Dan and Deb Hageman, who moved into their new home in early November 2014, run Serenity Valley Bed and Breakfast in the lower level of the log cabin. It wasn’t until the rural Ossian couple was midway through the design process for the home that they had the idea of starting the bed and breakfast. (Zakary Kriener photo)
A little piece of the Rockies in Iowa
Zakary Kriener
News Writer
zkriener@fayettepublishing.com
“A house like that should be sitting at the foot of the Rocky Mountains,” expressed Dan and Deb Hageman’s youngest son, Adam, the first time he saw his parents’ new log cabin home/bed and breakfast.
“We love it too much here in Iowa,” replied Deb, “and we don’t have to deal with all of the Colorado traffic.”
Dan purchased the property from his father in the early ‘90s. His father, Arnold, had owned the property since 1976.
When Dan and Deb acquired the acreage near Ossian, it resembled nothing close to how it appears today.
“In 2004, we put in the first and largest pond,” explained Dan. “Over the years, we continued cleaning brush and planting new trees and vegetation.”
In 2010, three additional ponds were added to the evolving property.
“Every year, we clear a little more brush and plant some new trees,” noted Dan, a longtime farmer. “We put in about 50 to 70 trees every year.”
When the Hagemans sat down and started planning their new home, they had no intentions of incorporating a bed and breakfast.