March 5, 2017
We hosted three couples for the last few nights. I arrived home on the first night of their stay after a short family visit during our Wine Down hour. The conversation, as usual, was engaging, inclusive, and fun. When I introduced myself to each the guests, one man gave me his name and thanked us for having them in our home.
I was struck in two ways by his comment. First, I deeply appreciated his awareness that while this may appear to be a service business to the general public, this is primarily our home. Kim and I are proud of the environment we create for our guests. We enjoy great meals, lively conversation, and most of all, we enjoy getting to meet and befriend fantastically diverse and interesting people. We also enjoy this 1886 Victorian personally as our home; we care for it as such, we decorate with our taste, and we enjoy each of the spaces. This home of ours has unique qualities and intricacies like yours does. There are doors that squeak, floors that creak, windows that aren’t quite air tight, and spots where the temperature can’t get quite right. We pride ourselves in updating the house for comfort and convenience while we honor its deep history and character. We love this house – and it is our home, so when you visit your favorite B&B (of which we are surely one!!), remember that it is someone’s home in every sense of the word.
Secondly, I was immediately humbled and thankful to be able to share our home with him and all of our other guests. We left our corporate jobs to enter the world of inn keeping for one driving reason; we simply love hosting guests in our home. We insist on a welcoming, nonjudgmental, careful, and yes, loving culture. His comment was affirming in our choice to pursue our passion for hosting and our eagerness to meet and serve others. I greatly appreciate his thoughtfulness, and I am grateful for the opportunity to meet lots of different people.
The inn is our home and a home away from home for you. We do everything we can to welcome you as guests and see you off as friends and we are grateful for the opportunity to share our home.