Happy Little Cottages By The Sea

Cottage Charm, Coastal Calm

The Tybee Dog Park needs your help

I know many of you who stay with us are dog lovers and some of you are lucky enough to bring your dogs on vacation. I also know how many of you LOVE the Tybee Dog Park. This wonderful park gives you a chance to exercise your dog(s), socialize with both locals and visitors to the Island and just have some fun! Everyone also knows about how very strict the City of Tybee rules are about dogs on the beach and zero tolerance on barking- both rules which Mermaid Cottages supports. No one likes dogs who bark constantly and not everyone is prepared to accept the responsibility of picking up after their dogs- which is the biggest worry of dogs on the beach. So the off leash dog park has been the perfect solution. Allows you to exercise your dogs and tired dogs don’t bark- which makes everyone happy!

The City Council of Tybee Island just voted during this past week’s session to remove the dog park. They are still working to find a solution for a new location that works for everyone, but nothing is firm yet. If you have any interest in this- click on this link http://www.wtoc.com/global/story.asp?s=8156222 and read this story and view the video. You may also contact Deb with the dog park: tybeedogpark@hotmail.com if you’d like to share your comments or reaction.

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The Vintage Trailers are here!

Just when you think you’ve seen everything on this little island, the Sisters on the Fly ( www.sistersonthefly.com) roll into town. If you’re around this weekend, you HAVE to make time to participate in this very unique, very quirky event on Tybee on Saturday from 11AM- 3PM.

This fun loving group of women travel the country in their vintage mini trailers which they have tricked out in various unique themes . They set up camp, drink margaritas and get to be cowgirls and beach bums for the weekend. No husbands or boyfriends allowed, just good old fashioned female bonding!

Susan Kelleher of Sea Side Sisters connected with this fun group last fall and along with the Tybee’s River’s End Campground and the terrific Woody, pulled together a tour of the trailers as a fund raiser for St. Michael’s Elementary School here on Tybee. I went by to visit today and couldn’t believe how cute this little trailers are!!! Check out one of the articles about this event on www.savannahnow.com/node/476240

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Danny the Cup Cake eating dog….

Danny in the front yard of our home- Mermaid Manor. He loves to people (and dog watch) as our many island visitors stroll or ride their bikes down Chatham Ave. The best part of spring season is so many of our visitors are back and all riding bikes! We encourage all our guests to ride bikes while here on Tybee. What a perfect way to to be Green, exercise and mix and mingle with our locals and other visitors and enjoy Tybee at a slower pace. We recommend one place to rent your bikes – Tim’s Beach Gear and the BEST place to rent bikes on the island if you don’t want to bring your own. Tim will personally deliver your bikes to your cottage.

The sign on the gate was created especially for Danny and Max ( my two labs) by Lori Prell, a terrific regional artist based in Cocoa Village, Florida. The dogs are enjoying their “boat drinks” and the sign reminds people to close the gate behind them so the boys don’t decide to charge out the gate and go visiting. Lori’s website the Black Dog Gallery and she will custom design a sign for your home.

That’s Max at the top of the stairs by the front door being the good dog that he is.

Danny is always ready to bark and dash out the gate , Max is just happy to be alive and be a dog on Tybee….

Thank you Alan Rubin for taking these pictures of the dogs and the cottage!

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Sea Board House, Ocean Isle Beach, NC

I spent three days with my dear friend Lynda in Ocean Isle Beach, NC last week while attending the VRMA Eastern Region Conference in Mrytle Beach, SC. Lynda retired from her Corporate life in Atlanta and moved back to her home town region- Brunswick County in NC a few years ago and re created her life. She has completely restored an old ship builders cottage which sits on the banks of the IntraCoastal Waterway ( across from Ocean Isle Beach, NC) and created a home we all crave! Filled with her treasures from her travels all over the world as a corporate meeting planner and mixed with equally special finds from her yard sale and junking expeditions, Sea Board House is a nest to relax, be creative and re charge. Laurie Nelson, owner of Harris Nelson Designs ( www.harrisnelsondesigns.com) gave her expertise in the decoration and her creative genius touch is everywhere.

Lynda and I spent a day in Wilmington and Southport NC- both towns in their full spring glory. Azaleas, dogwoods and spring flowers blooming everywhere, the air warm but not humid, blue sky and big white clouds- there is nothing like springtime in the South- of that I am convinced!

I was in the area to attend the Vacation Rental Management Association Eastern Regional Conference, the professional association I belong as a vacation rental company. A great conference attended by over 200 Vacation Rental Companies all over the East. Lots of new ideas which you all will see on the mermaidcottages.com website very soon- including giving our guests a chance to review and then post their stay with us right on our website. If you’d like to post your review of a past visit to one of our cottages on the website , please let me know !

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Spring Sojourn to Midway, Georgia

Friday was a perfect spring day and I was lucky enough to spend time with the very famous Craft Artist, Pam Martin in Historic Midway! This small southern community is about 30 minutes south of Savannah right off of Highway 17 ( the old coastal road before I 95 was built). Pam, her husband Joe and their beloved Golden Retriever Cobaka, live in a beautiful home Joe built right on the marsh . The town is covered with pink, coral and white Azalea plants and was breath taking! Pam’s studio is right next door to their home with the docks in front and a view that goes on for miles.

Pam is one of the most energetic people I know- in the course of 5 hours we had lunch, toured her art studio to see what was new, drove all thru Midway to shop her favorite junking stores and even went Letterboxing!. Lunch was all homemade by Pam and included cinamon raisin bread, grilled chunky chicken salad and of course her dark,gooey chocolate brownies… the only thing missing was her usual Peach Ice Tea- but hey- she couldn’t get to everything! Pam and Joe also make world class shrimp salad from Shrimp they catch right off their dock. She showed me her newest creations- Mermaids, Fish and Shrimp all made from dried goards and painted bright and cheery colors. HGTV was also there recently and will be featuring Pam and another dear friend and famous artist “Very Jeri” Gale on an upcoming show about American Crafts people. We’ll let you know the show date!

Be sure to check out Pam and Very Jeri’s art while visiting Tybee at Atlantic Beacon Gallery ( www.atlanticbeacongallery.com ) You can also visit her blog www.pamelamartindesigns@blogspot.com Pam loves to blog and will fill you in on her daily adventures which will astound you! Read all about our letter boxing experience on her blog. I’ll keep you up to date as I discover the Tybee Letter boxes! Who knew such treasure were out there!

“I have no special talents, I am passionately curious”
Albert Einstein

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