If you want to know how many sausage sizzles and raffle tickets it takes to fundraise for an overseas school trip just ask Ariana Smith - she's busy fundraising not for one, but two of her children to head to the other side of the world.
The Rotorua mum admitted the task of raising close to $14,000 to fund the school trips is "crazy" and time consuming, but said the opportunities they're about to embark on make it well worthwhile.
Her daughter, also called Ariana, is heading to Italy to follow in the footsteps of the 28th Maori Battalion as part of a Rotorua Intermediate School trip, while son Manaia will travel to the United States with the Rotorua Boys' High School accelerate programme trip.
Ariana said it's more a case of what haven't they done to fundraise - selling raffle tickets, hangi, sausage sizzles, taking on private catering gigs and all sorts of other efforts in a bid to fund the trip.
"It definitely does take over your life. You really have to be on your game."
For Ariana, it's all about giving her children opportunities she didn't necessarily have. And she knows the value of such school trips for children - the trip to the US will be Manaia's second, after a previous school trip to China when he was at intermediate.