Hi. Glad to hear that you love the game.
1. There is a system with hints to where find girls. Try attending Divination classes ;)
2. If you got the date and have a save before the day of the date, you can always start from there.
3. I try to add make it so the saves are not ruined between the versions. This new bug with disappearing Stats panel is very strange and annoying for me too, since I cannot figure out what causes it and even replicate it. I am on the case though.