Why More People Think Iowa Is Amazing Than Ever Before

Over the years I’ve seen many states, lived in many cities and been to visit the other side of the world. All these places are beautiful and fascinating, but Iowa will always be home. There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.

Iowa has received national recognition lately as a great place to live and work - something Iowans have known for several generations! No longer just a fly-over state or a pass-through on the way to somewhere, Iowa is seeing a resurgence of interest in what makes it so great.

Here are just a few reasons you should be interested in Iowa:

* Our pace of life is slower and more relaxed. While the big cities bustle like anywhere else, there are many smaller towns and communities where it’s easy to live in the moment and take time to know the people around you.

* You’re going to meet kind, happy people everywhere you go. It’s been called Iowa Nice, but it’s really about wonderful people and creating connections with those around you. This is the place to be if you want store owners to call you by name and chefs to know your order when they see you come in the door of their restaurant.

* We have our priorities straight. It’s all about family, friends, helping and caring. The other stuff can wait.

* It’s by far one of the most beautiful, diverse and picturesque states in the country. In the few hours it takes to drive from one side to the other, you’ll find cornfields, rolling hills, prairie lands, wide lakes, thick forests and abundant wildlife. No matter where you live and work, you’re never far from the beauty of nature.

* You can have all the arts and culture of big-city living without leaving your hometown. Even the smaller communities have theaters, museums and festivals. You’ll hear professional-quality performances in an intimate setting, and you can actually get to know the musicians, artists and writers personally because they live right here, too.

* There’s always something growing in Iowa, and Farm-To-Table isn’t just a catchphrase. It’s a way of life. The chefs use produce grown in their own town. Farmers markets set up almost every day of the week. There is even room to grown your own food so you know exactly where it’s coming from.

From the people to the land to the opportunities, Iowa is an amazing place to be. We hope you’ll come experience our Iowa Nice sometime soon.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Holland Creme - That Amazing White Stuff In Donuts

Image
I remember going to the grocery store every Saturday morning when I was growing up, and my favorite place in the entire store was the donut case. All the glazed, powdered and filled baked goods drew me like a magnet. My favorites, far and away, were the ones filled with that beautiful white, fluffy creme. At the time I didn't know it was called Holland Creme - I just knew it was the most amazing concoction ever. Ever. Here is my version of this sweet treat. You can make your own fried donuts and fill them, or like I did here, you can cut a crevice into store-bought donuts with a knife and fill them with creme in a piping bag. Either way, you're going to love it. Ingredients: 1 cup sugar 1/2 cup water 1 cup vegetable oil 1 cup shortening 1 cup butter 1 Tbsp vanilla 7 cups powdered sugar 1. Make a simple syrup by combining sugar and water in a sauce pan over medium heat until boiling, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and allow to cool complet...
Read more

Recovering An Old Card Table And Making It Usable Again

Image
This card table recover project has been on my to-do list for months. I've been using it as my workspace in the craft room for quite some time, and it sees a lot of abuse. Here it is now, with a neutral cover on it so I can take better pictures for my tutorials. There were dents and dings in the old blue covering from metal tools. And yes, I've used my embossing heat tool on it several times, leaving pretty good scars. The padding underneath the blue cover also made it difficult to keep paper crafts flat when adhering them together, so it was time for something new. That's where a simple vinyl tablecloth comes in handy. The process to recover the table is pretty simple, but I learned a couple of lessons the hard way. I share them with you now. First, don't do this on any surface but a carpet. I tried it on the deck int he sunshine to get better pictures, but all it did was tear up the cover. Second, get a second pair of hands to help you kee...
Read more

Crafts For Teen Girls To Make

Image
In our teen girls Bible study, we're studying our way through the Proverbs 31 woman and it's been such a blessing to me, as I hope it's been to them. Every month we spend an afternoon or an evening together studying Scripture, making something amazing in the kitchen and creating something that corresponds to the verse we're in. Choosing the crafts each time can be a challenge for several reasons. It needs to be something they can completely finish (or do most of) because once they leave they're probably not going to work on it themselves - that's just the nature of teenagers. Remember? It also needs to be a project that keeps they're attention, is age-appropriate and is cool enough that they'll want to keep it or give it to someone special. But hey, no pressure on the Bible study leader, right? Here are just a few of the projects we've done together in the year we've been meeting. * This month's craft will be the adorable cross stit...
Read more