Welcome to our blog. My name is Ann and I co-own Burnbank B&B with my partner Trevor.

Many of our guests, friends and relatives have asked how we are getting on, so we thought it would be good to create a blog, and that way everyone can keep up to date with the comings and goings. Also this will be the place to look for news and any special offers as they come along.

So here goes, a brief resume of the first 12 months...

September

We started trading on the 1st September 2008, just 10 days after moving in, so no pressure there then! Rather disappointingly we had no guests on the first night, which was rather like being on the blocks and the starting pistol not going off! But on the second night our first guests arrived, on a tandem bike. They were lovely people, and if our first-time nerves showed, they were kind enough to overlook them. The month was busier than we were expecting, and by the end of it we were beginning to feel we were getting things right.

October

We launched our evening meals at the start of the month and found our guests to be very appreciative - they especially liked our focus on local, free range and organic produce and we received lots of compliments.

We had a 'red letter day' on the 24th: the rotary iron arrived! We were totally delighted with it, as it saves us hours in ironing the linens everyday!

November

Trevor finished in 'gainful' employment and promptly jetted off on holiday for two weeks, leaving me to to look after three utterly charming Frenchmen for four nights. They ate here every night and loved their meals, and because of this, they christened me their English mother!

December

This was a quieter month, although we had more French hunters as guests, (thank you Owen), wanting lots of dinners.

We decided to 'freshen up' the Red Room and gave it a North African theme, with some of the souvenirs collected on our travels.

Family and friends were here for the New Year, and it was lovely to see them all, especially Jaime, our two year old granddaughter.

January

We decided that we couldn't live with the front garden covered in gravel any longer, so Trevor started to clear it to create a mixed border. That was when we discovered there was no top soil, just stones, bricks and rubble! We excavated it to 15" deep and filled it with topsoil, compost from the re-cycling centre and lots of horse manure. You can see the pictures from later in the year for the results so far.

Amongst the guests, we looked after six delightful people visiting Vane Farm for the bird watching, who were kind enough to put a great review on Trip Advisor about Burnbank.

February

We spruced up the Gold Room, with new curtains and bed heads as well as a redecoration. It now has a Scottish theme, but no tartan!

The hard labour on the garden continued... This was the quietest month so far, but there was still plenty of work to do.

March

The greenhouse arrived, and was soon full of seedlings as we hoped to grow lots of our own vegetables for the summer. We also started planting up the front garden. We bought some willow whips and rods which Trevor made into frames for the sweet peas to climb up.

April

This month we got our chickens, ex battery hens, and they looked a bit bewildered, never having seen anything but the inside of a cage all their lives! When we opened the 'pop hole' of the coup for the first time, it took about 10 minutes before one was brave enough to come out, but within a couple of days they were strutting around happily and looking so much better. Lots of guests want to go and meet them and certainly enjoy the eggs for breakfast.

May

We were able to pick the first of our own salad vegetables and the front garden was finally beginning to look how we wanted it to.

The tourist season also started to get into full swing. Without a doubt, the best thing about running a B&B is getting to meet so many charming and interesting people, and it's fascinating to receive guests from all over the world.

Also this month, we were delighted to be invited to become a 'Cittaslow' supporter. We have been attending their events for the last couple of months, which gives us the chance to meet local producers. They are all so passionate about their products, it's wonderful to listen to them, and to try their food, which we incorporate into our menus when we can.

June

June was busy with both guests and the garden. Trevor also managed to do some maintenance on the outside woodwork, but then at the end of the month disaster struck - I started to feel unwell and had to have an emergency operation, which left me banned from doing anything for six weeks.

July

This was the busiest month of the year and poor Trevor had to do the work all by himself. Half way through the month I started to feel a bit better and tried to help, but even folding a few towels and washing a couple of glasses meant I had to go for a rest for a couple of hours. I was very frustrated at being so useless, although Trevor battled on manfully!

August

We finally got our Green Tourism rating, and are delighted to be awarded a very good silver. With only a little more effort, the next time we are assessed we will no doubt get a gold.

My health is improving slowly and we are coming to the end of the first year of our big adventure. It has passed so quickly, we have met hundreds of brilliant people, and have enjoyed almost every minute of it and we are now looking forward to the next exciting episode...watch this space!