Thanks so much! I’d mainly be looking to head to my friends on weekends so hopefully my time wouldn’t be as crucial.

This is helpful! Over my years of nursing, I’ve dealt with varying commutes but obviously I don’t know MD traffic. What would a drive from Columbia to Annapolis look like?

Yea I don't know how effective it would be. I've been walking 3 or 4 times and had dogs pull towards me in a non friendly way. Depending on the owner it seems like they don't exactly have control. Occasionally, children holding leashes for dogs larger than them.

I've been bit by a dog before so I'm probably just not trusting. Everyone's dog is the most friendly loving playful thing. Until it isn't. That being said on the flip side there are a good number of really well trained dogs walking around.

P.s. I have owned and intend to own dogs again. Just saying people in general don't necessarily have well trained, adjusted, non reactive dogs.

Pepper spray for dogs?

Columbia itself is very diverse and relatively laid back. The aforementioned trails are great and there are plenty of thing to do in the area or not far in the DC/Baltimore metro areas.

There are some restaurant gems in Columbia and Ellicott City, so please don't limit yourself to chain restaurants. Ditto for other small businesses.

Snow and cold weather come with the territory, but spring and fall are absolutely glorious. We tough out the 1-2 months of really cold weather and 1-2 months of really hot weather and make the most of the rest of the time when the weather is really nice. There's plenty to do inside, too, so if you have a hobby, whether it's pickleball, basketball, watercolor painting, or origami, there's bound to be a group here that does it or class that teaches it.

People are generally friendly and you can stick to yourself or find your people.

I moved here from the desert in LA county 25 years ago. It’s been awhile, but the most surprising thing to me was that clouds actually to mean that it might rain! I know, obvious. But as a kid in the desert, clouds just meant less sun. I keep multiple umbrellas in my car because it still doesn’t really occur to me to see the sky and check the weather.

Recently bought a single family home in Columbia. Walking around the trails everyone is super friendly. I do carry pepper spray just because some peoples dogs don't give me the most super friendly or in control vibe. Not sure what the apartments/townhome situations are like.

Depending on where your friends live in MD and VA it could be difficult to go to their places. Check Google maps and us the set or arrive feature at a time/date to get a good idea on traffic. DC has lots of great activities. Baltimore the same. Also Annapolis, Frederick, Ellicott city. As others have said close enough for a weekend trip to some small/medium ski resorts or state parks in the mountains. Same for ocean city, Rehoboth, assateague or Chincoteague for beaches (traffic to the beaches is miserable in the summer, take advantage of your nursing schedule to travel at off peak times).

I've lived in MD my whole life, all over the state and there are great places to live with varying advantages and disadvantages everywhere. Traffic, neighborhood safety, cost of living, work options vary greatly. We really are a u.s. in miniature.

Winter doesn’t actually start until around Christmas, fall is when it looks best. People are nicer towards Baltimore than DC.

Luckily traffic isn’t as bad as LA, but will still find a way to tick you off. When driving at night even on the highways you have to be vigilant about deers and hidden troopers. As far as good eats, you’ll have to go to either cities because finding food comparable to LA is a dime a dozen in Columbia. Our mini ktown is Elliott city. Glen burnie is like your equivalent of skid row, not a lot of homeless people, but many druggies and far right conservatives who are batshit.

It’s snowboarding season, so look up wisp or whitetail, the drives aren’t too far and it’s usually what we’re up to when we can’t fish.

Md traffic near and towards DC is awful. Md traffic towards baltimore isn't as terrible, but not great. Otherwise it's general nice. Rush hour sucks. If you are working 5am, 7am (7am can be ruined by an event or something which is fairly common depending on where you are going), 2pm, or night shift generally it's not too bad.

Politically, towards the coast it's a very liberal area. As you move inland it generally becomes more conservative.

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Weather, it actually doesn't snow that much, and most of the roads are well maintained for snowfall. Watch your speed. Don't accelerate while turning, don't brake while turning, and you should be fine. That being said, because it doesn't snow that much, when there is a lot of snowfall, there isn't enough plows to keep up with the roads and it quickly turns into emergency routes are the only decently maintained areas. Which good news, as a nurse there is a good chance your commute will be mostly covered.

Most people drive into DC or Baltimore for work, so rush hour can be a pain. I believe the interstate 95 corridor in MD/VA has the second worst traffic in the nation, right behind Los Angeles. The average commute time is about 40 minutes or so, based on the last report I saw.

Columbia is a great place to be, though. Nearly equidistant to Baltimore and DC if you want to get out and explore as well.

The Little Gym has classes that start at 4 months!

I would also highly recommend this. My roommate and both graduated in 2020 and moved to Columbia, we pay around $2200 for a fairly nice and updated 2 bed 2 bath. Our complex has some cheaper 2 bedrooms (closer to $2000). However our friend who used to have a 1 bedroom was paying between $1600-1700 for an okay place. You are going to get much more value if you find a roommate to split rent with

Hahah they really do put it right during morning nap time 🙈 I hate the term, but does hoco have any “mommy and me” baby groups? I want to find a community here and my baby loves activities. If you’d ever want to meet at one of the Columbia libraries or the Robinson Nature Center I’d be down!

Mmm I used to work for rec and parks, they don’t do a ton of <2 activities :/

I do like savage mill!

Do not show them anything, ignore them and or disengage right away. They want to see your bill/info to fuck with you. Be more concerned about that than about being nice to them.

There's lots of good information at the Howard County Recreation and Parks page.

Savage Mill is also a fun place to visit with frequent events.

I have an 11 month old! (Who also naps during library play times 😂)

And if there are any parents or nannies here with babies under two who want to make our own group let me know ☺️

I go to the library baby times when he isn’t napping! Often his first nap lines up with them :/

That may be a little young for the library events/groups but, It might be worth looking into.

We went tonight for the first time. Great recommendation!! Good selection, they had a fire going and the kids could make s'mores, Santa was there, the store was cute. Service was great!!

Yeah. They're great!

Just picked up mine the other day. They're extremely sharp.

The new Ace hardware by Wegmans has a knife sharpening station. I haven't tried it out but could be worth a shot.

Thank you for your suggestion. I’ve also been meaning to find a place and after looking this up, this seems like the best option for my chef and carving knives.

I wish I would just sharpen them myself, but it’s such a dedication and skill to have a proper set up and execution.

Ugh yeah I went to a guy out in Severna Park or something years ago but don't remember any details to share. I just remember seeing the machine at Ace - it's kinda like one of the key making machines.