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The honeymoon is over

THIS POST WAS ORIGINALLY WRITTEN ON NOVEMBER 19, 2010 (my website was hacked and we lost this post)
Yesterday we celebrated 8 months of living in New Zealand. The last few months have included some major highs and lows, and as challenging as they’ve been, it’s been vital in helping us confirm why we made the move in the first place. We love it here, and we’re so happy we decided to make the change!
Let’s start with the obvious, the HUGE 7.4magnitude earthquake that struck 30km south of us on September 4th seriously tested our staying power. Margot was particularly terrified and as per many Christchurch residents didn’t sleep well for a good month after it happened. We were extremely lucky in Leithfield and even now only the large aftershocks (4.5mag +) can be felt at our place and generally only on the second level. Since the initial quake there’s been almost 3000 aftershocks, you can see how they happened on this awesome map http://www.christchurchquakemap.co.nz/.
One of the major highlights was our recent road trip down south to Dunedin. This long overdue trip (we had planned to do a lot more ‘exploring’ when we first moved) was a much needed change of scenery and an absolute pleasure. The trip down (although only a day long) was filled with excitement indulging gorgeous sun, showers, coastal thunderstorms and some snow. We stopped quite a few times but we’re discovering that’s what NZs really all about – so many gorgeous attractions, great eateries and amazing scenery. Dunedin itself is beautiful, a real classic European city and so beautifully intact (how you notice these things after the destruction we’d left behind) we also found out that its one of the few parts of NZ that doesn’t really get any earthquakes. After a fun filled three day adventure we were ready to head back and tackle the oncoming spring with energy and enthusiasm.
Ah Spring – I’ve never experienced it like this before (being a Brisbane gal, just about forever) literally right before our eyes(and in a matter of weeks) every plant which we’d grown accustomed to being bare burst into flower. Not just that, but to our absolute delight daffodils appeared everywhere, not just in people’s front yards but along the road and in random fields. And just to top things off there was lambing, tiny little fluffy bundles of joy scampering across the fields everywhere we drove, what a sight to behold!
This leads me to the home front, right now our yard is a heaving mass of potential energy. We have a big chicken enclosure thanks to Pete and currently have 4 hens and a roosters and we’re collecting four eggs a day. We helped a friend hand rear an abandoned lamb at the start of spring for about 6 weeks which was lovely for both us and the girls. In the veggie patch there have been some extensions, with Pete making a huge additional no dig garden bed right in front of the kitchen window (good for motivation – if you ever need any – to go potter in the garden). The winter crop is all but harvested and the spring veggies are at various stages of growth. We’ve gone all out this time round and have planted 3 types of beans, 2 types of tomatoes, radish and carrots as well as corn, beetroot, spinach, lettuce, broccoli, potatoes, watermelon, pumpkin and celery (still left from winter). So all going according to plan we will be eating well. The fruit trees were some of the first in the garden to flower so we can already see the baby apples, peaches, mandarins, grapefruit, strawberries and red currants (my newest addition) growing. The tiny Christmas plums are what’s really getting us excited right now as we think they’ll be the first to mature, we hope it won’t be long till we have some plum sauce, jam, preserve or compote bubbling away on the stove.
Pete has been busy with the kids at home, but has also taken up a new project growing Mushrooms. He started with a kit and his first crop is in the final stages of spawning as we speak, so we should have our first harvest in mid December. He also decided to build a sauna rather than drive to the gym (minimum 30mins each way). The final building looks fabulous and with a donation of an old wood stove the sauna was complete – now all I need is a jacuzi!
So on a day-to-day basis life is good. We have lots more time to spend together as a family, we feel more in tune with the seasons and our local environment, and the kids just adore all the space they have to play and the extra freedom we can give them. The change in family finances has been a challenge but also a really good learning curve in how to think outside the square from all aspects and appreciate what you have, not what you want. It’s also been a return to working at ‘saving’ for our goals which is never a bad thing.

The Real Deal

THIS POST WAS ORIGINALLY WRITTEN ON JUNE 2, 2010 (my website was hacked and we lost this post)
It’s been ten weeks since we arrived in New Zealand and we are really starting to get into our stride. The house is looking great, we’ve finally got a bed for us and one for guests (hint, hint) and all but one room are fully unpacked.
We’ve been spending lots of time in the kitchen since we arrived. With all that lovely fruit on our trees we rolled up our sleeves and started making jam. Three batches later, a bottle of peach liqueur, cumquat marmalade, pickled onions, ginger beer and crab apple lemonade. In addition to all these preserves we’ve started trying our hand at bread. We haven’t bought a loaf from the shop in four weeks and have made white, wholemeal and mixed nut loaves and rolls. Pete’s also been really creative and made a bunch of traditional Finnish recipes including Pulla, Karelian Piraka’s (rice pudding rye pies) as well as rye bread.
The girls and I have started going to a local playgroup (two streets walk from our house) two mornings a week and we’re all enjoying it. The girls LOVE all the awesome toys, play equipment and nice kids to play with. I am enjoying meeting the mums, most of them live within a street of us and some are also new to the area or even the country, which is nice.
A lot of you have asked about Pete’s health and I’m pleased to say his skin is almost clear and he’s feeling a lot better overall. We have found a great doctor over here who specialises in toxic overload and he is working at finding a solution to get the toxins out of Pete’s system. This is all very positive, but the he has told Pete that can no longer work in construction of any kind, which is quite disappointing. Pete’s really enjoying New Zealand, as I knew he would. He’s been doing some mountain biking and has taken up fishing. He’s also keen to try his hand at hunting (possums and rabbits are big pests here) and has picked up some second hand ski’s in the lead up to winter.
On a sustainable level things are starting to happen too. We’ve managed to get our rubbish per week, down to one medium sized bag, the rest is composted and the paper is used in the fireplace. Over here lots more things are available in ‘scoop’ quantities (flour, seeds, coffee, tea etc.) so there aren’t not so many left overs and those products usually go in paper bags, which I use for the kids snack packs and then burn. We’ve also had fun trying our hand at ‘urban foraging’ we are always on the lookout for fruit tree’s or nuts which we can use. Last week we collect chestnuts from a tree which we drive under on the way the Christchurch every week. Other things we’ve collected are apples, pears, crab apples, fennel (in our local creek bed) and walnuts. It makes for a bit of an adventure, and the kids are used us pulling up suddenly with a ‘what do think that is growing there??’ now. Our vegies patch is coming along but we haven’t harvested more than the odd bit of lettuce or spinach yet. The chicken dug up some of our potatoes but at least she gives us an egg every day.
We went away around easter time with our friends Carlene and Joe camping. Lake Taylor was the place and it was beyond gorgeous. We camped right on the water’s edge and the mountains rose steeply around us. Carlene and Joe had their caravan and we stayed in our tent, it was quite chilly at night (dropping to 1 degree) but thankfully we had many many layers of bedding and all bunked in together so we were toasty warm. We used the caravan when it got chilly and for meals but spent lots of time at the water edge (the girls loved throwing stones) and Pete and Joe went mountain biking and fishing at Lake Sumner nearby.

Breaking Ground

Well, we’re finally here – in our house! Official move in day was two weeks ago and the girls adjusted really well to their new home – sleeping in their own beds seemed to do the trick.

The first thing I unpacked was the kitchen and although there’s not as much cupboard space as in Acacia Ridge, it looks really homely and I just love the space as a living area. The house warms up nicely through the day (there are three skylights and numerous windows) and at night you can actually feel where the light falls from the warm spots on the concrete. The house is incredibly warm and there are no draughts, we’ve used the fire a few times (so far mostly for fun) and we’re preparing for winter with the six cubic metres of firewood we had delivered today (apparently this will only take us halfway thru winter!)

Last Thursday we were itching to start our vegie patch. Pete hired a rotary hoe and made me two new 8 x 2m plots. Today he bought wood and chicken wire and fenced it, as well as the existing patch (4 x 6m). You may wonder why we fenced it, we are hoping to buy some more chickens soon (on top of the resident chicken we inherited with the house) and have some experience in the trials of keeping chickens out of vegie patches. I planted the start of our winter crop this afternoon including, spinach, broccoli, cabbage, potato, beetroot and celery and lettuce (the hardiest of the autumn vegies) I plan to add to this and hopefully in about 10 weeks we will start to see a reduction in our grocery bills!

On the ‘fun’ side of things we took the kids to Hamner Springs (a 40min drive from our house) where you can bathe in natural hot springs. The setting is lovely, lots of small rock pools at varying temperatures as well as a big kids pool with slides and some chlorinated ‘regular’ type pools. We took the kids into the kiddie pool (31 degrees) first and slowly worked our way up to the hottest sulphur pool (41 degrees). This pool is not clarified and they mix cooled water with the straight spring water which comes out of the ground at 55 degrees. Hannah called it the ‘Egg Pool’ as the sulphur leaves a semi-strong egg smell. The kids had sooo much fun, most of the rock pools were shallow and they could both walk around within arms reach and have ‘freedom’ – you couldn’t wipe the smile off Heidi’s face.

So far our encounters with the locals have been whilst purchasing things or asking questions and everyone we’ve both spoken to has been extremely friendly and welcoming. We met the treasurer of the local social club a few days ago and are planning to go along to ‘Pizza Night’ at the Pub on Wednesday.

The Big Move

Well here we are in New Zealand at last, it seems like a lot longer than two days since we flew in, and at the same time it’s all gone rather fast.

It was a very early Sunday morning flight, and other than a bungle with tickets, our flight went wonderfully and the kids were extremely well behaved. Our friends kindly picked us up from the airport with two cars (for our 10 bags!!) and with a few scrapes (the boot was hanging rather low) we were on our way. We were surprised to arrive to 29 degree heat and had a lovely afternoon lying on the grass in their backyard eating afternoon tea and letting the girls get to know each other again (they have a 1.5yo daughter).

After a well deserved sleep-in we awoke to another slightly cooler day. We just couldn’t wait any longer and decided to head out to check out our new abode. The village is north of Christchurch and not far from the beach. The block is on 2000m2 and a battle axe block which actually makes it a bit of a micro climate and shelters us from some of the cool ocean breezes.

We drove up to see a set of grand looking iron gates and peeked through see a long driveway with overgrown gardens on either side. After driving through we rounded the corner to see the house, a large white two storey building, rendered on the outside with lots of windows. The yard needs more than a little tidying up but all I could see where the heavily laden fruit trees all around. I was in heaven – peaches, nectarines, mandarins, grapefruit, grapes, raspberries, apple and rhubarb all growing freely!! Our dreams were coming true – I could almost taste the preserves already. We eagerly headed inside and I was so pleased to see how light and open the living areas were, the kitchen is quirky but has a beautiful feeling about it. There are a few things that we need to change for the kids (safety wise) but we are hoping to head back this week and get them done before we move in. Overall the house is rather whimsical, and we can’t wait to get stuck in and start creating the lifestyle we’ve been dreaming about for so long.

There is a popular cafe where the village crosses the main highway north and we stopped in for a bit of lunch after our visit. I met one of the locals and was pleased to hear that there is a playgroup at the local community centre and a daycare centre at the next village up the highway. Our friends headed back to Christchurch after lunch and we decided to check out ‘our’ local beach!! It was definitely a bit more brisk and the girls donned their jackets for the first time. The sea was rough, the beach pebbly and we could definitely see ourselves taking long walks along here in the months to come. Right behind the beach was a fantastic playground with a flying fox, merry go round, HUGE metal slide and lots more fun for the kids.

On the way home we got the news that we wouldn’t have long to wait till we could start our new lifestyle. We had prepared ourselves for a bit of a wait and we’re pleasantly surprised to hear that our furniture will probably be ready for delivery on Thursday morning. So the next blog will be from our new house!

The BIG Move – Our lifestyle change to New Zealand

So we’ve finally bitten the bullet and are making one of our dreams a reality. We’re moving from little old Brisbane to the South Island of New Zealand just north of Christchurch. It’s all happening very fast so you’ll have to excuse this blog being short as my to do list is very very long. I will attach the change of address notice we’ll be sending out and I cant wait to send the first photos of our new abode and GARDEN!!

Rocket Stove

We’ve been playing around with the idea of using more sustainable methods for our cooking and our first dalliance in that direction has been to build a basic rocket stove. The concept involves two cylinders which intersect in a right angle elbow. The one parallel to the ground has a little shelf built in at about 1/3 the height of the cylinder which you file with dry twigs. You light the twigs and a vacuum is created sucking cool air into the third of the cylinder below the burning twigs. The heat from fire pushes the air up in a ‘rocket’ style thus creating a perfect spot for a cooking pan on the top of the stove. I hope this made sense.

Pete decided to build one out of bricks this time, as an experiment. Apparently this is how they are made in developing countries as it is efficient and very cheap to make and run. We had a lovely dinner of snags cooked on our stove and we only used a very small pile of twigs which we gathered from around our yard. My project is to try and build a solar oven next .. keep you posted!