Cornucopia

The familia Nieves took a little spin (day trip) to a corn maze today near Cumberland, MD. Just a mere 200 miles each way, give or take.

I'm not sure what got into us, but when we were Alpharetta-ites, we made an annual pilgrimage to the coolest corn maze in Dawsonville, GA. It was a different maze every year with different challenges (the goal was to find as many hidden stations as possible, get your maze card punched, and oh yeah, find your way out). Over the last few years, we developed a kind of "corn maze fever".

This corn maze was a bit different. The kind folks at J&B Farms in Oldtown, MD, also design a different maze each year, but they are all educationally-based themes. We learned today that in years past, they had themed mazes including a food pyramid, a map of the U.S., agriculture in America, and many more.

This year's maze at J&B was "Passport to Colonial America", in celebration of the 400th anniversary of the founding of Jamestown. We were sent into the five-acre corn maze which from the air was reportedly shaped like the original thirteen colonies plus the American flag of the original thirteen colonies. From our perspective, it looked like endless corn with lots and lots of paths running through it.

We were given our instructions: find the answers to the 13 questions on our "scavenger hunt" card. Record each answer correctly and report back to the J&B staff. The prize? "I Conquered the Maze at J&B Farms" stickers for each of us!!! Shortest distance to the goal, approximately two miles. If we got lost and went off course....who knew?

Clues and answers were posted on signs that could be found throughout the maze, but we were warned that some of the signs/answers could be a bit tricky, so to read each sign carefully.

We knew one answer without even having to find the sign: "The autumn celebration in 1621 became known as _____". We knew right away it was Turkey Day, and that only left 12 more clues to find.

Along the way, we discovered some games that colonial children played (tops, blind man's bluff, walking on stilts); the names of the three ships that landed at Jamestown (Susan Constant, Godspeed, and Discovery); what colony was founded as a haven for debtors (Georgia by Oglethorpe); what do the red, white, and blue colors represent on the American flag (bravery, libery, justice); and who told the men in his colony, "If you don't work, you don't eat" (Capt. John Smith). These are some of the questions we answered correctly, and the first time.

We did however, have two of the 13 questions answered incorrectly, and we had a choice. Walk away from that pretty green "I Conquered the Maze" sticker, or march our buns back in there to find the correct answers. And march we did.

We discovered that Pennsylvania was founded as a haven for Quakers (not New Jersey as we had thought), and that Squanto was the person who helped the first settlement in Massachusetts survive the first winter.

And guess what? We got our stickers PLUS an ear of corn for each of us! What a day.

Somehow we forgot to bring the camera on our adventure, so the boys were kind enough to reenact their victory pose once we arrived home, with their stickers, their completed maze answer sheets and of course, their corn.

Brian would say that this is the CORNIEST joke of all, but it was a truly an a-MAZING experience!

There's No Place Like Home(s)

We’ve officially lived in Columbia for five months now. At times, it feels like it’s been years, other times, I still feel like a brand newbie.
I asked a doctor friend once, when I might finally stop referring to Alpharetta as “home”. I have no family there. But yet, it became “home” over the almost 20 years I lived there. Ed and I got married in the Atlanta area. Brian and Sevan were born in Marietta. Our first two homes together were in Smyrna and Alpharetta.
So when will I stop saying, “back home, we did such and such”. Or, “in my homeschool group back home, we did xyz, etc.”

One thing my doctor friend said is that it really helps to get involved quickly and to make new friends. We’ve already been so warmly welcomed and loved, especially by the CHC’ers (our homeschool group).
Also, my friend said that after we’ve spent at least one of every season here, a good cold winter, fresh Maryland spring, LONGGG hot summer, and a beautiful fall, then MD would really start to feel more like home. (BTW, on that note, it’s actually cooler in Alpharetta than up “north” here in MD! What’s up with that??? We’re wearing shorts and sandals in October! But not white…it’s after Labor Day, after all, and some rules remain constant whether north or south!)


Thanks to CHC field trips, Children’s Month and Free Fall Baltimore (many museums have free admission in October), we’ve enjoyed Port Discovery Children’s Museum (interactive and hands-on to the nth degree); the "Top of the World" Tower on the 27th Floor of the World Trade Center in Baltimore, and the B & O Railway Museum. We went into D.C. for a field trip to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, but the tour was full, so we simply diverted down the street to the National Air and Space Museum (now how cool is that).
Learning our way around and about the Metro has been a thrill for Brian and Sevan (formerly known as “Evan”).

Even as Chick-Fil-Moo, I’ve had the privilege of representing our store at a few local football games, setting up the CFA tent and selling on-site. Through this process, I’ve discovered four of the local high schools, and can even find their respective football fields and concession stands without getting lost!

I just found out a few days ago that my step-daughter is getting married soon. I met my future stepson-in-law once, several years ago, and I thought he was a great guy. He’s in the Coast Guard, and his ship just docked in Baltimore. Although we weren’t able to visit with him (he was literally bussed out within hours of his arrival at oh-dark-thirty), we took a hop up to Baltimore, and took a tour of his ship. What a neat experience!

What wasn’t quite so neat were the loud and long blasts of the horn that freaked out both Brian and Sevan. The two of them high-tailed it off the ship with hands tightly covering their ears. It was kind of funny to see them trying to walk down a steep ship ladder without hands! (OK, that may sound a little cruel, but sometimes ya gotta laugh or ya gotta cry!)

Today, we discovered Woodbine, MD...the CHC'ers annual Fall Frolic. Hay rides, boo barn, fresh apple cider, hay maze, and pumpkin patch.

We were more than a little a-mazed!!!

Anyway, it’s all beginning to come together. Baltimore, D.C., Howard County, Columbia, mixed in with the memories and the people we'll always love "back home".

Ah...home sweet, homes.