Lost; Edmonton Corn Maze

The other day Ryan and I wanted to check out the Edmonton Corn Maze and so we did.

During last year’s adventure at the maze we did pretty well except for one area that we got hopelessly lost in for way to long so I was feeling good about this year, that can’t happen two years in a row, can it?


The first and very obvious difference between this year’s trip and last was that it was absolutely packed. We were one of only a handful of cars last year and now there are hundreds.

I guess we shouldn’t have been shocked though since it was the weekend and an absolutely beautiful day.


After paying our admission we followed the hoards of people onto the grounds ready to get lost in the maze.


We took a picture of the "map" which is an aerial view of the maze and shows off the amazing designs that are created every year. In a pinch, if you can figure it out, this map is really helpful to get you moving.

At the entrance to the maze are quizzes for people to bring along. When you find the #1 post, the answer to the question will tell you if you should go right or left. After a few years of experience, I've decided it's always best to grab more than one quiz and the second one should be something you think will be easy. Keep that as a back-up in case you really can't figure out the answer to your first quiz.

Once we got started it felt really easy. We just walked along, following our very basic instinct and almost never got lost, not until we got to post number 5.

We were REALLY sure what the correct answer was and it said to go left, so left we went. We took every loop and path and turn in that direction and it led us nowhere. I was sure there was a path somewhere that we missed and would lead us out of the maze at the halfway point. Eventually one of the staff who was walking around asked how we were doing, we explained our dilemma and she informed us that we were meant to go RIGHT at the post. I’m still pretty sure the answer to the question was wrong, but sure enough when we found the fifth post again and went right we got out almost right away.

We took the time outside the maze to put our sweaters in the car and then went straight back in to try to conquer the second half. This side seemed fairly simple, we never got really lost. What we did get was covered in mud and toasty warm from the sunshine. It seemed like we were 2 of only a few people that thought ahead enough to wear rubber boots.

Back outside the maze again, having completed it without any issues, we explored the rest of the grounds. I really wanted to go on the jumping pillows but there were too many kids to squash so I didn’t. We checked out the petting zoos inhabitants; pigs, chickens, bunnies, cows and goats. We wanted to play some of the games as well but it was so hard to get near anything with the many families running everywhere.

Eventually we gave up and decided to go home. I’m considering going back again before it closes anyway!

Simple and Delicious Homemade Pizza

Do you ever get that feeling like you’re bored of even your favorite foods, like it’s time to try something new? Sometimes just a new brand or flavor will do the trick.
Ryan and I have been feeling that way and have been making an effort to try more new foods. We've also started making more food at home as opposed to buying it premade.

For a relaxing Sunday at home we opted to make pizza. Since I am a vegetarian and Ryan isn’t we make a half and half. I don’t like subjecting him to the plain cheese pizza if I don’t have to so I pile the sliced mushrooms on my side and Ryan gets all the pepperoni.

You will need:

Crust mix/premade crust/premade dough
Sauce
Mushrooms
Pepperoni (or any other toppings you prefer)
Marble & Mozza cheese
I’m not going to tell you how much of each will need because it would be based on what size pizza you are making and how heavily you like you toppings piled on.

 

Preheat the oven to 450F

Make your crust

Let rise for 10-15 minutes

Slice and cook mushrooms (I make mine in a frying pan)

Slice pepperoni

Shred cheese (lots of it!)

Spread the dough onto a 12 inch pizza pan or cookie sheet

Pinch the edges up to make a crust

Layer on your toppings in whatever fashion suites you. I like mine underneath the cheese.

Bake 10-15 minutes or until the crust is golden, toppings are warm and cheese is melted

Broil on 525F for a about 2 minutes to get the cheese extra melty and add a bit of a crisp

We’ve made this same pizza twice now and it’s so satisfying. Both of us like it more than store bought or take-out because it isn’t greasy at all and it is made exactly how we like.

Do you want a crispier crust? Bake it longer! Don’t love having so much pizza sauce? Don’t put much on!

I forget sometimes that I like to cook, not just bake, so it's nice to try new things. What should I make next???

Pumpkin Patch

Since this was our second year doing it I'm now going to call visiting the pumpkin patch a tradition. 

Last year when I made pumpkin pie it was with a pumpkin that I bought at the store and we got our carving pumpkins from the patch. This year I got both in one stop. 

Prairie Gardens is a great local place with tons of U-pick pumpkins in different varieties and sizes and for really reasonable prices. 

When you arrive there is a huge field to park in and that is right next to where the u-pick is, otherwise you would get on a school bus which takes you just down the road to the rest of the farm. Ryan and I haven't gone over but I've been before and it's really great if you have little ones. There are things to buy, great food and plenty of games and entertainment. 

If you go just to buy pumpkins there is no admission, you just pay for what you take. I knew I wanted to get a few pie pumpkins but I hadn't thought about what I wanted to carve this year. We bought 3 different varieties last year that worked out great. 

We walked up and down the rows looking for desirable looking pumpkins. Ryan really likes the perfect round ones and I like to have a great stem. We each found a few that we liked. Some white, some big and some really tiny. 

Since half the fun is looking for them we took our time. Eventually we got a bit cold and on his shortcut to the car for mittens Ryan got a little zap from an electric fence. Fortunately it was more shocking than painful. 

With warm hands we continued our hunt. I found some perfect little ones for my pies and we each settled on small pie pumpkins for carving as well. Since we live in an apartment this year we don't have much space to display big jack-o-lanterns anymore. 

With arms full we headed over to pay. They have a neat system to measure the pumpkins and you are charged based on size. For a whopping $18 dollars we got 7 pumpkins. 4 to make into pie, 2 to carve and 1 decorative white one that may or may not get carved. 

I've taken the time to look at prices in the stores since then and we got a great deal! The tiny ornamental pumpkins that are no bigger than a fist are $2 each where I looked! 

I'm really looking forward to turning these little beauties into delicious pie!! 

Farewell to Nova Scotia .. Again

Our last day finally arrived. As with most trips, I didn't want the day to come, I didn't want to think about going back home. So, with 24 hours left we needed to make the most of it. 

We pack the car, said goodbye to Ryan's family again and hit the road. I actually drove this time too! My first time driving outside Saskatchewan and Alberta. 

Without having to say so we both knew that we would be stopping at LaHave Bakery again along the way. We didn't plan to stop before that other than to get gas, but we spent a little while in Shelburne walking along the waterfront too. 

I've discovered a fondness for many places along the South Shore and the Shelburne Waterfront is certainly one of them. 

I've also discovered that I much prefer to be the passenger while driving through Nova Scotia. I found myself getting a bit irritated and bored because the destination never felt as though it was getting nearer. 

After driving for what felt like many hours I finally got what I wanted; food at LaHave. If you are bored of hearing me talk about it, you best get used to it. Any chance I get I will be there. 

The atmosphere is great, it smells fantastic, the food (sweet and savory) is incredible and the look of the building is what my real estate dreams are made of. 

Full and satisfied I was able to get back on the road and feel a bit better about it. Which is good, because our next stop was Halifax. 

LaHave Bakery, in a sink

I've heard many, many people talk about how horrible it is to drive in Halifax, but I didn't find it bad at all. There was one intersection that I found a bit confusing but otherwise the drive in went okay. And as a bonus, we got one of the best parking spots on the waterfront. 

When I am in a place like this, particularly if I am in a touristy area, I can't help but be one of them. Ryan took my picture under the big wave, we walked back and forth near the water many times and stopped in one or two gift shops. 

Eventually we got bored of just walking and started to feel hungry. Unfortunately for us, we chose to eat at the Alexander Keith's patio and the menu was very small and therefore I was very limited. We didn't end up staying for more than a drink because nothing was appealing to us. Instead we decided to eat "somewhere else, later."

To keep our energy up while we looked for somewhere to have supper we stopped and had Cows ice cream. When in the Maritimes Cows is a must do. We shared Oreo ice cream in a sprinkle cone. 

While walking around we saw the Casino Nova Scotia and decided we should try our luck. We played in Moncton last year and came out on top. We decided on a $5 limit and stuck with it. We only play the 5¢ games so $5 goes reasonably far. 

Just like in Moncton, we opted to get memberships because they usually come with some kind of perk. This particular one gave us each $5 for free to start off with. Ryan's $5 came and went pretty quickly, but with mine we got it up to $9.50 and then cashed out. Making money without spending any is fun! 

At this point we felt ready to leave the waterfront in search of food elsewhere but we both felt pretty lazy. We decided to go to the mall thinking that we could find food there, but we quickly realized that most malls are not like West Edmonton Mall and that we are extremely spoiled. On the other hand, I did find a lot of stores that I like and probably could have done some good shopping if I had a bigger suitcase to bring it home in. 

We made the sad decision to eat something quick at the food court before driving to our hotel next to the airport. Once checked in we considered swimming but decided we should get to bed early so we could wake up at 5 for our flight home. 

Unsurprisingly I had an amazing trip. I already can't wait to go back again!

South Shore Beach Day

The best part of getting to the our South Shore destination is that we get a vacation from our vacation. That sounds a bit weird but after driving for what seemed like all day, everyday so far it was nice to sit still. 

We spent the night with Ryan's family (and this sweet darling kitten!) but they had work and school the next day so we went out on our own. 

Our first stop of the day was North East Point Beach. We were the only ones on the sand but there were plenty of people in the parking lot. 

The beach seemed different from last time when we were there. A new boardwalk showed up and most of these rocks and the bottom of the posts weren't visible last year.

Once we walked past what's left of the old wharf and through the rocky area we got to the soft pale sand. I think walking on marshmallows would feel similar. The sand felt like it was saturated with water, but not wet, a strange sensation.

We spent a while walking on the beach, dipping our toes in and out of the water and occasionally spotting tiny crabs. We had one more stop we wanted to get to before swimming and didn't want to miss the warmest part of the day.

Our next stop was Baccaro Point to see the lighthouse. Just thinking about it now, I don't think I've seen more than 1 or 2 lit lighthouses in all the times I've been to the maritimes.

We walked out on the rocks for a while and looked for sea glass. Last year we found a few colourful pieces, this year we only got 1 little piece before giving up.

A pair of ladies pulled up around the same time as us with big cameras and a picnic basket. They seemed to be enjoying themselves, capturing what surrounded them. One of them offered to take pictures for us and we chatted for a bit about this and that, mostly the weather and the waves.

Our final beach stop for the afternoon was Sandhills. We had a picnic lunch behind a big Boulder when we arrived. It was quite windy and the rocks protected us nicely while we ate our pizza.

When we finished eating, climbing on the rocks and pretending to do yoga for photos we got rid of the trash and walked across the rippled sand to where we wanted to swim.

The tide was really far out and made for quite the trek getting from our towels to the water. And as pretty as the sand looked, it was painful to walk on and even more painful to run across.

Considering it was September and in Alberta it was already down to highs of +8 and below, this water was unbelievably warm. Outside the wind, it was a really hot summery day here. 

The low tide I mentioned also makes for really shallow water. We walked and walked and never get deeper than my waist. Part of the fun of swimming in really shallow water is walking around on your hands and letting the waves push you around. We spent a while seeing who could get back to the shore fastest using only the faves and not propelling ourselves at all. I won. For some reason Ryan barely moved at all.

2 hours later when we had enough swimming and dried off, we snacked on our sun warmed watermelon and walked back along the beach and up to the parking lot. Once we dropped off our stuff at the car we walked out again for a quick peek at the neighbouring beach, Sebim. We only stayed for a minute to look around and wiggle our toes in the white sand before going back home to the see the family again.