Light Up Your Life: A Holiday Special from the Bayfront Marin House

I used to balk whenever I saw Christmas decorations in stores before it was even Halloween.

Then I met my nephew, who--when he was four--opened his last birthday present of the day then said "When is my birthday next year???"

Why not celebrate something that you really enjoy as soon as possible?

We've been thinking about Christmas for quite some time now. And we've got a GREAT deal for our guests who are planning to spend the holiday season with us.

From November 27 through January 26, guests who stay two weekday nights (that's Sunday through Thursday) are going to have a sweet time at the Bayfront Marin House.

First, when you check in, you'll get awesome chocolate peppermint bark and s'mores from the amazing Claude's Chocolates (a local favorite--just ask our staff!) It's a great way to start a romantic getaway with your own sweetie.

After you've fed each other chocolate, you can enjoy our almost-famous happy hour from 5-7 each night. Lounge around in our hammock--or one of our relaxing porch swings--with a glass of our sangria, and a plate of our nom-noms du jour.

But the most fun is yet to come. When the sun goes down, the lights go up--over 2 million twinkly white ones, part of the illuminating Nights of Lights celebration in Saint Augustine. You'll enjoy the perfect vantage point on a FREE and EXCLUSIVE ride on the Inns of Elegance red train. It will pick you up right from our inn (we're one of only 5 Inns of Elegance, so there will be plenty of room on the ride), and take you on a gorgeous tour through town.

If you and your loved one don't feel all lovey-dovey after that, well, then there's really nothing more we can do for you.

But that doesn't mean we're not going to try!! When you check in, we'll give you a gift certificate good for two cups of homemade hot chocolate and chocolate covered biscotti from Claude's. It's our holiday gift to you--to THANK YOU for helping to make our first full year as innkeepers truly sweet for us.

We hope you'll join us for the holidays this year. The Trolley Treat Tour begins November 27 and runs through January 26 (with the exception of the week between Christmas and New Year's, when even Santa takes a break!!) Call us soon to book your stay!!

By the Numbers: Weddings on 11/11/11

A good friend of mine dabbles in numerology.

She can meet someone, add up the letters in their name, and determine if they will be best friends or simply acquaintances. She can tell you what numbers are "lucky" for you, and what months are the best months for business or love or adopting a puppy.

I, on the other hand, can't even split a restaurant bill five ways without the total either coming up short, or our group leaving a 45% tip.

But lately I've been thinking that the numbers are aligning for me to start looking at numbers more carefully. If you're going to study numerology, Saint Augustine is the place to start. Check out this post in wikipedia:

St. Augustine of Hippo (A.D. 354–430) wrote "Numbers are the Universal language offered by the deity to humans as confirmation of the truth." Similar to Pythagoras, he too believed that everything had numerical relationships and it was up to the mind to seek and investigate the secrets of these relationships or have them revealed by divine grace.

I've been thinking about numbers a lot lately, as we get more and more calls from star-struck couples who want to be married at our inn on November 11, 2011--which is 11/11/11 for the numerically challenged.

(If you're thinking about doing that yourself, you might want to consider a room for 12/12/12. We already have FOUR couples getting married on 11/11/11--and I think that's our limit!)

So why are couples choosing this date in droves? In my highly unscientific study (I simply asked two of the people planning a wedding with us on that day), this is what I learned: there are those people (read: women) who think that a repetitive date like 11/11/11 is so scarce (this particular date won't happen again in our lifetime--and after 12/12/12 next year, this won't happen again until 2101, when you can get married on 1/1/1) that it simply must be good luck. Other people (men, natch) think it's cool because 11/11/11 seems to be a date that even they can't forget.

I guess we'll find out on 11/11/12.

In the meantime, if you want to get married on a special date, give us a call at 904.824.4301. We have availability on 1/2/12, 10/11/12, and 12/12/12!