High school soccer is always a bit of a sprint and it is over before you know it, but it doesn't mean that our lives were only about soccer. We managed to fit a few other things in during and after the season.
2023 was all about live music for Callie and her friends. They saw Taylor Swift in the spring, Callie saw the Chicks with us and the summer, and then when fall came around Sarah and Callie headed down to Nashville to see SZA in concert. Three great shows and three very different musical styles. The girls were ready for it all.
The SZA concert was also a great opportunity for Sarah and Callie to make some memories, which included an early morning drive back to Lexington in order to get in a half day of school so Callie could still play in the soccer game that night. Callie loves being busy and having a full schedule, but this may have been pushing the limits a bit. The show was fun, though, and Sarah got to learn the lyrics that are seldom played on the radio.
October also brought a pretty monumental event to our household as Callie turned 16. It worked out well that there was a soccer team bonding dinner the night before her birthday. Her teammates were very sweet and helped her celebrate. And we already did this post, but she then went out and scored a couple of goals on her birthday against Scott County. Just saying.
The actual day of her birthday also fell during fall break which meant that Callie was able to go out for a birthday lunch with her friends. It was a very sweet way to celebrate a milestone that all of them were on the verge of reaching. Because of the soccer game our family dinner celebration occurred on another night where we unveiled the gift - three envelopes that provided Callie with three choices. One was a shopping spree. Two was a trip to a beach of her choice. Three was a trip to London that would include some Premier League soccer games. She wanted some time to decide but ultimately chose number three. That was exactly the choice we hoped she would make.
Of course the 16th birthday also has another big rite of passage associated with it. Callie was prepared, went to her appointment, and passed the test necessary to obtain her learner's permit. It was game on for getting another driver in the Bowes household. We just needed to find the time to get her behind the wheel. The ultimate test for her will be learning how to back out of our driveway. The roads are nothing compared to the pressure of that maneuver.
This year Callie also got the opportunity to go to Homecoming at Henry Clay with a group of friends. Things have changed a little since her parent's homecoming days in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The girls make pretty elaborate bridesmaid style bouquets for themselves on the morning of the dance. They use them for the pictures and then they are put aside. Most important, Callie had fun.
At the end of the month we had a different kind of dress up as Reese and her friends gathered to go trick or treating. As a group they represented two of the hot trends of 2023 - Barbie and Taylor Swift. Reese did a great job of designing her own sweatshirt for the Speak Now Taylor Swift era and it worked out well. She had a great time of course, because it involved friends and candy.
Now that we have a teenager and a tween in the house, there seems to be a lot of time when they go upstairs and we have no idea what is going on. We were delighted when we came across this picture as we learned that they are still just kids at heart with a little extra time spent on beauty regimens.
Although Reese did not get to go to see Taylor Swift live, she and Sarah met up with Mary and Erin Oakley to see the movie version of the tour. The four of them had a great time and while nothing beats a live concert, they certainly enjoyed singing along throughout the show.
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