And that’s Christmas over for another year. It really does feel like it’s been a whirlwind this time round – as if we were only putting up the decorations a few days ago. And now they’re all down and packed away, and the Farmhouse is back to normal. We had a very small gap between guests – we originally thought we would have to move everything back to our house and de-Christmas later but luckily we managed to convince visiting reinforcements to help us! Our latest guests who arrived today are also holiday cottage owners, so we’ve been even more anxious than normal to make sure the house is looking perfect for them and that they have everything they need for a wonderful stay. Since starting out as a family business in the travel and tourism sector we’ve realised how difficult it is to take a holiday to avoid missing a booking, and just how much this time away will mean.
Now though, it’s back to normal life. Our builders are here on Monday to restart work on the Cow Shed. It’s been almost impossible to find time to do the second coat of paint on the beams before work resumes and access gets harder, but I managed to find a bit of time Saturday morning. Annoyingly it was so cold that I only managed to do three beams before I gave up – probably not a bad thing in hindsight as the paint struggled to stick to the beams in the cold and has streaked terribly. I’m just hoping I can paint over it without having to sand it all back – that’s another job I really don’t have time for. We really need to get the underfloor heating back on so it’s a more comfortable place for our builders to work in.
It’s been difficult to get any jobs done since we’ve pretty much been with family and friends since before Christmas, but we did carve out a bit of time this weekend to revise our M&E (mechanical and electrical) designs for the Cow Shed, ready for the electricians who are on site this coming week. We’ve learnt a lot since designing, building and then living in our own half of the building, so have tried to apply our learnings to our revised designs. It’s also taken a bit of time to make sure we’re providing lighting for different occasions but not overdoing it – after all it is mostly just one room. However, we also know how annoying it is with a newly-designed building when things aren’t quite right!
One thing we have made the most of this holiday season is our excuse to get out with our family & friends and enjoy our local area. From watching the sun set on New Year’s Eve from the opposite side of our valley, to walking to Upottery on New Year’s Day, to a new walk from Branscombe to Sidmouth along the coast path that John and his friend tried out, it’s been a great time to remind ourselves why we moved here.
We did also take time to look back at what we achieved last year and pick our best holiday-cottage-related moments. The start of 2025 seems so long ago now, it’s always a good motivational reminder. I suspect 2026 will be a little different as we get the Cow Shed up and running – I’m hoping we can get through our new 2026 list of jobs (mostly in the garden!!) but we’ll have to wait and see…
In January we opened the Games Room so guests can enjoy a home cinema, pool table and table football. February gave us plenty of gorgeous frosty sunrises – apparently something I take a lot of photos of! Having spent the winter weeding, from March we planted lots of flowers that then bloomed throughout the summer.
April – we’re very proud of the wildlife we attract to Ley Farm Cottages. In May we enjoyed some lovely Spring days out around the Blackdown Hills – with highlights at this point being Dalwood Vineyard, Daisy’s Dairy, Beer beach and Beer Quarry Caves. Being dog lovers, as of June we were delighted to welcome over 50 dogs in just 10 months since opening. We currently have our 98th and 99th dog staying!
By July we were fully booked for our first full school summer holiday – and were pleased to receive lovely guest feedback. In August we welcomed our youngest visitor at just 3 weeks old (and then the following week our oldest visitor at 95 years old!). By September we learnt to plan for unexpected repairs and costs – 2025 costs included a new oil tank and dishwasher, children’s games, and table football in the Games Room.
In October we found a new walk with fabulous views of Ley Farm Cottages. In November we were blown away by the number of positive reviews we’ve received this year across Cottages.com, Google, AirBnb and Booking.com. We started December by decorating the Farmhouse for Christmas, each year aiming to add something a little extra to get into the festive spirit.
We’re really looking forward to seeing what 2026 brings – our biggest goal being to open our one-bed Cow Shed! If you, friends or family want to book a stay at Ley Farm Cottages just drop us an email to find out more. We love living here so much and are excited to share the magic of Devon with others 
Ley Farm Cottages 