Barefoot Kiwis 'WE'RE BASKING IN EVERY MOMENT WE CAN'

After dealing with cancer and depression, this Waihi family is creating unforgettable memories in rural Australia

-  Hayley McLarin

Hump day! Tony with kids (from left) Liam, Hunter and Summer.

This time last year, Waihi woman Stacey Smith was spending hours during chemotherapy distracting herself with images of remote rural Australia and dreaming of where she would take her family.

Having had much of her bowel removed and enduring months of treatment, she re-evaluated what was important.

Fast-forward to today and Stacey, 45, and her husband Tony are reflecting on the 11 months they've spent almost off the grid in Australia, and they have no regrets.

"After cancer, we realised the future with our children is never guaranteed, so while they are young and want to hang out with their parents, let's make the most of family time, creating unforgettable memories and being grateful, basking in every moment we can," she explains.

"We're an outdoors family, so our holidays were quite often tramping, hiking and hunting. But this is a completely different lifestyle. It's learning how to live life on the road, with all its challenges. I couldn't begin to tell you our top experiences or our top locations. There have been so many. But our top decision was just to step out."

While Stacey was having chemo, the couple planned their big Aussie adventure.

The couple, who have been married 14 years in February, had already spent months touring Africa before they had their three children - Liam, 12, Summer, 10, and Hunter, seven and as a family, they travelled in Australia for a school term in 2018 and again in 2019.

Ironically, it was 49-year-old Tony's, not Stacey's health, that proved the impetus for a prolonged adventure.