JOLLY GOOD DAY
HOW WE WILL CELEBRATE IN THE TROPICS
THE perfect Far North Christmas requires balancing the key ingredients of seafood, cricket and beating the heat.
The Imhoff family says it’s got the secret recipe after celebrating “phenomenal Christmas fiestas” over the years.
Michelle Imhoff said she and her husband Jon tried to get the whole family together every Christmas at Earlville.
“This year we’ve got 40 people coming and that’s cousins, grandparents, friends ... that’s a little celebration for us,” she said.
“I’ve always had big Christmases as a little girl and we just keep the traditions.
“I’m lucky that my husband has the same traditions in his family and we’ll have both sides of the family here. It’s most important.”
She said her three children Lachie, William and Zara had grown up with the same tradition and wouldn’t know how to celebrate Christmas any other way.
“I think they’d be devastated if they didn’t have everyone around,” Ms Imhoff said.
“If it was just us it’d be not the same.
“We just love it, we love Christmas.”
Nine-year-old Zara agreed. She said the highlight of her Christmas holidays was spend- ing time with her family in the backyard after ripping open presents in the morning.
“We have lunch together and have a little play with our presents with all of our cousins. Then we go down into the backyard and play games out the back,” she said.
Her 11-year-old brother Lachie said the day didn’t really feel like Christmas until the whole gang had jumped into the pool.
“It’s a tradition in Australia to go swimming on Christmas,” he said.
Like his siblings, sevenyear-old William said seeing his family was more important than the presents Santa would deliver, although he said he was still hoping for a Blitz Ball.
A PlayStation 4 and camera were on Lachie and Zara’s wishlists.
The family-oriented kids said they would take turns playing with them with their cousins tomorrow.