Throwback: Maryland Living Part II

I can't say I've met too many people in Maryland, thus far, but some of the people I have met have been great. I feel very blessed to have been given certain opportunities that may be "the norm" out here, but are completely new to me. The norm = everyone has a boat or knows someone with a boat. My boat shoes have even gotten some slack - "How many boats were you wearing those Sperry's on in the Midwest??" Zero. But it's not like I haven't been on a boat... I grew up paddle-boating in my pond, duh ;)

Since being in Maryland I have gone boating (not sailing) a lot and it has been AWESOME! I once again can't not say how thankful I am for the opportunities. It's been great to meet new people, go to new restaurants, see JELLYFISH, and watch some of the most beautiful sunsets on these boating adventures!

Labor Day

It was supposed to be a rainy day, but it ended up being pretty sunny through the early afternoon. We spent a little time at the marina's pool before setting off. We thought we'd go South, close to the naval base... but the water got VERY choppy and only made it half was there before turning around. The one thing I still find funny is pulling up to a restaurant in a boat, and just docking it while you go in! Pretty neat. 

The only thing more East Coast than boating that I've done... is eating crabs. People made comments to me before moving that they "hoped I liked seafood!" and I just shook my head, because there's more than just seafood out here! But in reality - seafood is a BIG deal out here. And I have never eaten so much fresh seafood in my life. Crab dip, raw tuna, calamari, soft crab, shrimp (not battered, or popcorn lol), rockfish, ... you name it. They even sell crabs on the side of the road around here!

The new "normal" these days. So, in true East Coast fashion, we went to our first Crab Feast. We drove all the way up to a city near Annapolis, just across the (Chesapeake) Bay Bridge, and had ourselves some crabs with Andrew's fellow co-workers. 

       

Can you imagine the Chesapeake being your backyard?? I can't! But our first crab feast was a success. We got our first lessons on how to.. let's say.. disassemble a crab. Honestly, it was little reward for such hard work! May cuts were to be had in the process. But really, the feast wasn't about just about feasting - eating crabs is about socializing. If you talk to anyone around here they'll tell you about how their family gets together for crab feasts, the memories they have from the experience, and the time spent around the table talking while cracking crabs. Maybe a new tradition in the future??

I think this about sums up what I/we have been up to since my move! The most exciting part about moving is all the new experiences and places to explore - and boy, do we have a TON left to do!

- Julie

Throwback: Maryland Living Part I

It finally it starting to feel like fall out here!! Mother Nature's fever has broke, and we are enjoying cool, breezy 70 degree weather allllll day, every day so far this week. I say this week because every week there's one day that is fantastic weather, and then things get all heated up again and we're back in the high 80s. NOT USED TO EIGHTY DEGREE WEATHER IN LATE SEPTEMBER.

Anyway, I wanted to share about some cool stuff we've done since moving and I can't figure out how to explain without just doing a lot of pictures and a blurb by it? Hope this is enjoyable!

Smash Mouth/Sugar Ray/Uncle Kracker Concert
-- This was actually pretty awesome. I've been to an array of concerts in my time (Rascal Flatts, Blink-182, Bare Naked Ladies, Goo Goo Dolls, John Mayer, Boyce Avenue, Owl City...), but something about this one made it one of my favorites.  Maybe it was nostalgia, or knowing all the words, or catching Uncle Kracker's guitar pick... All I know is I would go to this concert again in a heart beat!

"Leonardtown Beach Party" 

-- Leonardtown has an event in the town square where they put in a sand pit with a volleyball court, have food vendors, stands selling crafts, vintage and new souped up cars, tents for local businesses present...and lots more. There was even a band, and a MERMAID in a water tank! A few performances went on during the band breaks - including a free Zumba class! Even saw the local gypsies dancing (not sure if that one was planned). You could even take a trolley down to the Wharf where there was a fish fry type of thing going on! We opted for sitting outside a local restaurant on the square and had some sangria and crab dip!

Orioles vs Cardinals Game

-- For Andrew's Birthday, I thought it would be fun to go to a Cardinals game. Lucky enough the schedule aligned perfected and we got tickets for a Saturday afternoon game. We drove up, and would have made it there just on time but parking is a little crazy there, on top of maybe leaving the tickets in the car... Oops! We made it though. Unfortunately the Cards didn't play well, but root root root for that home team because the Orioles hit home runs repeatedly. Overall though, it was a great experience. Camden Yards Stadium is pretty nice, and I was really surprised (although I shouldn't have been) that there were SO many Cards fans there! And of course.. I got my fill of ballpark food. Always essential for a good baseball experience. The funniest part about this trip up to Baltimore though was that a comic convention was going on - so we saw LOTS of people in crazy outfits all over the city when we came in, and even more as we were leaving. 

On Andrew's actual birthday - we went golfing. Or rather, Andrew golfed and I cheered him on from the cart :) We met an older guy who Andrew invited to play with him named Bob. It was pretty funny watching this all unfold and the next 2 hours or so spent with Bob. But the golf course was next to Brenton Bay and from the top of the hill (first picture) you can actually see the bay! 

And then after golf, we went home for some birthday cake. When in doubt about someone's favorite cake, buy your favorite :) ....because at least in my case, ice cream cake is usually a crowd pleaser.

Farmer's Market 

-- There are PLENTY of farmers markets, as well as farms with pick your own produce or farm stands, around where I live. It's actually pretty great for getting local, fresh fruit and veggies. I went out to one of the major farmers market in the area and it was not what I expected. Having lived so close to Soulard's Farmers Market in STL, I expected it to be a lot like that - LOTS of food vs not as much other random stuff being sold. This farmers market was somewhat more of a flea market, mixed with a little farmers market. But you could have bought ANYTHING there... furniture, personal hygiene essentials, socks, t-shirts with a variety of subjects, spices, toys, dogs, cats, rabbits.... I was tempted by the puppies, but I walked away with some local honey (supposedly good for allergies). Also - notice the "buggy parking only" sign above!

This is getting pretty long - stay tuned for Part II tomorrow!!

Farmer's Daughter

Modeling in the summer of '94 - outfit made
by the my sister, Sarah.

I grew up spending every last week/weekend of July at the Grundy County Fairgrounds. We weren't there for the race track, or the county fair... my family was there for the 4-H fair. If you are completely unaware of this organization, educate yourself here!

I attended my first 4-H fair in the summer of '91... I was 6 months old. There's plenty of home video footage of this event with my Dad carrying me around in the pig barn while my siblings are showing pigs. (That doesn't sound country at all, does it??) Anyway - it was a big deal when I turned 10 that I FINALLY got to be in 4-H.  I would soon regret this as I chose to enter the baking category, and a category where I made a family tree. For some reason, practicing making a coffee cake under the guidance of my Mom felt like torture at 10 - and not to mention you had to type a make up mock, well-rounded meal to serve with this dessert (oh, the drama!). Unfortunately, it was a short lived venture, but I still hold the memories spent with my siblings and cousins running around the fair grounds near and dear. Not to mention the best pork chop dinners and snow cones of my life. (Can't forget the food!)

Now that I've explained that background... Here we are present day, and the St. Mary's County Fair just happened to be going on. Mind you - they have had signs up for WEEKS all over the county advertising the event.

Cute, right??

So, obviously I wanted to go. And, oh, it did not disappoint. Upon entering, we got vouchers for free Chick-fil-A sandwiches (winning!). Knowing this was a good start, we headed to check out a few animals. Lo and behold, this is joint county fair AND 4-H fair! Being that it was a joint event, there was a TON to look at. The fairgrounds had multiple barns for all the different exhibits going on, animals, and even a little museum. In addition, there was a whole carnival aspect, and live entertainment (ie- gypsies dancing, magic show) going on as well! And obviously I took pictures....

Entering the fairgrounds!

Just posing next to a watermelon tank.

Just some award winning pigs.

And some MASSIVE chickens.

A table full of corn. Not sure of the judging criteria here.

I could have taken pictures of tractors in the museum, but
I thought this pelican was pretty cool.

Holy Gourds!

Biggest watermelons I've ever seen

Award-winning pumpkins.

And one more... a massive sunflower!

Just some unattended sheep...

....and an unattended cow

Made into the 4-H barn!

Sorry, couldn't help but laugh at the award winning hay.

And some food to end the trip! (chicken teryaki on a
stick and CHEESE FRIES!)

I'd have to say the biggest highlights of the day were towards the end: we watched a bunny rabbit judging contest (still not sure on the criteria for that, but it was fun to watch young kids moving their bunnies' tails around), and I got some cheese fries (my biggest food guilty pleasure). No comparison to Polk'a'Dot Diner in Braidwood, IL or Portillo's, but it was good enough for me. I won't mention the starter corn dogs as well....

Anyway... maybe next year we'll enter something into an exhibit! There was a contest for everything - photography, drawing, cake decorating, produce, jams & jellies, quilting, ...just to name a few.

But that's all I got for now. Stay tuned for some of the fun stuff we have already done/tried in the past 2 months (ie- the 13hr drive to Maryland, Cards vs Orieoles game, boating, Smashmouth/Uncle Kraker/Sugar Ray concert, my first time driving in downtown DC, first Crab Feast, boating again, food in Maryland...)!

- Julie