Property of the Week

This week's featured property is a large brick home in Monroe.

Room, room, room! Your family will have all the space you need in this 2900 square foot brick home in Monroe. Four bedrooms on the second floor will end the fights over the kids sharing rooms. On the main floor, you will find a formal living room and dining room, both with stunning original woodwork. The bonus room could be a sitting room, office, playroom or a fifth bedroom. The large kitchen has room for an active cook and a table for casual family meals.

Old meets new in the finished basement. Walk downstairs and you will find a large space waiting for an office or playroom and an enormous media room with attached kitchenette. You will be the one hosting the Super Bowl parties or stock it with snacks for the teens and have the peace of mind of knowing where your teen is on Friday nights because his friends will want to hang out in this great space. There is also a large separate laundry room in the basement, and here is where you will find the newer furnace.

Spend summer evenings on your screen front porch talking with friends or hang a hammock on the upstairs back sleeping porch for rainy day naps.

The location cannot be beat. Only a block to East School Park means the kids will have plenty of space to run. Walk to events at the Fairgrounds and let the kids bike downtown or to the Middle School. This house is a gem waiting for a new family to call it home.

Support the Middle School Food Drive

The Monroe Middle School is sponsoring a food drive this week.

On Friday, students from the school will be collecting non-perishable food items from businesses around the Downtown Square and delivering them to the Interfaith Food Pantry.

If you are able to contribute, drop off your donations at a participating Downtown business before 11:15 on Friday morning. Re/Max Towne Square Realty is a drop off point. Bring your donation in and just let Deanna at the front know that you are contributing to the food drive.

If you are able to participate in any way, thank you.

Our Neighbors

There are some great communities in the Stateline Area. One of the largest is Freeport, IL. Located just half an hour south of Monroe, Freeport has some wonderful options for outdoor recreation this winter:

• Oakdale Nature Preserve is a wonderful natural area, 133 acres of forest, prairie and streams In the winter, there are 4 miles of cross country ski trail available for public use. You can rent skis from the Freeport Park District for only $10-15. Contact Freeport Park District details. Oakdale offers recreational and educational programs throughout the year and has a nature center, lodge and auditorium available for rental or parties.
• Krape Park is a draw for the entire Stateline Area. It has been designated an "Outstanding Multi-Use Facility" by the Illinois Parks and Recreation Area. This time of year, bring your ice skates or sleds to join in the winter fun. During the warmer months, paddle boats are available for rental and the Merry Go Round is running. There is a large children's play area, a mini-golf course and a picnic area. Enjoy a concert in Koenig Theater or bring the fishing poles and cast your lines from the pier on Yellow Creek.
• Bring the ice skates to Taylor Park as well. There is a large lighted ice skating area available for public use. In the summer months, this popular parks hosts sports leagues and picnics.

If you prefer indoor recreation during the cold months, consider some of the Freeport Museums:

• The Stephenson County Historical Society is houses in a home rumored to have been a stop on the Underground Railroad.
• Tour their museum on Friday, Saturday and Sunday afternoons. Spend some time at the Freeport Arts Center. Their galleries feature permanent and rotating collections and exhibitions. Come on February 6 for their Wine, Cheese and Chocolate fund raising event. Tickets are $15 for members, $18 for non-members, or $20 at the door.
• Learn about the important role the railroad played in the development of our area at the Silver Creek Museum.
  

Whether you are vacationing in your own back yard or making our area a getaway destination, have fun exploring both the Green County, WI and Stephenson County, IL areas!

Sugar River Dairy Yogurt

The entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well in the Green County area. We are home to many artisan and small businesses. I thought it would be interesting to feature some of these businesses in the upcoming weeks.

Sugar River Dairy is an artisan business located in the hills outside of Albany. Named for the Sugar River that meanders through the area, Sugar River Dairy focuses on making just a couple of things and doing them extremely well - yogurt and their new line of sour cream.

Owners Ron and Chris Paris are one of only three artisan, homestead yogurt makers in Wisconsin. They focus on small batch, non-homogenized yogurt created with milk from local cows. The cows eat grass in pastures, and they live their lives without the synthetic growth hormone rBGH.

Ron and Chris create Sugar River Dairy yogurt without additives, stabilizers or high fructose corn syrup. What they do use are high quality, natural ingredients. Natural vanilla. Live acidophilus cultures. Organic cane sugar. Berries. Peaches.

I first tried Sugar River Dairy yogurt a few years ago, and I have not bought any other kind of yogurt since. It is like no other yogurt I have tasted - smooth, creamy and rich with just the right amount of tang.

Ron and Chris offer plain and vanilla yogurt as well as raspberry, blueberry, peach and strawberry. The fruit flavors are only in 6 oz cups, and the vanilla and plain are offered in larger 24 oz containers. Locally, you can purchase them at Brennans or Piggly Wiggly. Sugar River Dairy yogurt is also available in Madison at Whole Foods, Willy St Coop, the Westside Community Market and more. The new line of sour cream is a little harder to find.

You can also tour Sugar River Dairy to see how they do things. Just call ahead (608-938-1218) because they do take two days a week to do their deliveries.

Consider Marmoleum

Homeowners these days are often considering the environmental impact of their choices when remodeling or updating their homes. From low VOC paints to reclaimed cabinetry, there is a wide range of sustainable products out there.

One area that is generating some press is flooring. Floors are one area of homes that are often overlooked even though they make a huge difference in the general feel of a home. There are many choices for sustainable flooring including recycled fiber carpeting and sustainable bamboo and cork floors.

People are also turning to a very old option again - linoleum. These days, it goes by the name marmoleum, but the product is the same. It is made in a process that is mostly unchanged in the last century and a half. Linseed oil (from flax) is combined with things like pine rosin, natural pigments and wood flour. Heat, roll, press and cure.

There is no off gassing associated with marmoleum, and there appear to be no health concerns associated with the creation of marmoleum, its use or disposal. Marmoleum outlasts many other flooring options because it hardens and becomes even more durable over time.

From an allergy perspective, marmoleum beats recycled fiber carpeting hands down. Carpeting will always trap allergens, unlike wood and tile floors. Marmoleum has the benefit of being anti-static, so dust and dirt do not stick to it when you clean. The anti-bacterial properties of linseed oil are also present in marmoleum.

If you are changing the flooring in your home, give marmoleum a look. Unlike a few decades ago, the current variety of colors is extensive, and you can chose from planks, tiles and sheets.