Hello everyone!

 I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas with all of your loved ones. 

One of my favorite gifts: a two-carat diamond! Just what I wanted! Now I can drink my coffee and look fabulous all in one go!

Mimosas: a Christmas tradition.

My silly elf outfit for the day. I felt very cozy and festive in my Uggs and hat, carrying all my family’s presents.

Fun fact: my family has a vineyard in Austria. We opened a bottle of wine from the latest harvest over Christmas dinner.

Beautiful gingerbread cookies, and a glimpse at my holiday work routine below…

Voilà! My Christmas in pictures. 

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Though some people might feel as if Christmas is long gone, I like to revel in the spirit into the new year. My little tree is still up, and still surrounded by Christmas treats. It’s been quite cold here in the bay area, so it’s easy to stay in and live in your Christmas sweater for an extra day or two. Of course, being a part of the ballet world, Christmas festivities don’t quite end on the eve of the 25th. Smuin Ballet continued on with four post-Christmas shows, and San Francisco Ballet had its final Nutcracker of the year today. Phew! Can you imagine working overtime through your holidays? I know a lot of you consider attending the Nutcracker as part of your annual Christmas tradition, and this makes it the busiest time of the year for dancers. This often means very few days off and no traveling, which in turn translates to no time spent with family. With this in mind, it astonishes me that people call asking us if we have shows on Christmas Eve proper, or until the 31st. Dancing is really hard, mentally and physically exhausting work. The only reason it doesn’t look like it, is because professional dancers are really good at their jobs. Please, do go to the ballet and enjoy with your friends and family, but also keep this in mind. Maybe applaud extra hard? We always love that.

I know the new year is fast approaching, but I don’t feel at all prepared this year! This time last year, I was hellbent on packing as many things as possible into my carry-on suitcase for my New Zealand trip. I even ended up bowing out of my new year’s eve party early as I had a flight to catch early the very next morning. This year, I’m planning on enjoying the festivities with a few good friends of mine and seeing where the night takes me. (Stay tuned for more later!)

EVA♥