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Roseanna Wohnsiedler was born in Gisbourne and now lives in Napier.

It’s time for this Domestic Executive to take a holiday – yes a proper, get away from it all – break away from home. We’re taking Fortnum and Mason back to their first home to live with another 7 basset hounds for the week whilst MT, I and parents head off to Golden Bay.

Golden Bay is in one of the most beautiful parts of New Zealand, top of the south island. For more see http://www.goldenbay.net.nz/en/guide.html We’re staying in the Villars of Legar Bay and you can check this out at http://www.villasofligarbay.co.nz/

There is no sky TV, no DVD so we’re packing the radio, petanque set and maybe a pack of cards. Not to mention the mountain of magazines and books I’ve been longing to read but never seem awake enough or have enough time to curl up and enjoy.

Whilst we are away the house is being invaded by builders again. They are going to remedy the broken under tile heating, dodgy plastering and wallpapering and hopefully completing the painting outside and in. I imagine that it will take a couple of days to take the dust away from the rest of the house when we’re back. Fingers crossed that they manage to complete everything without any major hitches.

Since my last blog it’s been the usual domestic executive business. I’ve got back into coaching with my two private clients and spent a day with Catapult colleagues, firstly, listening to Australia’s youngest person to climb Mount Everest and then an afternoon bonding as a team. It was so tiring to engage the brain in ways that I haven’t done for a while. It was fun too but I think it was my in-laws who had the most fun back at base puppy sitting with Fortnum and Mason. By all accounts they were terribly well behaved (the puppies that is) and a good time was had by all.

Brace yourself for when I return and there will be a mountain load of photo blogging from Golden Bay and tales of Fortnum and Mason’s return to their roots.

We’re in. We’re black and blue, weary and all unpacked out. But happy!

Sorry there’s no pics to share the experience but we’re waiting for my new office furniture before setting up the computer that has all the necessary gubbins needed for photoblogging. Hopefully normal service will be resumed at the weekend.

The move out was as smooth as it can be and my friend Amanda and I scrubbed and polished so that everything in the rental was shiny. We arrived hot and bothered to find the unloading done at the house and MT testing out the new sofas. With enough energy to put together the bed and make it we collapsed in a heap bemoaning all the snagging still to be done.

But we’re in. The views are amazing – you can lie in bed and see the mountains peering back. The neighbours are friendly – 8 cows and 6 sheep. We’ve unpacked about 80 boxes and unearthed stuff we didn’t even remember we had.

There is still a daily digest of builders, painters, electricians, barn builders, landscapers to come but who cares – only 5-6 weeks to get it finished before our first visitors arrive. Oh, not quite our first – that was two ducks who came swimming in our lake size puddles following the weekend rain. Hopefully if I can get the technology working I’ll post the video for you to see.

Anyway, I’m off line till the weekend as it’s back to work tomorrow and I’m away in Martinborough. Well that’s what I’m telling MT, it’s more like a few days retreat to recover from the move!

After all the angst and aggravation the ceremonial changing of the locks took place yesterday. Whilst the architect and project manager drove off I turned to see the smiley faces of three painters, two barn builders, an electrician and three cleaners……you must be pleased they said!

Yes and no! But mostly yes. Should we have given them another week to complete the fiddly bits? Not on your life – given the fact that the snagging list is about 8 pages long it will take them till this time next year to get things sorted out. Whilst we’ll continue to live with dust, muck and builders for weeks to come it is at least our home and we’ll be where we want to be.

I’m surrounded by boxes here in Khandallah and there’s that chilly echo you get when you’ve taken everything out of a room. MT had an interested day. There were 5 lady packers that whipped around the house like a tornado. I think if he had stood still long enough that they would have packed him.

It made me smile as he retold his stories for the day over dinner out across at Taste (our friendly suburban diner over the road). He asked the packers to leave out tea from the food cupboard – they did. The tin of “weird” teas, green, camomile etc, we keep for visitors. Not sure that the psychology of male packers is the same! I woke up in the night worrying whether they had packed the tools for Dyson but I knew I could count on lady packers – blokes wouldn’t have known what they were and would have stuffed them in a box.

So far the only casualties are my knees (scrubbing floors) and a vase from Spain which has already been broken once before. Me thinks that this vase doesn’t have good karma. Still, I’ll keep the bits and see if we can stick it back together.

Anyway, bloggers this may be the last entry for a couple of days unless of course we get the technology working poste haste. I think that there is a fair chance that we’ll be surfing the net tonight as MT plans to don his electrician’s hat and started to help Wayne on site to get the networking up and running. His boys’ toys are packed and ready for the move – we might not have a kitchen but by next Wednesday we’ll have a home entertainment system installed!

The job squad trainers were concerned I wouldn’t be getting enough exercise this coming week – what do you think?

Yeh! I am an auntie again……today we welcomed Patrick Joseph Treanor Davison to the world. Well I say today – it was yesterday in London. How confusing for the little man. No pics yet, he’s shy but it was a thrill to know that he arrived safe and sound and mum did a fantastic job. Well done Rebecca.

In the absence of baby pictures, here’s another new beginning. Our neighbours have broken ground and started their build. This is going to be home to Mike from Essex and his wife! Just when you thought it was safe to avoid houseblogging there’ll be plenty of other building to report on!

I’m on my fourth week of the jog squad regime with runs three times a week. Although I’m not pole position in the squad I’m not the back marker either which is quite a relief.

Not sure that this running lark is completely healthy, whatever my mate Ron says. Even with the stretches before I set off my legs still feel like they are being ripped in two within about 10 minutes of shuffling along. I keep remembering what Jane Fonda used to say – go for the burn and you know it’s doing you good.

We’re running a minimum of 40 minutes each run with some runs, like Monday, a lot longer (55 minutes). I have to admit to have got a little “lost” and nipped down Molesworth Street where we used to live for old times sake and to avoid the even longer haul back to the start. I know when I’m beat and had no shame in cutting off a big corner of the run. If I’d done the full course I’d still be running it now.

MT is very worried about my health – my knees are not like used to be. Also, my running buddy had to drop out from the squad with tendonisis in her knees. It was a case of too much too soon – she’s got a particularly competitive streak in her. Not something I am troubled with so able to keep myself a little safer from injury.

Saturday is a “big run” which thrills me, not! I’ll let you know how I get on – a hour in Belmont Park – to acclimatise us to off road running like the Rimutaka Incline run.

My secret plan is to start taking the route for real when we move to Kaitoke (the start of the race is only a 5 minute drive from our new house). That way I’ll get some practice runs on the real course in an attempt to get a small advantage over those who’ve never run.

Also, need to hide my supplies en route. Sneeky eh!

There is a myth being spread that being a domestic-executive means that you spend your time lounging around watching DVDs and eating boxes of chocolates. I’d like to find that niche someday but in the meantime I’m frantically working through my to do lists and juggling lots of things.

Just as you get one list of chores done another pops up elsewhere and demands attention. In my free 20 hours this week I’ve spent half of it on organising things for the house move and the other half, as MT describes it, playing at being a management consultant.

At this stage I am setting myself up again with the home office and starting to do business. I’ve got two paying coaching clients both of whom came to me – the ideal sort of marketing! I’m also preparing the ground to launch my coaching practice – Catapult Coaching.

After much procrastination about how to position my new coaching venture I was approached by some consultants I’ve been working with to set up the coaching portfolio of their company. Hmm, selling out already I hear you say. Fear not, but I do admit to taking the less risky route.

Operating as an independent contractor I’m going to be setting up and leading coaching for Catapult which means that I can run a business without the need to establish my own brand and charge out at their rates. Catapult is a small company doing leadership programmes, branding and strategic consultancy – a perfect fit for me. From 2008 I’ll be coaching participants on the Catapult Leadership Programmes and building up a wider client base. We’ve not launched yet but you can look up about the company on www.catapult.co.nz

So playing at being a management consulting is taking quite a bit of effort but its an investment I’ve been counting down to make for a very long time. It does however mean I am falling short on the domestic role which has not gone unnoticed by you know who. But hey, he’ll get over it if he wants his dinner cooked tonight!

In a moment of weakness in the office I agreed to join a jog squad for an eight week training programme leading to completing a a run along (or rather up as the name suggests) the Rimutaka Incline Rail Trail.

It was lunch time and the conversation was more about nice picnics so I thought a day out with a picnic so close to home (the trail is about 5 minutes drive away from our house in Kaitoke) that it might be a nice thing to do. It was only later I realised that I was actually committing myself to train 3 times a week with a pack of women with a personal trainer kicking out butts if we got too slow.

But hey, my hero http://www.ronhillsalterego.blogspot.com/ is training for the 2012 Marathon so I thought I’d take inspiration and give it a go.

First challenge was buying the right equipment – running shoes. This was an embarressing episode in the Shoe Clinic where they had you jogging in the shop and capturing pictures on a computer system to tell them what sort of shoes I’d need. After a few blushes I bought my new shoes.

I stood out like a sore thumb tonight – shoes all shiny like they were screaming to the world “here’s a big bird that’s kidding herself that she’s going to run!”. But run I did – 20 minutes without stopping along the harbour in Wellington. I wouldn’t say I was the back marker but I certainly wasn’t in the breakaway pack. Sorry, Ron, will try harder to get to the elite bunch next time!

Still, I survived and so did my mate Amanda – we were two big birds (she’s about 6 foot tall) lumbered along. Seems however I’m not quite the big bird I used to be so my running shorts look faintly ridiculous but it was dark and I’m hoping that my shining new shoes is what caught the eye most!

So wish me luck, I’m going to need it.

You too can be a Ronette – see http://www.ronhillsalteraego.blogspot.com/