The Ballet

Ready for the ballet!

The week and a half before Christmas Lily and I were privileged to enjoy two live performances!

First we got tickets with friends to see a live theatre performance of The Velveteen Rabbit. We were able to get $5 homeschool tickets which was so wonderful! Lily loved the performance and it really was great for kids- I only wish we had bought the book before the show so that she understood the plot a little better. It didn't seem to matter to much to her though and she just loved it when the rabbit came alive!

And our 2nd performance of the week came when her and I went to see the much anticipated Nutcracker ballet! Lily was beyond excited for this. She got to dress up in this beautiful Christmas dress that my mom bought for her which made her even more excited. Once again she patiently watched every moment in wide eyed wonder (though towards the end she did begin to look a bit sleepy- but given that it's over two hours long and during her regular nap time that's to be expected)! At the end of the ballet she got to hug one of the sheep from the ballet (which she just loved)- the scenes with the sheep and the big bad wolf were some of our favorites! She also got to meet one of the lead ballerinas (dressed all in glittery white) and Lily got to tell her how beautiful she was. What a special moment for my little ballerina.

We may live in a rather little town in Maine, but I am so thrilled that we have such great opportunities for the arts here- what fun experiences for my daughter and I to enjoy together!

The Giving Basket

Measuring

More measuring!

Eli didn't want to be left out- though he really just wanted to eat the popcorn!

Our goodies made with real vanilla- brought home from Mexico from my mom. We can't get enough of this stuff!

Stirring. Don't worry we make sure she is being very careful and watch her constantly!

Bubbly carmel goodness!

Above: Baking

Below: She was so eager to share that I never actually got a picture of the basket full!

Throughout the Christmas season we have a number of things we try to do as a family to celebrate the birth of Christ and the real beauty of Christmas. As much as we enjoy the gift giving and receiving part of Christmas we thought it would be a great idea to emphasize the "giving" part for Lily (since she is more often on the receiving end). My friend Sarah shared in her blog about how she has a giving basket at their house with homemade goodies to give to friends and family who stop by. I loved that idea and decided to make it a new tradition for Lily (and Eli too in future years). Since Lily is old enough though I really made this HER giving basket. She helped me make lots and lots of delicious salted carmel corn. She helped me pop, measure, stir, and even bag all of them. We made an entire large basket full of carmel corn wrapped in adorable Christmas bags I got at Target. Then for the next week she was allowed and encouraged to give the bags away to ANYONE she wanted. It was all up to her. And oh my was she ever excited to give away her carmel corn. She brought it with her to give to friends and her teacher at gymnastics. She gave it to friends who came over. She delivered it to neighbors. And when we had a few bags left she happily shared it with her cousins on Christmas day. She loved giving and I loved giving her the opportunity. This will absolutely be something we do every Christmas. There is such beauty and joy in giving.

Merry Christmas!

May your Christmas be merry and bright!

St. Nicholas was here

Above: Eli's ornament: Because he is our little monkey

Below: Lily's ornament: Because she is our little fairy, princess, ballerina

Every year St. Nicholas visits us on the night of Dec.5th. The kids leave out a shoe and he comes to give each of them a new ornament for the tree and a few other little goodies.

Well...St. Nicholas was just a few days late this year (as he waited for Lily's handmade ornament to arrive in the mail)- but the kids didn't know any different!:)

Lily was so excited as she picked out shoes for her and Eli to leave overnight and she was just as excited the next morning to find the ornaments, some chocolate, and a few new Christmas books!

Packers Vs. Patriots

For Joe's birthday this year I got him and I tickets to see the Patriots play the Packers on Sunday Night Football in Foxboro! The game was a few nights ago and it was a FANTASTIC game to be at! Actually the whole weekend was really fun and indulgent...

Saturday night we drove down to Joe's parent's house and after lunch on Sunday Joe and I left for the game. Joe's parents graciously watched the kids for us...overnight (this was my very first night away from Eli ever)! We love our kids oh so much, but I think that Joe and I were both in need of a break because we were near giddy as we drove away. Then 5 minutes later we had to drive back because we forgot the tickets, but then we left again and continued to be giddy and care free! We drove down to Foxboro and stopped off at Cabelas on the way (for hand warmers and so Joe could look at guns- this was for his birthday after all). After checking into our hotel we enjoyed an incredible dinner at a local restaurant. To be honest it was a little fancy (the lady at our hotel said we could get burgers there- we couldn't) but we decided to stay and splurge just a bit and really enjoyed one of the best meals we have had in some time. Then we drove to the stadium and it really was fun seeing the thousands and thousands of fans, so many people tailgating in the cold, and just feeling the general excitement!

So, as I mentioned, the game was incredible. I have to be honest that going in I was feeling a little disappointed. When I bought the tickets I was really thinking it was going to be a good game...until the Packers starting quarterback was injured the week before and EVERYBODY was predicting a full out humiliating blow out! With our back up quarterback starting nobody was giving the Packers even a chance of winning. So, I just sort of braced myself. Now, the Patriots are arguably one of the best NFL teams right now so I always knew that this would be a challenging game for the Packers. There was even a part of me that sort of knew that it might be best for our marriage if the Patriots won that night (Joe and I are both huge fans of our teams, but I might just be a bit of a better looser)...and this was Joe's birthday present. But neither of us really wanted a total blowout. What we really wanted was to watch a good game (and then for our own team to win at the end...but for it to be a good game). So, I was bummed out going in thinking that it might not be a fun game to watch. But oh my was I (and EVERYONE else) wrong! From the very first play (an onside kick by the Packers recovered by the Packers) to the very last play it was a nail bitter. Every single play counted and meant something. Both teams went back and forth with the Packers actually leading for the majority of the game. And let me just tell you that the fans there were shocked (and just full out angry at times). I was incredibly impressed with my husband though at what a great sport he was. As fun as it was it was also challenging to feel so alone as I cheered my team on (there were plenty of Packers fans there, but the very few around me weren't very vocal)! So, in the end the Patriots just barely won. The Packers were down near the end zone and if they had had just one more minute on the clock I'm certain they would have gotten the job done, but they lost by four points. And yet I have to say that I was so proud of the Packers and how they played on Sunday night! Nobody gave them a chance and they went into an away game against one of the best teams in the NFL and nearly (oh so nearly) won. Joe and I both left the game fairly pleased having enjoyed watching a really great game of football live. This was Joe's first time going to an NFL game and it was my first time going to a regular season game (I went to see the Packers play a preseason game in Denver when I lived in Colorado)- so that made it even more fun. Sure there were some entertaining and annoying drunk fans, we saw a few people get arrested, and we spent almost 2 hours trying to get out of the stadium parking lot but it was worth it!

At nearly 2a.m. we finally got back to our hotel and crashed. And then we got to SLEEP IN because neither of us had to get up with the kids...JOY!!! We enjoyed breakfast, drove back, and enjoyed just a bit of shopping and Starbucks along the way. Oh, the indulgence of it all! It's not a weekend we'll soon afford to repeat, but what a great memory!

P.S. In case you were wondering- our kids did great with their Nonnie and Grampy!

P.P.S. As another birthday gift to Joe I left my camera at home (so that we wouldn't have to deal with it at the stadium). I got these great picture online. The second picture was during the 2nd quarter right as the Packers scored another touchdown. I remember this play clearly because that is when the stadium started to feel really ugly! Enjoy!

Tis The Season

Oh, I just love Christmas time. Around the Cousins house we are decking our halls and getting in the Christmas spirit. Lily is happily opening her Advent box every day, Eli is still fascinated by the tree and the few ornaments still in his reach, and I feel a bit elf-ish as I secretly work on a few homemade presents for the kids at night. Cookie making is about to begin, there are many goodies yet to be wrapped, and our little manger awaits the birth of Christ on Christmas Eve. It truly is a season of wonder and I love getting to experience that to an even greater degree through my little ones!

Getting Crafty

Most of my life I've never considered myself a crafty or creative person. Oh, don't get me wrong, I did plenty of craft projects with my mom growing up. Because...my mom is the crafty queen. Seriously, she's the queen. And maybe that's why, in comparison, I never felt very creative. And to be honest I was okay with that. Sure I learned to sew (just a tiny bit) in home economics class in 6th grade and I looked forward to the annual Christmas craft project with mom growing up, but beyond that I was good. Until...I became pregnant with Lily. It was like being pregnant (and the process of becoming a mom) flipped some sort of creative switch in me. I'm sure it was probably there all along, but it just took my children to bring it out in me! I guess it started when I decided to paint a shadow tree on the wall in Lily's nursery. Oh how I wished that my mom was going to be visiting before the baby was born to do it for me, but she wasn't- so I had to figure it out myself. And then there were a few other little projects for the nursery- like the painted metal tree for the wall, and the frames tied with pink ribbon, and the wooden letters I painted for her name. That was the beginning. And then came photography (still my largest creative outlet). And then as Lily got a bit older came the creative little projects we could do together (or sometimes that I do for her like kite making). And then Eli's nursery (my first canvas painting and the mobile that I am still in love with) and all of the creative ideas for their birthday parties. And more and more I find myself drawn towards handmade things (and this I just never would have guessed)- whether I make them or someone else hand makes them. And then...something I thought would never ever happen...this summer I got my first sewing machine (my mom helped me pick it out as my birthday present)...and I am learning how to sew! It's a slow process for me and I don't have a lot of time, but I am beginning to learn. I've mended a few things and sewn Lily a pillow for her doll bed (I have fabric for pillows for our living room, but just haven't gotten there yet). I think it may be some time before I follow any real serious pattern, but maybe someday. And one of my favorite projects this year was these flags I made (with my sewing machine!) for Eli's birthday! I made a lot of them and not all of them turned out perfect (I learned as I went), but I adore how cute they are! Here's just one of the pictures (the rest will come when I finally post about his birthday party). I love them so much that at least a few of them will be hanging in Eli's room sometime after Christmas! So, I may never be quite as crafty as my mom (or my grandmother who worked as a seamstress for Oshkosh B'Gosh for many years), but I do think it might be in my blood. It's just one more gift from God that He gave me, not because of, but through my children.