Ballet Met Nutcracker

A quick nod to the Ballet Met Nutcracker performance. We have seen the Nutcracker ballet in several cities: Boston, San Francisco, San Jose, to name a few. This one, the Columbus Ballet Met's, simply blew us away!

This traditional Christmas performance is already good as it is originally intended to be. But the version that Ballet Met puts on is splendid. Several comical characters are added (think the grandmother!), and some very creative props and dances add the extra wow to the show (think Arabian coffee, among others).

Bravo, team Ballet Met. If you have not seen it yet, and have the tickets, you are in for a treat!

Train town at the library

I still recall the days I spent with Thomas, and Bertie, and Spencer...ah oh, I am starting to forget their names! How impossible? They were everywhere in our lives back then...books...shows...toys.

Those days abruptly ended when my son turned three.  And we have not looked back, really.



When I went to the main library to return some books the other day, I was surprised to see a huge set, a town of sort, with trains running everywhere. It reminded me of a deli we used to go to in Santa Cruz (the Train Deli) where my husband and I had our first uninterrupted meal as parents of twin toddlers. We returned there several times, despite the terrible overpriced food, before they closed their doors for good. The (train) joy it brought to the kids, and the temporary peace we had, was worth it...I think.



Although I am sure my children will still get a kick out of this set (who wouldn't?), I am 100% certain that parents with children ages 3 and under are required to come see and experience this holiday spirit, put up by Huntington Bank (I believe). It's quite awesome, and I am also pretty sure that you won't be going there just once before Christmas rolls around.