getting the ball rolling

"As you walk and eat and travel, be where you are.
      Otherwise you will miss most of your life."


After a fantastic weekend at Stitches Saturday, spending time amongst wonderful friends and yarny fumes, Nick and I drove out to Muscatine, Iowa on Sunday.  Our mission?  To pick up an antique late 1800's Canadian Production Spinning Wheel I found on Craigslist.  We decided to make a nice day trip of it and we were so pleasantly surprised to have had such a wonderful time!

We left at 8 AM, I drove the quick 3.5 hours there while Nick caught up on sleep.  I had never been in that direction and while most of it was cornfield after cornfield, I did enjoy the quiet peaceful drive.

By 11:30 we arrived at our first destination, The Button Factory Woodfire Grille, for a fantastic brunch package.  For $25 a person (tax included!) we enjoyed a very delicious brunch buffet, a 15 minute horse drawn carriage ride, and a 2 hour paddle boat cruise on the Mississippi River aboard the The Pearl Button Paddle Wheel.

Here's Nick enjoying yummy Brunch - the most amazing potatoes I've ever had, country biscuits and gravy, fresh made to order omelets, bacon, sausage, and so much more!

Here I am knitting in front of the restaurant while we waited for the horse drawn carriage to arrive.

                          

Everyone was incredibly friendly there.  We didn't feel stared down, didn't feel judged, and everyone just wanted to smile and say Hi and find out how your day was.  It was one of the most relaxing days we've spent in a long time and I can completely understand the lure of small town life.  We picked seats at the very front of the boat, listened to the breeze, felt the sun and watched the Mississippi sparkle.

After a delightful afternoon, we headed over to Jerry and Marilyn's to pick up my lovely wheel.  I wish I had taken a picture of Jerry and Marilyn, but we were too busy chatting!  We stayed and visited with them for over an hour, sharing stories and comparing lifestyles.  It never ceases to amaze me how we come about meeting such wonderful strangers.  As different as we seemed to be, we hit it off so well.  They even invited us back to spend a weekend with them!

And finally.  The reason for the whole trip.  My new old wheel.  (Pictured at Jerry and Marilyn's).  She features the typical metal treadle, metal footman, large 29.5" drive wheel and a tilt tension mechanism.   She's in fantastic shape, has a few chips and cracks here and there but are mostly easily fixable.  I think I'll name her Adele.