Boat Baby Christmas shopping

Photo courtesy of Hearth Song.
I know so many Boat kids who would love this!

The best part of having kids during the holidays is seeing their eyes light up when they receive that perfect gift. The giving of gifts is fun, the procuring of said gifts- not so much. If you are like me and abhor actually leaving your home or boat to battle crowds of impatient people throwing money away on the latest plastic piece of junk which will require batteries, emit obnoxious sound effects and be forgotten in 2 weeks time this post is for you.

My favorite toy store is online and open for business. Not only do you not have to trudge to a brick and mortar store, the items this particular retailer sells are quality toys which have lasting play value and are durable enough to survive life in a marine environment.

Hearth Song
I've been a fan of theirs for about 15 years or so. Really great quality toys and crafting kits, excellent customer service and reasonable shipping. That's my Christmas shopping done and I did not even have to deal with one single, surly shopper.

*I get no compensation from Hearthsong and have no affiliation with them what so ever. If they wanted to send ME an Incred-a-Ball as a thank you I would gladly accept!(I would even share with the kids!)

Mark up to his knees in fiberglass mat

Mark up to his knees in fiberglass mat, originally uploaded by CidnieC.

We went from hot and humid with swarms of mosquitos on Thursday to bitingly cold, rainy but with no mosquitos on Friday. Mark valiantly continued to reglass the bulkhead.

You are so beautiful, to me...

You are so beautiful, to me..., originally uploaded by CidnieC.

This is a beautiful photo. Ok, maybe the beauty of this shot is not apparent but this is a shot of our punky bulkhead right before the last layer of fiberglass was applied.

Mark tried to explain to me what the last bit of glassing was but what I heard was " Blah, blah, structural integrity, blah blah forces, blah , blah , blah web for strengthblah, blah the soft deck is repaired, blah, blah butyl tape, blah once the chain plate is reinstalled this one is finished!"

See how beautiful this shot is now?

Epoxy mixing fools

Epoxy mixing fools, originally uploaded by CidnieC.

We have become frightfully good at working with epoxy. This not a skill we WANTED to become quite so good at but what can you do? Sometimes boats need a bit more than just spit and polish.

Father Christmas in Kemah

Father Christmas in Kemah, originally uploaded by CidnieC.

As Kitty and I were walking to the boat with tools in hand, who should we come across but Father Christmas himself. This was no faux Santa, this was the real deal. I could tell it was really and truly Kris Kringle by certain give away clues.

First of all, no fake beard here. Fake beards are a dead giveaway. Also, he had the requisite "crazy" eyebrows. Everyone knows Santa has crazy eyebrows. He had a gentle smile and a warm chuckle. Those fake Santas who emit "HO HO HO!" are a Christmas Fail. We are on to you! Futher proof of his authenticity were his sea blue eyes which did, in fact twinkle. What sealed the deal though was that he brought some of his reindeer. You ever see a reindeer with a fake beard Santa? I think not.

We did not stop to have Kitty's photo taken as we were dressed in our best boat refurbishing attire- disheveled, covered in dust and epoxy. I do plan on taking Kitty and Maura by beofre Father Christmas heads back to the North Pole. I also plan on letting Santa know that I have been very good this year so please move me from the naughty list and this year I would like a new main sail.

St. Nick in Texas

St. Nick in Texas, originally uploaded by CidnieC.

Santa Claus is really a Texan at heart. That must be the reason he has chosen to take a little breather in Kemah before his Christmas duties. You can tell he is a Texan at heart by his cowboy boots...

Comet stops by

Comet stops by, originally uploaded by CidnieC.

Comet was on hand with Saint Nick. He is a very well mannered reindeer. Happy to snuffle the kiddies gently and pose for photos. I used to say I wanted a pony for the boat, now I think I want a reindeer. Think how handy those antlers would be for use as a cockpit line organizer...