Chattanooga Is Home

Welcome October!

I have a fondness for October because it seems that fall has finally arrived, the leaves really start to turn, and pumpkins inexplicably make their way to my house. The cooler weather is welcome, and the chilly nights allow me to snuggle under the covers and get a good night’s sleep. It also seems to be an invitation to our dogs to try and sneak into our bed for some extra square inches under our covers.

Rock City’s
Enchanted Maize
271 Chattanooga Valley Rd
Flintstone, GA

One of my favorite Chattanooga area activities for fall is Rock City’s Enchanted Maize. For $8.50 ($6.50 for kids 4 to 12) you get to get lost in a maze of corn nestled at the foot of Lookout Mountain. The maze has two paths to explore, with questions at specific junctions to help aid you in your journey.

Last year our family took a Sunday afternoon to get lost and we were in there for somewhere between an hour and an hour and a half. It was fun, though it was a bit hot for the afternoon. After we stumbled out of the path, we toured the rest of the grounds. Fuller took a ride on the cow train, we had some snacks, and took some pretty pictures. (We didn’t take a hay ride due to allergies. But it looked like fun!)
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Homeschooling families in Chattanooga have discovered ways to make learning fun and part of family life together. Parents, grandparents- find out a way (in the sea of many ways) to spark a love of learning in the heart of a child you love.

No matter how you choose to educate your child, you an enrich the learning experience at home. Find out how at the 25th annual Home Education Expo.

Eighty-five exhibitors from across the U.S can provide you with delightful books, games, CD-ROMs, art supplies, toys, and videos- all great for family time activities or wholesome birthday and Christmas gifts. Many of these products are not found in stores. Most of the vendors are home educators themselves and can give you the insight you need to involve your whole family in creating a lifestyle of learning.
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Last Thanksgiving my mom, sister, and I took a trip to South Pittsburgh, TN to visit the Cast Iron Lodge Outlet. While we were there I got one of the employees to change the video in the VCR to see how the cast iron cookware was made. It was pretty interesting, but what was even more interesting was the video that followed.

The Food Network had done a segment on the National Cornbread Festival, which is held in South Pittsburgh every year. I thought cornbread was just cornmeal, eggs, milk, and whatever else. I admit that I also tend to think that cornbread comes from a blue and white box with the name “Jiffy.”

I thought the Food Network segment was interesting because during the festival there was a cornbread competition and to the people in that competition, there was more than cornmeal, eggs, and milk. They liked the whatever else that you can stuff into cornbread. There were chilies, tomatoes, green peppers, sausage, and even seafood.

The National Cornbread Festival will begin on Saturday and the Martha White (one of the festival’s sponsors) website lists all the finalists in this year’s contest. The festival begins at 9 am and the cost is $3 per admission (under 6 is free). There are a lot of events planned for celebrating cornbread: a quilt exhibit, bluegrass music, and tours of the Lodge factory.

If you plan on going, the directions are pretty simple and South Pittsburgh is very easy to get there from Chattanooga. And if you see me there, ask me what I like in my cornbread. I might learn something new!

[tags]cornbread, National Cornbread Festival, South Pittsburgh, Tennessee[/tags]