Finally – some sunshine!

Growing up in the Mid-west, you get used to cloudy skies. So used to it in fact that we never even owned sunglasses when we lived here. By way of contrast, in Denver we never leave home without our shades. Since arriving, our sunglasses have been sitting on the dashboard.  My (Libby) spirits pickup when there is sunshine.  I really get gloomy when it is overcast.  Leaving Bloomington, I was really gloomy, partially due to the overcast weather, but also because we were leaving family and friends.  We are really in no hurry – we have no schedule or agenda for this trip.  That is part of the adventure.  Up until yesterday, the pathway and schedule were clear.  It is a lot easier to be excited about the adventure when it’s easy.  I am glad the sun is shining.  It’s feeling easier again today.

We got coffee at a local spot in Rockford and headed up to Milwaukee.  We went straight to Tricklebee Cafe.  The neighborhood is in transition.  We saw a lot of two-story houses with boarded up windows and doors.  Christie was in the dining room greeting customers when we walked in.  She recognized us right away.  She welcomed us and explained the menu.  We ordered a little bit of everything in order to sample all the dishes.  We got a sticker to add to our collection. Using our credit card, we donated through square – a freewill donation.  They also have a milk jug for cash donations.  (This is the tile on the floor in the dining room!)

We took a seat at a round table with a church pew as seats in the dining room.  There were a couple of tables filled-one table had a group of 7 and there were a few other singles and couples dining.  It is a much smaller space than SAME but you can tell it is filled with love.  Our order arrived quickly.  This is easily the cleanest food we have had since leaving Denver.  Oh, those colorful carrots!  A veggie soup with sage (yes – Libby ate sage!) and salad (again pre-dressed which is not Libby’s favorite)  bread with housemade jam and a two bite dark chocolate brownie – yum!  Libby had a delicious pumpkin black tea and Brad drank coffee.

Christie had to leave for a presentation but we stayed and finished our meal and then visited with the folks who were working in the kitchen.  It is evident by the energy in this space that people are loved here.  Every time we walk in to a cafe, it has the same caring energy.

Libby rolled up her sleeves as usual and got to work at the dish station.  It is her comfort zone.  Brad visited with the chef about the dishes that were made today and helped at the dish station as well.  It is amazing how much we miss the kitchen.

There is a beer line trail that we found in Milwaukee that is an old railroad that used to bring supplies to major breweries. It is paved but in a wooded area right along the river.  The dogs loved it!

Next, we found the Lakefront Brewery and the awesome path along the river.  We got a couple more steps in today by doing the stairs to a look-out spot. Now, we are headed to hang out with Dean & Mai Chi.   

Miraculously, they are without children tonight.  I think we ruined their date night.  They were gracious hosts anyway!  We went out for deep dish pizza and stayed up visiting.

Leo & Gem didn’t care one bit about their adorable beagle named Piper but they were determined to kill the pet rat.

Birthday surprise

On Wednesday, Nov. 1, we packed up and said our good-byes to Linette. The kids and Todd were at school and work.  It always takes us longer to collect our stuff and organize the camper than we think.  The plan from here was to drive to Kirksville, MO and visit another community cafe, Take Root.  It was a short two hour drive from Todd’s to Kirksville. 

We were excited to meet up with and have lunch with Penny Probasco.  She is our friend Erik’s mom, who moved from Colorado to Lancaster, MO not that long ago.  When Penny and her husband Rick lived in CO, we’d get together with them whenever Erik was in town.  We have missed having them in Colorado.  

We pulled in to Kirksville right as Penny was pulling up.  Lancaster is about 20 minutes outside of Kirksville so it was perfect to meet up with her.  Kirksville is a small college town, hosting Truman State.  The square was somewhat older and smaller than most we have seen.  Take Root is right on the square in a large space that appeared to be an old drug store.  Again, it’s freezing here!

After getting the dogs settled, we made our way inside and were introduce to the concept from Brian, one of the folks working in the cafe. He was thorough and gave the best introduction to a community cafe we have heard thus far.  We have given a similar schpiel for the last 11 years and he did great.  

They use a mural of a giving tree to share tokens with volunteers or those who cannot volunteer or donate for a meal.  An art fraternity created the visually stunning display on the wall right as you walk in the door.  Opposite that is a large mural very similar to the one at F.A.R.M. Cafe created by a local artist.  

The space is huge!  It has high ceilings and a service bar that looks to be a restored old fashioned soda fountain.  It has a large chalkboard over the center of the bar where the menu is written up with suggested prices.  Libby ordered the falafel sandwich and Penny and Brad both ordered the Cubano.  All the sandwiches came with a side salad.  The drinks were self service at the far end of the bar and we proceeded to a large wooden booth.  There are beautiful community tables down the center of the eating area.  They even have a children’s play space.  

We all enjoyed our sandwiches.   I (Libby) like my salads with dressing on the side so I didn’t love that side dish but that is personal preference.  

(This is us with Penny.)
While we were dining we got to visit with Jessica.  She is the ED of Take Root.  It was nice to hear about their successes and challenges since opening almost a year ago.  She also gave us a tour of the space.  It is huge!  They have a decent size kitchen in the back but what was really amazing was to hear that they have a movie theater on the third floor!  They show independent films there and have space for yoga classes and a private events.  

After visiting our ninth cafe, we really didn’t have a plan.  For those of you who know Libby, you know she needs a plan.  This trip has been an awesome challenge in that regard.  It is a practice in living in the moment each day.  Some days are more challenging than others but the experience of just being is therapeutic.  

We made a last minute decision to drive towards Central Illinois in hopes to join Libby’s family in Bloomington to celebrate Katie and Rich’s birthdays.  Katie is Libby’s older sister whose birthday is today and Rich’s (Katie’s husband) birthday is the 13th.  We drove in to town with just enough time to stop at Green Top Grocery (the co-op grocery store that Katie helped open) and pick up some birthday treats.  

We pulled in to the Whalen house and dropped off Leo & Gemini.  We all piled in to the truck and drove out to Flingers.  Katie & Rich were so surprised.  Katie Hopping and her family were there and a couple of Katie’s friends joined us too.  

Next, we went to the K of C’s and we were able to visit with Steve, one of Libby’s cousins.  It was so fun!

We slept in and did some laundry and gave the dogs a bath.  Of course, we had to have lunch at Monical’s pizza.  John & Gay (Brad’s mom and dad) joined us and came over to the Whalen’s to visit afterwards.  

It was hard to make a decision of what to do and where to go next.  We could stay in Bloomington for a while.  There are tons of fun things happening here this weekend-including Aly coming home. It’s hard to leave the comforts of home and the familiarity.  Leo & Gem love hanging out at Mimi and Papa’s house but the next cafe we want to see only serves on Tuesday and Thursday nights.  

Once we finally made a decision to move on, we packed up the car – this time with the bikes inside to see if our gas mileage would be any better-and headed to Rochelle, IL only an hour and a half away.  

Our 10th community cafe stop was The Kitchen Table.  They have been serving on Tuesday and Thursday nights since 2016 with an additional meal on the first Sunday of the month.  They do not use suggested pricing which resonates with us.  The space was an old supper club that they purchased and spent years renovating.  It’s about 3 miles outside of the town of Rochelle. 

We pulled into the parking lot about 6:45 p.m. They serve dinner until 7:30. We sat at the community table with Carolyn (founder) and her crew.  They served 65 tonight but were pretty much done by the time we got there. We ordered from their daily selections and our food came quickly.  Brad had chicken & dumplings and I had chili.  We got to visit with them and even got to do some dishes.  

Our night ended in a Rockford Walmart parking lot playing games and snuggling the pups.  

Wardsville

Libby got to sleep in and we went and surprised the girls at school.  They had back-to-back lunch periods so we got to sit with each one of them.  Nikki knew we were there because she spotted our car in the parking lot before she even came downstairs to the lunch room.  Jazmin was so surprised!  We got to meet all of their friends.  The plan was to eat lunch with them but middle school food didn’t look so appetizing so we just visited while they ate.

Schulte’s grocery store was our next stop.  We picked up fixings for dinner.  Tony and Kathy Flannigan (cousins on Brad’s side) were planning to join us.  The donuts looked delicious, so we picked up a few of those for Halloween breakfast and got everything else we needed.

After the girls got home from school, we all visited for a bit.  Nikki had to return to school for basketball practice – she is so excited to be on the team.  The rest of us started to prepare dinner in Todd & Linette’s great new kitchen.  It is huge.  All of us were in there together cooking and we had plenty of space.  The menu was stuffed acorn squash, bacon brussel sprouts, strawberry spinach salad, and caramel apples.  Jazmin made the caramel apples with chocolate drizzle all by herself.  We totally forgot to take a picture with Tony & Kathy – bummer!  It was so fun to cook again and visit with everyone. 

I agreed to take Nikki to early basketball practice -5:45 a.m. so it was an early night.  

The frost on the car this morning kept Nikki and I in the driveway for a bit longer than we planned but we sang all the way to school.  

Our next stop was lunch with Eric Hibdon in Osage Beach.  It was a great visit to catch up!  He has been a great friend for a long time but we haven’t gotten to see him much.  
 

Randy’s frozen custard was closed so we compromised and had Andy’s.  For those that are familiar with Lake of the Ozarks you’ll know how disappointed we were that Randy’s was closed.  

We made our way back to Todd & Linette’s to hand out Halloween candy and for chili and cornbread.  The girls taught us to play balloon volleyball in the living room and we wrapped up the night downstairs playing pool.  Their new house is great for hanging out!  Leo & Gemini especially loved hanging out on the love sack.