Weekending: Thanksgiving

   
          The weekend- as per usual- went by far too quickly- we were back in the Okanagan for our farewell until the spring- I will miss the lake so. The weather was perfect- cold and crisp and sunny- just the way you would imagine Thanksgiving weekend to be- perfect for a bon fire with hotdogs and playing outside in the garden.

        We spent the first half of our weekend in Peachland - where we gathered what we could from the garden one last time- buckets of tomatoes for green tomato relish, herbs, squash, eggplant and kale- oh the kale. We have enough kale to clean and freeze for quite a few months! It was so nice just being outside in the quiet, helping my Mom with a few chores around the yard- the simple act of sweeping the stoop and arranging pumpkins while listening to my Mom and Miss Lo chatter nearby was so peaceful.

       In the still hot Okanagan sunshine we made our way up to Vernon for a fantastic visit with the Mr.'s parents- his Dad decided to surprise the Littles and came down from the North early. Sunday and Monday was full of chats, plum cake and goulash- yumm! We came away from Vernon wit more apples than I know what to do with- I feel like this week will be spent canning apple sauce.

         Of course the Littles are very excited about Halloween and had to pick their pumpkins- they planted these back in the spring- over May long weekend and have anxiously watched them grow all summer. Many plans are being laid for how these pumpkins are to turn into Jack- O- Lanterns in just a few weeks! This is the best type of pumpkin patch and has perhaps spoiled them for the likes of the larger more commercial pumpkin farms that many people in our area visit.

         I'm not going to lie- there was nothing relaxing about this weekend at all- a six hour drive through rush hour traffic is not my idea of a good time. We love our family and for years have made the concerted effort to get home to see them at any given opportunity- the drive is long and hard after working a full week.  After this past long weekend I feel ready for winter- I am ready to tuck in and stay on this side of the mountains for the next six or seven months- at least until the lake is warm enough to swim in again!