Making our home in the Land of Lincoln

It has been a while! Matt and I have completed our big move from Lincoln, Nebraska to Springfield, Illinois and are working on settling into our new home. We moved here on Friday, May 31, after a few unfortunate delays including a flat tire and impressive severe weather. But we made it! We're still moving things in, and so I won't post pictures of our new place (and most importantly my new kitchen!) until it looks more like a place where quasi-civilized people live and less like a pig sty.

Matt giving one last look over the green space behind our old apartment in Lincoln before saying goodbye.

Most of the last several days have been spent looking for a "home base" grocery store (unfortunately, no Hy-Vee's or Super Savers in Illinois...bummer). Our apartment is a bit of trek to any stores (but it is very close to the University of Illinois at Springfield campus, which is great for Matt), so I'll need to learn how to plan my meals ahead and create a shopping list. No more daily jaunts to the grocery store for this girl. :(

We found a few good possibilities: County Market and Schnuck's. However, since I'm a big fan of local food, we'll be sure to check out the farmers market scene in Springfield. Until then, we've got our fledgling garden of porch pots of herbs and veggies (a.k.a. peppers of every variety) to rely on.

Speaking of local food, we've scoped out Springfield's awesome local restaurants and, as soon as we have enough disposable income, we'll check them out. Just about a five minute walk down the road from us is Crow's Mill Pub, which--as I described to a friend--looks like just the right mix of modern American pub and good old-fashioned greasy spoon. Reviews to come soon!

Yesterday and today were spent trying to find some good tennis courts in Springfield, but so far we've only come across cracked, weed-ridden ones that were really too dangerous to play on. Springfieldians--Springfieldans?--if you have any ideas of where to find great public courts, please let met know! And let me know if you'd like to play sometime!

To avoid boring you with details, the report so far from our new home is a very positive one. Springfield seems like a very nice town, and my favorite part, hands down, is downtown Springfield. There, you can find everything Abraham Lincoln, plus an eclectic smattering of local shops and cafes, and a few very interesting-looking souvenir shops. No doubt I'll be posting pictures of those very soon. :)

In the evenings, I've been cozying up with "Cooked" by Michael Pollan. I'm not very far into it at all, but it's incredibly thought-provoking so far. Pollan has done a great job of digging deep into American food culture to discover where along the line we lost our love of cooking. Since that moment--whenever it occurred--we seem more interested in the end result of the love and labor of preparing food: consuming it. Hey, I love eating just like the next guy or gal, but I also have a love for and appreciation of growing and preparing food. "For," as Pollan says, "is there any practice less selfish, any labor less alienated, any time less wasted, than preparing something delicious and nourishing for people you love?" (p. 23).

Whenever I read a book, I carry with me little sticky notes to mark passages that stick out to me. Pollan's book is already covered in sticky notes! Lots of great stuff in here.

That's all for now, dear readers. I wanted you to know that I haven't abandoned you! I'll post the recipe for an AMAZING Kung Pao Chicken tomorrow. It's a new family favorite.