Autoline at the Beaches if you are looking for a good used vehicle with great financing. They are a family-owned small business that has been operating at the beaches for a number of years. I got my van from them last year and they worked really hard getting the financing that I needed and made sure the van worked perfectly. They gave us a 30 day warranty and fixed a problem with the back lift door for free. If you do buy something from them please tell them I sent you and I might get a few bucks for the referral!

Another great small business is Acme Tattoo Studio in Atlantic Beach, Florida. It is owned and operated by a great Artist, Shawn Roden who has been a friend of the family for long time. If you are thinking about a tattoo or some kind of piercing I would have no problem recommending Shawn or his studio! They have been featured in local magazines and Shawn has been interviewed on television a couple of time explaining about tattoos.

Finally, I would like to recommend my own business. At Jolene’s Books and More we have an online store that sells electronic books and hand-crafted goods such as scarves, hats, bags and bead and wire jewelry. We are also sponsoring a Contemporary Limericks Monthly Contest beginning in March of this year. We are currently accepting applications and will announce the first winners on March 1st. The cost for each applicant is only $5 for 1 to 5 limericks. Check out the All About Limericks Website for the rules and to fill out the application. The starting cash prize is only $50 and only open to U.S. residents 18 or older, for now. The limericks can be about friends, family, your job, your neighborhood, your hobbies or even your favorite book characters. It must be family-oriented or considered rated “g”.

Tide Views Preserve is located on the road on the north side of Atlantic Boulevard off of Mayport Road located at 1 Begonia Street. The preserve is rather small has a picnic area, bathroom and hiking trails. There is a wooden boardwalk over the marshland to view the birds and to go fishing. Both of these parks can be found on the Atlantic Beach website at: http://www.coab.us/index.aspx?nid=43 We have also included some pictures of each of the parks below.

There are some excellent articles available on the web about reducing stress that you might want to take a few minutes out of your business schedule and read. One I was reading was from the Readers Digest entitled: 79 Instant Stress Busters. Some of these include chasing your dog around the backyard; hold a sleeping baby; take a walk in the park; pop some bubble-wrap; chew some cinnamon gum; and much more. Take a look and try to relax, get plenty of sleep and drunk plenty of water. Simple solutions that may help you this “silly” season.

Jacksonville Beaches Area has some terrific parks. We have a listing of them here at: http://jacksonvillesbeaches.info/wordpress/beaches-services/jacksonville-beaches-area-parks/
These parks are FREE and open to everyone and open from dawn to dark. Please exercise respect for the park and put your trash in the bins, if you take your pet do the pooper-scooper thing, and finally respect others right to be there.

Another thing that always makes a difference this season is to volunteer for an organization you believe in. There are lots of people out there who need help and this holiday season is about GIVING. Not just about giving presents but giving of ourselves. Our family is not going to be getting many presents this year because times are hard and we need to focus on others rather than ourselves. If you want to make a difference and teach your children a lesson about really giving then go to: http://www.volunteerjacksonville.org/index.htm

Here are some of the events that I have found for October 2009:
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Title: Sawgrass Village Fall Art Festival 2009
Date: October 17, 2009
Time: All day
Location: Sawgrass Village Shopping Center
1300 Sawgrass Village Dr. Jacksonville, FL 32082
Cost: Free
Description: The Sawgrass Village Art Festival is one of the South’s premier juried art competitions, attracting fine artists locally, regionally and nationally and thousands of visitors. The festival will include first-class watercolors, oils, acrylics, pastels, drawings, clay, photography, wood, fiber, glass, graphics, metal, paper and mixed media fine arts, great food, fun and children’s activities.

BRING THE WHOLE FAMILY TO ENJOY
Fine Arts & Jewelry Artists Demo’s throughout weekend, Kids Korner- child crafts and face painting

What Time: Sat-Sun 10am-5pm,
Admission: FREE
Website: www.venuesplanning.com

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October 10, 2009
MAKING STRIDES AGAINST – BREAST CANCER WALK
Saturday 8 AM to 12 Noon
5 K beach walk, run or bike to celebrate life and breast cancer survivorship. Funds benefit the American Cancer Society’s programs of education, patient services, advocacy and research.
Location: Sea Walk Pavilion & Beach
For more info: 249-0022
www.cancer.org/stridesonline

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October 24, 2009
GNARLY CHARLEY SURF SERIES
Saturday, 9 AM – 5 PM
Location: Beach – South of fishing pier
904-247-6763
www.gnarlycharleysurfseries.com

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October 24, 2009
OUT OF THE DARKNESS COMMUNITY WALK
Saturday 8 AM – 11 AM
Non-competitive 5K Walk to raise awareness and funds about suicide prevention
Location: Sea Walk Pavilion
(904) 891-4351
For more info: www.outofthedarkness.org

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Title: Hallo-WEE Party at Adventure Landing
Date: October 31, 2009
Time: 10:00am – 2:00pm
Location: Adventure Landing
1944 Beach Blvd. Jacksonville, FL 32250
Cost: Free
Description: Join us on October 31st from 10am-2pm for A Not-So-Scary Celebration For Kids!

Everyone is invited to take advantage of our FREE festival of crafts, games, a bounce house, face painting, candy, dance performances and more! There will also be a costume contest at noon with great prizes being awarded for Scariest, Cutest and Most Original categories!

For children 12 & under, you can also puchase the Triple Threat Combo Special, which includes a Wacky Worm Rollercoaster ride, a ride of the Frog Hopper ride and a Mini Golf Game for only $5 per person

This event is a safe alternative to trick-or-treating!
Website www.adventurelanding.com/jaxbeach/events.html

CHEERS!
jolenemacinjax
admin

****CAUTION**** Please make sure you don’t swim or surf alone as the rip currents are always bad to the unwary. With our whole family being born and raised in this area for about 3 to 5 generations we don’t allow our children to go past the knees in the waves. The older ones still have to stay at their waist. So, please use common sense and always use the buddy system when swimming.

My youngest son and my nephew are picking up surfing this year so they will probably want to go see the surfing contests as well as watch the girls. We have quite a few skimboarders on the beach so beware of them as they try to slide across the water. For the young ones it is a good idea to go to the beach when the tide is midway to low as there are little pools of water for them to play in as the tide is going out. Make sure to bring water to drink and be sure to PICK UP YOUR TRASH! We do have nice beach areas from Hanna Park to the Crossroads down below Ponte Vedra Beach. Our sands are white and the surf is pretty nice.

GREEN FARMERS MARKET: http://beacheslocalfoodnetwork.web.officelive.com/greenmarket.aspx
IF you want to check out a “GREEN” Farmers Market there is one Every Saturday from 2:00pm to 5:00pm in Jarboe Park. Click on the link above for more information.

You and your vehicle can ride the ferry every day for $5 a car or truck with pedestrians and bicyclist paying a little less. The trip across the St. Johns only takes a few minutes but it is a thrill to get out of your car and stand by the railing and watch as the boat cruises across the waves. And whether you start the trip on the Northside on Hecksher Drive or the Mayport it is worth the fee.

The small village of Mayport in 1852 and hasn’t really changed all that much. However, from the last time we went there most of the little buildings along the river have been torn down. That usually means that someone will be building new stuff there soon. There is a nice little park located across from the ferry entrance for kids to play in and there is another one located to the north of the ferry entrance for boaters to launch their boats. If you get a chance to go there don’t forget to stop into the seafood shop and get some shrimp!

Here are some pictures we took in Mayport. Hope you enjoy them.
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I remember the two lane road leading to the area that is part of Hwy 210 with a few ranches and lots of woods and swampy areas.  The fishing was good along the Intercoastal and the mosquitoes were so big they would carry a small child away.  One of my favorite places was the “Crossroads” area where A1A and Mickler Road met.  You could go onto the beach and enough a day swimming, fishing and surfing without the crowd.  Palm Valley Road was great to cruise down and look at the different kinds of houses that were nestled in the woods.  The best part was the little store/diner over the low metal draw bridge that crossed the intercoastal and onto Palm Valley Road.  Now there is a huge overpass and the road is called Nocatee.  Boats would pull up to the little store for gas, ice and drinks.  The restaurant served some great food and most of it came from the local fishermen.

We visited this area this month to find that the little restaurant is still there, you can put your boat in, or sit on the bank and fish.  Be careful though because the current under the bridge is quite swift.  The overpass does provide some much needed shade.  It was too early to check out the restaurant and I didn’t see a sign saying that the store part was even still there.  Anyone who lives in the area and would like to clue our readers in feel free to comment here (after you subscribe) or put a post in the guestbook area.

Below are some of the pictures we took.  Hope you enjoy them1

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The files are posted on the appropriate pages and available for all of our subscribers for free. Just click on the links and the files open up to be saved to your computer or just print them out as needed. So check them out today!

Beaches DayCare Facilities

Beaches Parks

Beaches Public Schools

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