Howllo Fellow Basset Hound and getting back to blogging about the Summer Lily Book Tour lovers…Wow, here we are in late February and I am just now revisiting this.

This was kind of a hard one to write…

It’s now time to pack up and head out from Villa Seaward D, Lauderdale by the Sea.  There is not too much on the internet about the exact layout of this ocean front building so I wanted to go into more detail.  It is not exactly clear when you are booking in this owner owned condo complex what you are getting.  There are 4 condos in the complex and the owner keeps one as their own.  They do not live on the property but did come while we were there.  Their condo is about 1/2 of the bottom floor and is 100% ocean front.  The top floor is Villa Seaward B, also directly facing the ocean.  However, Villa Seaward B only has one bedroom.  To enter Villa Seaward B you will need to go up a steep flight a steps.

So I rented Villa Seaward D.  Keep in mind this condo is not ocean front but has a nice ocean view. To get to Villa Seaward D you must go up a flight of steep steps.  Be careful because they can become slick with the ocean mist.  When we arrived an hour early the maintenance man was just arriving. Ugh… He was there for way too long trying to fix a light in the dining room.  The management woman showed up with flowers and that was very nice but I finally told them we did not need the light to work and we would make do.  Turns out we did not use the lights very much at all.

You can see our front door in this picture.  You pass the palm tree, enter a security gate and go up the steps.  The security gate was extremely hard to open and I had to use most of my might to shut it.  It caused a terrific metal clanging sound which I am sure bothered anyone in the area.  Hopefully they have fixed this by now.  It was a real hassle.  Also, something we did not like was no blinds other than in the bedrooms.  We kept the lights off because we did not want anyone looking in. Another hassle.  That front door is floor to ceiling window so anyone can look right in.  It was just a creepy feeling…

Before you book this place ask the management team if the property you see in this picture with the fence around it is still vacant.  We noticed strange activity at all hours of the day and night.  The place looks like it is condemned or if not it should be.  We had to call the police on one occasion.  Now you know why we did not keep our lights on.

Facing from the other direction (from the condemned dwelling).  The first 2 balcony railings in the picture are part of  Villa D.  This Villa jets out a small amount which give you a view of the ocean.  They call Villa D Ocean Front because the building is on the ocean but I would call Villa D – Ocean View.  The Ocean View is wonderful but the condemned buildings are horrible and they are your view as well.  Yes, I said properties…

Here is another look at the balcony facing the street.

Facing the front…

That walk way is a public access to the beach.

This is a better look at the condemned property. The Police showed up just after this picture was taken.  These guys were inside of the hovel.

This is not the only condemned property.  From Villa Seaward all the way to Fort Lauderdale is condemned or vacant.  There is also a huge old Holiday Inn across the street that is totally vacant with windows broken out.  It was so sad.  We had a wonderful Villa in a horrible section of Lauderdale by the Sea.  I should have done better homework.  For me safety always comes first.

Old vacant hotel directly across the street. CREEPY…

The other thing that we did not care for was that the owners showed up a few days before we left.  It kinda felt weird.  Like you really didn’t want to go to the pool or beach because they totally took it over as they have every right to.  When we heard they were coming we made sure we did our photo shoot the day before and spent time around the pool and beach and had it all to ourselves.  They showed up on June the 15th and we were leaving on the 17th so it certainly did not hamper us too much.

We got up the morning of June the 16th and walked down to Anglin’s Beach Cafe for a huge breakfast before packing up the car to leave the next day.  We love this place.  Our waiter Jack was the best.

Breakfast fit for 3 beach bums…hahaha

That white behind me is the sand.  If I look forward I see this…#lifeisgood

But then it was back to the Villa to pack up our stuff and the car.  The steeps steps really hit you hard when you have to make about 40 trips up and down…twice (coming and going) Plus, I was not a big fan of having to do laundry before we left.  I thought that was asking a bit much for the price they charge.

Good thing I had a hearty breakfast…LOL

I spent some of the day returning phones calls about the Lily Book and dropping off more orders.  We were very thankful for the great response to our precious Lily.

All in all we loved Villa Seward D as a condo but for all of the reasons outlined above we will not be back.  Live and learn.  We much prefer the amenities of a full service hotel vs the Vacation Rental By Owner options.

See ya later Lauderdale by the Sea – you will forever be in our hearts…

More loving our next stop later…Cat, Daisy Lynn, Grandma, (Chaps and Emma ATB eating at Anglin’s every meal!)

Comments(0)

Howllo Fellow Basset Hound and 60th Birthday Dinner Lovers…As I was saying in my last Florida blog we decided not to stick around in Palm Beach for my birthday dinner.  But, before we left we met the most interesting man.  He was walking a pug named Henry. We stopped and chatted a bit and he told us he is a Dog Walker in Palm Beach.

Him and his wife have Village Pet Pals – and have been walking and sitting dogs and cats since 2004.  It was so much fun talking to him and I had to ask if he had any bassets and he did!!!  I think he said 2 that he has been walking since they were puppies and are now 10 if I remember correctly.  I am going to send him and his wife a Lily Book…

He also gave us some really good tips on Saint Augustine!!!  It’s a few days away and we check out of our Villa Seaward D – Lauderdale by the Sea…

So we packed up Daisy Lynn and the Lily Books from Palm Beach and took off on our ocean front drive to find a birthday dinner!!!

Howl low Deerfield Beach!!!

We absolutely love Deerfield beach and it right between Palm Beach and Lauderdale by the Sea.  This is our table for my 60th birthday dinner.  OMDog!!!  It was perfect.

We had the best meal ever… This pic is a bit washed out that is why I went on google maps and found our exact table above.

OK, this is where we parked which was right across the street.  Seems like heaven for walking a dog – right???

NOT!!! – Turns out after doing some research about the area dogs are not allowed on the beach (no problem).  Dogs are not allowed on the grass next to the beach (wait what???).  Dogs are not allowed ON THE SIDEWALK NEXT TO THE GRASS!!! (ARE YOU FREAKIN’ KIDDING ME???)

No I kid you not.  The city has tons of rules regarding dogs which I generally love but Deerfield Beach takes it to a whole new level.  Unfortunately, we will not be spending any time or money in Deerfield Beach.

Luckily we were just having dinner and it was BASSETABULOUS!!! We would definitely stop there again for dinner.

More loving my 60th birthday later and all year long…Cat, Grandma, Daisy Lynn, (Chaps and Emma ATB walking in the grass and on the sidewalk next to the rainbow grass…:)

Comments(0)

Howllo fellow Basset Hound and 11 year old birthday lovers. In dog years what is that?  Anyway…it seems longer to me than 11 years that we have been a town on the internet.  So many residents and so many hounds saved and placed on a couch because of all of us.

“A couch for every basset“!

We are looking forward to the next 11 years and many more after that.  Thank you to our residents for keeping up with us and helping out when a hound needs a paw up.

More loving rescue and blogging later…Cat, Daisy Lynn, (Chaps and Emma ATB eating rainbow birthday cake…)

Comments(0)

Howllo Fellow Basset Hound and window shopping in Palm Beach lovers…Before we leave Palm beach for my birthday dinner I must share.  Grandma, Daisy Lynn and I were walking towards our car, the basset hauling vehicle when my bassetdar (basset radar) went off…

I spotting it in this window…

Yes, it really was that small and we were that far away. I have MAD SKILLS with bassetdar for sure…

We were in front of  a shop called Mary Mahoney. 

What a cool shop.  Here is what I picked up on my bassetdar…

It’s a double old fashion glass that is part of a six glass series called Dog Barware by Artel.  Well, I had to go in and check it out.  I knew it would be out of my range and I was right.  But let me tell you what, if you have the pennies – it is worth every one of them.  The masterpiece runs about 200.00 dollars per glass.  I just love it.  It also comes in clear and other colors…

“The Dogs Collection visually confirms the sentiments of author Eckhart Tolle who describes dogs as the “essence” of who we are. Inspired by ARTĚL founder/director Karen Feldman’s own beloved Brussels Griffon, the strikingly detailed engravings in this collection convey the regal nature of six breeds: Basset Hound, Bulldog, Dachshund, Labrador, Poodle, and Pug. They are available individually or as a set of six glasses, making a perfect gift for the dog lovers in your life. They are also available in a variety of additional colors, call for details.”

I thought that quote was so pretty…Dogs as the essence of who we are.  So touching…

I thought the residents would enjoy this unique peek into a few moments in time.

“I need a double old fashion…” hahaha

More loving the essence of dogs later…Cat, Grandma, Daisy Lynn, (Chaps and Emma ATB lapping rainbow water out of Artel…)

Comments(0)

Howllow Fellow Basset Hound and 6 OH lovers!!!  Yes, indeed – there is no better way to celebrate your 60th birthday than on pink steps in Palm Beach!

Daisy Lynn and I have on matching Lilly Pulitzer scarves as well.  What a blast we had this perfect day.  From South Beach to Palm Beach turning 60 could not have been more sweet.

We spent most of the day on Worth Avenue which is the extremely swanky shopping street located right off of A1A.  I met with the owner of this shop and dropped off a Lily Book…

The shopping is way out of our league but walking around and looking fabulous is free!  hehehe

It was very quite this first day of my 60th year.  Grandma, Daisy Lynn and I almost felt like we had the whole glorious place to ourselves…

So enchanting…

We were going to have my birthday dinner in Palm Beach but since it was a tad early for that we decided to head back to our Seaward Villa and explore the road home for a nice dinner.

More loving finding the perfect spot later…60th birthday to be continued…Cat, Grandma, Daisy Lynn (Chaps and Emma ATB sitting on rainbow steps…)

Comments(0)

Howllow Fellow Basset Hound and South Beach Lovers…Yes!  I said South Beach.  Grandma, Daisy Lynn and I decided to visit the historic, famous, and OUTRAGEOUS South Beach!!!  We had so much fun!!!  Our goal was to see and be seen in the Art Deco district. It took us about an hour or so to drive down there.

What an amazing piece of paradise.  After this picture was taken we crossed the street.  It is wall to wall outside cafes and boutiques.  We were looking for the perfect place to have happy hour.  It was a huge undertaking because all of the folks at the front of the house were dancing, signing, and begging the hungry massed to eat at their cool and trendy cafe.  It was overwhelming.

But this stole our hearts…

The glass is the size of a soccer ball.  OMDOG – honey we are home!!!  As we were strolling down cafe lane the guys at the front of Cafee Milano were hysterical.  They ran over and grabbed us as we were just glancing at the menu.  They were so cute and sexy.  Howl could we say no???

They put us right out front and we had the best service we have ever had.  The parade of people coming and going from the beach were right in front of us.  Oh the sights we saw.  I never knew you could buy gold chains for your butt!  Yes, butt chains with bikini bottoms!  It was too x-rated to show but WOW!!!

Happy Hour turned into dinner (the fish bowl lasted even longer) and it was AMAZING!!!  We were so lucky to find Caffe Milano.  So South Beach and so fun and so sexy!…We will never forget you our Caffee Milano…

It was getting dark so it was time to drive back to our Villa Seaward D…

Maybe we can stay at the Waldorf next time.  It is right next door to Caffe Milano…

We parked right across the street from the Colony.  You saw it in the day light – now in the neon light…

Bye Bye Beautiful Brave South Beach…

You are our kind of town…

More loving neon and sexy guys later…hehehe, Cat, Grandma, Daisy Lynn (Chaps and Emma ATB laying under rainbow neon lights…)

Comments(0)

Howllo Fellow Basset Hound and so worried lovers…Irma is pounding down on our beloved Lauderdale by the Sea and all we can do is watch.  When we left off on our last blog about Villa Seaward D we were on our private beach.  Now we are at our private pool.  I say private because we had the whole place to ourselves for a most of our stay…

This place was so pretty.

It was so interesting to see howl much Daisy Lynn loved the beach.  Just look at her.

It really makes us want to go back but what do we go back to?

A memory?

Well, we will wait and see and hope for the best.  In the mean time, Daisy Lynn is sporting a soon to be listed fuchsia glitter snood.

It keeps sand off the ears for sure…

More worried about our paradise later…Cat, Grandma, Daisy Lynn, (Chaps and Emma watching Irma and also worried…)

Comments(0)

Howllo Fellow Basset Hound and a day at the beach lovers…Grandma, Daisy Lynn and I had such a great day on this day in Lauderdale by the Sea.  We got out early and decided to hit the book stores and boutiques early to get the Lily Book out and about in Fort Lauderdale.  It was so much fun just driving around and getting lost.  Exploring pockets of streets that lead to the beach.  Interestingly, Grandma remembered this street!!!  It was right across from the public been and had all kinds of shops that looked like old head shops from the late 60s early 70s.

I had to pull over and run in.  Grandma sat in the car with Daisy Lynn.  I saw this shirt/coverup from the car and had to have it.  Love, love, love finding stuff like this off the beaten path…

And this is right across the street…

Hello!  Beach cover up plus beach equals all day every day!!!

All of this put us in the mood for our very own beach day on our very own private beach.  It was time to head back Seaward Villa D and give my new cover up a test drive!!!

Here is a reminder of our condo.  I just love the yellow.  We rented the until on the left side, Villa D.  It had a great balcony but it is not in this picture.  The top floor is a one bedroom from what the description says and we needed two.  The bottom floor is the owner’s unit and was not for rent.  Just being super picky – I would not want to rent that unit because then everyone else in the building is swimming all day and not what I want to look at.  Plus, we are not big pool people anyway…

I cannot say enough good about this building’s private beach howl ever…

Just a real dream come true…

It took me about 2 years to pick this place over all the other places that were for rent in Lauderdale by the Sea.  It had close to everything we wanted and the main thing was to be on the ocean.  It is harder than you think with a hound in tow…

You can almost smell the salt…

Can’t you?

Now this is a selfie for the ages…

Oh howl I miss you my yellow and mellow Seaward Villa D.  Your private beach and your salty smell…

Did you notice in the first picture I am standing next to a poster that says…”Don’t be a salty bitch”?

Well we will wear the mantle with pride – all 3 of us!  hahaha

More loving our life later…Cat, Grandma, Daisy Lynn (Chaps and Emma ATB sprinkling rainbow salt…)

PS – photo shoot continues of the pool area in the next blog…Stay tuned my salty friends…

 

 

Comments(0)

Howllo Fellow Basset Hound and going on the Lily Book Tour Lovers.  I am so happy to have this blog and to keep track of everything we did on the tour because it is so easy to forget…and I don’t want to forget…It was so much fun.  Lauderdale By The Sea is so cute and very quaint during the week but it turns into a real party town on the weekend.  Not ideal for us but we had the whole week to enjoy the town without the weekenders flocking to it…

This is the town center that leads right down to the beach.  We made our way down in the morning so we could get some great pictures…

There is also a pier that you can stroll down and it’s dog friendly.

Our condo is behind Grandma about 4 blocks down the beach…

It’s called Anglins Fishing Pier.  The best part of the pier is they have a restaurant.  We love it.

It was called the Organic Beach Cafe!  OK!  I’m in!!!

I could be happy eating lunch here everyday.  It was kinda strange howl ever…Daisy Lynn was welcomed with open arms the first time we went and then the second time the manager got all “is this a service dog” on us.  What?  Very confusing so I would suggest that you might bring a dog or not.  Seems to depend on who is in charge that day.  The manager finally let us stay after some negotiating…LOL

Another place to eat that is EXTREMELY POPULAR is Aruba.

We only went once and it was just too packed but it was on the weekend.  Right on the beach.  Our food was just OK.

We love our LBTS…I am dreaming of that crab cake as I type…and that wine, not to mention the sea…

More hoping to go back soon later…Cat, Grandma, Daisy Lynn, (Chaps and Emma ATB laying by the rainbow ocean…)

Comments(0)

Howllow Fellow Basset Hound and Lily Book Tour Lovers…It is Daisy Lynn’s goal, as the Mayor of bassethoundtown, to send a Lily Book to at least one public library in every state.  We are starting with this library.

Knoxville, TN was actually the first stop on our Lily Book Tour in June but it was just a quick overnight.  We departed early in the morning so I did not have time to drop off a Lily Book.  So Knoxville – please welcome Lily to your public library!!!

Do you want me to send a Lily Book to your public library?  Just put the address in the comment section and I will send it with an acknowledgement in your name…

“I FEEL THE NEED TO READ”…

More loving howl benevolent our Mayor is later…Cat, Daisy Lynn, (Chap and Emma at the rainbow Library ATB…)

Comments(0)