much of the information about the american-born shooter -- syed farook -- is coming from his friend enrique marquez. mary maloney has the details. the fbi says nothing related to the san bernardino mass shooting has been found in a local lake. officials have been trawling the murky water for four days. so far, they haven't uncovered anything that will help the investigation. but they're going to keep searching -- they're especially interested in finding a hard drive that is missing from the shooters' home. today marks the third anniversary of the shooting at sandy hook elementary school, in newtown connecticut. twenty-six people were killed, 20 children and six educators. this is the first anniversary on which newtown's students will be in school. the gunman, adam school with a semi- automatic rifle. he committed suicide as police closed in. yesterday marked one month since 130 people were killed in the paris terrorist attacks. people paid tribute to the victims outside the bataclan concert hall, where 90 people were killed. candles, flowers and photos line the street outside the venue in what has become a makeshift memorial. many parisians visit the memorial daily to honor the victims. france is still under a state of emergency. rome showed its solidarity with the people of paris yesterday in an unusual way - in keeping with the spirit of the season. france's ambassador to italy turned off the christmas tree lights in rome's piazza venezia. the lights in the central square, just a stone's throw from the colosseum, went dark in a ceremony paying tribute to those who lost their lives last month. the tree was then lit back up... with the colors of the french and italian national flags displayed in lights on the sides of the tree. dozens of people were killed when air and missile strikes hit two damascus suburbs the airstrikes hit a school district and other areas in rebel-held places near damascus. the attacks were carried out by unidentified war planes... and syrian army surface-to- surface missiles hit surrounding areas. among the dead - at least two children and a school principal. syrian civil defense, a humanitarian rescue group that operates in rebel-held areas, put the death toll at 35 - and said many others were wounded. syria's civil war, which began as an uprising against president bashar al-assad, has killed more than 250- thousand people and driven more than ten million from their homes. officials have released video and identified 28- year-old nicholas robertson as the suspect killed in the los angeles county deputy shooting saturday. witnesses tell deputies robertson was yelling expletives... visibly carrying a gun... and shooting six or seven shots in a residential area. robertson reportedly walked away from police to a gas station... and ignored repeated requests to drop his weapon. the sheriff says one deputy another fired 16 shots. pictures and video show robertson attempting to crawl away after being hit. the sheriff's office says robertson may have been agitated by an earlier domestic dispute... and the 45-caliber semi- automatic gun robertson carried was not registered to him. a verdict is coming soon in the first of the freddie gray manslaughter trials. closing arguments are expected to begin today in baltimore. the jury is expected to make a ruling by wednesday or thursday. freddie gray suffered a neck injury in april during a 45-minute ride to the police station in a police wagon. he died a week later. prosecutors say porter failed to put a seat belt on gray and ignored his cries for medical help. porter testified last week he didn't call a medic because gray didn't appear injured and didn't articulate what was wrong. porter has pleaded not guilty to several charges including involuntary manslaughter. he is the first of six cops to stand trial. a house fire has claimed the life of a woman in denison, iowa. authorities say 37-year- old of injuries suffered in the fire morning. it happened in the 15- hundred block of 1st ave north. 56-year-old craig streck suffered minor injuries in the fire. there's no word yet on the cause of the fire. the investigation continues. it's the season of giving and that's just what an anonymous donor did this year when they donated 115 bikes to siouxland girls. that donor called girls inc. months ago and said they were riding their bike and realized they wanted to make sure every girl got a bike this christmas. so, at the girls inc. christmas party, each girl was suprised with a bike, a helmet and a lock from the anonymous donor. the executive director of girls inc. says others have been inspired by this gift and have donated this season. i was also able to attend the event this year. cub scouts from around siouxland came to the sioux city public museum saturday, as boy scounts of america held their annual "robo-cub this year's theme was a joint adventure of robotics mixed with star wars. first through fifth grade cub scouts got to build robots, learn from high school robotics clubs and they worked on programming, all while learning about some robotic history. "not only to try new things, but to just open the horizons and get a hands on feel for what robotics is. a lot of kids know what robots are, or think they know what robots are-- but we're actually showing them what actually is a real life robot is a big step in the right direction," said district senior executive for boy scouts of america, matt sitzmann. boy scout leaderes say they hope to continue to focus on stem events. "today was just about we built robots, we talked about robots and a lot of that stuff. how robots were made and how advanced we've gotten since a long time ago," said 10- year-old troop 100 member, cole fischer. "we learned about robots. we got to drive robots, we got to play a game. it was really fun," said 9-year-old troop 28 member, max boelter. scouts drop by their location on virginia street in sioux city. classic toys are getting a high-tech twist this year. we'll show you which ones you should get your hands on, next. ben: and i'll have your complete >> anki overdrive puts the petal to the metal (sot: dan ackerman, cnet) "this uses an app on your phone or tablet to drive the cars" ...with coding built into the magnetic tracks. just some of the newest twists.... on familiar favorites under the tree. (nats: cayla doll "that's really interesting") mark barger, nbc news. >> some of these toys aren't very cheap. the "my friend cayla" doll sells for about 60 dollars and "hello barbie" is 75 dollars. morning on news 4 today... the ronald mcdonald house helps families in need. with the help of santa, the fundraiser to continue to do that. we'll have the details after the break. it's hard to be away during the holidays, especially if it's because your child is in the hospital. so, the ronald mcdonald house is doing something to help those families going through a hard time. the organization started years ago, when a parent had a child in the hospital and they didn't have anywhere to stay. so, they started the ronald mcdonald house for families who need a roof over their head while their children receive treatment away from home. 20 years ago and yesterday they held a benefit to help families in need. ktiv's tommie clark has the story. "families come in and they're able to find that rest and that's exactly what it was designed to do was to help keep families together while their child is sick and getting that medical attention. ya know statistics show keeping families together while you're going through that makes the families stronger afterwards and that's really our goal is to keep the family together," said ronald mcdonald house of siouxland executive director, christy batien. organizers say families can stay in the house as long as they need to while their kids receive medical attention. they say it's all about the families and...every dollar counts. in sioux city...tommie clark...ktiv news 4. >> for more information on the ronald mcdonald house or to donate, click on this story on our website... ktiv.com. it looks like it's going to be a cloudy and rainy monday. ben's in next to tell us how long the rain will last. and santa payed a special visit to one little girl fighting cancer. we'll show you what he did to brighten her holiday spirit. >> northern/western siouxland could see up to an inch or two of it while the rest of us get a mere snow dusting by the time it moves out late wednesday morning. the rest of the week will be dry and cold with highs a five-year-old michigan girl is fighting to beat cancer... kate nadolski explains how she's getting help in her fight from jolly ole saint nick. different. (tracy pagel/ mom of madison pagel) "christmas time is very stressful on me, we were trying to take it as a blessing, that everyday is given to us, but its also hard that you want to give them the world .. but yet you cant." tracy pagel, maddie's mom, says a recent trip to rivertown crossings mall reminded them what christmas was all about. (tracy pagel/ mom of madison pagel) "she loves santa. she has always loved santa. usually you see kids start screaming, but that was never her." and that's exactly who stepped in... doing what he does best. (tracy pagel/ mom of madison pagel) "he grabbed her hand and said here's a bell. every time you ring that me, mrs. claus, and all the going to be praying for you. and you're going to beat cancer, and i know that." a message that won't be forgotten. (tracy pagel/ mom of madison pagel) "he's amazing. just to have that much compassion for kids and just taking it to heart." >> but we're back in just a moment with more news and weather for you on news-4 today. first though.. here's a look at some of the events on the good morning and welcome back. we've got a lot headed your way in this half hour of news 4 today including new numbers that are out in the presidential polls. the numbers released this morning reveal how the gop and democratic presidential contenders might fare in head-to-head matchups - and the current frontrunners might not like the results... as republicans prepare for their last debate of the year. also... iowa's governor terry branstad is breaking a record that has stood since 1804. we'll tell you what it is and how the state is celebrating in just a minute. and later... kids with hearing impairments have a hard time communicating with santa about what they want for christmas, unless the man in the red suit can communicate in their language. that's in today's healthbeat 4 report. but first ben is on the outdoor weather patio. grab your umbrellas this morning. who can beat hillary clinton? new numbers overnight from the nbc-wall street journal poll show how the frontrunners would fare against her... this comes just one day before the republicans' next debate. tracie potts is in washington with the latest matchups... just out at midnight. just three. ben carson and marco rubio could both beat her - but they're not topping the field. ("fox news sunday") super burned in (sot: donald trump/ (r) presidential candidate :21- :29) "they're kidding themselves. i'm going to win. i think i'm going to win. i'm not one of these other guys that does downnnn. i don't go down, i go up." but ted cruz has the momentum - now leading in iowa and within five points of trump nationally. the cruz team tweeted this photo... fielding 4- thousand phonecalls in iowa this weekend... with fresh criticism from his rivals: ("abc this week") super burned in (sot: dr. ben carson/ (r) presidential candidate :43- :50) "when it comes to experience in congress, you've got almost 9,000 years worth of it. i don't know that that is really the correct answer." ("nbc meet the press") super burned in (sot: marco rubio/ (r) presidential candidate :51- 1:00) "each time he's had to choose between strong national defense and some of the isolationist tendencies in american politics, he seems to side with the isolationist. and this is an important issue to have a debate over." here's tomorrow night's debate lineup - with trump still center stage. he's still leading, even after proposing that ban on muslims in the u-s. i'm tracie potts in washington, now back to you. >> president obama will make a rare pentagon today. he will meet with his top national security advisers to focus on the war against isis. it's what a spokesman calls an "update." white house officials say no major policy shift is expected to come out of it. this is president obama's first visit to the pentagon since the terror-linked attacks in southern california and paris. geneva remains on high security alert after two syrians were arrested on terror charges there friday. the arrests followed switzerland's decision to raise the terror threat level in geneva on thursday. the two were arrested on suspicion they manufactured , concealed and transported explosives and toxic gases and also allegedly violated bans on militant groups like al-qaeda and isis. it was not immediately clear if connection with the four suspects with alleged ties to isis that geneva authorities have been searching for. governor terry branstad is about to enter the political record books as the american history. today, the six-term republican will mark his 7,642nd day of service as governor. that's just shy of 21 years in the office. branstad will move beyond former new york gov. george clinton, whose service includes some pre-constitution time, and is far out in front of any recent or current governor. he'll be in des moines for the celebration, with live coverage on news 4 at 5, 6 and 10. you won't see a woman's face on the 10-dollar bill until at least 2016. the treasury department apparently received more than expected public feedback about the proposed currency redesign. the treasury secretary had announced plans to choose a new face for the 10-dollar bill by the end of the year. among the popular contenders are abolitionist harriet tubman, first lady eleanor roosevelt, civil rights pioneer rosa parks, girl scouts founder juliette gordon low and humanitarian helen united states postal service officials say today is the busiest mailing day of the year for cards, letters, and packages. officials recommend sending packages by december 21st for christmas arrival. the u-s-p-s estimates over 15-point-five billion pieces of mail will be sent this holiday season. northern california and the sierra nevada mountains were hit with their third winter-like storm in a week yesterday. heavy rain and strong winds flooded some roads and scattered debris on others. strong winds downed trees as well as power lines and were blamed for a number of power outages in the region. rain was expected throughout the day with forecasts calling for up to a half inch to fall in some areas. in the high sierra, several kids enjoyed the final day of their weekend sledding down hills and building snowmen in the fresh powder. but plows were busy clearing the roads. traffic was slow and slick for drivers heading up the mountains. drivers used chain controls on snowfall to continue into this week. above six thousand feet, up to two feet of new snow is expected. the dorothy pecaut nature center held its "winter fun day" over the weekend. the annual event gets families involved in wintertime outdoor activities. kids could make recycled crafts, and edible ornaments, go hiking, and meet some animals. they say it's a great way to take a break from the hustle and bustle of the season and have some fun together as a family. "because they're taking a break from the holiday shopping season and the crazyness. it's just a good way to spend time together and maybe destress and get in touch with nature a little bit," said naturalist at dorothy pecaut nature center, theresa kruid. if you missed the event, the dorothy pecaut center has more events coming up this holiday season. the world's largest floating christmas tree turned on its lights saturday to kick off brazil's holiday season in the heart of rio de janeiro. features plenty of colored lights and fireworks over the water. the tree is a massive metal structure, recognized by the guinness book of records as the world's largest floating christmas tree. it's 174 feet tall and weighs 386 tons. and it uses two-and-a- half million micro light bulbs for illuminating the designs on the sides of the tree. it was the 20th year in a row that the floating tree ceremony kicked off the holiday season in brazil. the music boosters for pender sounds of the seasons concert last night. about sixty third through twelfth grade students in choir and band classes performed for parents and members of the community. the dinner and concert is a fundraiser for the pender music department. through ticket sales and donations, they raised more than 35-hundred dollars. it's a fun evening of music and i was honored to be the emcee for the second for people who are deaf, the holiday season is completely different. coming up, we'll show you santa is making the season more enjoyable for them. ben: and i'll have your > fog and drizzle in some places. most of tuesday will also be dry ahead of our next weather system that could bring a light late day mix out west, but the main threat for that and light snow will be tomorrow night and wednesday morning. some places in northern/western siouxland could see up to an inch or two of it while the rest of us get a mere snow dusting by the time it moves out late wednesday morning. the rest of the week will be dry and cold with highs near 30. for those of us in the hearing world... the christmas, and holiday season is filled with joyous music, beautiful sounds and wishes for things special... but for kids who can't hear... they often miss out on some of the magic unless they get to sit on the lap of a santa that communicates in their language... trina robinson reports in today's healthbeat four "this is for you to be able to take home.. you will be able to color it.." (sot: linda nova, miami- dade schools) "any chance to see santa claus and especially to have a signing santa to communicate for the children who can't communicate orally is very, very special." (nats) the hearing impaired children also snapped fun photos with santa and got to play and make snow angels. (sot: santa claus) "last year, i volunteered to this - to be with the deaf kids and bet with them and be good experience for them." so, santa signed goodbye but only untnt christmas eve when delivers t tir toys and joys directly to them. (nats: "bye santa!!") >> that was trina robinson still to come on news 4 today... uber is requiring drivers to sign a new agreement and engagegent rings aren't cheap... but just how much are the stock market saw it's worst weekly loss since the summer last week. another sharp dropopn the price of oil prompted investors to dump stocks again. oil and gas companies led stocks lower. the dow lost 309 points to finish at 17,265. the nasdaq dropped 111, and the s&p 500 gave up nearly 40 points. uber wants its drivers to sign an agreement baring them from participating in class action lawsuits against the ride-sharing company. the new 21-page legal agreement was issued two days after a judge expanded a california class action suit against uber. the lawsuit is a push for the ride-hailing company to define drivers as employees... doing so would make drivers expenses accrued while working for uber. u-p-s isiseportedly getting slammed with holiday deliveries. its on-time delivery rate for ground packages fell six percent last week, compared to the same time last year. fedex numbers were also reportedly lower than usual. an increase in online sales that started around thanksgiving, is likely fueling the slowdown. extra pick-ups and low staff aren't helping. the company has reportedly dispatctcd managers from its headquararrs in atlanta to work in delivery sites across the cntry to lp speed up production. a new study by the knot finds men on average are spending nearly six- thousand dollars on engagement rings. the survey of 12-thousand brides and 12-hundred grooms found grooms are spending an average of almost six thousand dollars on an engagament ring. and grooms are nototeeping mum on the price. according to the survey, 68 percent of brides said they knew how much their groom had spent on the ring. forever... many consumee think smartphones are not. a new survey finds smartphones could be obsolete in five years' time. one in two srtphone users think that smartphones will be a thing of the past, and that they will be gone in just five years. in its place would be artificial intelligence which will "enable interaction with objects without the need for a smartphone screen. when we coco back this morning, we'll have a rundown of the top headlines in siouxland. and taylor swift is rewarding her fans. plus.. who came out on top this week at the box office? it's all next in the hollywood minute. it'll be a rainy and windy commute for most siouxlanders with some isolated areas of mixed precipitation too, so be sure to watch out for a few slick spots on area roads. the rain will move east of the viewing area by around lunchtime which will leave us cloudy, breezy and cool this afternoon with steady temperatures in the 30s. clouds will remain in place overnight, but we should stay dry with the exception of a little patchy fog and drizzle in some places. most of tuesday will also be dry ahead of our next weather system that could bring a light late day mix out west, but the main threat for that and light snow will be tomorrow night and wednesday morning. some places in northern/western siouxland could see up to an inch or two of it while the rest of us get a mere snow dusting by the time it moves out late wednesday morning. the rest of the week will be dry and cold with highs near 30. see graphics. >> > here are the stories making top headlines this morning in siouxland. a house fire claims the life of authorities say 37-year- old wendy waldemar died of injuries suffered in the fire saturday morning. it happened in the 15- hundred block of 1st ave north. 56-year-old craig streck suffered minor injuries in the fire. there's no word yet on the cause of the fire. the investigation continues. santa claus was in sioux city yesterday for a fun holiday event that raises money for the ronald mcdonald house. at the annual santa brunch at minerva's, families enjoyed a meal and kids got to visit with the jolly elf. 20-percent of the proceeds from the meal go to the ronald mcdonald house. it's a home on nebraska street and it's a place where families can stay when their children are being treated at the hospital. one hundred siouxland girls are riding around on brand new bicycles, thanks to an anonymous donor. the bikes were a surprise at the girls inc. christmas party. the bikes came complete with a helmet and a lock. the donor said several months ago, they were riding their bike and realized they wanted to make sure every girl got a bike this christmas. the executive director of girls inspired by this gift and have donated this season. cub scouts from across siouxland competed in the annual "robo-cub" competition at the sioux city public museum. scouts in first through fifth grades built and programmed robots with help from members of high school robotics clubs. organizers say this fun event lets the boys try out new things and open their horizon with a hands-on feel for what robotics are all about. taylor swift is giving her fans a surprise. and a former desperate housewife is now engaged.. plus, the hunger games ruled the box office this weekend. david daniel has it all in today's hollywood minute. antonio baston. longoria announced the news on instagram where she posted a photo of her and her new fianc0 kissing in a desert in dubai -- and showing off a stunning ruby and diamond ring. nat pop and "the hunger games - mocking jay part 2" is holding on to the number one spot for the 4th week in a row.... bringing in an estimated 11.3 million dollars. coming in second.."in the heart of the sea" with an estimated 11 million dollars. and rounding out 3rd -- "the good dinosaur" raking in nearly 10.5 million dollars. for hollywood minute, still to come on news 4 today.... santa is making a difference in the life of one little girl who has cancer. we'll share her story. and the nebraska basketball team continuing their tough non-conference schedule. the huskers were at home against rhode island, looking to move to 7- and-4... we'll take you to lincoln for the highlights in the sports good morning. thanks for joining us on this monday december 14th. coming up in this half hour of news 4 today. investigators are still trying to find out more they're looking to syed farook's friend to piece together profiles for the we'll have the latest on the california. and the cub scouts held their annual "robo-cub museum event." it allows the boys t' learn more about programming and they even get to build their own robots. bit. and santa took time out of his busy schedule to pay a visit to a little girl fighting cancer. we'll show you what he did do o brighter. but first, here's ben. nearly two weeks after the san bernardino massacre -- the fbi is piecing together profiles of the killers d their possible tieieto terrorist groups. much of the information about the american-born shooter -- syed farook -- is coming from one of his friends. cnn's mary maloney has the details. raise any red flags to police or the people around them. this is marquez in april -- speaking to a local news station about pets. (enrique marquez/kille r's friend): "i'm sore now. i'm really really sore." (enrique marquez/kille r's friend): "yeah." investigators believe farook was connected to a radicalized group in california. in 2012 -- prosecutors said four men planned to travel to afghanistan to join al qaeda. marquez told the fbi -- he and farook had a plot of their own. but they became scared when the california group was caught. marquez admitted buying two rifles and giving them to farook. syed and his wife -- tashfeen malik -- used those weapons and other guns to kill 14 people and injure more than 20 others. while marquez says he didn't know about the san bernardino plot -- one law enforcement official says marquez bragged about his bomb-making skills, saying if he made the bombs -- they would have gone off. at this point -- marquez is cooperating with the fbi and hasn't been charged with any crime. >> the fbi says nothing related to the san bernardino mass shooting murky water for four days. so far, they haven't uncovered anything that will help the investigation. but they're going to keep searching -- they're especially interested in finding a hard drive that is missing from the shooters's'ome. today marks the third anniversary of the shooting at sandy hook elementary school, in newtown connecticut. twenty-six people were killed, 20 children and six educators. this is the first anniversary on which newtown's students will be in school. the gunman, adam lanza, killed his mother inside their home before driving to the rifle. he committed suicide as police closed in. yesterday marked ohe month since 130 people were killed in the paris terrorist attacks. people paid tribute to the concert hall, where 90 people were killed. candles, flowers and photos line outside the venue in what has become a makeshift memorial. many parisians visit the memorial daily to honor the france is still under a state of emergency. rome showed its solidarity with paris yesterday in an unusual way - in keeping with the spirit of the season. france's ambassador to italy turned off the christmas tree lights in rome's piazza venezia. the lights in the central square, just a stone's throw from the colosseum, went dark in a ceremony paying tribute to those who lost their lives last month. the tree was then lit back up... with the colors of the french and italian national flags displayed in lights on the sides of the tree. dozens of people were killed when air and missile strikes hit two damascus suburbs last night. the airstrikes hit a school district and other areas in rebel-held places near damascus. the attacks were carried out by unidentified war planes... and syrian army surface-to- surface missiles hit surrounding areas. among the dead - at least two children and a school principal. syrian civil defense, a humanitarian rescue group that operates in rebel-held areas, put the death toll at 35 - and said many others were wounded. syria's civil war, which began as an uprising against president bashar al-assad, has killed more than driven more than ten million from their homes. officials have released video and identified 28- year-old nicholas robertson as the suspect killed in the los angeles county saturday. witnesses tell deputies robertson was yelling expletives... visibly carrying a gun... and shooting six or seven shots in a area. robertson reportedly walked away from police to a gas station... and ignored repeated requests to drop his weapon. the sheriff says one deputy another fired 16 shots. pictures and video show robertson attempting to crawl away after being hit. the sheriff's office says robertson may have been agitated by an earlier domestic dispute... and the 45-caliber semi- automatic gun robertson carried was not registered to him. a verdict is coming soon in the first of the freddie gray manslaughter trials. clososg arguments are expepeed to begin today in baltimore. the jury is expected to make a ruling by wednesday or thursday. injury in april during a 45-minute ride to the police station in a police wagon. he died a week later. prosecutors say officer william porter failed to put a seat belt on gray and ignored his cries for medical help.. porter testified last week he dn't call a medic because gray didn't appear injured and didn't articulate what was wrong. porter has pleaded not guilty to several charges including the first of six cops to stand trial. a house fire has claimed the iowa. authorities say 37-year- old wendy waldemar died of f juries suffered in the fire saturday morning. it happened in the 15- hundred block of 1st ave north. 56-year-old craig streck suffered minor injuries in the fire. there's no word yet on the cause of the fire. the investigation continues. it's the season of giving and that's just what an anonymous donor did this year when they donated 11515ikes to siouxlxld girls. that donor called girls inc. months ago and said realized they wanted to make sure every girl got a bike this christmas. so, at the girls inc. christmas party, each girl was suprised with a bike, a helmet and a lock from the donor. the executive director of girls inc. says othersrsave beenennspired by this gift and have donated this season. cub scouts from around siouxland came to the sioux city public museum saturday, as boy scounts of america held their annual "robo-cub museum event." this year's theme was a joint adventure of robotics mixed with star wars. first through fifth grade cub scouts got to build robots, learn from high school robotics clubs and they worked on programming, all while learning about some robotic history. to just open the horizons and get a hands on feelelor what robotics is. a lot of kids know what robots are, or think they know what real life robot is a big step in the right direction," said district senior executive for boy scouts of america, matt sitzmann. boy scout leaderes say they hope to continue to focus on stem events. "today was just about we builtlt robots, wewealked about robots and a lot of that stuff. how robots were made and how advanced we've gotten since a long time ago," said 10- year-old troop 100 member, cole fischer. "we learned about robots. we got to drive robots, we got to play a game. it was really fun," said 9-year-old troop 28 member, max boelter. if your kids are interested in joining cub scouts drop by their location on virginia street in sioux city. santa clause is a busy man this time of year. but he made a special stop to spread some holiday cheer to one little girl fighting cancer. and i'll have your complete paris: there's a lot to on a dairy farm. nobody's gonna do it for you. you have to get out there and do it yourself. bernie sanders is a well-known friend of family farms. bernie cannot be bought out by big money. bernie's opinion cannot be purchased. it's time for our next president to get in there, roll up his sleeves, take off the gloves, d take on wall streeee take on big business, take on big money, and get the working class back to where they should be. he's a rock. sanders: i'm bernie sanders and i approve this message. >> a five-year-old michigan girl is fighting to beat cancer... kate nadolski shows us how she's getting help in her fight from jolly ole saint nick himself. trying to take it as a blessing, that everyday is given to us, but its also hard that you want to give them the worlrl.. but yet you cant." tracy pagel, maddie's mom, says a recent trip to rivertown crossings mall reminded them what christmas was all about. (tracy pagel/ mom of madison pagel) "she loves santa. she has always loved santa. usually you see kids start screaming, but that was never her." and that's exactly who stepped in... doing what he does best. (tracy pagel/ mom of madison pagel) "he grabbed her hand and said here's a bell. every time you ring that me, mrs. claus, and all the elves in the north pole are goong to be praying for you. and yoore going to beat cancer, and i kw that." a message that won't be forgotten. (tracy pagel/ mom of madison pagel) "he's amazing. just to have that much compassion." >> coming up, nebraska tries to move to 7 and 4 on the basketball court.. plus, coming off that huge win in the cy-hawk game on thursday... isu was back in action against a b b of a sser opponent. sports fource morning wrap. iowa state basketball is still perfect - but yesterday's game - wasn't quite as stressful as thursday's. ktiv's mark freund has more in the sports fource morning wrap. iowa state shoots 50 percent from win. island. rams, up 3, and taking momentum into the locker room - jarvis garrett - at the buzzer - banks in the three - rams lead by 5 at the half. but here comes nebraska in the second half - big red with the steal - ahead to shavon shields - throw it down - nebraska down 6. shields was huge today - 21 points - a steal and another dunknko bring the huskers within two with 6 minutes to play. now down 1 with just over a minute to go - benny parker - drills the three - comeback complete. nebraska wins at home, 70-67. the cyclone women - coming off a win over iowa - also hosting pine bluff. 3rd quarter - meredith burkall gets the pass out on the elbow and knocks down the jumper - burkall had 11 points - iowa state up 45-28. later in the quarter - claire ricketts - goes reverse layup - nice move. iowa state rolls, 70-41. for more sports, you can head on over to our website,e,tiv.com. i'm mark freund with the sportsfource morning wrap. here's the lesson of the day... never turn your back on russell westbrook. the outstanding oklahoma city thunder guard pulled off an amazing feat last night against the utah jazz. with 7-tenths of a second left on the clock in the first halflf weststook makes an amazingly creativelay. he bounces the inbound pass off the back of utah's rodney hood and catches and shoots the 15-footer to beat the buzzer. oklahoma city went on to beat utah in overtime 104 to 98, behind westbrook's 25 point and 11 rebound new orleans quarterback drew brees added another accolade to his hall of fame resume. yesterday, the 14-year veteran passed hall of famer dan marino for fourth place on the n-f-l's career touchdown passing list, with this one- yard beauty to longtime go-to receiver marques colston. the touchdown pass put brees at 421 for his career, , o behind the patriots' tom brady. peyton manning sits at the top of the list with 539... brett farve is second with 508. a cold and wet start to our work week. ben's in next to tell us how long the rain will last. and we've got today's holiday trivia question coming up after the break. plus, the ronald mcdonald house held their annual fundraiser yesterday. we'll show you what good morning, honey. mmm. honey? so sorry, mrs. parker. so sorry... find a doctor, coordinate appointments, one of the many services provided exclusively to wellmark members. > next weather system that could bring a light late day mix out west, but the main threat for that and light snow will be tomorrow night and wednesday morning. some places in northern/western siouxland could see up to an inch or two of it while the rest of us get a mere snow dusting by the time it moves out late wednesday morning. the rest of the week will be dry and cold with highs near 30. see graphics. >> it's time for today's 12 days of holiday trivia question. today is the fifththf 12 questions, al is in the lead with 4 points. i'm in second place with 3. and third place is ben with 2 points.. each day we play for a player at home. here's who we're playing for today. i'm playing for aaron lisle from sioux city i'm playing for connie sponder of sioux city. i'm playing for elizabeth jensen also from sioux city. so let's get to it... here's our morning show producer kaitlyn kinney wiwi today's question. thanan guys. ififou get the question correct, 20 dollar gift card to a step in thyme florals. but even if you get the question wrong, your at home players are still winners. they'll get a 10 dollar gift card to the floral shop. and we'll mail that prize to your house. here is today's question... various music artists from the ukukoined together to form the super-group "band-aid" and released the song "do they know it's christmas?" to call attention to famine in ethiopia. what year was the song released? (a) 1980 (b) 1984 (c) 1989 (d) 1992 and you can also play from home. give us your answersrsn our cebook page. al and sarah? it's hard to be away during the holidays, especially if it's because your child is in the hospital. so, the ronald mcdonald house is doing something to help those families going through a hard time. the nationwide organanation started years ago, when a parent had a child in the hospital and they didn't have anywhere to stay. so, they started the ronald mcdonald house for families who need a roof over their head while their children receive treatment away from home. the siouxland house opened more than 20 years ago and yesterday they held a benefit to help families in need. ktiv's tommie clark has the story. kids also got to see santa... santa claus laughing. ...and tell them him their christmas wish list. then families could go get some brunch. "the money donated at sunday's event comes right back to the community to fund the ronald mcdonald house here in sioux city." funds will go to the organization's core program-- the house itself. the money will help families who stay there when their kids are in the hospital by providing them with food and the comfort of a home. "families come in and they're able to find that rest and that's exactly what it was designed to do was to help keep families together while their child is sick and getting that medical attention. ya know statistics show keeping families together while you're going through that makes the families stronger afterwards and that's really our goal is to keep the family together," said ronald mcdonald house of siouxland executive director, christy batien. organizers say families can stay in the house as long as they need to while their kids receive medical attention. they say it's all about the families and...every dollar counts. in sioux city...tommie clark...ktiv news 4. >> for more information on the ronald mcdonald house or to donate, click on this story on it's . time for a break. we're back with our fourth half hour of news 4 today. first though.. here's a look at some of the events on the have your next burger with a side of awesome. the one-of-a-kind, creamy blend of sweet and tangy. miracle whip and proud of it. at kraft we start with quality ingredieies. all expertly blended to make our mayo. so you can take whatever you're making good morning and welcome back. we've got a lot headed your way in this half hour of news 4 today including new numbers that are out in the presidential polls. the numbers released this morning reveal how the gop and democratic presidential contenders might fare in current frontrunners might not like the results... as republicans prepare for their last debate of the year. also... iowa's governor terry branstad is making u-s history today... breaking a record that has stood since 1804. we'll tell you what it is and how the state is celebrating in just a minute. and some holiday stories headed your way... a special concert in pender, nebraska raises money to keep the music flowing, a tuba kind of christmas in new york city, and we'll answer today's holiday trivia question. but first ben is on the outdoor weather patio. grab your umbrellas this morning. who can beat hillary clinton? new numbers overnight from the nbc-wall street journal poll show how the frontrunners would fare against her... this comes just one day before the republicans' next debate. tracie potts is in washington with the latest matchups... just out at midnight. presidential candidate :00- :03) "i think i'm going to be the one that beats hillary." but our numbers show right now, he can't. brand d w at midnight from our nbc-wall street journal poll: both donald trump and ted cruz would lose to hillary clinton if the election were held today. trump by 10 points... cruz by just three. ben carson and marco rubio could both beat her - but they're not topping the field. ("fox news sunday") super burned in (sot: donald trump/ (r) presidential candidate :21- :29) "they're kidding themselves. i'm going to win. i think i'm going to win. i'm not one of these other guys that does downnnn. i don't go down, i go up." but ted cruz has the momentum - now leading in iowa and within five points of trump nationally. the cruz team tweeted this photo... fielding 4- thousand phonecalls in iowa this weekend... with fresh criticism from his rivals: ("abc this week") super burned in (sot: dr. ben carson/ (r) presidential candidate :43- :50) "when it comes to experience in congress, you've got almost 9,000 years worth of it. the correct answer." ("nbc meet the press") super burned in (sot: marco rubio/ (r) presidential candidate :51- 1:00) "each time he's had to choose between strong national defense and some of the isolationist tendencies in american politics, he seems to side with the isolationist. and this is an important issue to have a debate over." here's tomorrow night's debate lineup - with trump still center stage. he's still leading, even after proposing that ban on muslims in the u-s. i'm tracie potts in washington, now back to you. >> president obama will make a rare visit to the pentagon today. he will meet with his top national security advisers to focus on the war against isis. it's what a spokesman calls an "update." white house officials say no major policy shift is expected to come out of it. th is president obama'first visit to the pentagon since the terror-linked attacks in southern california and paris. geneva remains on high security alert after two syrians were arrested on terror charges there friday. the arrests followed switzerland's decision to raise the terror threat level in geneva on thursday. the two were arrested on suspicion they manufactured , concealed and transported explosives and toxic gases and also allegedly violated bans on militant groups like al-qaeda and isis. the two had any connection with the four suspepes with alleged ties to isis that genene authorities have been searching for. governor terry branstad is about to enter the political record books as the longest serving governorn american history. today, the six-term republican will mark his 7,642nd day of service as governor. that's just shy of 21 years in the office. branstad will l ve beyond former new york gov. george clinton, whose service includes some pre-constitution time, and is far out in front of any recent or current governor. he'll be in des moines for the celebration, with live coverage on news 4 at 5, 6 and 10. you won't see a woman's face on the 10-dollar bill until at least 2016. the treasury department apparently received more than expected public feedback about the proposed currency redesign. the treasury secretary had announced plans to choose a new face for the 10-dollar bill by the end of the year. abolitionist harriet tubman, first lady eleanor roroevelt, civil rightstsioneer rosa parks, girl scouts founder juliette gordon-low and humanitarian helen keller. united states postal service officials say today is the busiest mailing day of the year for cards, letters, and packages. officials recommend sendndng packages by december 21st for chrimas arrival. the u-s-p-s estimates over 15-point-five billion pieces of mail will be sent this holiday season. northern california and the sierra nevada mountains were hit with their third winter like storm in a week yesterday. heavy rain and strong winds flooded some roads and scattered debris on others. strong winds downed trees as well as power lines and were blamed for a number of power outages in the region. rain was expected throughout the day with forecasts calling for up to a half inch to fall in some areas. enjoyed the final day of their weekend sledding down hills and building snowmen in the fresh powder. but plows were busy clearing the roads. traffic was slow and slick for drivers heading up the mountains. drivers used chain controls on their tires for much of the day. forecasters are predicting the snowfall to continue into this week. above six thousand feet, up to two fefe of new snow is expected. the dorothy pecaut nature center held its "winter fun day" over the weekend. the annual event gets families involved in wintertime activities. ds could make recycled crafts and edible ornaments, go hiking, and meet some animals. they say it's a great way to take a break from the hustle and bustle of the season and have some fun together as a family. "because they're taking a break from the holiday s spping season and the crazyness. it's just a good way to spend time together and maybe destress and get in touch with nature a little bit," said naturalist at dorothy pecaut nature center, theresa kruid. dorothy pecaut center has more events coming up this holiday season. the world's rgest floating christmas tree turned on its lights saturday to kick off brazil's holiday season in the heart of rio de janeiro. the annual tradition in rio features plenty of colored lights and fireworks over the water. the tree is a massive metal structure, recognized by the guinness book of records as the world's largest floating christmas tree. it's 174 feet tall and weighs 386 tons. and it uses two-and-a- half million micro light bulbs for illuminating the designs on the sides of the tree. it was the 20th year in a row that the floating tree ceremony kicked off the holiday season in brazil. the music boosters for pender public schools held the annual sounds of the seasons concert last night. about sixty third through twelfth grade students in choir and band classes performed for parents and members of the community. the dinner and concert is a fundraiser for the pender music department. donations, they raised more than 34-hundred dollars. it's a fun evening of music and i was honored to be the emcee for the second year. it's not very often that you see hundreds of tuba players together in one spot. but that's what happened in new york y yterday. 'll show you why in what's trending. forecast next! > here's what's trending today.. ththsounds of the season filled rockefeller plaza yesterday. hundreds of tuba players from across the country converged in new york city for the annual "tuba christmas" event. together under the rockefeller center christmas tree... tubists of all ages led a crowd in classic holiday carols. the tuba ristmas tradition beben in 1974... andndow takes place in don't forget to take a guess at this morning's 12 days of holiday trivia question. various music artists from the uk joined together to from the super-group "band-aid" and released the song "do they know it's christmas?" to call attention to famine in ethiopia. what year was the song released? (a) 1980 (b) 1984 (c) 1989 (d) 1992 and be sure to weigh on what you think the answer is on our facebook page. adele will be center stage tonight. we'll tell you why. plus... "star wars: the force awakens" premieres in hollywood tonight. we'll have the details, tonight, following the first night of "the voice" finale, nbc will air "adele live in new york city". it's an hour long concert taped last month at radio city music hall. the hour will showcase songs from theritish singer's new album "25", including the monster hit "hello". she says having the performance in the big apple was fitting because of the city's connection to her previous album. "adele live in new york city" airs tonight at nine. the force will be back in hollywood tonight when "star wars: the force awakens" premieres. four blocks of hollywood boulevarwere shut down thursday to set up a massive tent for the big night. there are three theaters along this stretch of hollywood boulevard, although disney and lucasfilm have not officially told guests which ones will be used for the premiere. "star wars: the force awakens" will be in theaters across the country this friday. on what would have been his people celebrated d e life of the legendary frank sinatra saturday. in his hometown of hoboken, new jersey.. there were tributes to him on the street and in the city's historical museum. ol' blue eyes.. or the voice, as continues to be hoboken's most son. just across the hudson river in new w rk city.. sinatra was celebratat at patsy's restaurant... where sinatra frequented. the chef says people continue to visit the restaurant simply because sinatra used to dine there. . monday sarah- actress vanessa hudgens is 27 al- actresespatty duke is 69 precipitation too, so be sure to watch out for a few slick spots on area roads. the rain will move east of the viewing area by around lunchtime which will leave us cloudy, breezy and cool this afternoon with steady temperatures in the 30s. clouds will remain in place overnight, but we should stay dry with the exception of a little patchy fog and drizzle in some places. most of tuesday will also be dry ahead of our next weather system that could bring a light late day mix out west, but the main threat for that and light snow will be tomorrow night and wednesday morning. some places in northern/western siouxland could see up to an inch or two of it while the rest of us get a mere snow dusting by the time it moves out late wednesday morning. the rest of the week will be dry and cold with highs near 30. see graphics. >> when we come back on this monday have the top stories making headlines in siouxland. and people dressed up as santa claus and took to riding bikes in the city of rome. and it's all for a good cause. wake up in your first home. wake up in a home with a new address. wake up in a home with no address. your dream home evolves, and protecting it takes committed support. paris: there's a lot to do on a dairy farm. nonody's gonna do it for you. you have to get out there and do it yourself. bernie sanders is a well-known friend of family farms. bernie cannot be bought out by big money. bernie's opinion cannot be purchased. it's time for our next president to get in there, roll up his sleeves, take off the gloves, take on bibibusiness, take on n g money, and get the working class baba to where they should be. he's a rock. sanders: i'm bernie sanders and i approve this message. here a a the stories makingngop headlines this morning in siouxland. a house fire claims the life of a woman in denison, iowa. authorities say 37-year- old wendy waldemar died of injuries suffered in the fire saturday morning. it happened in the 15- hundred block of 1st ave north. 56-year-old craig streck suffered minor injuries in the fire. there's no word yet on the cause the investigation continues. santa claus was in sioux city yesterday for a fun holiday event that raises money for the mcdonald house. at the annual santa brunch at minerva's, families enjoyed a meal and kids got to visit with the jolly elf. 20-percent of the proceeds from the meal go to the ronald nebraska street and it's a place families can stay when their children are being treated at the hospital. ( one hundred siouxland girls are riding around on brand new bicycles, thanks to an anonymous e bikes were a surprpre at the girls inc. christmas party. the bikes came complete with a helmet and a lock. the donor said several months ago, they were riding their bike and realized they wanted to make sure every girl got a bike this christmas. the executive director of girls inc. says others have been inspired by this gift and haveve donatetethis season. cub scouts from across siouxland competed in the annual "robo-cub" competition at the sioux city public museum. scouts in first through fifth grades built and members of high school robotics clulu. organizers say this fun event lets the boyoytry out new things and open their horizon with a hands-on feel for what robotics are all about. > hundreds of peopleressed up as santa claus cycled through rome's city center yesterday, the riders brought christmas donations to a charity that benefits children suffering from various forms of blood cancer. street, then gathered in front of the charity for some fun, photos and music. the event organizer said he got the idea four years ago when he woke up and decided to dress up as santa claus. it's time to answer today's 12 days of holiday trivia question. remember, al is in the lead today.. i'm in second place and ben is in third. let's go to our morning show producer kaitlyn kinney. ok, kaitlyn, read us the question one more time. various music artists from the uk joined together to from the super-group "banid-aid" and released the song "do they knkn it's to famine in ethiopia.a. what year was the song released? (b) 1984 (c) 1989 (d) 1992 and today's answer is "b", 1984. the song was written by bob geldolf and midge ure and has been re- recorded good morning. breaking overnight. egyptian investigators announce they found no evidence a terror attack brought down that russian ssenger plane over sinai in october killing all 2241 on board. this despite an isis claim of responsibility and a russian reportoncluding a bomb downed that jet. the investigation. frenemies, donald trump turns on rival ted cruz calling him a maniac after the texas gains ground in a new national