Nosey Parker in the Neighborhood

I am participating in Kat’s linky party over at Mumma's Time To Create.  I became friends with her a few months ago and we’ve even swapped some great fabric.  I love her Christmas tree tablerunner tutorial, and I just recently used her twirly skirt tutorial with great success (you’ll see photos soon).

1.  About my home…

 

cousins playing in our driveway

I live in Maryland, which is awesome!  We live right down the street from the Patuxent River Naval Air Station.  Our home is about an hour away from Washington, DC; about 2 hours from Baltimore; and about an hour away from Annapolis.  There are also mountains in Western Maryland to visit and Ocean City for beaches.  I have lived lots of places when I was in the Navy, but I love it here the most.

being so close to the Navy base, interesting things fly overhead

2.  The houses…

There are all types of homesteads…apartments, townhomes, duplexes, and I happen to have grown up on a horse farm.  There are tons of farms here and Amish!  Southern Maryland happens to be a former tobacco growing area.  There is a beautiful little area called Port Tobacco on the Potomac River.  In fact, the county fair pageant winner is named “Queen Nicotina.”  I am not joking.  Also, I was first runner-up in high school…

at the pool in our neighborhood

My daughter tells everyone that we live in the “blue plastic house.”  We live in a really nice neighborhood in St. Mary’s County.  There are tons of parks, soccer fields, recreation areas, duck ponds, playgrounds, pools, walking trails, and even a neighborhood elementary school.  Most typical homes are 3 bedrooms and 2.5 baths.  Our particular neighborhood is a little different because there are many custom homes.  Our house is a little unique because it has two master bedroom suites, which is nice for me.  The extra master suite happens to be my office/sewing room.  I was a high school and college English teacher after getting out of the Navy, so I have tons of teaching materials and books.  The master suite might be a little too snug anymore!  Our home is also getting a brand new roof thanks to Hurricane Irene.

Ack!  Tree on the house!

Speaking of the weather…one of the things I miss about California (the state—funnily enough I live in California, MD) is the temperate weather.  We have all four seasons and because we are on the coast, hurricanes, too.  And a few years ago, a tornado ripped through nearby LaPlata (where I went to high school) and there were actually some fatalities.  Some winters we get a lot of snow, which I loved as a teacher—snow day!—but some winters we don’t.  I don’t particularly like cold weather, but we have a fireplace and I love hanging out with the family when we have a fire.  Our Siamese cat, Mickey, has his basket near the hearth, so he even joins us!

You must own snow boots and flip flops to be comfortable year round here!

3.  Favorite Places…

If you live here, you better like seafood!  We live right between two rivers, the Potomac and the Patuxent and then of course by the Chesapeake Bay.  For Thanksgiving, in addition to turkey we always have stuffed ham and fried oysters!  It’s a tradition.

enjoying the beach in Ocean City, MD

We love to go to the beach…Ocean City or just nearby.  Pretty much all the parks here are waterfront on the Patuxent River or Chesapeake Bay, so we like Greenwell State Park and Point Lookout…the southern tip of St. Mary’s that, well, looks out to the Chesapeake!  Because the first landing happened here in St. Mary’s, there are tons of historic places to visit such as St. Clements Island and historic St. Mary’s City. 

wild ponies at the beach in Assateague, MD (near Ocean City)

Another favorite destination is the National Aquarium in Baltimore and any of the Smithsonian museums in DC.  But we have our own little gem right across the bridge on Solomon’s Island.  The Calvert Marine Museum has a lighthouse, a children’s discovery room, and Bubbles and Squeak the river otters!

Visiting Pop-Pop, who lives [on the water of course] at Lake Anna in VA

looking for sea glass at Point Lookout State Park on a stormy day

4.  How do people get around?

By car!  There isn’t really any public transportation in St. Mary’s except for a very rudimentary bus service.  There does happen to be bus transit to Washington, DC, but that’s about it.  Of course in the city there is the metro.  I drive a minivan!

Well, that’s it!  Looking forward to reading everyone’s links!