Seven Cousins Cottage

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Notes for Parents

Welcome to Seven Cousins, The Cottage Named After Kids! It is our wish that your stay here will be completely safe, fun, and stress free for everyone in your family.

You will need to keep a close watch on little ones, as our decks and interior stairs don’t lend themselves to baby gates. Also, enforce firmly the rule of no climbing or sitting by guests of all ages on any railing. When the pool is in use, an adult (21 years or older) must be in attendance there. Be sure the door alarms to the pool deck are engaged when the pool is not in use.

If you have babies and/or small children, the Laughing Gull/Sanderling Suite may be helpful to you. Laughing Gull is king bedded, ocean front, and pool side. It has a rocking chair, and its bath, connecting with Sanderling, has basins at two heights and a large shower/tub. Sanderling has twin beds and crib. If you have teens, it’s also a fun roommate suite.

We chose a portacrib size crib in order to be able to carefully move it through doors to where it is needed. To save time and trouble, especially for those arriving with a sleeping baby, we never collapse and store the crib. The mattress pad and sheets are stored in a plastic bag in the Sanderling closet. You should bring Baby’s favorite blanket(s). If you do not have a baby, the crib may be guided through the bedroom door and placed out of the way under the stairs.

Also in the Sanderling closet is a set of 2 bedrails for toddlers or preschoolers. When in doubt, use the bedrails, as the terrazzo floor is hard! If you need more than one crib, you should arrange to bring another portable. A high chair and a booster are in the third floor pantry.

“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!” Therefore, we have placed waterproof pads in 3 of our closets, Lucky Ducks, Sanderling, and Heron, under the “ounce of prevention” label. If they are missing, check other closets. You can use these on beds where you think they may be needed, and you may find other uses for them, too.

Nightlights stay on in the ceiling of all bathrooms, as well as the stairs and other locations. We have also placed a regular nightlight in Laughing Gull for your use, if needed. Look in the bedside table drawer, if you don’t see it.

If you have many young people in your party, you may need all the first floor bedrooms for them. In that case, if the crib is needed upstairs, carefully roll it onto the elevator, close the doors, and walk up to the second floor, where you can then “call” the elevator.

Some families like to base their entire lunch and snack service for kids and those who like to eat poolside in the downstairs billiard room kitchenette. If this appeals to you, remember to unload as much of this food and drink as possible downstairs, instead of putting it on the elevator when you arrive.

You should remind kids and teens that all cottages on Hatteras have septic tanks, and that to prevent disruptive plumbing problems, they should not flush anything except toilet paper.