Houseblogging: glass to see through

Doubled glazed windows have been the biggest progress on site this week. Oh, and the first fix plumbing and electrics too. Yes, it's all happening still and the house is looking more like a house every time we visit.

The roofers are due this coming week. It's not good weatherwise at the moment with rain, wind and a bitter chilly wind. Hopefully when the rest of the windows and doors go in conditions inside for working will improve no end.

The house looks stunning sitting in the landscape which our pictures just can't do justice to but enjoy the views nevertheless.

Same view but with some windows this time

It's all happening for the energy systems

Views from our new bedroom windows

The back door - well, views of the windows at least!

MT couldn't resist a little schoolboy humour!

There she blows

I think it's fair to say winter has arrived. The tell tale signs are the extra duvet on the bed, the fire on every evening, winter coat out of the cupboard and a general new ruddiness to people's faces as a they brave the biting chill of the Wellington wind.

But, it's better than this time last year when we were beset with rain, winds and general all round unhappiness with the weather. Also, snow storms that caused havoc. The snow has arrived in the chilly southland on the South Island and the ski fields are opening for the winter season. Personally I can't wait until we're off to the tropics at the end of July.

No doubt that the colder weather brings new topics of conversations. We have the daily competition as to where in Wellington it's coldest. I feel I won hands down this week as on Monday we were showing 1 degree in Khandallah.

Even if its cold, we need the rain to hold off. Can't build houses when everthing is wet.

Houseblogging: numb fingers

It was blowly a southerly when we visited site this weekend to meet with plumber and electrician to discuss first fix. After three hourse of wandering around the house my feet and fingers were frozen. Hopefully the windows will start to be installed this coming week and the turret and veranda roofs will be installed to keep out the wintery weather which has most definitely arrived.

Apologies for the small number of photos this week - it was simply too cold to be hanging around to capture the best views and light!

Verandas around the side too now.

And the back (note the mud on site - it's been raining but the drains were back filled in the nick of time!).

Coffee etiquette

I always think of Friday's as kiwi day - laid back and making the most of an easy life. Wellington turns a different colour too, the traditional black in the CBD turns denim blue.

The office atmosphere is always much lighter and brighter, usually with plenty of baking in the Level 8 kitchen. This week I was treated to an amazing sight - two men unloading and loading the dishwasher!

Not such an amazing thing really but certainly a rare sight. I realised after a few minutes that this wasn't just two blokes relenting under the pressure of the girls in the office to do their bit but rather them preparing for their Friday refreshment ritual.

When the decks were clear the coffee making equipment was carefully unpacked. Supersized cafetiere, milk frother and wait for it, the coffee beans and grinder. Then the two office baristas started work with full blown coffee etiquette applied. It was a pretty impressive sight to see them leave the kitchen with their tray of goodies (obligatory muffins and cheese scones of course!) and head to their desks for a yarn and coffee.

As you might expect I wasn't going to fall for the Wellingtonian thing, I stuck with my cup of English Breakfast tea (milk in first) to my English china mug. Just as it should be!

Domestic fit out

OK, I know I've become very tardy with my blogging in recent weeks. The fact of the matter is that being a domestic executive is sooooo time consuming. I've got two full time jobs at the moment, the one that earns the money and the one that spends it.

I've been totally engrossed in planning and researching fittings and fixtures for the house. Getting what you want requires total obsession with the detail and however good the architect and builders are, it's down to you to get the specification, sourcing and pricing nailed down.

At last we've made huge progress in this regard after my Godsend Father sent over the Fired Earth catalogue from the UK in which to harrass suppliers in New Zealand. Many a conversation, starts and ends with "I want it to look like that", pointing furiously to the glitzy homey pictures of English country homes. Funny that in New Zealand people are looking at me as if I am completely barmy. The rest of the conversations are usually interspersed with "How much? You're joking aren't you......"; "It takes how long to get here.......?"; "Well I know that that's how kiwi's do it but I'm not a kiwi so please can you explain again......!". It's exhausting and frustrating and it's consuming my life.

But, light is starting to appear like through the mangaroa tunnel. See http://domestic-executive.blogspot.com/2007/03/photoblogging-tunnel-gully.html

Floor tiles, carpets, woodflooring now picked. Plumbing fittings and tapware selected and two fallings out the with builders on pricing. Kitchen still in progress as we're now sourcing English made units that can be supplied and fitted cheaper than those built and made in Wellington (if you can work that out let me know!). Wardrobes decided on although we really aren't doing it the kiwi way (who wants to fill their house with MDF and formica cupboards?). Electric plan drawn up (that's really going to sting when with the bill comes in) and joinery units specified (not so cheap and nasty now).

The search now commences for the holy grail of bathroom accessories and heated towel rails that don't look like they've come from $stretcher but at $stretcher prices. I will need a holiday before deciding on paint colours.

We've also have a wonderful garden landscaping plan which is very exciting and makes a change from thinking about bathrooms and kitchens. The landscaper got the design nailed first time. Funny that it's a Brit that's done it .... a concidence perhaps?

Houseblogging: it's the detail that takes the time

Another almost perfect building week although I think it's been the windiest and chilliest yet. You have to look much closer at progress this week since the devil is in the detail. Key things to note:

- weatherboards to the front and some of the back
- base boards around the bottom of the house
- veranda framing including bullnose roof shape
- Decorative Soffits on the roof
- Oh yes, loads and loads of trenches with drainpipes!

The benchmark pic showing progress to the front


Closer view of the front verandas (look very hard at the roof line for the decorative soffits and base boards under the decking).

Just to prove will will have drains to our state of the art sewage chamber!

One step closer to bringing the cup home

There's much excitement in kiwi land as Team New Zealand swept to victory in the Louis Vuitton Cup. It's hard not to imagine the big prize coming home and we don't want to tempt fate so perhaps it might be better to just wear the lucky teashirt and hope that the boys don't have any off days on the water whilst battling against their arch rival Alinghi.

A beautiful sight - Team NZ battling for the line


Team NZ looking pretty chuffed with themselves!

Kiwi supporters looking pretty chuffed too!

Kiwi patriots abroad

Photoblogging:Unspoilt NZ

This last weekend was a four day break for us to blow out the candles for Liz's birthday. We did what all good kiwis do for such occasions - head for the beach!

We were lucky enough to be invited to stay at some friends' beach house at a remote location on the East Coast of the Wairarapa about 2.5 hours drive from Wellington, the last 20 minutes of which is on a gravel track.

Flatpoint is a charming and wild part of New Zealand Coast that has started a new community of weekenders and part time residents. http://flatpoint.co.nz/index.html for more information.

We had a great weekend admiring the views, contemplating how you'd actually play golf and admiring the custom of the local farmer flying to the nearest town to buy the paper and dropping them from the air for residents to share.

MT got all adventurous as well and learned to quad bike the kiwi way to allow us to travel up gracefully (well with a lurch or two of the gear changing) to admire the view from the top of the hill. Enjoy the views!

Views of the beach - we picked up Paua shells and spied seals resting on the rocks

The beach house on front line where we stayed - definitely rooms with a view!

MT enjoying his new wheels.

Views from the top!

Houseblogging: race against the weather clock

It was a short sharp visit to the house this weekend as we head travelled back and forth over the Rimutaka Hill to visit friends on the east coast of the Wairarapa. The Build Team continue to make good progress having completed the main roof parts and started on the weather board construction.

Another good building week expected so fingers crossed that progress continues to beat the winter weather which looms ever closer.

A new view to enjoy - looking down the right hand side of the back garden.

Almost a full roof - just the fiddly bits to do!

Close up on the weatherboard.

Shattered domesticity

Apologies readers for the genuine break in blogging this week. Our computer decided to have a meltdown which has been an all consuming worry. The offending hard disk is still sitting in limbo for a recovery operation but we're up and running again in the meantime.

I've often mentioned how important the internet is to our daily lives - reading papers, downloading podcasts, emailing etc. When all that activity was curtailed it was like losing all the furniture in your living room. Although we were still able to use the laptop it isn't like having the master computer working in the ways it normally should.

Still, its over now and I'm determined not to morn the lost files. Well not yet at least. Big lesson learned about back up etc but thinking about what might have been is not a good path to take.

Another busy week for this executive domestic counting down to home working. Mid week bombshell is that my immediate boss is leaving so we'll be all change in a couple of months. I'm delighted for her but that means lots of deals to be done with her before she leaves to make sure that the final home run for me it's littered with stops and starts from the new person.

I've also been investing in being a domestic executive this week but topping up my coach training and networking furiously for future clients. Hopefully that will pay off in time. I've got two clients at work now which is keeping the skills ticking over week by week and have just finished my executive coach training which has lasted 12 weeks.

But as they say, all work and no play so the housebuild preparations are still taking up a lot of time and with garden designs to think about now it's all go.

Houseblogging: wrapping up for winter

It's been almost a summer's day today for our houseviewing adventures - 19 degrees and not a breath of wind. We'll not quite, it did start to blow a southerly whilst we were up in Kaitoke.

Still, the Moss Brothers build team continue to motor on starting to wrap up the house for winter which official starts next week. The main parts of the roof are on and they and the walls are almost wrapped for cladding with the weatherboard.

It was quite a shock to see the roof colour but also a relief that the colour we'd chosen didn't look too out of place in the country location. However, no doubt that we're making a mark on the local landscape.


View from the Tunnel Gulley Footpath of house and neighbours cows

Close up on the front door and house wrapping for weather

Kitchen shaping up nicely with the roof covered in

A splendid green roof to match the surrounding countryside.

Photoblogging: Up Mount Kaukau

The sun was shining and although there were threats of a southerly to blow in we decided to make the hike up Mount Kaukau which is right behind Khandallah where we live. It's an uphill climb that I did on New Year's Day where the views of Wellington and the surrounds are stunning.

It was a hard climb since its been a while since we'd been out on a hard walk but the rewards were worth the effort. MT got to see up close the transmittor tower on the top and the views to the south island were just stunning.

Something special for all those electrical engineers out there!


View across to the south island (yes its the mountains in the clouds!)

Just in case you didn't catch it first time, another view to the south!

And, in case you doubt the climb made to see the spectacular views (my foot in bottom right corner for any doubt that I might be there!)

What comes around....

Avid readers of my blog may remember earlier in the year that this executive-domestic managed new heights of frustration with interference and mind changing of colossal proportions by the powers to be where I work. But, hey I got over it at the time so that's all good.

So almost 6 months later looks like people have seen the light and I'm back on the case to bring life back into the leadership team. Bring life back because as my boss said to me this week "communications is the oxygen of leadership". I figured that he was at last ready to listen and engage so it’s been a little manic dusting off all that material and planning done earlier in the year.

The cliché goes that it’s a woman's prerogative to change their minds. But no, this rule also seems to apply to CEOs, MPs and PMs. As a good public servant I just roll with the punches and move on as much as I can.

Since there is always a high risk that people might change their mind over the weekend I’m employing my new laid back approach. Not working the weekend to impress the boss on Monday but waiting to impress on Tuesday instead!

Work and house building has been all consuming in the last couple of weeks but hopefully new excitements to come next week that I’ll be able to report on – we’re seeing plans from the landscaper, a quiet leadership seminar to support (first step to coach networking for business purposes) and the prospect of a $10 talkathon next week!

Houseblogging: closing in

You have to look closer to see progress on the house build this week. After a glorious week with no days lost because of rain the builders have continued to make great progress putting in ever increasing amounts of detailed components.

The roof framing has been completed, chimney frame built, rear walls clad and work started on eaves (or sofits as they call them here.) It was a perfect day for our visit - 19 degrees and hardly a cloud in the sky with Wellington harbour glassy and calm. Long may this good weather continue so the roof can be finally closed in.
What a view to enjoy on arrival

The living room end, complete with new chimney

That'll keep the chickens out of the roof!

A rear view showing the protective cladding to bare the southerly winds when they blow

View from the future potager garden

Trip across the pond

I escaped New Zealand this week for a quick trip across the Tasman to Australia on a fact finding mission for a project at work. You'd think that getting from Capital City Wellington to Capital City Canberra would be a simple journey to make. Not so!

It took 12 hours to hop from Wellington to Christchurch to Sydney to Canberra. So a two day programme visiting Government agencies required two days of travel too. Luckily armed with good book and iPod time passed by relatively quickly.

Most of Canberra was seen from inside a taxi. It reminded me a bit of Milton Keynes except a bit less green. The Parliament buildings at night are pretty impressive but otherwise I wasn't that taken with the place. Certainly they have the worlds worst taxi regime where you have to use a voice activated system to get a cab - that's assuming that the machine can understand what you are saying. I was reassured by locals that it wasn't my pommie accent that was the problem.

Today I'm cruising Sydney which will be more of a pleasure before heading home to New Zealand. It's not a bad way for this domestic executive to finish another working week, retail therapy in the hothouse of Aussie style!

Houseblogging: almost a hat

The builders have continued to zoom ahead with the roof trusses and bracing almost in place. It's amazing to see the house in its full skeleton. With a bit of luck and some good weather this week it will be framed on the veranda and ready to put its hat on.
House with almost a roof in big country scene

Man of the house!

View of rear decking, lounge and dining room (and ready made swimming pool!)

Guest room turret close up

Skeleton of kitchen vaulted ceiling

Numbers are not my friends

For someone who had to retake her GSCE in Maths numbers have never been my friends. Living with someone who can delight in reading pages of numbers this is often a reason for discussion on how I should improve my mathematical abilities.

Thank goodness for spreadsheets that's all I can say. After years of following the Coates theory of budgeting (she'll know who she is) I am adept at making complicated spreadsheets to prove what is quite a simple point.

In my case it’s been costings for bathroom fittings, tiling and joinery. It's not been much fun when the number in the bottom right hand corner never seems to match what it should. In other words, why is that I all the things I like are so darned expensive. I blame my mother who had impeccable taste.

Still, we are making progress with the decisions although there is still plenty of sharpening of pencils to get prices closer to where they ought to be. I shall be so pleased when they are as I might actually sleep through the night and stop worrying that my dreams for being a full time domestic executive may just end up being that, dreams!

At least we won the lottery this week – yes, true. Not enough to pay for the fancy shower him indoors is coveting but $75 is better than a poke in the eye!

Viewing our future residents

We thought it was time to start to investigate our future lawnmowers and headed off to an Alpaca auction held just outside of Wellington. There is no doubt that the comic value of alpacas will keep MT amused for some time yet.

We kept our hands down and didn't bid in the auction but there were many there that were. Also, they were paying big money to get a package of mum, cria and unborn offspring. We'll have to save our $s to get a small number (they like company) but think that they will be cheerful additions to chez Treanor in Kaitoke.

For more information on alpacas: www.alpaca.org.nz


How can you not think she's adorable?

Ready to head off to their new home

So much to look at!

Houseblogging: there's been a growth spurt

We'd been warned to expect progress but nothing could have prepared us for the growth spurt that there has been on site in the last week. Despite the dreadful downpours this week the building team have take the house to the next level and all the walls are up.

Quite frankly its amazing to be able to walk around what we've only previously experienced in the show home and imagined from reading the plans. The house is as expected except one minor hitch that they've put the door from the kitchen to the utility room in the wrong place. I am sure that knocking the panels out of the wooden frame and moving it along a bit will sort it out!

Next week the roof trusses arrive and then the tricky stuff starts to get the roof on. Fingers crossed the weather stays dry for them to continue to make progress at the current rate.

View from the entrance gate

The house walls in all their glory

The view through the kitchen windows

Indoor, outdoor flow from front to back doors

View from Domestic Executive headoffice

Just to prove that we've had a drop of rain

Making the first entrance to the new house frame

Monsoon summer

I was recently blogging about the indian summer we were enjoying in NZ. Sorry to tell you that this has now broken into a monsoon season.

Since the beginning of May we've had 79.4 mm of rain in Wellington. To those not used to metric that's just over 3 inches.

It's been torrential rain battering down through the night and keeping me awake. It seems that there are no half measures in New Zealand when it comes to weather - no April showers here, it's gales and flood proportion precipitation.

I've been fretting about our house floor which was laid so beautifully but now will have been pounded by the rain. Let's hope that the roof goes on soon and starts to give it some protection. Am also worried that my piles of topsoil have experienced slips and ended up at the bottom of the garden. Will have to wait to the weekend to see, fingers crossed it doesn't rain again tonight.