Cape Cod Bed and Breakfast by the National Seashore in Cape Cod Massachusetts - The Inn at the Oaks Bed and Breakfast. Eastham, Cape Cod (877) 255-1886
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A Christmas Beginning How your innkeepers fell in love with an old inn It was early Christmas morning 2000. As Pam and Don Andersen awoke in the B&B that was their home for the holidays, they looked forward to the day's celebrations with family and friends, especially telling those who didn't already know that the young couple were expecting their first baby. After almost two years of marriage, life had settled into a satisfying routine with good jobs, a beautiful new home outside Boston and the weekend luxury of enjoying life on a 40' sailboat that they kept docked in Casco Bay, Maine. The two never dreamed that by day's end, they would make a decision that would fundamentally alter their lives -- they would decide to become the next owners of the charming and historic Over Look Inn. From sandy shores to rows of corn Like all important life journeys, the road to the Over Look Inn had its beginnings decades before October 2001, when Pam and Don Andersen officially took over the Inn's. In fact, Pam probably has Cape Cod hospitality in her genes. Her grandfather, Bill, owned a large motor inn in Wellfleet during the 60s. Pam, who grew up in Hyannis, has early memories about what it meant to graciously greet and provide for guests. As a native, Pam knows the area, its people and its attractions and can provide guests expert advice on things to do and places to go. The corn fields of Iowa where Don grew up seem far from the shores of Cape Cod. There on the family farm founded by his Danish immigrant grandparents in the 1920s (and still run by his father today), Don got good doses of the American work ethic, small-town friendliness and a hands-on practicality that are serving him so well today running the Inn. Settling into corporate life As young people will, both Pam and Don struck out to look for new adventures after high school. Both majored in engineering in college - Don became a software engineer and Pam a mechanical engineer - and both joined large and successful corporations, thriving in corporate life and taking new assignments in different parts of the U.S. and Mexico as they climbed the corporate ladder. Both eventually were transferred to the Boston area, where they met over a racquetball game in 1998. After that fateful game, Don decided to stay in Massachusetts and put down roots. (Well, another part of the decision might have revolved around the fact that the sailing is not very good in Iowa, but we won't mention that.) Pam and Don were married on the Cape in 1999 and actually stayed here at The Over Look Inn on their wedding night. (Long before they thought of buying the inn.) Leaving corporate life
Here's the part of the story where the Over Look Inn becomes involved in the couple's life. Christmas of 2000 found Pam and Don once again at the Inn - not only to celebrate the good news of Pam's first pregnancy but also to spend the holidays with Pam's mother (who only lives a mile down the road). By this time, both Pam and Don had become disenchanted with the demands of corporate life and neither wanted to face another relocation away from family and friends. They had discussed their mutual interest in the hospitality field, but hadn't made any moves in that direction. On Christmas morning, they mentioned to the Over Look Inn's owners that if they ever wanted to sell the inn to let them know. Pam and Don returned to the inn Christmas night and found a note on their bed with the broker's name and telephone number. And the rest is history. The intervening months flew by and Pam, Don and a new baby Christian (then four months old) moved to the Inn. Since then, baby Kali joined the trio in February 2004, making a neat quartet. Christian (6) and Kali (3) love meeting guests and taking them on a tour of the inn with Mom. They really enjoy sharing their playground will kids from everywhere, and have made many new friends. Inn at the Oaks Today
Once the young Innkeepers arrived, they immediately rolled up their sleeves and began to add improvements and their own family feeling to this beautiful inn. The couple have incorporated some of Don's Danish heritage into breakfasts (ask about the Inn's famous Abelskivers) and some of the decor around the inn. They have added Don’s 1946 Allis Chalmers Tractor, Originally purchased new by his grandfather and lovingly restored in 2005. The addition to the dining room, 2006, was named the Tractor Room for Don’s displays of Collectible Tractors, mostly IH, but to always include the Allis. When the “Overlook” was built and named in the late 1800’s there were no trees on Cape Cod and the property had a wonderful view of the Salt Pond across Nauset Marsh and out to the Atlantic Ocean. In the last 100+ years the trees have grown substantially and obscured this wonderful view. In 2005, keeping the trees in mind and the beautiful English Oaks that adorn the front yard the couple decided to change the inn’s name from Overlook to the Inn at the Oaks. This year they have added a basketball court and have developed the main entrance into an entry court yard to welcome guest to their home. The Andersen Family never stops working to make sure that once
you try the Inn at the Oaks, you'll be as enthused about it as they
are, and they look forward to helping you make your next family
vacation or getaway weekend unforgettable. |
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