Santa and I admittedly didn't get off to a great start. Apparently there is some unspoken protocol that I(silly me) was completely unaware of. It seems that asking a Santa to pose for a picture with a six-year-old kid on a Christmas ship in the Puget Sound on a Monday night in December is unscrupulous. I apparently didn't read the fine print when I booked the cruise. Because when I did ask the Santa aboard our Argosy harbor cruise on Monday night to take a picture with Kalli, he glared at me. A full-blown Scrooge-glare. Completely unbecoming of a pudgy guy in crushed red velvet. Kalli apparently caught the nasty vibe Santa was throwing off. She took off like a shot. Hence, no cute Kalli/Santa picture to share with you. The best picture I could muster of the old guy was this one, from behind. Look at that cocky stance. He just thinks he's all that, doesn't he? :)
I didn't let the crotchety guy ruin our two-hour tour, however (which, incidentally, ended far better than poor Gilligan's trip. I still have a soft spot for Gilligan. Not so soft for the Skipper, however. He was such a whiner. And don't even get me started on Mr. Howell). The kids had a great time exploring the ship, doing crafts and taking brief stints on the sub-freezing deck. Tucker, bless his little heart, opted to leave his coat at home. His 40 lb. body didn't fare too well on the walk back to the car. I kissed his blue lips back to their regular color and he was all smiles by the time we hit the freeway.
Sean, whom I had somehow forgotten has intense motion sickness on boats, brought along his best friend for comfort, solace and diversion. Boy, I couldn't thank his iPhone enough!
Chillin'. Literally.
Me and my T-dog. He's my bud.
When the iPhone finally begged for a break, Katelyn took over the care of her seasick father. She's such a good girl...
Check out Tucker. The poor frozen little kidpop. Of course, Kalli doesn't have her coat on either. Apparently left it below deck. What's with my masochistic offspring?!
Tanner's first band concert at the school "holiday" party, which consisted of one song: "Jingle Bells." Feeling rather proud of his performance, he and a friend hailed their own encore, which was nixed by the instructor, but hey, nice effort!
Kalli dancing with her friends at the school party. She was a little shy to start, but quickly ramped up and jigged her way into the groovin' 200+ kid mosh pit.
This picture is worth a quick study. Notice, first, the staggered effect of Kate and her friends' height. Also notice the electronic equipment being used. These are sixth graders crashing a K-5th elementary school dance party. Their cell phones kick my cell phone's trash.
Tucker gettin' a kick out of the limbo.
Tanner and his good buddy Lincoln. 
My sweet kids.
Three of the four little spawn at Snowflake Lane at Bell Square. Notice Tuck with no coat. Again.
Katelyn reminding me with a stern expression that she's still on hiatus from photo ops. My bad. :)
Notice here what Tucker is doing. Yes, my coatless third child is standing in a pool of water. Look at Kalli's expression. She's thinking Tuck's idea is ingenious. Fortunately, I nabbed her before she hit liquid!
FINALLY. Kalli wiggled her first tooth free a few weeks ago. She insisted we make a sticker that says, "I lost my first tooth today" so that, in case her mouth was closed, everyone she came in contact with during the day would know the good news.
I bought this hat in San Fran as a joke, to be donned by whatever child may be having a meltdown on any particular day, purely for my own entertainment. Tucker has claimed it his own and wears it whenever possible. 
