A Housewarming Weekend


Shutterstock / New Africa © housewarming

Last weekend, me and my partner invited some of our friends to visit for our housewarming weekend.

We’re originally from the North West of England, a good five hour’s drive to Dundee. So we were really grateful to everyone for making the journey to come and see us.

It was the first time they’d been able to visit – Covid and other factors kept getting in the way. Finally, they were here. It was bizarre, but wonderful to see them in Scotland!

Food, fun and laughter

Most people arrived on Friday night. We were well prepared with several dishes to choose from. We’d cooked our favourite recipe – sweet potato chilli, as well as a slow-cooked chicken curry and cheesy pasta bake.

Fed and watered, we headed to the living room and broke out the board games.

We played a game called ‘Herd Mentality’. It’s the opposite of ‘Pointless’ – you have to give the answer that you think will be the most popular.

It was great fun!

Let’s Go Fly A Kite

On the Saturday, we headed to the beach. We’d been checking the weather for the last month, hoping that it would be a nice enough day.

The sun kept its promise, but the wind put in a surprise appearance. So, while we didn’t get all the way to the sand, we did manage to snag a spot in the park just over the dunes.

The weather was perfect for flying the kite that somebody brought along. There were even wind surfers out on the waves.

After that, we split into teams to play rounders. I hadn’t played since high school so I needed reminding of the rules, but once we got into the swing of things, I really enjoyed myself.

I had a rest while some of them played football – no one would have wanted me on their team!

It made us realise that none of us are getting enough exercise. We were all sore the next day, moaning and groaning while going up and down stairs and getting out of chairs.

The simple things

We had such a good time. Our new house is thoroughly warmed and it reminded me that the simple things really are the best.

Good friends, good food and good games – can anything really beat it?


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Abigail Phillips

Abbie is the newest member of the fiction team at the "Friend." She loves how varied the role is - every day is different and there is always a new story to read. She is keen to work closely with established writers and discover new writers, too.