Good Morning and Welcome to my Atlantic Life😊
(So many pics today!!!)
Whew…. What a start to the season - it's been awesome, our little inn has definitely got quite the loyal following. We’ve already had lots of returning “friends” who’ve come back to visit with us, and who we've had fun hanging out with and catching up... and, the new guests that have “found” us have been wonderful - and I have a feeling that quite a few of them will be returning friends!
And......... for the 3rd year in a row (since we opened😊), we received 100% for our annual Environmental Health inspection.
One of the questions John and I are frequently asked is, how long do we see ourselves owning and running the inn? ..... and both of our replies are immediate, and the same… “until we're not having fun anymore” it's as simple as that.
When I was in the midst of my career in healthcare and clinical research, I absolutely loved what I was doing, and when you have a career that you're as passionate about as I was, it's fun….not like work at all (yes, I actually thought having between 450-500 people under my direct leadership was fun 🤪). When you put your heart and soul into something - you don't notice the stress or demands on you, quite simply because you love what you do, and you're happy.......success then often follows along as a byproduct.
Now, there is a warning caveat here - it's also super easy to get so caught up in your career, that you don't see the warning signs, as has happened to me in the past…..You’re so caught up in your work-life world that you don't realize that, whilst the stresses and workload are increasing exponentially …. Your fun (and health) are going downhill rapidly. if you'd like to read more about this particular chapter in my life just click belowhttps://www.myatlanticlife.com/post/latte-days-that-beautiful-hypnotic-merry-go-round:
During my career if you'd suggested to me that I'd be an innkeeper of a century-old hotel on a sandbar island 30 miles out in the Atlantic, living on "island time", happy to wake up in the morning at 5:00 am and get ready to prepare and serve breakfast to lots of guests..... that at 56 years old I'd be learning to windsurf, would be a certified executive leadership and life coach hosting my own women's retreats at our beloved inn and offering a vacation sanctuary that promotes serenity to people whose worlds have become too hectic and stressful…. I'd have thought you quite crazy!
But……. that is exactly what I do - and I'm having so much fun!!!!
Fun with friends
As I've mentioned before, it's not that owning an inn doesn't have its stresses and worries…… On the contrary owning a small business in our current economic climate can be extremely challenging, but the stresses for me are so different - with many of them being under our control. We don't have anyone telling us how we should be doing our projects, or have to agree to principles or ideas that we fundamentally disagree with, and, if we need to take a break, we block off all our rooms, and take a few days vacation.
Is it scary? Heck yeah sometimes, but I hold to the concept that if I work hard and I put my heart and soul into this place that I love and I'm super passionate about, hopefully success will follow....and so far so good - Our 2022 season was better than our first season in 2021, and it looks like 2023 may be even better, which would be awesome!
Over the winter months, we took the time to plan the year ahead a little better than we had done the previous year….. Being proactive as opposed to reactive - one of the first things I did was to look at the reservation calendar and to block out all our rooms for a couple of days every few weeks, before we started to book up - Last year we fell into the trap of not planning ahead, and by the time we realized that we had been working seven days a week for a couple of months we were fully booked, and it was to be another couple of months before we could actually block any time off……Working four months with absolutely no days off really isn't advisable 🤪
So, this year that's not going to happen - in fact the reason I had time to write this blog post is that after a super busy start to the season JB and I took three days off and we couldn't have picked better days…. it was sun, sun, sun 🌞🌞🌞. Just having a couple of days when you wake up at 4:45am and know that you don’t have to get out of bed if you don’t want to, being able to drink a huge mug of coffee out on the Courtyard Deck with Bailey and Bodie, listening to the distant waves, heading to the beach for a day of fishing (for JB) and strolling along the water's edge, writing and hammocking (for me), …..and, as the day begins to draw to a close, JB and I can go out for dinner together, which is such a rarity in the summer months, when one of us always has to be at the inn.
JB Fishing
Me just lazing....
The new hammock JB got me for Christmas 💕
Decktime!!!!
On our first night out we took a stroll next door to Isola Pizzeria and Bar, the restaurant that has replaced Rocco’s pizza. What a delight….and what a transformation - what used to be a dull and drab take out pizza place has morphed into a beautiful, bright dining space, with an awesome L-shaped bar and comfy seating.
Our pizza was nothing short of fantastic, and the lemon cake scrumptious….add in the great atmosphere, awesome drinks (thanks again for ensuring you had stocked my fave SoCo 🥰), excellent service, and a wonderful mix of both permanent residents of the village and visitors, and it’s clear that McCrea and Nicole have done an outstanding job of turning this place into something special 🌟 We are so incredibly lucky to have Isola literally a few steps next door from the Atlantic Inn, and we will most definitely be recommending it to all our guests…..plus I have a sneaking suspicion that JB and I will often be found there 😉
Mmmmmmm Bruschetta 💕💕
Yummy Pizza....🥰
Hanging out at Isola with "Wild Bill" our windsurfing bestie
The Awesome Bar at Isola
I've found my new fave.....Isola's lemon cake 😋
Our days off were fantastic, lots of sun, great food, and some of the best friends we could hope for. We opened again after our mini-break with new guests, yes we had more returning friends....including two incredible ladies that I have gotten to know, one from our early days at the inn and one of my retreats, and the other we only met two weeks ago when her and her husband visited with us for the first time. It was time for some "girls night's out"!!!
All I can say is what a few days,......my bestie Gina from around the corner joined us, and the four of us managed to eat our way around the village....next door to Isola twice, Hatteras Sol The Wreck, and Breakwater. In the past couple of weeks JB and I sneaked in trips to Tavern on 12 and Gidget's Pizza (our all year-round faves 😉), and a to go order from Dinky's - what a total gastronomic delight!!!
Hatteras Sol Delights
Warm crab dip.....💕 My fave goto Sol dish!
Spending time with great friends at Sol
Mine was the Tiramasu......and it certainly didn't disappoint!!
Great Music, Great Food and Great Friends at Breakwater
Sunset at Breakwater
Gidget's Spectacular Maui Love with roasted tomatoes and a wonderful red 😋
JB's selection....pizza and beer!!
I still can't believe how many awesome restaurants we have in such close proximity to us, to say we are spoiled for choice would be such an understatement!!!!
The last few weeks have brought me such joy.....time with wonderful old friends, fantastic new friends and even the addition of my son Lloyd and his girlfriend Britt to Hatteras Village for the summer (maybe longer, who knows 😉), trips to the beach, fun with the dogs, lots of sunny days....a few stormy ones, and of course rest and relaxation time on the Atlantic's Courtyard Deck.
The boys greeting me in bed in the morning....200lbs of yellow labrador!
Bodie on guard...
I've got a secret to tell you Pumpkin...
Guests all the way from Tenerife (I've vacationed on these Spanish islands off the coast of Africa several times 😊)
Stormy Days...
Courtyard dinner with our awesome friends....💕💕💕
After having a couple of low points during last year.....that's not going to happen again, I'm not going to let it...I've decided to enjoy every moment of every day - Life is simply too short not to have fun adventures every day! I feel it's incumbent on us to ensure that we take the time out to do so, to push negative thoughts out of our minds, and to make everyday activities and tasks fun....it's a personal choice.
Seeing love and joy everywhere 🥰
Before I go, just a quick reminder to not let others' negative attitudes affect your state of mind (and please, please don't be the "Negative Nellie" bringing others down) - one of the worst things that can happen is when you have set yourself up for a good day......You're having positive thoughts, Feeling happy, Looking forward to your day.....and then you speak with someone who is so super negative - and it changes your attitude to your day
....how unfair is that??
So, just remember...... it's Your choice not to let this change your frame of mind, you are in control of your own thoughts, dreams and actions.... and you can make them as positive as you want 💕....so go on, make them positive 💕
For now, I'm off to finish serving breakfast....and thinking that I'm going to have an awesome day!
Until Next Time...
Take care, Stay Safe and....try a little positive thinking...make your day awesome!
Love and Hugs,
Pam
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