When Lulu Barten and Hamish Peterson met two years ago and decided to blend their families, they knew they wanted easy living so they could focus on creating memories.
They discovered the old hall in Hikurangi for rent, which had nothing but a pot belly stove at one end, a large kitchen and a bathroom and lots of surrounding land. It was perfect.
"We wanted to start a new phase in our lives," says Lulu. "We moved in and lived marae-styles with mattresses on the floor. We all loved it. Everyone else thought we were crazy."
The couple, who met through mutual friends, quickly discovered they had lots in common, including a love of the outdoors, animals, active lifestyles and with family factoring in at number one. Between them, they have three boys, ages ranging between 9 and 17.
Moving into the hall, the family loved the feel of open living. However, Lulu and Hamish knew the boys would need privacy so began thinking about how to create spaces without losing the feel of living in a hall.
"We tried to think of room divider ideas. Japanese-style with wood frame and paper but the boys would wreck it in five minutes. We thought of making curtains to somehow suspend from the ceiling but thought it might look like a hospital ward. We needed something cheap and quick to construct."
Then they remembered the pallet factory down the road in Hikurangi. After some negotiations, the couple were supplied with old butter pallets.
"I had a van so I would drive up the road and fetch about 10 pallets at a time and ferry them back. Hamish and my son got to work and bashed them together, kind of creating the spaces as we went. It was a bit like Lego really."
Around three days and 50 pallets later, their five-bedroom home was complete.
"It was a family effort. My challenge has been not to make it too pretty and have everything matching. It's not really about what it looks like but what it feels like. It needs to be a home to relax and kick back, have a beer, game of pool or darts, or roast marsh mellows on the fire. It's somewhere to create memories."
Outdoors the family now have chickens and ducks for their eggs, a lamb and a ram, a large vegie garden, rabbits, parakeets and quail, two dogs and a big white fluffy cat.
"It's all about creating happy memories for our boys. They spend no time on TV or devices."
In discovering how their unity reflected positively on their kids' behavior, Lulu and Hamish decided to try and offer a farm stay for children who have had tough experiences. They started the lengthy process of becoming foster parents.
"We were approached about having siblings come and stay with us and we needed to move super-fast. We had the assessment and house inspection without any rooms and had to be creative and sell our dream and idea of how it was going to look. Luckily, the assessor had imagination. I said I would supply photos when it was done in two weeks, which I did, and I assured her the kids that came to us would have a room with a door."
There have been as many as nine living under the one roof and Lulu says the foster children who stay with the family love it and don't want to leave.
"They see what it is like living in a family where you do stuff together and respect each other. We eat together, cook together, build together, laugh together. We sit around a table and eat and chat about our day. They see how you resolve issues that may arise. There are rules but only basic ones (love, kindness, honesty and respect). It is fun. We love welcoming new kids to our home and family."
Lulu says most people were dubious about their project until they saw their 'after' photos.
"We spent nearly no money at all and the kids can bash things up in their room and I don't care about the paint work."
The couple plan to marry in December with the same no-frills principles.
"Both of us are very clear about what is important in life: time with family, experiences and making memories. Not money, status, what your house looks like or what car you drive. You can lose all that. You can't lose experiences and time with loved ones."