On a Mission to Home

Now let me tell you a giddy wee story of home....
The essence and heart of Sunshine Vintage began almost three years ago in a most unexpected way- with a celebration...a birthday afternoon tea in our garden for Pat who had lived in our house some 60 years ago with her grandparents. The event was a delight for us all, a friendship forged that has proven to be a blessing beyond anything any of us could have imagined.

(There's Pat in red)

So surprised & delighted was Pat by her birthday tea party & the opportunity to view the old house that still held a special place in her heart, she sent us a gift voucher for The Mission restaurant in gratitude. Time went by & we had safely saved the gift for a special occasion, when it just so happened that our Matthew & his lovely Sarah returned to Hawke's Bay & came to stay with us awhile. The romance was sparkling but the means were limited so we decided to gift our voucher to the two lovebirds &....off they went on their first "real" date.

The following January they were married!

We let Pat know what we'd done & just how perfect it all was & of course, how grateful we all were for her kindness. But my goodness what did she do...gave us yet another voucher insisting that this time we use it for ourselves. So one steamy night last January we headed off to The Mission for my birthday

Dining out is not something that we do very often so it was a very special treat.

It may sound a little odd but we studied the menu carefully before we went

& we were so pleased that we did

as it enabled to make the very best choices.
 What utterly delectable food.
We savoured every bite.

A romantically memorable evening.

In the middle of a mission of building "home".

So lovely!

You may be getting a little dizzy in my story about now but such is the warp & weft of building connection & memories; as history unfolds in both the predictable & in surprising ways.
Matthew & Sarah organised their own wedding down in Kumeroa where they were house sitting at the time. Yet another remarkable encounter had lead to an idyllic setting for a small & perfectly formed wedding. Before they left we visited with them for a few days.

Such lovely country side.

Eventually it came time to leave the grand old house & move along.

 They soon found themselves up the Coromandel way at Prana Retreat Opoutere 

where Matthew has been running a commercial kitchen & they have catered for large crowds at various music festival events, including this last New Year.

Prana Festival is... from White Light Media on Vimeo.

It's hard to believe that a whole year has gone by since that sweet wedding.

And such a happy day.

An impromptu duet a little later...

And so the thread of connection is once again tucked back in here at 625N Nelson Street.

A humble bungalow, but one that has gifted many with warm & lasting memories of what is truly home. 

It's that time again & our dear friend Pat has popped in once more bearing kind Christmas offerings. 

Old-fashioned bumble bees have been shared amongst us & we have told the story once more to our other son & his friends as they tasted the sweet treats of connection. 

Happy birthday dear Pat.
We'll do our best to take care of the old place.