Nutcracker

The girls in their Christmas dresses paired with snow boots because it has been snowing like crazy around here.

 Today I was riding in the front seat of the car listening to my girls discuss all of the reasons it is great to have a sister to love you and take care of you.  I cried, quietly so they wouldn't stop talking.  I'm getting more emotional the older I get and I was a crybaby from the beginning.  In moments like that my cup runneth over.  Seeing how much they love each other (even though they drive each other crazy a good deal of the time) brings me so much joy.  I think the conversation might have been inspired by seeing the movie Frozen this weekend but their list of reasons included things like a good sister will make sure you get a new nightlight for Christmas because the light-bulb in your other night light just burned out.  A good sister will help you get your snow boots on when the zipper is stuck. A good sister will hold your hand even if you are made of ice.

We went to the Nutcracker matinee performance downtown.  New Fish was in complete heaven the whole time and Red Fish liked the show but doesn't enjoy having to be quiet for two hours.  I kind of knew ahead of time that New Fish would like it more than Red Fish because she is more interested in ballet in general.

 My parents came with us.  They have sat through the Nutcracker hundreds of time but this was probably one of the first times they sat in the audience.  Two Fish is a very sweet Dad to his daughters and doesn't complain (often) about doing things with his girls like seeing Frozen and the Nutcracker in one weekend.  After the show we stopped by the mall and saw Santa Claus.  New Fish is all about Santa Claus and Red Fish is suspicious but happy to believe.  Red Fish was a bit dubious about Santa's explanation about how he gets around the world in one night but decided it was acceptable for now.  It's fun to be in this stage of belief and magic.  I will take it for as long as it lasts.  There are no pictures with Santa because they were charging an average of $30 and I refuse to spend that much on a snapshot with Santa.

Snapped on my Dad's cell phone.

When I was little I got to sit near the front row and watch ballets while my parents played in the pit.  Sadly our seats weren't as good because our tickets were for the second balcony but we bought a family pack so we can see a few shows much like we have done with the symphony the last three years.  Luckily we moved down to the first balcony during intermission.  The Nutcracker is still a fun experience from far away and the girls loved the sparkly costumes.  Sparkles are always a hit with my girls.  They kept asking if they were "real humans or fake humans on the stage."  If the story is fake then why are the people real?  I'm not sure they understand the concept of being an actor or performer completely.  To them, everything is real.