Sun-sational

The Nelson region has been sweltering this summer! It's been too hot to walk the dogs during the day unless it's a walk by the river. Lee Valley was the perfect spot for a dip.

It was a pleasant surprise when we arrived to find we had the whole area to ourselves!

The water looked inviting ... deep, clean and a gorgeous emerald green.

  

Not a soul in sight. Bliss. 💚

After a few swims we relaxed in the camper, soaking up the bush views and listening to the sound of summer; cicadas clicking and birds chirping. An ideal way to recharge the batteries.

Youngest Motor-homing Member.

 Meet Awah!

On Christmas Eve, we welcomed a little rescue kitten into our family. He and his litter mates had been abandoned at 3 weeks old. Luckily they were discovered ... wet, cold and hungry, and handed in to the SPCA. They were then fostered for 2 weeks and syringe fed until they were able to lap milk on their own. Once able to drink, they were returned to the SPCA. Then at just 5 weeks old, our soon-to-be kitten was neutered, vaccinated, de-fleaed and wormed. Quite an ordeal for one so young.

And that's when we came into the picture. On Christmas Eve, I rang the SPCA  hoping there might be a kitten we could adopt. They had one little grey and white male who had been adopted the day before but returned the following morning as he was 'too needy'. As soon as I saw him, it was love at first sight. He was purring up a storm and desperate to be cuddled. His outgoing nature seemed a perfect fit for a future life with two dogs.

Perhaps you're wondering, how we got the name Awah? Our 18 month old granddaughter (Mikah) calls any cat she sees an Awah. I googled the meaning and found Awah is of African origin and means abundant blessings, a life full of abundance. The perfect name for this wee boy.

For the first few days after arriving home, Awah struggled to lap milk, he was so tiny and weak. We fed him every 2 to 3 hours throughout the day and night. I slept on the couch for the first few nights so I could tend to him without waking Bernie. And as each day passed he grew stronger - now he has a healthy appetite and eats his food with gusto.

We introduced Awah slowly to the dogs. As expected Oakly shook from head to toe(paws) and Boo wanted to lick him all over. We watched them carefully and gave the kitten lots of breaks away from the dogs. Within a day Oakly and Boo's excitement had settled down and they happily accepted their new family member. Awah on the other hand was not in the least bit fazed by the dogs. He loves them.

Awah imitates everything the dogs do. He sleeps with them, waits at the door for Bernie to get home beside the dogs, plays tag outside, chases the ball and even eats with them. He's the stereotypical Copycat!

Ready to jump out at the dogs!

Not only is he super affectionate with his canine friends he is always wanting to snuggle up with humans too.

And it turns out Awah is an America's Cup fan.

Just like his name - Awah is a true blessing. We couldn't have asked for a more perfect addition to our team! 

No More Leaks

No more leaks!!! The three holes (craters) have been repaired.

Little Smidge spent a week at 'Nelson 'Motor Homes Ltd' getting the holes covered with fibreglass.  

Bernie had spotted a couple of other minor scrapes around the back of the camper that were also repaired while there.

We're thrilled with the result.

No More Squealing!

Each time we started Smidge she squealed like a banshee! Then after a couple of minutes she'd suddenly stop. So we booked her into the local garage.  

The heavens opened up as we drove to the garage, which was an ideal opportunity to see if the wipers worked effectively. Thankfully they did.

Back home we used the rainy day to start sanding Smidge's cupboard doors. They're painted white but hadn't had the best of paint jobs. We wanted them sanded back so we could apply a couple of coats of fresh paint. We've decided to paint them white again, only we're hoping the finished look will be much better. Plus they'll have new handles and hinges.

A couple of hours later we got a call from the mechanic to say it was an easy fix. Although Smidge had a new fan belt fitted before the previous owner sold her to us, it turned out it wasn't the right size. So after the correct sized belt was put in, she started without any screeches. It was great to hear the engine running without squealing and even better to hear the cost of the repair was much cheaper than I'd anticipated. A win - win.

The last couple of days I've been busy sanding while Bernie has made a start painting the interior. After I'd sanded the first few cupboards by hand, I decided there must be a faster way.

And there was/is. We bought a little sander from Mitre 10, which has made the job so much easier.

A bonus with this little sander is it has a pointed tip that gets into those tricky corners. It saves trying to fold sandpaper into a tiny point when doing it by hand. 

Although I'd like to click my fingers and have Smidge finished and ready for our first adventure, I'm enjoying tackling these DIY projects and learning a few things on how to restore an older campervan. And it's rewarding giving Smidge a spruce up and some much needed TLC. 

Saying Good-Bye ... Haere Rá

Does anyone else form an attachment to their motorhome? 

I do!  I'm that person. 

In fact when we sold our bus recently and it came time for the new owner to pick it up, I made sure I wasn’t at home. I left that part to Bernie. I didn’t want to see someone else driving our bus away!

This will probably sound crazy but I kinda humanise vehicles. Which is what I did with ‘Bussy’. When we drove up a steep hill I'd pat the dash board and offer encouragement, "come on - you can do it". And after a trip I’d give the dashboard a rub and thank her for doing a good job.

During the time we owned the bus we made several changes and created a little home away from home. Adding our own touches and making alterations here and there, made it feel like an extension of our home. 

I’m so grateful for the many memories this 7metre bus has given us and I'm thankful she transported us safely to many destinations. I know the dogs are going to miss traveling about in her. On sunny days, if the bus was parked at home, we'd open up the door to air her out and the dogs would jump in and lie on the couch, hoping we'd go away somewhere. To them, the bus represented adventures and good times. Every trip took them (Oakly and Boo) to new places to explore and sniff. When we stayed in the MacKenzie Country, it was heaven on earth for the dogs. Every direction we wandered there seemed to be a rabbit or two. They loved Bussy as much as we did. 

Hopefully the new owners will also enjoy the bus and care for her like we did. And continue to have many happy and safe adventures.

Saying good-bye to that little turquoise bus was like farewelling a loyal friend . 

 "How lucky am I to have something 

that makes saying goodbye so hard" 

Winnie the Pooh

So Many Choices!

The other day I popped into Spotlight to check out curtain material and upholstery fabrics for Smidge. I thought I was certain on the colour scheme for the interior decor. That is, until I saw the selection. There were so many choices! And what I thought I wanted soon changed. 

Browsing through Pinterest, I found a van conversion that I liked. The seating was grey, the curtains were olive and everything else was white. Plus it had timber benches - it looked fresh and trendy. 

Image from Pinterest

However Spotlight didn't have the same olive colour and the green fabric they had didn't appeal. Instead I was drawn to the beige tones. There was an upholstery fabric in a golden-beige colouring I thought might look nice? But with so many choices - I was getting muddled.

So I went to Resene to check out wallpaper. Honestly - who knew there were so many shades, textures and tones of a particular colour? Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining, it's great to have such a variety but I think I now need a second opinion.

So I've gone from an olive and grey interior to a beige and gold look. Bernie isn't 100% on board with that idea though. I think it's time for another visit ...or two three!

Holey Moley ...or words to that effect.

After Bernie removed the awning from the side of the campervan the source of the leak was revealed. Once upon a time the awning must have been hit by a gust of wind and whipped the awning upwards causing it to rip away from the van. 

Left were three gaps ... three decent size gaps!

Nelson Motorhome Ltd in Nelson had a look at the damage and said they would be able to repair it. They're going to cut out the tears and mend them (they said they wouldn't patch over the holes). We've booked it in to be fixed in a couple of weeks so it'll be interesting to see the finished look.

In the meantime we have removed the wood from around and under the window. We've also cleaned the aluminium framing ready to have new 4mm hardboard attached. 

We were advised to use 'no more nails' to attach the board to the framing, as well as rivets. 

It's starting to look better already!

A Surprise Behind The Wallpaper.

With a forecast of rain for the entire week, it seemed an ideal time to remove Smidge's wallpaper and begin sanding the interior ready to be painted. When I began taking the wallpaper off, it peeled away as though there was no glue behind it at all. It fell off! How it managed to stay on the wall is one of life's mysteries.

 

The photo above shows the dark embossed wallpaper that literally fell off! The photo below is the original wallpaper, which is firmly stuck to the wall.

However as pleasing as it was that this was an easy task, the feeling was soon replaced with disappointment. When I began removing wallpaper from underneath one of the side windows, the wall felt slightly spongy. After further investigation it appeared water had been leaking from around the window. 

I guess being an older van these 'surprises' are to be expected and as it's the year 2020 (aka -the year from hell) a water leak or two seems like such a minor problem. One I'm hoping will be an easy fix. 

I'm the first to admit I'm an absolute novice in regards to renovating, but I figure if we remove all the wood that is water damaged and replace it with ply or whatever wood is best for a Mitzi L300...then all we should need to do is apply new sealant around the window to prevent further leaks. I hope it's going to be an easy fix!

If you have any ideas or suggestions on repairing this, please feel free to comment below. I'd be grateful to hear your thoughts.

Smidge

Last Saturday Bernie and I went to view a little campervan for sale in Motueka. It's a Mitsubishi L300 owned by a guy who is selling his orchard and other bits and pieces to return to Germany. 

Parked in a paddock behind a barn sat the little camper. And I’m excited to announce - I'm now the proud new owner. I’ve named her ‘Smidge’.

 

Smidge’s interior needs a make-over, which will be a fun project for Bernie and I. This will also be the perfect opportunity to learn how to video so I can make some vlogs on our progress. I've been interested in learning how to create vlogs for awhile and now seems like the ideal time to learn. I'm determined to prove you can teach an old dog new tricks!

I've started this blog as a journal to record the progress and steps taken to transform Smidge. It'll also be a place to share adventures that Oakly, Boo and I have as we travel about.