Enjoying the Holiday Season!

 

We were all happy to get an invitation to a dinner and cookie-decorating evening at the Grote's early in December. Abby and Callie had been club soccer teammates for several years and they in part bonded over the fact that almost all of their teammates were in a grade above them. So most of the girls in this picture were seniors and no longer played soccer. It was a special opportunity for the girls to get together and also for the parents who no longer saw each other with regularity on the sidelines or at tournaments. This was a good group of individuals and we enjoyed kicking the holidays off with them.

 

Kelly and Sarah decided to shift their chocolate dipping Christmas tradition to cookie baking with the help of the illustrious Susan Buhrow, baker extraordinaire. Typically the girls are not involved but this year we wanted to try something a little different. 

 

We knew it was going to be intense when Susan brought over a multi-page document of instructions and recipes. She had everything all laid out for at least eight different cookies and each one had its own special twist. This was not going to be a day for lollygagging in the kitchen. Reese was not amused and at times looked like she was being tortured. 

 

We took the divide and conquer approach in order to keep up with Susan's schedule. The kitchen probably looks a bit chaotic in this picture, which led to Sarah's role of constant cleaner to make sure each baker had the utensils and equipment they needed. You will notice John is not present in these pictures and it is not by chance.

 

In the end each party went home with an incredible collection of baked treats and we hadn't even completed all that was on Susan's list at the beginning of the day. Callie was a trooper throughout and showed off her culinary skills and work ethic. We'll have to see if next year brings back the chocolate or if the baking makes a return. 

 

And of course during the holiday season we had to get in the winter-themed Cotillion as well. Reese was especially excited for her Christmas dress which would be playing double duty for Cotillion and Christmas Eve. It is no secret that this is her absolutely favorite time of year for so many reasons and Cotillion just added to the fun.

 

Sarah, Sharon, and the girls were asked to light the Advent candles one Sunday at church which was a wonderful recognition of the relationship and love between our families. It is kind of amazing to look at this picture and know that Sharon has known the girls since they were born, from bringing us fresh pineapple at the hospital when Callie was born to hosting Callie and then bringing her to meet her new sister with a bag of dark chocolate Reese's cups. We are so very lucky. 

 

In a wonderful twist to the holiday season we got to see the Hannens for a day when they were in the Cincinnati area visiting Brian's sister and family. We met up for pizza and beers in Newport and then walked around to see the Christmas decorations. 

 

We are glad that we were able to make this happen since the Hannens were not going to be making it to Connecticut after Christmas this year. The girls always enjoy getting more time with Zoey and Abby and we also had the opportunity to explore parts of Newport we hadn't been to before. 

 

One of those reasons we know that Reese is part elf is because of her December birthday, and good old Sam made his annual appearance in the Christmas tree wishing her a happy 14th birthday. An even number birthday means a trip and this year we were incorporating that into our Christmas journey to the northeast. More on that to come...

California Thanksgiving

 

It had been a while since we had traveled to California for the holidays so this Thanksgiving venture was long overdue. Of course, some things never change and our first stop had to be at In-N-Out after we left the airport. We had made a long list of things we wanted to do and people we wanted to see, so we needed to be fueled up properly. Right after this meal, and not pictured here, we met up with Aunt Brandy and Grammy to see the movie, Wicked. It was a great start to the trip.

 

The next phase of our trip entailed driving to the Bay Area to meet up with the Perrones. Lauren had reserved parking for us at Muir Woods so that we could start our time together with a hike beneath the Redwoods. Sarah and Lauren have been friends for 34 years and they have come a long way since they were roommates their freshmen year of college. 

 

Although our girls have only gotten to see each other every other year at best over the past two decades they somehow have managed to develop and maintain their own friendships. Callie and Kate vlog back and forth, which is hilarious, and apparently is the new way to be a penpal. It certainly helps that all the girls know how close Sarah and Lauren are, so they just kind of know that they should get along. But it is still very sweet to see it all play out in person.

 

These two especially seem to have made a connection that spans the miles. Both of them are juniors and thinking about colleges. In fact they both show early signs of interest in a similar major - engineering - and talk about how cool it would be to end up at the same school Who knows whether that could actually happen or not, but it's fun to hear them talk about the possibility.

 

John and JP also get to be part of these gatherings, which is nice. They tend to hang back, catch up, talk girls sports, and overall enjoy the time together. At this point because of Lauren and Sarah they have known each other for over twenty years, so it's not as if they are strangers. It was a great way to all get together.

 

The Golden Gate Bridge is just a short drive from Muir Woods so we had to get a picture and lucked out because it was an absolutely gorgeous day without a cloud in the sky. This ended up being our Christmas photo for the year and ironically the one we took of the Perrones became their Christmas card as well. Great minds think alike! After we took a photo we headed to Sausalito for a late lunch and then we drove to UC-Berkeley to check out the campus. We packed a few things into the day and just wished their was more time.

 

Keith had sent out a text in early November seeing if anyone wanted to join him in running the Feed the Hungry 5K in downtown Sacramento on Thanksgiving morning. Reese and John ended up being the only takers and we managed to find Keith in the crowd of nearly 30,000 so we could take a picture before the run began. It was a little chilly but a great way to start the day. And we loved the fact that Keith had tried to get everyone out. Reese did not necessarily love running in such a huge crowd but felt much better when we found donuts at the finish line. And the three of us had earned the hearty Thanksgiving dinner we had later that day at Brian and Bri's house. We clearly were too busy eating to take pictures. 

 

Sarah was determined to see family on this trip, especially since we hadn't met her cousin Sophie's little boy Charlie yet. This meant hopping in the car early on Friday morning to head to Santa Cruz for the day. We met up at a local restaurant with Sophie, Charlie, Grammy, Zac, Keith, and Sarah's Uncle Tommy and Aunt Isabel. It was fantastic to have all those people together. 

 

After lunch we headed to the beach to keep the conversation going and to get some fresh air. It was another beautiful northern California day and this picture of Grammy and her younger brother Tommy is priceless. Tommy is such a great guy and unfortunately we just don't get to see him very often.

 

The crew had a fun time playing on the beach, even at one point doing crab races with little Charlie. Reese certainly took the opportunity to put her feet in the Pacific Ocean and of course we had to take some pictures to capture the moments. 

 

From the beach it was a quick drive to downtown Capitola where we could check out some shops and of course get a sweet treat. We even managed to go to the store owned by Sarah and Zac's cousin Brian's wife. She wasn't there, unfortunately, but we made sure to buy a couple of souvenirs and support a local business. But if you thought Capitola was the last stop of the day you would be wrong and you have not traveled with Sarah. We were just getting started!

 

From Capitola we made our way to Natural Bridges State Park in Santa Cruz. The primary goal was to walk along the Monarch Grove Trail and see one of the top spots for monarch butterflies along their migratory path. Although it was the right time of year to catch them the weather patterns did not cooperate and we did not see the volume of butterflies we had hoped for. Fortunately, the Natural Bridges State Park is right along the ocean and so the trip was redeemed by the type of views seen in this picture.

 

We couldn't end our Santa Cruz trip without seeing Sarah's cousin Brian. Thanks to Zac we were able to coordinate a sunset rendezvous with Brian and his dog on the bluffs overlooking the ocean. Brian is just a cool mellow dude, the epitome of all things Santa Cruz. We had not seen him for years but it was nice to see him and have proof of life. Hopefully we can get a more substantial visit in one of these days. We drove back to Sacramento that night and flew back to Kentucky early the next morning. And just like that, another California Thanksgiving was in the books.

Fall is Not Just About Soccer

 

Soccer always starts about a month before the first day of school and it comes in hot which means it can be easy to forget that there is a lot of other things going on. Reese might be playing on the high school JV team but she is finishing up her last year of middle school at Morton. And Callie is now an upperclassmen at Henry Clay and feeling pretty confident walking the halls. We remind ourselves how lucky we are that the girls stay on top of their studies and manage their homework in the midst of all the other activities that fill their days.

Despite all that was going on we did manage to fit in a birthday hike as a family to celebrate Sarah. It is always good to be reminded that beautiful hikes are just a short drive away at the Red River Gorge. You get in a good hike, see a pretty waterfall, eat some tasty pizza at Miguel's, and call it a day. That is our kind of celebration.

 

This year Homecoming for Henry Clay was earlier than normal but everyone was ready for a fun night. Callie was super excited to go with a group of friends that she had only recently started hanging out regularly. She had known these girls throughout high school and middle school, but it seemed like at the beginning of junior year something clicked and these girls really connected. Purely from our view as Callie's parents it seemed like these friendships brought the best out in her and made her really happy. It was great to see.

 

It just so happened that Nana Banana and Sport were in town to watch soccer and were able to catch the Homecoming festivities as well. Not pictured here is the moment Nana Banana saved the day for Molly Nall's date by tying the young man's bowtie since no one else around was able to figure it out. Nana Banana has a wealth of skills!

 

It seemed only fitting to capture at least one quick moment with Callie since she had been busy all day with her friends going through what has become the necessary dance preparation process. This includes, but is not limited to, brunch, bouquet making, hair and makeup preparations, and much more. Needless to say, John prepared a bit less for his part in this picture.

 

One of the things that has been wonderful as Callie has grown older is how comfortable she is being herself with us. It is nice to know that she wants us there, is ready to take pictures to satisfy our needs before she heads out for the evening, and all that good stuff. We will take anything we can get but we have to say that it is fun to watch her enjoy these high school milestones with her friends by her side.

 

Speaking of friends, we hosted a slew of them for Callie's 17th birthday party. When we asked her what she wanted to do she asked for us to make burrito bowl dinners for the crew. We always enjoy getting time to see Callie with her friends because it also allows us to get to know them a bit better. 

 

Callie also leaned into Sarah's request to get a picture with birthday hats and this crew was more than willing to get into the roles. It's always a good sign when your kid and her friends are willing to be goofy and if you have been around Sarah a lot that kind of cooperation typically leads to rewards. Dinner was a success, the pictures went well, and before we knew it they had all headed off to the Henry Clay home football game driving their own cars. Birthday parties for 17-year-olds are definitely different.

 

Callie wasn't the only one dancing through the fall. Reese had entered the wonderful world of Cotillion and enjoyed picking out the right dress. Reese wasn't going to settle for hand me downs and typically knew exactly what she wanted. The first theme was fall and she found a very suitable dress for the occasion. Her taste certainly is conservative with a dash of flair.

 

Parents other than us took charge of organizing dinner for the group of around 30 kids who were going together. Fortunately there is a good restaurant right next to the dance location so the move from dinner to dancing was relatively seamless. Reese had a fantastic time and by all accounts fluttered around to see friends from all the different middle schools. One of the great things about playing soccer is she knows folks from all over town.

 

And while Reese was dancing, Sarah and John took advantage of the Chrisman's football season tickets. It was a last minute offer and a beautiful evening. We invited Linda and Daniel to join us which worked out perfectly for a couple of reasons. First, we love hanging out with them. Second, because they both had to be up early Sunday morning for their work they did not mind that we had to leave at halftime to pick up Reese and her gang from Cotillion. Those are two wins, but the Cats unfortunately did not get the memo and lost.

 

And just like that, we look at the calendar and it is Halloween! Reese told us a couple of weeks before what she needed from Amazon. She and her friends had a plan and they executed it very well. Gru and his minions hit the streets for what is most likely their last trick or treating experience. Callie's days of dressing up to trick or treat are far in the past so no cute pictures on that front.

 

This fall also brought some visitors from across the pond. The Chrisman's Scottish grandchlidren, Dylan and Meryl, were in town for a relatively brief visit before Thanksgiving. We love seeing these two and their parents, although this time it was only Matthew since Jean couldn't make the trip. It was great to see how much they have grown up since their last visit and Meryl can't get enough time with Callie and Reese and vice versa. Dylan never ceases to impress with his overall curiosity, intelligence, and passion. He is an amazing kid and on this trip had a lot to say about political philosophy. We can't wait to see what he does with his life.