Fall Traditions

For the past four years, we have added one more tradition to our usual fall lineup.  It's called the Bourbon Chase, and it is a relay race in which teams of 12 runners cover 200 miles over the course of about 30 hours.  And in Kentucky, what better trail to follow than the Bourbon Trail.  The race starts at Jim Beam, passes through Maker's Mark, hits Wild Turkey, spends some time at Woodford Reserve, and finishes in downtown Lexington.  

The race is a blast, but while John is running, Sarah is taking care of the girls.  And it just so happens that our friends Kirk and Kelly also run the chase, which means that for the past four years the Bourbon Chase has also meant a sleepover and fun times for the Bowes and Abraham girls.  This year the girls' chase started at Panera where everyone fueled up for the night ahead.  That was followed by a quick trip to Michael's for some craft projects and a trip to Kroger's for some ice cream before the crew headed home.

It is hard to say who gets less sleep during the weekend, the folks who are out there running through the night or the girls who are having too much fun to sleep.  And the same thing goes for who is more tired by the end of the weekend, the folks who have run throughout the night, or Sarah, who has had to wrangle four energetic girls during that entire time.  When all is said and done, Callie and Reese are excited every year to spend the night with Claire and Ella.

And here we have a picture of some of the runners from John's team, Intellectual Pursuits.  The exact make-up of the team has changed somewhat over the years, but there is a core group of four (John, Carolyn, Greg, and Mark) who have done it each of the four years and another four  (Kirk, Dave, Sharon, and Ken) who have done it three years.  All eight of those fine people are not only avid runners but also college professors.  It's a fun time, to say the least.  Picture here are five of the six runners from Van 1 who are celebrating the completion of their final run with a shot of Woodford Reserve.  At the very least the alcohol made us forget for a moment that we had each run three different times over the past 24 hours, had slept a total of four hours, and desperately needed hot showers.  We can't wait to do it again next year!

Of course fall = orchards and lots of fun in the Bluegrass.  This year the girls got a chance to meet up with Libby and Lucy at Boyd's Orchard while John hung out with the Chrismans at yet another bourbon distillery to start the celebration of Charlie and Kate Chrisman's marriage.  We have said it before, but it is worth saying again, especially when coupled with the picture to the right.  Callie, Reese, Libby, and Lucy love hanging out together.  And it is fun to watch.


And if you visit Boyd's, you have to make sure to get a picture on the huge chair.  It's great, because no matter how big your kids grow, you can always get a picture of them looking small.

Notice how Reese and Lucy are holding hands here as Libby puts her arm around Callie.  These four certainly know how to pose for a picture.  They have handled enough requests in their lifetime, so they know the drill.

And if fall = orchards, then orchards = pumpkins, and pumpkins = jack o' lanterns.  We haven't reached a level of pumpkin craziness in our household, but John, Callie, and Reese figured it would be a good idea to at least carve one little one.  The girls had fun trying to get all the pumpkin innards cleaned out.  Their skills need some work, but that's okay, they have time.

And here is Callie with the final product.  It isn't going to win any awards, but it looked cool when the candle inside was lit and the lights were turned out.  And good thing we had the candle inside there, because shortly after this picture was taken a strong wind blew a tree branch onto the power line behind the Chrisman's house.  There was a brief and furious fire followed by a blown transformer and no power in our house.  But the pumpkin's candle saved the day.

And now that Callie is in kindergarten we can add another fall tradition to our list - LOGOS.  This is an after school program at our church that occurs every Wednesday, and is for kids from kindergarten through twelfth grade.  And part of the program includes learning worship skills, which means Callie and her classmates learn songs and on certain Sundays during the year lead the congregation in song.  Callie was so excited to get to wear the robe and sing in church.  Who knew this would be a joy to a little girl who has never wanted to participate in the Music and Arts camp performance over the past several years.  She certainly is coming out of her shell and becoming more comfortable with being on stage.