The saying 'good things take time' rings true for this Taranaki family.
It was 11 years ago they bought their undeveloped rural property near Rotokare Scenic Reserve.
"There wasn't even a veggie garden or a lemon tree or anything you would expect to find on a farmlet," Aaron says.
Erosion issues were part of the package that Melissa and Aaron had to work with and a leaking septic tank made their dream of becoming self-sustainable somewhat easier to achieve.
"The lid cracked...but when [the contractor] went to have a look he said, 'There's no tank here, it's just a hole in the ground'," Melissa recalls.
"It was leaking out down into the paddock, so then we started looking at composting systems.
"In the end, we just decided to do it ourselves, just a simple bucket system with a urine diversion."
Don't be fooled by the bucket, however, as the loo does resemble your traditional throne.
The bucket collects faeces which the toilet user then covers with sawdust.
Once full, the buckets are delivered to a composting heap at the back of the Jacobson's property.
The faecal matter acts as green waste in their traditional composting system and eventually returns to the land as humanure (human manure).
But the value-adding doesn't stop there. Melissa and Aaron also harness the health properties of urine.
"There are amazing nutrients in urine that you can use safely, if you are careful, on your garden, so it goes into a holding tank," Melissa explains.
"When you pee, it runs straight into this tank and it's filled up with water on a system. And in the garden, there are hoses all through it.
"Every six hours, the system runs for about half an hour and lets go of some of the urine water. [It's] really diluted so it's [stripped] back to its trace elements of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium."
The Jacobson's garden, or food forest, has deleted their erosion issues.
Three tiers of planting, up to 80 metres long, wind down the north side of their property situated near Rotokare Scenic Reserve.
The concept follows the principles of the forests that surround them. Fruit trees act as canopies for plants underneath and the couple have taken up companion planting.
Melissa says scientifically it makes sense.
"Should we be trying to live more sustainably? Yes we should, we all should.
"From a gardening point of few, it works better so you get better outcomes."
The garden is part of The Sustainable Backyards Trail, with the couple showing off what they do including farming mealworms as an alternative, sustainable protein source.
"I've always loved bugs, but again started thinking about sustainability and protein sources and growing populations.
"There is definitely going to be a need for alternative protein and insects really are a no-brainer, and they taste good.
"It's a mindset thing, I think a lot of people are like 'really, eating insects' and it freaks them out a little bit."
The idea is to get into a position, when finances allow, to start farming on a scale where they can supply wholesale.
Thus the Little Insect Farm has been born.
"They have a nice nutty flavour. But we don't get them because the kids eat them like potato chips, they're just gone."
Melissa said you can buy mealworm in a powder form, so you can add a scoop to your morning smoothie if the idea of eating a bug wasn't your thing.
By Leah Tebbutt
