We just don't belong here

Moving to the Midwest has been an interesting experience. I have never been so cold in my life (well except for that -20 day skiing in Vermont). It is so windy sometimes I have trouble walking. On the flip side, the summers are hot hot hot. The city is bustling and vibrant. There are museums, planetariums, and did I mention a gigantic lake? I think things will be much better when we move to Chicago proper, because there will be more diversity and therefore we won't feel like we stick out like a sore thumb. Food is my main issue. Unless I go to Whole Foods (which I only do on Mondays, since it is near my knitting place) we are in a pickle. I can't bring myself to buy meat at any of the stores nearby (no organic). I tried to ask the dude at Jewel Osco for rhubarb the other day and he looked at me like I had three heads! Dude it's not that hard!! It is a vegetable. Last night we made the mistake of trying to find falafel mix at Target. That was a no go. We hoofed it over to Jewel Osco and found one teeny box in the kosher food section, which itself was only a foot wide. Ground up chickpeas people- its not like I was looking for morels or quinoa or something. Seems that a lot of the food that I think is normal is not consumed by the good people of the midwest. If it is not a tomato, iceberg lettuce, or a chicken nugget, well... they just might not have it.

I really hope there is a Whole Foods near our next apartment :-)

Melting Pot

I was about to update my blog (apparently I have a loyal reader in San Antonio that I have been neglecting) when the Captain said- put on your new shoes and your coat. I looked at him quizzically and said- "why?"- to which he replied: "because we have reservations at the melting pot". Yeah!!! I have never been there, but my sister claims that it is awesome. Whoo-hoo.

Valentines day was fun- I got two valentines from my cute cousins and one from my best friend. I also surprised the Captain with a box of chocolates at 7am. (what? he stirred in his sleep and I decided that he was awake enough- I couldn't hide them any longer, I was too excited.)

Tony has been growing and having a blast. If this video works, then you can see him in action! I think he is trying to wrestle his skein of yarn into submission. Too cute. (Ok the video is too big- we will try again later).


And finally, the knitting. This new project is not knitting, but crochet. It is the babette blanket and I love it. I have quite a bit more to go, and I may have to order more yarn, but it is really colorful.