Benziger babes

Mommy, Auntie Annie and Uncle Eric XC skiing on Balsam Lake We had a wonderful holiday season! We baked (and ate) lots of sugar cookies, rode the Miller Hill Mall Santa train and saw Santa then the next week we went to Bentleyville to see all the lights and we saw Santa again! Marit and I tricked Santa and even though we were not always good this year, he still found brought us what we asked for - legos and cars (me) and L.O.L. house and bubble maker (Marit)! We stayed home on Christmas Day and since Mommy didn't have to work, we spent the whole day in our PJs playing with all our new toys from Santa, like my new Hot Wheels garage and Marit's KidKraft "L.O.L." doll house. The following weekend, we spent a few days at the cabin on Balsam Lake, WI, celebrating Christmas with the Pastorius Family, Mommy's 35th birthday, and New Year's Eve. Unfortunately, the large snowstorm that dumped over a foot of snow on our house in Duluth left mostly rain and ice at t...

"I passed the cone test. Rode the chair lift the same day. And I ski raced and got a medal the next day!" exclaimed Marit (age 4) after she received her 1st medal at Chester Bowl downhill ski race today. Marit's 1st ski medal! Theo and Marit ready for Chester Bowl ski races!   Riding the chair lift with Mommy after she passed the cone test at her ski lesson. Chester Bowl  is a local public park with a chairlift and three ski runs. Started in 1905 by a bunch of Norweigan's, the Duluth Ski Club brought the sport of ski jumping to the Northland and Chester Hill was identified as a perfect site. It officially opened on Christmas Day in 1906 and there used to be a large toboggan slide, speed skating oval, and ice rink as well. The ski jump drew crowds of over 9,000 spectators and hosted many national events. A number of Olympic ski jumpers trained there between in the 1960-70s. Unfortunately, after being blown over a few times in major windstorms a...