Simply loving it .......

This is the title for a new adventure Brooke and I about to embark upon......

Simply loving it, is about taking the values that you hold very dear to your heart and starting to honestly live them

What does this mean exactly?

That's the question, isn't it....what does living your values actually mean....

Over the past months weeks and days and we have been looking at our life almost from above and identifying all the things that inspire us, the things that drain us and the things that we aspire to Be, Do and Have in our life.

Over the coming months we aim to DE-clutter our lives through offloading the things that we no longer require like unworn clothing, unused items and those things we all have that 'we might need one day'. 

Well today is that 'one day', the one day we decide we don't need them, we just hang onto them because that's how it is right! how we've learned to Be...how life has shaped our thinking, how work has shaped our doing and how commercialism traps us.

We have been reading a lot about other people who have traded down whilst going up at the very same time... and by letting go of all the 'non essential  stuff' in their lives they have actually re-started life in a whole new way. 

I really believe our journey will give us, and hopefully others, the opportunity to experince what we actually need in our lives instead of what we 'think' we need....

I'm looking forward to sharing our journey with you into our Simply awesome, New life...

Where Old meets new! what a Union.

The journey of our new deck

Well, it's almost complete. Kevin and Kyle arrived today and at 7am. Can you believe we agreed on that time, on a weekend!It's now 4pm and I think I'm hearing the last screws going into the new roof. It's rained a lot today, and it also really sticky hot. The worst possible building conditions, but they have soldiered on and the end is in sight.

So, here is the journey from the beginning to right now at 4pm.

                                                         When Old meets new.

        

                                              Bearers and posts in. It's a bit overcast

        

            

                                      Looking forward to the Old girls transformation.

         

       

                          I just like this photo, it's like it's framing the beautiful views.  

        

           

                          Sunny days looking across the fields, roof on. Nearly there. 

           

        Balustrade and roof in place. Rainy days, but at least the woodwork is complete

           

                   Undercoat and tops coats onto posts to allow boys to get roof on, 

                                  

                                   Almost finished, just those tricky wee corners.

                                   

                                   IT'S ON ...Both the roof and the rain that is.

                         But the soldiers are marching on. Looking East to West

             

                                                 Looking West to East, Murphy likes it.

          

                   The boys are on the home straight. It's cloudy, but it looks great.

       

         The next photo I post will be of a complete deck, roof an all! Watch this space.

            

Summer time and the living is easy

What have we been up to?

We've found the best builders to undertake our veranda job. Kevin and Kyle are local lads who were recommended to us from friends. The boys work really fast and are producing some great results.

The new space is a whopping 15 metres by 3 and it's already clear will add a whole new dimension to the place.

 Laura and Lloyd at "our wee farm" up North have done the same thing and having spent a weekend up at their place last year, we saw what is possible to achieve for your wee piece of heaven. 

 

        

                                                Ready for a makeover little house?

        

                                               Foundations set, not bad for 1 days work.

         

            

                                                  Ready to start laying the deck

        

       

                                  A good sheltered area to share with good friends

        

                                                   Alfresco here we come, not long now.

       

  

                                Stage 3 almost complete. Check out the stunning sky.

         

We will continue to handrail along the three sides and hopefully Kevin will achieve this in the next 3 days. Then the long weekend will be filled with painting the area white. We'll leave the deck as is the fade naturally. The boys will then fit the iron for the roof and that should this job done. We are thinking about taking the kitchen window out and popping a fair of French doors in it's place. This will allow easy access to the deck from kitchen. 

What else can you possibly do in these long hot summer days? Well Brookies tomatoes are ready and we decided to have a go at making sweet chutney... 

                                        First get heaps of yummy, ripe tomatoes

                                      

    Roughly chop em up and place in large pan with 3 chopped onions and half                                                 cup brown soft sugar, water and some veg stock 

          

       After 2 hours of simmering, prepare preserve jars and pop the tasty stuff in. 

       We got 3jars from this.

                         

       

 Catch ya later friends, next update will see a finished deck..yippee.

Maggie.

New Year with Old Friends, the best of times.

Welcome 2014.

January 2nd we welcomed our pal Sal, Kona, Sue and Arti up to enjoy a weekend at the cottage and a concert at Matakana Country Park watching Fat Feddys Drop and Shapeshifter Summer events at matakana

The troops arrived around 12 and it was party time until 6.30 when we headed up to the park.

Kona and Sue checking out the groovy band. Sue mentioned what happened to our wee picnic blanket and cheese'n crackers idea....I think we are at the wrong concert!

                                     

                                          I think we were about 20 years too OLD...

                                     

              But the next day we had the best breakfast out in the garden

     

                   Some enjoyed a liquid breakfast...Sal and Kona (tut tut)...