Even after 11 years of ownership, when Dave Cal returns home from work, turning into the driveway of 4/581 Portrush Road, Glenunga, he pinches himself to make sure he isn’t dreaming.

Dave and Farah Cal purchased the four-bedroom, three-bathroom home with their two children, Harrison and Yasmin, in 2011. The family rented nearby for three months while quickly revamping the property into their dream home.

“The ground floor was all slate, which felt very depressing,” Dave says. “We got rid of all that and put down blackbutt floorboards all the way through the living areas of the ground level.”

“We also knocked out two walls to make the living area more inviting, especially out towards the pool area,” Dave says.

Outside the living area, a deep, solar-heated pool stretches from beneath the verandah and into the sunshine. Beyond the pool, an expansive garden transforms throughout the year, changing with each season.

Vibrant reds and oranges coat the trees in autumn, falling away to luscious greens in wintertime. In spring, colour blooms from flowers in every corner of the garden and the vast tennis court and pool sparkle in the summer sunshine.

This garden is a haven for local wildlife with kookaburras laughing every morning and evening, and koalas often visiting the tennis court and slumbering in the surrounding trees.

Jasmine wraps around the verandah overlooking the tennis court, where the family enjoys playing an abundance of sports from tennis and volleyball, to football and soccer.

“It is a great entertainer’s house,” Dave says. “Harrison had his twenty-first on the court in a big marquee.

“It was the perfect night because his birthday is in January and the whole garden from the pool through to the tennis court was just one big party.”

The family also enjoys hosting dinner parties and long lunches, with Farah’s passion for cooking transforming the kitchen into an epicentre of rich smells and delicious flavours.

“My wife works in aged care, but she is also a chef,” Dave says.

Farah was a finalist for a position in MasterChef, with the crew coming to the home to do interviews and taste her cooking. She was also selected for My Kitchen Rules, however, the friend she was partnered with dropped out just prior to filming.

Dave works in construction, and the house perfectly accommodates his early start to each day.

“I use the pool bathroom on the bottom floor which means when I get up early, nobody is woken up while I go downstairs, have a coffee and get ready for the day,” Dave says.

Although an incredible party home with plenty to enjoy in the summer, the family finds it a cosy haven in the winter with warming fireplaces and bay windows that look out into the yard.

“Every room in the house has a different view,” Dave says. “You’re surrounded by trees and you can’t see any other houses.

“You almost feel like you’re in the Adelaide Hills.”

After many years in the home, the family is ready for a new family to enjoy the property and love it as much as they have.

“It is time to move on as my mother-in-law has moved here from overseas, so we want to move to a home closer to her,” Dave says.

“It’s sad that we’re going to sell, but we are excited about the next chapter.”

The sale is being handled by Alexi Broikos and Noah Bonnici of Refined Real Estate.