Because Time Just Keeps Passing

We knew we had a long wait for our application decision but ever the optimists we did not want to rest on our laurels, we had so much to do! Remember there was no plan B, we were adamant our application was going to be accepted, so we were going to forge ahead and make the most of this time to get much needed renovation work and DIY projects in and around the house completed.

As with everything in this process we have always looked for opportunities to maximise our position for when we finally did receive the application outcome we expected. We needed to be able to get as good a price for our house as possible, the money from the house sale and our savings were going to have to go a long way when we moved to Canada, we would have to start everything from scratch.

I lost count of how many times we were told we must be crazy for giving up everything we had worked so hard for over the past 9 years, career, home not to mention a beautiful country. It can be hard not to buy into that narrative and second guess the decision we had made but we soon became very adept at tuning out the Nay Sayers and just listening to that internal voice telling us we were heading in the right direction.

Waiting Time is Not Wasting Time

When we first bought our house in the Onewhero Hills it was in a considerable state of disrepair, we referred to it as the “Shack on the hill” and this title was no exaggeration. There were holes in the walls, Martin’s foot fell through part of the lounge floor (due to damp and not because he is heavy) the bay window nearly fell out when Martin leaned on it to look at the view (Hmmm perhaps he is heavy … I am joking Martin if you are reading this!), rats had chewed through the wiring, there was no insulation anywhere, the fireplace had a sign on it stating, “Danger Do Not Use!” and every room was decorated in dark burgundy, salmon pink or turquoise coloured paint.

Whilst we wanted to make the house ready for sale, we wanted to do it on a budget so did as much of the work as possible ourselves only using trades people where we had to and only investing in DIY projects that would add value without blowing a hole in our precious savings. Many people make the mistake of investing too much in renovations when putting their house on the market and not seeing the return in the sale value, we could not afford to make that mistake.

We built an Arbor

We decorated the kitchen

We built a retaining wall

We renovated the sleep out

We named our house

I could include so many more photos, the house and deck were stained, all rooms were decorated, flooring was replaced, light fittings, a new cooker and dishwasher were installed the projects went on and on!

All Work & No Play

With such a long wait it would be easy to lose heart and get despondent and in all honestly, we did have times where our patience grew a little thin and our optimism had a wobble so being productive was an effective way to take our mind off things. Having said that we did not want to fill all our remaining time in New Zealand working or renovating so we spent time with family and included lots of days out to break up the grind.

There were days at the beach

There were days on the lake

Birthdays & Christmas came and went

There were snoozes in-between

Content in passing the time and being productive while we waited for news, we had no concept that the sun filled azure skies we were anticipating had turned grey and cloudy and a storm was looming on the horizon, something catastrophic was on its way and life as we knew it was going to change forever in more ways than one.