Perhaps you’ve heard of Friendsgiving, the term given to Thanksgiving when dinner is enjoyed with your chosen family? Well, this past weekend we celebrated Friendsmas, aka an early Christmas feast with some of our closest friends.
Four long-time friends of ours live in the Okanagan and they decided to come visit the farm for a few days, to beat the holiday traffic, rush, and potential weather. We laughed, dined and played tourist all weekend long.
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On Saturday we awaited their arrival by getting a glowing hot fire going in our wood stove, baking sweets and making my Nana’s famous nuts and bolts recipe. The house was filled with warmth and delicious smells. We put on some Christmas music to get in the spirit and before we knew it, our friends had arrived.
We started off with a classic tour of the farm. Whenever someone who hasn’t been to the farm comes to visit, we don our gum boots and show them all the little amazing things about the property. We introduced our friends to all of the farm critters, showed off the various buildings and got our boots nice and muddy after a walk in the damp field.
They rented a (beautiful) Airbnb in the Platzl, so it was a bit of a ways from the farm, but we were glad that they also got to spend some time in Kimberley. We took them to the Pedal and Tap for dinner, and every plate left the table clean.
After dinner we walked around the Platzl and although none of the shops were open at that time, our friends were wide eyed looking into the windows. They all stopped to take a photo of the festive display that Arrow and Axe put up. Plans were in the works to buy Christmas tree candles at Moody Bee. Needless to say, the next morning was spent sipping on coffee and shopping.
After a few hours in the Platzl, the crew headed back to the farm for an afternoon of typical farm shenanigans. It’s funny how much ‘city folk’ love to do farm chores when they come to visit. Need to feed the pigs? Done. Need to chop some wood? Okay. I’m not sure how long that enthusiasm would last if they lived with us.
We lit a fire in the back yard and chatted, catching up on months worth of stories. We set up a target and everyone tried their hand at shooting a bow and arrow. Then we made a farm to table feast complete with two roast chickens, sausage, pork ribs, carrots, beet salad and scalloped potatoes.
We managed to squeeze 12 people into our little home for dinner. Usually when we have a large meal such as that one, my brother and sister in-law host at their massive dining room table. This time around, we wanted to host, and we managed to do so just fine. The only time there was silence between us was while we were eating. I think I can speak for everyone when I say the dinner and company was fantastic.
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After dinner we went for another walk, before changing into our bathing suits and heading to the Lussier Hot Springs. Our friends had never been to any type of hot springs before, let alone free ones in the middle of the mountains. We enjoyed a nice long soak before calling it a night and heading our separate ways.
These are the days I am most proud of our lifestyle and hard work. The days that we get to share it all with the people we love. The days where everyone is sitting around the dining room table saying, “yum”. The days where everyone is gathered around a fire, crying with laughter. The days that have you writing about a very merry Friendsmas, indeed.
corey.bullock@kimberleybulletin.com
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