AWharfedale family say there is no going back after swapping the charms of Yorkshire for La Dolce Vita.

Richard Turnbull, his wife, Sarah Fraser, and their four-year-old son, Gregory, left Bradford Road, in Otley, last May to follow their dream of running an olive farm in Italy.

They sold up to buy an 18th century Tuscan farmhouse called Casa del Sole, with 15 acres of land, 350 olive trees and their own private waterfall.

Despite facing many hardships they don't regret a moment.

"We are living the dream," said Sarah.

"It is like we are in the best dream that we have ever had and this is my dream.

"We are still very happy and we have no real yearning for England. Although sometimes things have been hard, we are much closer as a family and all the rewards far outweigh any difficulties we have had. So its No Going Back - ever!"

A year ago the couple couldn't speak Italian, they were faced with a £30,000 bill to renovate their holiday cottages and they had to live without hot water and an indoor toilet.

With only £5,000 for repairs, Richard, 36, was forced to travel back to Ilkley at weekends to carry on his DJ business until the holiday cottages were ready to be rented out.

Their completion was hampered by unreliable builders failing to show up for work, but the villas are now open, they have plenty of bookings and their dream is starting to pay off.

And most importantly they have hot water and a toilet.

"It is absolutely great, everything is going really well," said the 28-year-old.

"We are beginning to see what we had hitherto only imagined - a finished house. In April we had our first indoor shower in our brand new bathroom. It looks fantastic. Having an indoor bathroom really is one of the best things in the world! I hope we never take it for granted.

"Having hot water is great too - even if we do still have to have a bath in front of the fire in the lounge.

"We are living in the un-renovated side of the house which needs lots of work. We have an outdoor kitchen at the moment, because the guests have the furnished one - it's like camping.

"We still need to build a playground."

The success of the holiday villas has led Richard to employ a manager for the DJ business so he doesn't have to travel back to Ilkley all the time.

"This is wonderful for us as we are really working together as a family and Gregory is much happier to have his Daddy around full time - no more tear-jerking moments," she added.

The family had estimated that they would need a yearly income of £12,000, which they could get through the rental of the villas and by selling their olive oil.

Their first olive harvest was in November and it took them two months, working 12 hours a day, to pick the olives from their 350 trees.

Sarah said: "The olive harvest was quite successful, too, but this year we are only selling privately in Yorkshire - next year we are thinking about exporting properly.

"The olive harvest will be difficult but it isn't going to be as big as last year because they grow in three-year cycles."

They wanted to be self-sufficient on their farm by growing their own produce and rearing chickens and it has been so successful that they are now paying their builders for work with eggs.

"We are still learning more about our land," said Sarah. "A friend showed us how to find wild asparagus and it turns out that we have loads of it at Casa del Sole. However, next to every clump is a mouse hole and no new asparagus shoots, so it seems the mice are far more knowledgeable about what to eat than we are!"

The couple have been taking Italian lessons and their son loves attending the village school. "He rattles on in Italian and comes out with things I don't understand. Richard and I are coming along with the language; we have conversation with the builders and plumbers and I can hold my own fairly well in the shops."

Now they are preparing for their next challenge - the birth of their second child, a boy, at the end of July.

"Everything is fine with the baby and we have decided to call him Marco.

"I am struggling with the heat, so I take a rest between 1pm to 4pm and get up earlier.

"I have no idea how we are going to cope with the baby. We have hired a cleaner to help with the two villas when it is changeover day, because I won't be able to do both myself."

The family have accomplished their dream and the only thing they miss is fish and chips.

"We are still living it and it is getting better and better. We have hardships and difficulties but it is worth it in the end," she added. "But I still really miss fish and chips."

Sarah has written a book about their experiences with a step by step guide for people wanting to do it themselves. It will be out in the UK in August.

She has also set up a new website called www.tastethesun.com for people interested in buying or renting a Tuscan villa.

Anyone interested in seeing their Tuscan retreat, which is near Pisa and Florence, can log on to their website at www.casadelsole.co.uk.