side, other then Kris we are all in our late 50's and up. Part of why we go out is to make a good impression on people around us and I wonder if this is beneficial or harmful to how people view us having small kids with us especially when it is a big group. Sorry got a little off track there as I do think about this stuff as it is just not me and how I feel but the group as a whole and that can be a hard balancing act as I said we have a very diverse group of ladies.
Our food came and as always it was really good. We had a wonderful dinner as always and wonderful conversations, yes with the bigger group we had 3 to 4 different conversations going on, the ne bad thing about big groups. After dinner was sat and talked for a while and yes Jennifer got our waiter to take a group picture for us. Our waiter split our bills and they have a machine on the table you can pay with which is nice as it is more secure but also a little slower. We all paid our bills and as I said our waiter was really good so I gave him a little extra. It was a little after 9pm when we all walked out together, yes when you have 10 of us all walking in or out together we do stand out.
Julie and I talked on the drive back to her house, it really was a fun evening out as always, these dinners really are the best part of the week. It was a little after 9:30 when I dropped Julie off and drove home. It was a great night out with friends.
Thanks for reading my blog and sharing this part of my life with me.
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