jelly - jolly - jingle bells.

we are experiencing alot of "firsts" this winter on our property. it seemed so perfectly appropriate that the morning we were going to watch Santa come to town via boat, that we awoke to the first snowfall of the season. Port Townsend has been enjoying a cold snap this week, pros are intense sunlight, cons are frozen items such as fruit, contact lenses and slushy wine.

i love the snow and will gladly pay tribute to my Minnesota roots for that one. but what i love more is watching Daphne see it for the first time each season. i know for certain her immediate thoughts are "SWEET! free food" at which point she freaks out and runs amuck scooping mouth fulls of white frozen matter into her gob.

we decided to head to our beach right before we headed to Nordland on Marrowstone to see Santa. below are some wintery shots of lots of beach logged jellyfish, snail shells and snow capped mountains.

daphne gets real mad at floating bull kelp

while waiting for Santa, we strolled up to our friends Rachael & Scott's goat farm to see the babes at rest for the winter. Rachael & Scott operate a terrific goat cheese farm called Mystery Bay Farm.
Now that it's winter, the goats are resting, birthing and relaxing until spring.

one of our favorite places to enjoy a latte and warm our toes is the Nordland General Store on Marrowstone Island. a kitchy little place full of trinkets and oddities. not to mention a damn fine beer selection. Bob warms up by the fire.

alison & meghan, this shot is for you!

John whips up some tasty drinks for soon to be Santa watchers.

Santa & Elf discuss walking the plank

i think one of the best parts of Santa at Nordland is that most folks watching are adults. this fine day presented only a hand full of kids who waited patiently to see Santa in the Bait House for a photo.