Bunny dishes.

Owning a bed and breakfast gives me a good excuse to indulge my passion for dishware. I have different table settings for almost every month. I am always stopping at garage sales or estate sales and love to poke around in thrift shops on the hunt for more. This is my March and April theme. Green and white plates with bunnies on them and green bowls that look like cabbages are pictured here. Note the little bunny place card holders. Those I gave as gifts to the guests last Easter morning. I have plates with snowmen on them. I have heart shaped plates. I have plates with pumpkins. I have red, white and blue plates with stars. I have several different flower patterns. My favorite ones have bees and ladybugs on them. Of course, then I have to have serving pieces, fruit dishes, bread plates, etc. to mix and match with everything. I do own plain white dishes, too. They are great to layer different patterns on. I enjoy making breakfast time for my guests an experience. I use local, organic, in season produce as much as possible. The eggs and breakfast meat are from local farmers. I play soft jazz music in the background, although I like it better when guest laughter drowns it out. I want breakfast to excite all 5 of your senses and start your day off right. My wish is for my guests to leave the table full of good food and good memories.

Spring gardening

Pictured is the golden currant bush, also known as spicebush or clove currant. I have two in full bloom right now and they do smell like cloves. One is planted by the kitchen door and one is by the front door. That way everyone gets a big whiff of them as they come and go. I purchased them as little bitty bushes from a wildflower nursery in Missouri about 4 years ago and they are doing great here in Oklahoma. They have grown to about 4 1/2 feet tall and about that wide.
My gardening style is very casual. The "Let's plant this here and see how it does" style. Which means, I lose some things and move things around some. When we bought the property that would become our Tulsa bed and breakfast, there was no landscaping. There was a big holly bush that hid the house from the street and blocked the view to beautiful Woodward Park. That had to go even though I hated to cut it down. The backyard was a jungle of vines that tooks weeks to remove.
My husband prefers structured formal gardens. We compromised by hiring a landscape company to do the front and along the drive four years ago. I get to do whatever I want with the side and backyard. A few things have shown up in the front that weren't part of the landscaper's plan. I don't know how that happened. A squirrel must have put that there. Anyway, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.
I hope you can take some time to visit the Inn at Woodward Park this spring or summer. You can see my gardens, then walk across the street to see the spectacular gardens of Woodward Park and the Philbrook Museum.

March Madness

Mardi gras, St. Patrick's Day, NCAA basketball, Fiddler Hall of Fame Concert and the Tulsa Ballet performing Exceptional Synergy are just a few of the events going on in the mad month of March.

Mardi Gras just passed with a great parade downtown in the Blue Dome District. Tulsa is not New Orleans but we still did it up good with cajun food specialities at several restaurants.

Pictured is the Jazz Room in our Tulsa bed and breakfast. I thought that fit in with Mardi Gras. The Jazz Room is a cozy room with a queen size bed, desk area, flat screen TV with DVD player. The private bathroom was put in under the eaves with a shower. There is a tuba in one corner that several guests have tried to play.

St. Patrick's Day is always a fun time in Tulsa. Kilkenny's Irish Pub & Restaurant, located within walking distance of the Inn, will set up a tent and have live music. The food is very good there. My favorite is an appetizer, the rueben rolls. Mc Nellie's and Arnie's downtown will also have live music, tents and drink specials like Gusinness. Green beer for everyone! Aren't we all Irish on St. Patrick's Day.

The NCAA basketball tournament will bring lots of folks to Tulsa. The Inn is sold out for that and for the last weekend in March when the Tulsa Ballet is performing.

With the price of gas rising, I predict we will be filling up fast for most weekends. Weekdays are also popular with our business travelers. A couple of summers back, when the gas prices were high, we had many visitors that took short getaways a few hours travel from their homes. We love to show Tulsa off to folks from Arkansas, Missouri, Texas, Kansas and the rest of the state of Oklahoma too. Plan your next getaway soon and give us a call.

Mancation

We have all heard of chick trips. A group of girlfriends get away for a weekend of shopping and fun. Our Tulsa bed and breakfast has hosted many of those. Now there is a new buzz work in the travel industry. The mancation. This is for the guys to get together for a weekend of manly stuff. The Inn at Woodward Park has one of those coming up in March. The NCAA basketball tournament 2nd and 3rd rounds will be played here in Tulsa at the BOK event center. The whole Inn is booked by just guys to attend.
Now a B&B is probably not the first place that comes to mind for a mancation. Why not? They are going to have a comfortable, quiet place to stay and be served a hearty breakfast each morning. They will be able to walk to nearby restaurants and sports bars. They can play cards in the sunroom and it is a 6 minute drive to the BOK event center.
Some guys may be leery of staying at a B&B envisioning death by doilies at grandma's house. Just do your homework first. Visit the website to check out the pictures and read on line reviews to get an idea of the feel of the place. Some B&Bs are very frilly with lace curtains and teddy bears, but many are not.
There is a B&B down in Broken Bow that is very man friendly with a pool table, big screen TV and open bar in the common area. There are several Oklahoma B&Bs that offer fishing and hunting packages. Visit okbba.com or travleok.com to find a B&B that will meet the needs of your next getaway.

Cure for the Winter Blues

Are you starting to feel like this guy? It has been a long, harsh winter for most of the country. Here in Tulsa we have broken records; both for amount of snow in one winter and record low temperatures. I was housebound , or should I say B&B bound, for days on end. I did a lot of baking, both familiar recipes and some new ones to treat our Tulsa bed and breakfast guests. We did have guests over the course of the snowstorm. They were able to entertain themselves with DVDs, card games and a Scrabble tournament.
I think we have finally turned a corner and are headed toward spring. It won't be long before we see daffodils starting to bloom out, followed by the redbuds, dogwoods, tulips and azaleas. Being located right across the street from the lovely Woodward Park, I usually get the first peek of spring blooms.
Until then there are still plenty of indoors activities going on in T town. The roads are clear and the restaurants are open.
Some upcoming events downtown are Cirque de Soleil Alegria, Sugarland, World Famous Lipizzaner Stallions, James Taylor, and the opera Don Giovanni. We have several casinos in and around Tulsa that are bringing in some great acts. In the next couple of months Kenny Loggins, Montgomery Gentry, Pat Benatar, Randy Travis, Heart, George Thorogood, and Blake Shelton will all be at the Hard Rock Cafe in Catoosa a 10 minute drive from the Inn. I have noticed there are some deep discount sales at many area shops, too.
Many of you have been trapped in your house with the kids out of school, and the dogs, and have been mopping the floor 100 times. (I quit counting here) Tell your spouse that the two of you need a little break to restore your sanity and get over here.

Oklahoma weather

Oklahoma enjoys four seasons, sometimes all in one week. Less than one week ago today it was 76 degrees. People were wearing shorts and t-shirts, joggers and bicyclists were out on the Riverpark trails, and the outdoor patio seating was packed at Utica Square. Two days later a big winter storm came in. We had thunder sleet (sounds like the name of a heavy metal band to me). Seriously, it was lightning, thundering and sleet was pouring out of the sky. The following day we had a record snow fall of 14 inches. To all you Northerners that sounds like nothin. We Okies are not prepared for that kind of thing and think we can drive in it. We can't. Before the day was through, the street in front of our Tulsa bed and breakfast was blocked with stuck cars and trucks. A medical delivery truck jack knifed about a quarter mile from us. Thankfully he had already delivered the supplies. After 10 hours of waiting for a tow truck, he decided to stay at our Inn for the night. We were glad to be able to offer him a room with a warm bed and shower.
My husband finally got the drive and parking area cleared yesterday and wouldn't you know it; it is snowing again.
My car has not left the garage in 5 days and I don't know when it will. There are 3 foot drifts against the door. Our Inn was built in 1920 and the garage is a detached building built sometime later. I recently learned the reason garges were built away from the houses when automobiles were first being bought. People just never knew when those new fangled horseless carriages might decide to blow up and didn't want to burn the house down.
Despite the inconveniences of the snow, it is very beautiful and the perfect weather to snuggle up with your honey in a B&B.
Next week is Valentine's Day. Have you made your plans yet?

Hooray for Hollywood

The winter months are usually slow for the bed and breakfast industry. Many B&Bs offer special rates for this time of year. What better time to snuggle in a soft featherbed with your sweetie and watch some DVDs than a cold wintery night like we have been having.
There are still lots of activities going on in Tulsa throughout the winter season. The Gilcrease and Philbrook Museums are open Tuesday through Sunday. Jason Aldean is in concert this month at the BOK and Ozzy Osbourne is there in early February. The Tulsa Ballet is performing The Taming of the Shrew and Cirque de Soliel Alegria is coming next month also. All the restaurants are open and serving wonderful meals. Mods Coffee and Crepes really hits the spot with wonderful lattes and warm crepes before or after a downtown event.
I had a four day stretch without guests. The first day I slept in and set around in my pjs until noon. Then I started making plans. All three of our guest rooms had queen size beds. I often would get calls from folks who said they could only sleep in a king size. I can understand that. A few years ago I spent a miserable night trying to sleep out of town in a double bed trapped between a wall on one side and a snoring lump of husband on the other. On the other hand, I felt queen size beds were perfect for cuddling.
I had recently acquired some furniture that included a king size head board. I enlisted the help of my tall, dark, and handsome and single going to be 30 this year oldest son (All you single ladies take note) to help me move everything out of the Hollywood Room. I cleaned the room from top to bottom, taking extra time to shine up the hardwood floors. Then we set up the king size bed. Safety note to all. Do not stand on the metal bed rails while taking them apart. You will fall and get a big bruise where you sit down.
The Hollywood Room is truly fit for a star now. Chocolate velvet curtains and lacy sheers cover the windows that overlook Woodward Park. A chandelier hangs from the ceiling. A faux fur throw lays across the silky bedspread. The room also has a chaise lounge and flat screen TV with DVD player. The attached private bathroom has a deep soaking tub and a stand alone shower with a rainfall showerhead.
Give us a call toll free 1-888-712-9770 to book the Hollywood Room, mention this blog and I will serve you breakfast in bed, no room service charge.