Munchkie's Mama and So Much More: New Home: My New Neighborhood

I've been trying to explore a little bit of the area. I haven't been too great at getting out, but I love the area that we are living in. We are just outside the city enough to feel more like a neighborhood. I feel very safe and it's great to be able to walk to dinner, ride our bikes to the subway station or play out in the yard with the neighbor girl. We have been to the farmer's market both Saturdays that we have been here and the fresh produce selection is great. Yesterday they had music for the kids and the week before a craft table set up for kids. This week, we saw a little guy that Munchkie goes to daycare with and his mom, we stopped to chat and found out that they are kind of on the same path we are and live just a few streets away from us. I was then getting a cup of coffee at a coffee shop on a bike (yes, on a bike) and made a comment to a woman standing next to me. Next thing I know, we found a connection via a mom website we both belong to and they welcomed us to the area.

Tonight we went to a church that we have been looking forward to attending and we really enjoyed it. We met several families around our age and a teacher said to me that there was another new couple she had just met that was living in the same neighborhood we were. It turns out that this couple lives on our street just a couple blocks away. To top that, he graduated the same master's program that Munchkie's Daddy did (and the same year) and they have a mutual friend. They moved here at the beginning of the summer (from the same town we just moved from) and told us such great tips about the area. Where to buy meat, which little store has the best produce, etc. It feels wonderful to make connections and even to find tips about the area. I am beginning to believe that this truly was a good move for us and I hope to continue to explore and find great things in our area.

The transition to this new area is such a different transition than the previous one we made three years ago. The culture shock that we experienced moving from the Midwest to the Northeast was something we didn't expect. I have been bracing myself for months to be prepared for another culture shock, but instead of have been shocked by how friendly and helpful everyone we have encountered has been. We have already met more people in the couple weeks we have lived here than we did in months of our previous move. Previously every single relationship that I had was a result of my work, and here I haven't even started working and already have made connections. This is amazing to me.

The downside to living in this area I have found is that Target is not very convenient to get to and Walmart is a ridiculous drive. While this is kind of devastating, it will probably be good for our bank account. Not making frequent trips to these stores will help me realize what's really important. I won't be buying unnecessary things that catch my eye and maybe I can even spend the wasted time wandering the aisles being more productive in my life or even doing something like riding my bike to improve my physical fitness, or lack thereof.

Here is a little view of my new neighborhood.

The main street that we live off of has a beautiful view of the city.

The farmer's market on the town green. Plenty of tents set up with everything from fresh pastries to every kind of tomato possible to stone ground chocolates made right here.

Making a maraca at the kid's craft table with Munchkie's Mimi.

All of the amazing things we purchased at the farmer's market. Fresh produce that we enjoyed every bite of. Just look at the variety of tomatoes!

This restaurant caught my eye the first time we came through the area. It has open windows, small tables and an interesting menu. We could hardly pull Munchkie away from the window to eat her food, she loved feeling the wind blowing on her face as she watched the cars go by. My lemon and ricotta cheese pancakes were wonderful and Munchkie had fresh squeezed orange juice for the first time. She was so confused, she would take a drink and say "this an orange mommy?" and I would say, "yes, it's orange juice." She was say ok and take another sip, then again say "this is an orange." She didn't realize that orange juice was actually supposed to taste just like an orange.

We found this indoor playground when we went to check out the Habitat for Humanity Restore. Another mom said that it was really good for those days when the kids can't play outside. A big open space with lots of things for the kids to play with, and free wifi for the parents.

We saw these birds all lined up on the roof of the house next door, just hanging out.

We went to a restaurant down the road from us that specialized in southern cooking. Munchkie's menu/coloring page said "Selections For Future World Leaders, Humanitarians and Rock N Rollers"

This is our church, it starts in the evening, which is perfect for us since we aren't morning people. Tonight they had a bbq afterwords and we were able to meet quite a few people in the church.