A Day on the Bay: Tilghman Island, St. Michaels, and Sailing on the Selina II

What started out as a romantic day on the Bay for the hubby and I turned into a day trip for the entire family the following week — that’s because there was plenty to do for just the two of us, and plenty for the boys to enjoy as well. The plan for the romantic […]

Finding the Stories: Rock Run Historic Area

Visiting an historic home, or old factory, or those fast disappearing grist mills, is a walk among the ghosts of the former inhabitants. I love exploring these places, peering into corners for the stories of the people who lived and worked there, and Rock Run Historic Area, tucked away in the Susquehanna State Park, in […]

A Taste: Wineries of Maryland (first in a periodic series)

 I am sipping one of the wines we purchased even as I write this. Last Saturday — a glorious day of bright blue skies and few clouds lingering overhead — my friend, husband, and I visited three local Maryland wineries: Serpent Ridge Vineyard, Berrywine Plantations/Linganore Winecellars, and Black Ankle Vineyards. According to the Maryland Wine […]

A Visit to the Ponds: Lilypons Water Gardens

Although perhaps not a destination in and of itself — unless you have or would like to have a backyard water garden — Lilypons Water Gardens is set in lovely Frederick County farmland, and well worth a visit if you’re near by or taking a scenic drive through southern Frederick County. If you’re visiting SugarLoaf […]

A Necessary Stop: Fort Necessity

We trusted 22-year-olds a lot more back in the 1700s than we do now. It’s not because life is more complicated now, because that’s arguable. Back then we (and by we I mean not us but our British colonial overlords) told a young man to take a bunch of men and forge a road where […]

Falling for Water Falls: Ohiopyle State Park (PA)

The waters of the Youghiogheny River are the center of the Ohiopyle State Park, in the Laurel Highlands area of Pennsylvania. The Ohiopyle Falls are gorgeous, and I knew from a previous visit that I wanted my sons to see Cucumber Falls, which feed into the Yough itself. I decided to drag the kids and […]

Going for the Ghosts: Ellicott City Ghost Tour

A little bit of local history, a lot of old fashioned storytelling, and almost no scary, a ghost tour is a great excuse (if you need one) to walk slowly up and down the main street of Ellicott City, hand in hand with that special someone, on a summer evening. The ghost tours (there are […]

Celtic Fling & Highland Games

Who doesn’t love a good Renaissance festival? Not that Renaissance festivals really just celebrate the European Renaissance anymore — if they ever did. Rather, they celebrate American lunacy and (mis)interpretation of the 1500-1600s in Europe. And that’s just fine by me. But if women went around with fairy wings strapped to their backs or furry […]

Flight 93 National Memorial

Flight 93 National Memorial is the nation’s permanent memorial to the 40 passengers and crew of Flight 93. It’s their final resting place and their remains are still present. The crash site is bordered by the Memorial Plaza. We headed out early Thursday morning, taking I70 West out of Baltimore to the Memorial, nestled in […]