Great Guests

The number one best thing about being an innkeeper is all the interesting people I get to meet. I have a short list of people that I will not accept repeat reservations from. Those are folks who have been disrespectful either to me, my property or other guests. As I said it is a very short list. I have a long list of wonderful people that I look forward to seeing again. You know how some people you instantly feel a connection with. You think to yourself, "This person could be my friend." Or "I want to learn more about this person." I am so lucky, I get to meet lots of those.

I have met women from Japan, New Zealand, Russia to name a few places. I think they are so brave to travel to another country all by themselves. Often, it is just that person and myself at breakfast. Usually by the time they leave, we are best buds. We have had a lot of interesting male guests, too. Some that come to mind are a mystic, a Jewish cantor, a Native American artist, a West Indies author and so forth.

Last week I had the pleasure of having a retired member of the theater here for 5 days. I don't name names for privacy sake. Let's call him Mr. Sweetheart. He arrived dressed in a seersucker jacket and bow tie and had lovely silver hair. My first contact with him was an email from him that was quite chatty. I actually thought it might be a scam. Usually when the email shares way more information than you need to make a reservation, it is a scam. I replied with a short "Yes, that room is available on those dates." Then Mr. Sweetheart called to make the reservation and we talked for some time just like old friends. He had once lived in Tulsa and was returning for a memorial service. He had some special requests, which I was glad to honor. He was just a joy to be around. He did not eat breakfast, but every day he and I found time to have a chat between his comings and goings.

He just loved our Tulsa bed and breakfast and has promised to return. When he left, we hugged and I almost cried. He told me he had left some treats outside on the private balcony and in his room. I thought maybe a plant or something. Oh no, he bought new cushions for the outside furniture. The cushions I'm sure were more expensive than the previous ones and went perfectly with the room's decor. He also left some red wine and dark chocolate. Favorites of my husband and myself. I do not expect anyone to leave such gifts. I really wanted to cry then.

Visit a B&B soon and make yourself some wonderful new friends.

Summer in the city

I am in this crowd somewhere. This is the place to be every Thursday night May through August in Tulsa. Utica Square Shopping Center blocks off part of the parking lot and has a sound stage with live music from 7-9pm. Folding chairs are provided, but alot of folks bring their own. Families and friends and dogs all congregate with food, and drinks to enjoy the evening. There is an area for dancing in front of the stage. People of all ages get up and dance. Even if it is 90 plus degrees!

Most of the shops and restuarants stay open late that night. If you want a seat on one of the restuarant patios, get there early.

There is a variety of music played from light opera to jazz to country to rock. A schedule can be viewed at uticasquare.com. There is a drawing during a break in the music for different Utica Square merchandise and gift certificates.

My husband and I attend as often as we can. Parking is not a problem for us as we can walk the block and a half from our Tulsa B&B. I like to go a little early and get an outside table at the Wild Fork. I order an appetizer and their signature sparkling cosmo. We wave to folks we know as we people watch and enjoy our light dinner. Sometimes we take our own folding chairs and a picnic. After we eat, we wander around visiting with people or find an empty chair. But we usually don't sit for long. We like to get out there and dance with the rest of them.

Tonight is my favorite group, Mid-life Crisis. They are my age or older and play rock music from my teens and 20s. Brown eyed Girl, Magic Carpet Ride, Twist and Shout to name a few. I hope they close with the traditional Shout! by the Blues Brothers. It is so much fun to be in the middle of a crown of all ages singing "Shout, Throw your hands up and Shout!" and throwing your hands up all together.

I hope you can join us there. Book your night stay on a Thursday night here at the Inn at Woodward Park and start your long weekend out right.

Stormy weather

Wow, it has been a stormy April here in the midwest and the south this spring. Knock on wood, nothing like this picture has come close to our Tulsa bed and breakfast.
The Inn at Woodward Park does have a disaster plan in place. During storm season upon check-in, I show guests where the door to the basement is located. I inform them if the sirens sound at any time day or night that they may go there. We have emergency lights throughout the Inn that are plugged in to outlets in the hallways and guest rooms. These lights come on if the power goes out or they are unplugged. Guests can use them to light the way if necessary. These lights are inexpensive and can be found at any home improvement store.
In the basement, I keep bottled water, individually wrapped snack crackers, a first aid kit, a battery operated radio and a flashlight. A charged cell phone is a good thing to have also. The laundry is down in the basement, so there are plenty of blankets. I have a lot of pictures albums of my kids growing up down there that we could entertain ourselves with. I have some great pictures of me with the big hair of the 80s.
The Inn at Woodward Park is located about a mile from the Council Oak Tree that was a meeting place of the Creek Indians and ,according to legend, blessed ground. The oak tree still stands and is over 100 years old. It survived the ice storm several years ago without losing a limb while trees all over Tulsa crashed down. I am hoping we are close enough that we are protected here as well.
If you don't have a disaster plan at your home or place of business, make one now. The Red Cross can help you with that. My sons were Boy Scouts and I believe in the motto "Be Prepared."

Girlfriend weekend

I recently had the pleasure of being one of the girls at a girlfriend getaway weekend at my own Tulsa bed and breakfast. Four of us are pictured here. I'm the second from the right. One had a plane delay and didn't make it for lunch. We all attended high school together but had lost touch over the years. Thanks to facebook we have connected again. Some of us had not seen each other for many years. I'm not going to even tell you how many years! But we had a blast catching up and all those years just melted away. The ladies showed up around noon, parked the car in the driveway of the B&B. After unloading their bags and picking their rooms, we walked 6 blocks through the Swan Lake neighborhood to an area known as Cherry Street.
We had a pleasant walk enjoying the varied style of homes on our way. Swan Lake neighborhood is a historically protected neighborhood with homes dating from 1907. You can find small Arts and Crafts bungalows to grand Italiante Revival Mansions here. Spring had sprung and many yards were in full bloom. Arriving at Cherry Street, located on 15th Street between Peoria Ave and Harvard Ave; we had a wide choice of places to eat. We chose the Full Moon Cafe with the outside patio. Two of us had their famous tortilla soup which is cheese based and unique and yummy. On our walk back, we visited Swan Lake. Swan Lake is a spring fed pond home to a pair of white swans. It is fenced with a walkway all the way around. We saw the swans, geese, ducks, turtles, fish and a heron.
Then it was off to the airport to pick up the late arrival. We returned to the Inn at Woodward Park and sat upstairs in the sunroom overlooking Woodward Park. We opened a bottle of wine and had a great visit. Later that evening we walked back to Cherry Street for dinner. We could have gone to Utica Square, an upscale shopping and restaurant area, which is just two blocks away. One friend is of Irish descent so we decided to have dinner at Kilkenney's Irish Pub. We let my husband join us for dinner. Kilkenney's really seems like an Irish Pub. It is always crowded and loud and fun.
We returned to the Inn and set outside on the covered side patio, drinking more wine and telling remember when stories.
The next morning I served us all hash brown casserole, bacon, blueberry scones, fruit salad, OJ and coffee. My husband was so thoughtful. He cleaned up after breakfast so the girls and I could walk across the street to Woodward Park. The park was gorgeous. The azaleas, redbuds, tulips, and dogwoods were all in bloom. We took a lot of pictures of each other with the park as background. We enjoyed seeing families there taking pictures of their children and got to experience a dog's first meet up with a brave squirrel.
Unfortunately all good things must come to an end. My friends all packed up to leave and we all hugged and said our good-byes vowing not to wait so long to see each other again. I think we will keep that promise. It was such a heart warming experience. I hope you can get together with your girlfriends soon and do the same thing. You will be glad you did.

Feng shui the front door

I can't say I am a master of feng shui but I do enjoy learning about it and putting in place some of the practices. I feel anything that helps me to live a more positive, enjoyable life is a good thing. Here are some things I have learned about feng shui and the front door. The front door of our Tulsa bed and breakfast is right in the center. This means we are inviting in positive career opportunities, fitting since this is my career. The orange color stands for enthusiasm, joy, interaction and fun. All things I want my guests to experience at the Inn at Woodward Park. Feng shui teaches that the front entrance is the first impression of yourself that others see and. as such it should reflect you. I hope that my front entrance does give the impression of being a warm and welcoming entrance to a fun place to stay. Would you like to know what the color of your front door means? A red front door is very fortunate. It uplifts the energy and opportunities coming through your door. A gold door calls in prosperity. A green door symbolizes money and health. Purple calls in spiritual energies. A blue door stands for calmness and serenity. Brown is stability and warmth. Black is strength and elegance. White is purity, honesty and faith. Do you need to paint your front door to reflect who you are or want you want to invite in?

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.

2nd best thing

The second best thing about being an innkeeper is I work at home. Today there is light snow on the ground and it is cold. No, it is worse than cold. It is f,f,f, freezing. The tempature was 12 with a wind chill of minus 5 this morning. Now that is unusual for Tulsa. Last week it was in the fifties. Working at home, I did not have to get up, dress in at least 3 layers, go out, warm up the car, scrape ice off the windshield, drive across town, park out in the north 40 of a parking lot and race across the frozen tundra to get to work. Nope, all I did was go from my nice warm bedroom to my nice, warm, cozy, smelling like coffee kitchen. I did get dressed, but just one layer.
My kitchen smells like coffee because I got a new coffeepot at a post holiday sale. It is one that you add the coffee beans and water the night before, set it and it grinds and brews the coffee before you get up. The grinding process is pretty loud, though. The first time I heard it, I thought a jet plane was taking off somewhere nearby. Thank goodness the guest rooms are all upstairs and it doesn't disturb them.
We have guests here this week from up state New York. They say it's not that cold out today. Well, I'm a Southern gal and I prefer the heat and humidity any ole time. I probably won't leave the house until it gets above freezing or I run out of Diet Coke, whichever comes first. Maybe I can talk my husband into stopping for the Coke. He works outside our Tulsa bed and breakfast as an accountant.
Were you wondering what the number one best thing about being an innkeeper is? It is you and all the other wonderful people I get to meet. Come by and stay awhile, 'cause I am NOT going out there.

Bird watching at the B&B

This cute little guy is called a yellow rumped warbler. I saw him first last year in February and he has returned to the birdfeeder right outside my kitchen again this year. He is only 4 inches tall and not shy. The weather is 50 degrees today but an artic blast is predicted for next week. He may be on his way to Mexico by then.
We are blessed to have an abundance of birdlife here at our Tulsa bed and breakfast. Right now I see starlings, mournig doves, cardinals, sparrows and a downy woodpecker at the feeders. This morning I saw some juncos and a wren. We have robins, mockingbirds and blue jays in the neighborhood also. Occasionally, a bigger woodpecker, the red bellied woodpecker would visit. Last year my neighborhood had to cut down a big old dead tree and I think that it where that woodpecker lived. I have not seen that bird recently and I miss him. The red tailed hawk from the song "Oklahoma" can be seen flying overheard once in a while. They are more common around open fields. This time of year we start to see the Bald Eagle around the Arkansas River, just two miles from here. They like to fish in the waters coming off the Keystone Dam.
I keep my copy of the book "The Backyard Bird-Lover's Guide" and a pair of binoculars upstairs in the sunroom so guests can enjoy watching and identifying our littlest visitors, too. I would love for you to come for a visit and perhaps you might spy a new bird while you are here.