For a couple from the country, Matt and Ash McLaren have found city living to be rewarding and special.
Matt and Ash, their boy Owen and their guide dog Indy will soon close their current chapter in Newcastle West and move to a more spacious place nearby.
But they've loved every moment of their life in the sun-drenched apartment with great city views and harbour glimpses.
"We were trialling apartment living in town beforehand and we loved it," Matt says.
"We got married in 2018, previously I lived out at my place in Wallsend; it was good, but a bit far away from things. My recording studio is just two blocks away."
Matt's a musician and music producer, and the two actually met at one of his gigs in Waratah.
She's originally from Scone and he's from Denman. Ash works in facilities management at HMRI.
Once they knew this lifestyle suited them, they bought an apartment. They moved in during October 2018, shortly after the Aero Apartments building was finished.
Their two-bedroom, two-bathroom, west-facing apartment ticked all the boxes, and they loved the rooftop with great views.
"Even the size of the building is good, so many apartment buildings are 100-plus apartments, this one is really manageable," Ash says. (The building is 14 floors with 45 apartments.)
There's so much we love.
They did some renovations after they moved in, including installing ceiling fans in the bedrooms and retractable fly screens so they could sleep without the air-con at night. They converted the laundry, and put in laminate hybrid white and grey floors where there was charcoal carpet before. The new floors made everything feel more spacious.
The apartments in the building are typically white, but Ash painted a wall black during last year's lockdowns. The black wall better defined and separated the lounge and dining area; she felt like it changed everything.
Owen was born a few weeks before lockdown, and Matt, who spends a lot of time in his studio, quickly learned how to stay at home. He was planning to take a few weeks off regardless, but didn't plan for it to go as long as it did. In retrospect, he realises how special it was to have that time as a family.
"It was an absolute blessing," Ash says of having Matt at home after Owen was born.
They took lots of walks together, and she had lots of cups of tea on the balcony. The rooftop made a massive difference as well.
The cowboy boots painting in the apartment immediately catches your attention as does the ram skull which her dad brought her.
"I grew up on horse studs. I'm a little bit more country than I'd like to admit," Ash says.
"There's the cowhide on the floor. With Matt not being able to see, texture is good. I'm also a very touchy-feely person. Owen is very tactile child."
To go with the hide they have lots of soft pillows and blankets, including a Himalayan blanket in the bedroom.
The Yamaha piano sits in the lounge room. When Matt comes home from the studio he plays it with Owen. It's a big piece of their room and an important part of their livelihood and lifestyle, and they confirm it did fit in the lift. There's a record on the wall, an EP Matt produced for his client, a local artist named Cormac Grant. (It hasn't yet been released)
There's a huge silver plate on the wall that serves as decor unless they need a cheese platter.
"When we have a party it's loaded. The first time we used it we had a party on the roof. It had everything, fruits cheeses edible flowers," Ash says.
They have a beach cart for transporting Owen, and anything else they need, up to the roof for a party.
The family are sad to leave their little abode, and they reckon if they didn't have a full-sized Labrador and growing child they would never leave.
"We love it here, the location. We go just about every day to Estratto. They treat us like family," Ash says.
"I think it's an interesting area. It's progressing faster and faster than anywhere else," Matt says.
"Even just on this block there's a new bar going in. There's Bank Corner and Estratto on the same block. Bernie at the bike shop.
"There's so much we love."
