The four bits of advice all begin with F - faith in god and each other, family, friends and forgiveness.
The couple were married at Baring Square Methodist Church in Ashburton in 1964, two years after they met at a dance in the old Radiant Hall. A reception followed at the Tinwald Hall.
‘‘It was a very happy day,’’ Lesley said.
At the time Lesley was working for Doug Bowden, who was an accountant in Ashburton.
After marrying, she left to set up an office for her father who owned the Tinwald Service Station.
As a trained bookkeeper, she also did part-time work for a local doctor - Dr McKenzie.
Meanwhile, Ivan worked at NZ Farmers Coop as a junior stock agent.
Following the wedding he bought his father’s school bus run in Lauriston and grew the business, taking on charter bus runs mainly around the South Island.
With a huge mortgage, the couple worked hard to make the business a success.
But then during a bus trip to Blenheim, Ivan got the call no parent wants. His 15-month-old daughter had been taken to hospital with convulsions.
Ivan always wanted to own a farm, so they sold the bus business and purchased 180 acres at Winchmore, which they ran for three years as a cropping farm.
A real test in their marriage came when Ivan viewed a leasehold farm in Dunsandel.
Knowing the farm’s neighbours were interested in the property, he signed up for it first and then headed home to inform Lesley.
‘‘It was a great decision that we made and, after the shock wore off, Lesley was okay with the decision because our marriage is based on trust,’’ Ivan said.
Due to Ivan’s health, they sold the farm after 23 years and moved back to Ashburton.
While living in the Selwyn district, Ivan had been a Lion, played cricket into his 50s, enjoyed golf and was part of Federated Farmers.
When they moved back to Ashburton, Ivan continued to play cricket and golf, and joined Rotary and the MSA men’s choir.
He also worked for the Ashburton Trading Society to help bring in new members, before moving to work for Bede Cullen managing his bus fleet at Mid Canterbury Transport.
When the business was sold they bought the contracts for five school bus runs.
For Lesley, a religious encounter when she was 35 led her to become a lay preacher.
She continued this passion in Mid Canterbury, and she and Ivan joined St David’s in Ashburton.
She undertook several roles with the church, including in women’s fellowship, and playing the organ and piano, something she still does.
The couple said farming wasn’t always easy, especially in the late 1980s as interest and penalty rates skyrocketed.
At that time, the Blains supplemented their income by hosting tourists.
‘‘They were mostly Japanese university students and some Americans. We really enjoyed their delight in experiencing New Zealand farming life. We met some very nice people and learned about their lives and customs,’’ Lesley said.
They said their long marriage has been blessed by many miracles, especially around the various health challenges they have encountered.
One miracle that stands out was in the late 80s.
‘‘A howling gale and 30 deg C temperatures whipped up a fire in the Selwyn plantation over the road from our farm. It was thought that the fire had been extinct from earlier in the week,’’ Lesley said.
She looked out the window to see the flames leaping in the trees again.
Lesley ran out to see what was happening. Realising she needed to raise the alarm, she went outside just as Ivan was coming up the drive at 60km/h.
She didn’t hear his ute due to the winds. ‘‘Thanks to a miracle from God’’ he missed hitting her by a split second.
Ivan and Lesley moved into Ashburton's Lochlea Lifestyle Resort three years ago.
The couple have three children, two daughters and a son, along with nine grandchildren and three great-grandchildren who all live in New Zealand.
