Pick Your States Not Your Nose!

Ha! Ha! I crack me up. Friday! Friday! Yay!

5th day of voting and after today you don't have to come back until Monday when Round 1 will continue. But let's focus on today.

Vote 3 times over there --------->>>>

Freedom: Ohio vs. Maryland
Tera and Treye are in Ohio, right? Hmmm.... Can Maryland crab cakes take over Tera and Treye in Ohio? We shall see.

VOTE OVER THERE---->

Independence: Georgia vs. Vermont The peach battles maple syrup! I know, let's pour some maple syrup on grilled peaches! Did I just make that recipe up?

VOTE OVER THERE------>

Liberty: Massachusetts vs. Kansas The home of the Boston Tea party battles the largest ball of string... sing it loud, sing it proud- where do you want to go?

VOTE OVER THERE-----> cha-cha-cha... I'll give you a recap tomorrow. Isn't it liberating to be silly. Go ahead. Try it!

It's the Final Three

All passengers from Georgia, Maryland or New Jersey please report to your appointed decks and tell us what makes your state the Taste of USA!

This week we travelled to Georgia.

We stopped in Maryland and Heather did the research on the Monopoly Railroads. The lucky person behind me will be the recipient of a Starbucks $5 gift card this weekend.

And Maureen takes her kids to the Six Flags in New Jersey. And I don't know why New Jersey owns the Ellis Island but they do.

It's been a fun week and a great month for me learning some very interesting facts and re-learning so much that I had forgotten. Today is for Georgia, Maryland and New Jersey but tomorrow is

Free for All Friday!

So everyone chime in

and tell us what makes your state

The Taste of USA!

Welcome to the Old Line State

Oh, here we go again. You say Maryland and I say Crab Cakes! That sounds delicious.

On September 13, 1814, Francis Scott Key was watching a battle that was part of the War of 1812 at Fort McHenry and it was this battle that inspired him to write the Star Spangled Banner. Just 6 short years until it's Bicentennial Celebration. Don't forget, Maryland is the state that provided the land for the nations capital. So, you can imagine the amount of history that must be tucked around every corner. The Capital Region will be a great place for you to explore.

Our first stop in Maryland is Baltimore. Do you remember the game of Monopoly and the B&O Railroad spot? I'm 38 years old. I've played Monopoly no less than 100 times in my life and I never knew B&O was real! Baltimore and Ohio Railroad is hosting Kids Fest 2008 on September 13 & 14th. I will send you a $5 Starbucks gift card if you can be the first to give me the history of the other three railroads. What were they? Reading, Pennsylvania and Short Line?

Some of the larger attractions in Baltimore include the Ravens football team, the Orioles Baseball team and numerous golf courses to enjoy a round of 19. Or, visit Inner Harbor where you can go to the National Aquarium or the Maryland Science Center.

If we travel over to the Eastern region of Maryland, I get the feeling we're going to be hitting quaint small town after cute small town that all have tons of history. I picked Ocean City to stop in. They have Sundae in the Park, right up Claudia's alley. We're going to slow down our pace and enjoy the Boardwalk, stroll the beach and forget our diets!

That's not all there is to Maryland but that's all I'm covering here today. I hope you will join in and tell us what you love about Maryland.

Fun Facts for Maryland are: the state flower is the Black-eyed Susan, the state dog is the Chesapeake Bay Retriever and the state bird is the Baltimore Oriole.

All Marylanders report to the Deck on THURSDAY, July 24th to tell us what makes Maryland the Taste of USA!