Mid-week, I spotted some tickets to Boston Ballet's The Nutcracker (do yourself a favor and click that link!) for a steal and purchased 2 tickets. Deklan isn't old enough to sit through (or appreciate) a 2 hour experience in an Opera House quite yet! However, I figured it'd be the perfect thing for Maks to see since he's currently enjoying his weekly tap & ballet class so much.
Since I'm still on crutches, I was happy to have curbside chauffeur service compliments of Bryon. Honestly, I'd have appreciated the drop-off sans crutches as well. It was so nice to not have to worry about finding a parking spot! We kept the performance a secret and just told the boys that Maksim was going to have a special day with Mommy while Deklan was going to have a special day just him & Daddy.
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| Boston Opera House lobby |
Since Maksim and Deklan don't know the story of The Nutcracker, we were sure to have read it to them as a bedtime story the night prior to the performance. As soon as Maks saw the marquee, he pointed out The Nutcracker to me! He was all smiles and could barely contain his excitement while we waited for the doors to open so we could find our seats.
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| He's pretty proud of this crown! |
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| And we're in! First stop: bathroom...then snacks! |
Maks was surprised to learn that the performance had real people and wasn't on a screen (he'd only been to movie theaters). He also loved watching the orchestra.
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| His favorite: the xylophone. |
All in all, I'm SO GLAD that I was able to see this performance. It was beyond impressive. I've seen The Nutcracker just once before, and (unfortunately) it left much to be desired. I was a bit hesitant to give it another go (of course, this was a different performing company in a completely different part of the country), but decided to give it a second chance. Verdict? There's just no comparison between the two shows. I'd see the Boston Ballet's rendition again any day! Skilled musicians, excellent dancers and incredible costumes. Such talent! And the best part was that it completely entertained me AND my 4 year old for 2 solid hours!
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| Boston Ballet's The Nutcracker! |
Meanwhile, Deklan and Daddy had some special "boy's time" roaming around Boston. Bryon is continually trying to convince Deklan that he likes sushi (selfishly!), but Deklan just isn't a fan like his older brother is. (Maks has been devouring sushi since before he could walk. We regularly have to cut him off!) He made up for it by taking Deklan to the Public Garden (America's first public park). Deklan LOVES visiting this park - mostly because it's the exact same from the Make Way For Ducklings book that we read at home. It's so much fun to be able to show the kids actual places from the children's books that they're reading!
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| Feeding overweight squirrels. |
After getting some snacks, feeding wildlife & playing at the park, they warmed up at a local pub. Deklan thought it was something special to his own glass of OJ from the bartender!
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| Pub time! |
We met up 2 hours later and headed to Faneuil Hall Marketplace (America's first open marketplace!). There's something so charming about downtown Boston - but throw in a horse drawn carriage and carolers singing throughout the cobblestone streets and it's the real package deal!
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| Just saying "Hi!" |
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| Who's that masked man?! |
We finished off the day with a viewing of Blink! - a LED light and sound show at either end of Faneuil Hall. We watched the main tree (it's huge) light up and listened to songs from Boston's Holiday Pops. It was only a 7 minute performance, but that was perfect as the sun had just set (4:30pm!) and we had an hour drive to get home.
*Bummer that a string of the lights was broken!
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