First over-night on the section

It's been a long time coming - almost a year since we bought the section, but last weekend, Nick, the boys and I had our first night sleeping over at Church Bay. Nick was with Richie who was rowing in a regatta all day, Henry was working on preparation for his art exam, so I was in charge of getting our newly-plonked-on-the section cabin  rooms set up. With much excitement I loaded up the car with containers of plates and glasses, basic kitchen equipment and assorted essentials, and on Saturday caught the 12 noon car ferry from Half Moon Bay to Waiheke. I spent all afternoon making up beds (literally, heaving a Queen size bed around screwing in legs and putting on the mattress etc), hanging a mirror in our room and being the nutter that I am, even put a bunch of daisies I took from home, in a jar on a corner table. I was too nervous to plug in the power in case I set fire to the whole place, so had a quiet day with just a group of pesky squawking magpies for background music.

Nick, the boys Maggie and Dougal (the Border terrier and Westie) arrived on the 5pm ferry from Auckland. We raced back up to the section so that Nick and I could show the boys our progress, and they seemed suitably impressed (not quite over-whelmed, they are teenage boys), but certainly pretty happy. Some dear friends of ours also have a place on Waiheke, and were out last weekend too, so we were thrilled to have them come over to join us for takeaway pizza from Stefanos with a bottle of champagne and a couple of red! Well all was going terribly well until the temperature dropped to what felt like below freezing and Maggie embraced her terrier roots by capturing hedgehogs and running around with them in her mouth every 5 minutes. We battled on! With jumpers wrapped around our heads and jackets and woolly jumpers on, we refused to give in - we admired that setting sunset and ignored the potential risk of frost bite for hours! OK, probably hardier souls may not have found it too bad, but I think we had just slightly under-estimated the full camping nature of our set up! As we said goodnight I was so excited to be hopping into bed with the stars and night sky view visible through our curtain-less windows. The dogs were also pretty excited about this, and at the opportunity to bark at every hedgehog, rabbit or other beastie cruising around the section during the night. After much swearing and grumping I wedged their dog beds down the side of the bed to block the view and they, and us, finally went to sleep. The next day Nick and I headed down to Oneroa beach to give the dogs a run, then I couldn't stop myself from doing a bit of ineffectual weeding, just so that I could feel connected to the place. Finally it was time for the inevitable tidy up before leaving for the return ferry. Complete with barking dogs and frigid wind it was wonderful, and I can't wait to do it all again.

November 2011 - 2012

We bought 235 Church Bay Road, Waiheke Island, in November 2011. In the 12 months since we bought the section we have headed out to the island about once every six weeks or so to sit on the land, make sure the lawn mowing has been done and to remind ourselves that it really exists. Sometimes, sitting at work or rushing around with our regular lives, it's hard to connect with the idea that 235 Church Bay is actually ours, and to feel like we are on a path - but the moment we step on the ferry the excitement starts building and doesn't stop.

Let me show you the seasons as we have seen them so far:

Summer 2011

Daybreak on the section

Protecting the vines

Autumn

Winter 

Spring 2012 

sunset

The first cut - feels so invasive!

Cabins on the truck

...and in place on the section November 2012

You might think it never rains on Waiheke - well not as much as on the mainland maybe, but not never...it's just that we have been slightly less inclined to head over when it's hosing down with rain outside, but now that we have some cover on the section, you might see a couple of gloomier weather shots! Once through the seasons of the first year, and we are just taking baby steps. This week the non-permanent (hello council!) decks are being built, the power is being connected and the worm farm loo is arriving. This weekend will be our first night sleeping over in the cabins - can't wait!!!! From here on in it's architect's plans, council consents and the hard work begins. Bring it on!

Welcome to In Search of the Good Life! It's a bit of a grand title really, but I guess it sums up what we are trying to do. We are a family of four (six if you count the dogs) living in Auckland New Zealand. Nick works for a major New Zealand retailer, the Warehouse. Henry is our 17 year-old in his second-to-last year at school and Richard is 15 - both boys are at school in Auckland. I am a food stylist/social media manager/ recipe developer working with Annabel Langbein, NZ's most well known celebrity cook. The dogs are Dougie, a 7-year-old Border Terrier and 5-year-old Maggie is a West Highland White Terrier. 

We are In Search of the Good Life!

It all started 15 years ago when the boys were 3 years and eighteen months old, when on a mad whim we bought a modest section on the island of Waiheke (in the Hauraki Gulf, New Zealand), on which we then built a small beach house. Waiheke is a 35 minute ferry ride from downtown Auckland, (see all about it in my 'Waiheke' post to come) so during  holidays I would stay at the bach with the boys, as I wasn't working at that time when the kids were little, while Nick (hubby) commuted to work via ferry and car. We would often walk the many tracks on the island and always fancied that a particularly beautiful section we would often pass, that seemed to always be for sale, would one day be ours - complete with acres of land and sea views...but never did anything about it as we imagined it to be way outside our price range. Over the next 15 years the boys started school, we moved to Sydney for 2 1/2 years, and back, and I started a personal training business called Group Personal Training. Then, over a short period of time a whole lot of things happened at once.

I had been working as the owner operator of a personal training bootcamp business, which I had recently sold, (I was knackered frankly - 6 years of 5am starts and training twice a day) and a few months later I had a mole removed from my abdomen which turned out to be a melanoma. (Fortunately, against the advice of my then dermatologist, I insisted he remove it - just in time it turns out, before it spread - so no further action was required other than 3- monthly skin checks and anything vaguely unusual is now whipped off immediately). Around that time 'our' dream section on Waiheke sold at a price we actually could have afforded with monumental effort. So, with a huge feeling of not wanting to miss another moment of life by letting it pass us by, Nick and I starting looking at other sections on the island. 

One day in August 2011 we drove past a sign on a gate in front of a truly beautiful piece of land, complete with amazing native bush, stunning sea views, and the extra special bonus of a planting of grape vines. We drove a little further and saw another 'for sale' sign in front of a house, 'Oh bugger' we thought - it's the whole package for sale, and the estate agent is just being thorough with his signage. Even so we snuck onto the bare section and sat on the grass, imagining how amazing it would be to live in such a spot. We decided to give the real estate agent Clive a call, to check that it was both house and land for sale, just in case. We were beside ourselves when he replied that no, the section (15 acres) was for sale separately, and even more excited when he encouraged us to put in an offer that we thought we could somehow make happen! Unfortunately that didn't go very well, with the owner returning our unsigned offer (well it was very much lower than the asking price!) with a laugh. Licking our wounds we tried to put the idea of the section out of our heads, knowing that it had been a pretty cheeky offer, but not interested in any other land enough to put in any further offers. Three months later a call came from the agent - the owner was keen to talk. 

This time it was all go! We started negotiating and got a deal - hallelujah - so immediately put our house  of 15 years on the market. In the next 8 weeks we confirmed the purchase of 235 Church Bay Rd, Waiheke, sold our lovely big old renovated bungalow in Epsom, Auckland, bought a cookie-cutter bolt-hole house in Stonefields, Auckland and also sold our beloved little bach on Waiheke. 

All in 8 weeks! 

So - forgive the boring build up - that was Christmas last year. One year on and we are very slowly getting the wheels in motion. We plan to live in Stonefields (still on the mainland in Auckland) until Richie finishes school and goes to university. Nick and I are unbelievably proud of our boys - Henry is the most hard-working, focussed, smart, creative and personally strong individual I have ever met. Richard is model-handsome, clever, sporty, funny and could charm the birds out of the trees. They have always planned to spread their wings as soon as they can - so - let's hope they keep thinking that way, because by the time they are both attending university, Nick and I plan to be living on Waiheke. They can of course live with us (and if they don't visit super-regularly, I will be beside myself) although it is probably not ideal for them to commute to Auckland university - but still perfectly do-able. Currently Henry is thinking of going to Wellington university to study architecture or landscape architecture, and Richard is considering a law/business degree in Auckland...I guess we'll have to play the whole thing by ear along the way maybe doing some clever above-garage extra development, but if we don't get into gear now, we may be too old and tired to in a few years!

And now - this is what it's all about: In Search of the Good Life. If I could imagine my perfect life (oh my God, I'm feeling a bit teary!) this would be it: to live in a beautiful, comfortable home with Nick, surrounded by sea and land and productive vegetable and flower gardens, chickens in their coops, dogs roaming the bush, over-looking wine growing on the vines. I would have beautiful guest rooms for my boys and their future families to come and stay, also available for beloved friends. I would like to entertain, to pick people up from the ferry, welcome them to our little piece of paradise, to take them to our wonderful spot, turn up some fabulous music, eat beautiful food, drink delicious wine and enjoy life with them. I would like a house full of laughter and sunshine (just not on me - permanently slathered in sunscreen and hat-wearer that I am). I would love to have paying guests from all over the world - so that Nick and I could share Waiheke with them. I imagine turning down fine linen sheets in a beautiful bedroom, providing freshly made breakfasts and picnic hampers packed with local wine and home-made gourmet food, and sending guests off on vespers to discover the beautiful island beaches and vineyards. I would love to have brides and grooms surrounded by their happy friends holding weddings in our beautiful garden in front of the vines, drinking champagne and being photographed framed by sea views and grape vines.

Not much huh?

Is it possible to have such indulgent dreams and then try and turn them into reality? Is it stupid? Selfish? Tempting fate? I don't know, and I am a little bit scared, actually quite a lot,  but F***k it, we're going to try!

And do you know - it's happening. We would like to invite you to join us on our journey - schmaltzy as that sounds. No doubt there is going to be a lot of drama and disaster along the way, but hopefully lots of successes too. This is going to be my diary as we go on - November 2012 now, with the aim of moving in November 2015. So here we are, present time and I'll let you know where we're at: we have just confirmed the architect for our build will be Andy Coltart of The Black Barn in Hawkes Bay. On Friday larger-than-life, no spring chicken, farmer-turned-architect, Andy spent the day with us, standing on different parts of the section like a water-diviner sensing the parts of the land with the best feel. Sounds a bit nuts, but my God it was great! He even starting drawing up sketches at the restaurant table over lunch - Nick and I were like kids at Christmas time. Henry is in the midst of exams and had a day off so joined us, and on the same day our two interim sleep-out sheds arrived on site. 

   

So this is it, for the next few years while we plan and cost and shape the land - two 4x2m sheds, one kitted out with two bunks (sleeps 4) and the other a queen sized bed, will be our 'bach'. This week decks are being built on the front, an outdoor shower is being plumbed on the back and our composting worm toilet arrives! It will be like weekend and holiday camping, with a barbecue for cooking, a flat bit of land for tents for friends, and an undercover area for entertaining...woo hoo! Next Saturday we will all head over for our first night on the section. I can't wait to go to sleep with not a street light in sight, watching the city lights of Auckland in the distance, then wake up to the squawking of Pukekoes as the rabbits flee our dogs in the morning!  

Yippee!