Our sleep-out stood just outside the main house and was fully contained with 2 twin beds, a full kitchen with table & chairs, a bathroom, and all the amenities (dressers, coatrack, tv, guitar, wifi, etc.). Alistair provided us with all the groceries we requested for breakfasts and lunches and cooked us dinner which was delivered to our door each evening. Every night was a surprise with restaurant-worthy meals of a great variety – we had curry, fried rice, fish & veggies, stew, pasta, pizza, several yummy soups, and often a delcious fruit crumble with ice cream for dessert. As a physics teacher, Alistair was extremely busy with exams and reports as the school year was wrapping up, so we didn't see much of him during our stay. Jane was sweet and bubbly but her day job working real estate prevented us from seeing her too often as well. 
We worked alongside Alistair's father, Trevor, who does most of the daily work on the property since he is retired, willing & able. Trevor is a kind-hearted man who always addresses you by name in conversation, something we really appreciated. He treated Steve and I as equals, never doubting my ability to drive the tractor or be in charge of projects in the garden (which is sometimes hard to find in rural New Zealand). He was more than happy to teach us new things and tell us about his life experiences. Trevor and his family are from the Isle of Skye in Scotland where he and Christine say it's almost always rainy and gray. He told us that in Scotland, you can cross anyone's land to get from point A to point B – nothing is considered trespassing as long as you are respectful of the people and their property. He was surprised to find that this is not the case in New Zealand when they moved here permanently last year. Before achieving New Zealand residency in 2009, he and Christine could only visit for 6 month holidays at a time. With time, Trevor has learned a great deal about all the different varieties of fruit trees on their property and the reasons behind the way things were planted by the previous owners (who followed many bio-dynamic principles). Many of the fruit trees bear fruit that Trevor has never seen before and some experts cannot even identify. Because they run their property in an organic manner and sell some of their fruit and hazelnuts for profit (if they're lucky), Trevor must keep notes of every task that is done each day for the yearly audit.
Trevor has been bee-keeping since 1975. At one time he was the Secretary of the Beekeepers Association in Scotland and became very interested in the health benefits of all the things the bees provide, from honey & pollen to propolis & royal jelly and even bee stings! He read an article about doctors using bee stings to help cancer patients and believes that some people (including himself) can receive a high that lasts upwards of a week when stung, giving you extra energy and motivation. He has honey and pollen with his cereal every morning. I had the chance to take a look in the beehives with him and spotted the un-marked queen in one of the hives all on my own – something he said was pretty lucky considering he doesn't see her 9 out of 10 times he visits the hives. I also spotted a tiny red dot on one of the drone bees which Trevor noted was a varroa mite, a dangerous little pest that can collapse the whole hive if not prevented with chemical strips since there is no organic way to get rid of them yet. He showed me what the cells look like for each baby bee – worker, drone and queen, removing any queen cells and some of the drones to prevent a swarm (when the bees leave the hive for bigger digs). 
Trevor & Christine are very active in their community, enjoying Scottish country dancing which they practice 3-4 times a week and perform in full traditional dress (kilts & all) about 10 times a year. We had the chance to sit in on one of their practices and to see Trevor play some traditional Scottish folk songs on guitar at a local retirement home. They definitely know how to get the most out of life and have travelled all over the world (many times visiting their 4 children who have lived on all 4 corners of the globe). Trevor likes to make beer and wine and showed us how he makes elderflower wine (his favorite kind). He also gave us a bottle of his feijoa wine from the previous year which was delicious and made us jealous that we don't have feijoas growing in the States. Every Sunday, Trevor, Christine, Alistair & Jane have a family dinner which Alistair and Christine partner up to cook. They invited us to share one of their meals and it was really nice. We had a variety of delcious hot and cold salads with sundried tomato bread and wine, and finished our meal with a dessert of fresh strawberries from their garden and hand-whipped cream (really the only kind of whipped cream in NZ). Trevor and Christine argued playfully throughout dinner about various things (whether the Cape Kidnappers walk was worthwhile and if Trevor took aged or ancient garlic capsules). Their banter was hilarious as well as Trevor's ridiculous stories of happening upon a young female skinny-dipper on a waterfall walk and counting how many times both he & Christine and Alistair & Jane have moved. Alistair and Jane won with a total of 12 times (and that's just since getting married).
We learned how to do a wide variety of jobs including mowing the lawn with the tractor, sowing carrot seeds and planting leeks, how to thin apples, and how to make elderflower wine.. The variety of work, the healthy, delicious meals, and all the options during our spare time to relax or explore the surrounding area made it one of our favorite WWOOFing spots thusfar. We found a real sense of balance that we appreciated greatly and would like to cultivate in our own lives.
5 things I learned at Beehive Gardens:
1.Make your own alcohol – It's easy, delicious, and it gets your drunk quick!
2.Use names in conversation – It really makes you feel important and appreciated when someone addresses you by name in conversation.
3.Live somewhere you love – Although Trevor and Christine had travelled all over the world, when I asked them where their favorite place was they said Napier, NZ. They go into town every Wednesday and enjoy coffee, shopping at the market, and a stroll down the seaside.
4.Mix it up – Don't do the same thing all day long – make a to-do list and chip away at different things. It makes the day much more enjoyable.
5.Find balance – When everything works in a nice equilibriam with healthy food, a good variety of work, beautiful scenery, physical activity, and fun times throughout, that's the good life.
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