The changing of the clocks: At 2am tomorrow, clocks move forward an hour for daylight saving. We've got your get-ready guide.
How kids and parents can catch more Zzzs
A leading New Zealand sleep consultant likens the effects of daylight saving on the body to jet lag.
"When going overseas, it takes a day for every hour difference, to adjust to the timezone," says Dorothy Waide, Karitane Mothercraft nurse, author and owner of Baby Help.
"When it comes to daylight saving, it takes one day to adjust."
Waide says the problem isn't so much the time change - but the fact the light changes in your child's bedroom, potentially affecting their sleep times.
Good blackout blinds mean that this won't be an issue though, and you can keep a routine.
She recommends getting blackouts from NZ ScreenAway Blinds.
If you're on a budget, Sleepy Sundays, and an ultra-budget - dampen your windows and put tinfoil on them, but this only works if they're single-glazed.
Industrial velcro around the window frame and sticking on blackout material from Spotlight, with bulldog clips so that you can roll them back, is another option.
Furthermore, she recommends not talking about daylight saving in front of young children and instead, putting them to bed with their blackout blinds, telling them "night time's come".
"We talk about it so much that the kids can understand and start playing into it."
Babies may seem to be waking earlier but between 4.30am and 5.30am is their lightest sleep pattern.
"You could drop a bomb at midnight and they'll carry on sleeping, you drop a pin between 4.30-5.30 and they'll wake."
When it comes to keeping cool as the mercury rises in the coming weeks, Waide says people can't afford to "burn electricity", so they need to get smart.
Put a bucket of ice under your fan: "it will move the cooler air around"; if you don't have cooling devices, close up your bedroom earlier in the day; for adults and toddlers, use cooling pads or cold 'hot' water bottles in bed; and if a child has a temperature, place cold, damp socks on them.
Dress babies in a 100 per cent cotton onesie over merino - even for newborns - and always opt for clothing over a nappy only.
Skin-to-skin feeding and burping make them hotter.
"Cotton also absorbs the moisture and keeps the body regulated."
If swaddling a baby, use cotton swaddles.
If they're in a sleep sack during the day and it's a non-aircon home, Waide suggests a 0.5 tog bag, equivalent to a thin sheet.
At night, even if it's hot, a long sleeve onesie, and a 1.0 or 1.5 tog sleep sack, as the overnight temperature will drop.
Finally, consider putting fly screens over windows to keep out bugs.
It's daylight saving time, and the gardening should be easy
Flowers can be planted when the soil warms up around mid to late October and to save work opt for year-round perennials, says Amanda Gilbertson, who owns Tauranga's Miss Mandys Flower Emporium.
She says to remember the saying "if you can sit on the soil on your bum then it's warm enough to plant".
For a semi-shaded area, hydrangeas are perfect but do need watering.
If you want blooms that can handle full sun and heat, grow annuals like statice, billy buttons and gomphrena, which are also perfect for making dried flower arrangements.
Keeping with annuals, sunflowers and zinnias grow well in the Bay of Plenty.
"You don't need to get giant sunflowers, you can get ones that grow a metre or two tall, and the closer you plant them, the smaller the heads. However, these fancy sunflowers that look great in a vase are often bred to have no pollen, which means no sunflowers seeds for the birds later in the year."
If you don't want to grow your own flower beds, you can visit pick-your-own gardens like Miss Mandys in Pyes Pa, where she grows up to 15 "old cottage garden" varieties like cosmos, strawflowers, sweet peas, snapdragons, callas and hydrangeas over 150sq m in former orchid shade houses.
From mid-December to late January you can pick 20 stems for $35.
"Flowers are so emotive. They make people happy," she says.
"People aren't doing gardens as much as they used to. They don't have the space, time, but a pot or two of cosmos, you look out the window at that every day and you're happy, right?".
For more locally grown blooms, follow thefloralhubtauranga on Instagram, which is a collective of growers holding markets every Thursday morning, from late October, for florists and the public, at Holy Trinity Tauranga Church.
Get on your bike
As daylight hours increase, now's the time to draw on your social connections and use them to boost motivation, says health team leader at Sport Bay of Plenty Belinda Muller.
Join a summer sports team, like beach volleyball, or enjoy an evening walk or cycle.
"Pack your gear the night before so you're good to go," she says. "Most importantly, find something that you love to do."
For a guide on what's on, visit rotoruanui.nz. Highlights are the Rotorua Bike Festival from October 20-23, and Rotorua Walking Festival, from November 5-6. For Tauranga residents, visit eventfinda.co.nz and bayofplentynz.com
Dust the cobwebs off the barbie
Reboot your barbecue by giving it a clean, then start it up with fresh coal or gas, and let it burn for 30 minutes to sterilise, says Tauranga chef and Sugo restaurant owner Ian Harrison.
Head chef at Mount Maunganui's Fife Lane, Dan Lockhart, says to oil your barbie with a high-temp oil like canola, to prevent food from tasting like burnt oil.
The best time to buy a barbecue is now.
However, you don't need anything too pricey, Harrison says, who says a stock standard one will be "sweet as".
"I've got a standard Weber for charcoal barbecuing, and I also have a good, old-fashioned gas one."
He uses the gas barbecue for fatty meats like sausages and the charcoal for prime cuts like steak: "One for flavour, and two, there's less flare up.
"Then if I'm doing long and slow, like a shoulder, I tend to do charcoal as well."
For the freshest cuts of meat, fish, and in-season vegetables, such as asparagus and sweetcorn, he suggests visiting a farmers' market.
Buying meat from a butcher means the animal has likely had a better diet, the meat will be drier and hold less water and tends to cook better.
Lockhart suggests getting experimental too and rather than just cooking snarlers, how about a roast?
"It's easy and stops the kitchen from heating up in summer and saves dishes.
"Use a wireless meat probe (his one is from Mitre 10) to check the internal temp of the meat. Battery-powered rotisserie for chicken (from Bunnings)."
Also, don't forget to prep your food before your guests arrive.
Lockhart's top tips include: Soak skewers in water for an hour so they don't burn on the barbecue but don't put the dressing on your salads until you are just about to serve them or you'll get "slimy salad"; put your oil in a spray bottle or a squeezy sauce bottle so you can control the amount on the barbecue.
For the best local Bay providers for meat, he suggests Doug Jarvis Butchers, The Snag Co - Sausage Boutique and Deli for its handmade artisan products with no additives and preservatives, and Kiwi Butcher for steaks - they sell the same steaks Fife Lane sells but in smaller serves.
"If using cheaper cuts of meat, cook them longer and they will be tender."
Pair your meat with a range of sides - salads, potatoes, boiled eggs; drinks - including non-alcoholic and low-alcoholic; ice for the chilly bin of drinks; and if guests have kids, have kid-friendly activities and food for them.
What's more, don't forget to ask about dietary requirements; have a good playlist for background music; enough chairs for everyone; sunscreen and shade shelter; a wet weather option.
And, if it's starting to sound like a lot of work, don't be afraid to delegate tasks or dishes.
"People always want to bring something and be helpful," Lockhart says.
Oh, and make sure food is properly cooked by using the meat probe.
"No one wants to be the guy that poisons his mates."
Ian Harrison's 'Fitzy meat rub'
1. 20g x yellow mustard seeds
20g x black peppercorns
10g x coriander seeds
15g x cumin seeds
50g x dried ancho chilli
2. 40g x dried oregano
100g x smoked paprika
150g x salt
300g x brown sugar
Method
Weigh all your whole spices and blend them in a spice blender. Mix well with everything else. Store in glass jars to keep fresh.
- This is great on chicken, pork, meaty seafood, and slow-braised beef.
'Everybody's free (to wear sunscreen)'
With extra daylight hours spent at barbecues and outdoor activities, sunscreen is a must.
Bay of Plenty's Dr Paul Alsop, who is a primary care skin cancer doctor at Skinspots Skin Cancer Clinic, says the "official" time to start applying sunscreen is September onwards and suggests visiting consumer.org.nz to see which sunscreens have passed testings.
"I always say SPF 30 and above is ideal, but 'SPF anything' is better than zero. On that note, the best product for children is the one you can get them to put on."
When it comes to getting a skin check, Kiwis should consider one from their mid-20s, and the frequency thereafter is based on your individual risk.
"Low risk doesn't mean no risk," he says, adding the old adage "Slip, slop, slap, wrap, slide" applies, as does "the entire lyrics to Baz Luhrmann's 1997 song Everybody's Free (to wear sunscreen)".
Knockout frock
Daywear, holiday outfits, cocktails and weddings - 'tis the season of the party.
Daylight savings heralds the start of more social events and renting is the most popular trend in fashion, giving access to designer dresses without the stingy price.
Alana Wadley, 32, is one fashionista taking advantage of the hype and has set up SweetPea Boutique Rentals from her Tauranga home, where she owns 110 dresses, sizes 6-16, valued at up to $800 each.
You can rent the dresses, with labels like Bec + Bridge, Shona Joy, and Paris Georgia, for $70 to $120 for a weekend, or extended time if you're heading to an event overseas.
She says her customers' average age has risen as fashion fiends become more used to the idea of renting, and a lot of her clients from throughout the country hire outfits for corporate events.
It also suits those concerned about retail fashion's impact on the environment.
"A lot of people don't want to be seen to wear the same thing twice," she says.
"People want to be seen to wear a brand. The majority of women know a brand when they look at it - I do, anyway. They don't want to spend a lot of money. The majority of dresses I'm buying are $500. You don't want to buy a $500 dress to wear one time."
Wadley picks the fashions this summer will be timeless staples - silk dresses and anything floral with spaghetti straps. Bold colours are also trending, she says.
