As December started some of our cottages were empty so we arranged for the decorator to come in and get everything clean and smart for the beginning of the season. The Old Farmhouse, Peacock, Aylesbury and Bantam Cottages are now looking very spruce.  When the Georgian House is empty at the end of January the final run of decorating will also get done here.

All the houses were decorated early in December with varying types and sizes of Christmas trees to take us through the festive season.  Each house had at least one tree, whilst the big two houses had two large ones each.  We put them near windows so that the whole site would look pretty and they were certainly appreciated by visiting youngsters.

We decided to install a new hot tub for exclusive use of the three cottages Peacock, Aylesbury and Bantam.  It needed a lot of earthworks doing as it is perched on the slope above the cottages.  A staircase was cut into the hill side which leads up to a flattened area to which our poor workman had to carry half a ton of hot tub.  We have tested it out and it is lovely to sit in.  The view down the valley is delightful and it feels almost as though you are floating.  We intend having the hot tub available for bookable private sessions only, for guests in the three cottages.  We just have to wait for the outdoor lighting to be installed and expect it to be ready soon.

Christmas and New Year were very busy here with all our houses in use.  Judging by the huge number of bottles for recycling everyone had a good time.  We couldn't arrange a white Christmas but occasionally during the holiday we had a few snow flurries.  However the first changeover after New Year the snow descended and we were unable to get off site for 2 days.  Our guests were able to get here for their holidays and we then all enjoyed the the strange feeling of being cut off.   With care we could walk down the hill to the village, where fortunately the shops were well stocked.  Exmoor which is only half a mile away was almost impassable with deep and fantastic snow drifts and it made for beautiful and very quiet walking.  Our guests enjoyed playing in the grounds with all the snow and built some super snowmen.  Body boards came into their own as impromptu sledges going at alarming speeds when they hit any ice.

BT is installing another phone line so that we can get Wi-Fi access in all our properties.  We are at the mercy of BT and the Wi-Fi company and hope to get it done by the start of the season which is February half term.  However until it is all up and running we will not be advertising this as a service.  The recent snows have slowed everything down and we have been told to expect delays.  Wi-Fi is something that we are increasingly asked for and are very keen to provide.