6th Birthday

Guess who has moved onto the next hand...Jack and Will turned today!  They had a great afternoon at The Edge Waterpark in Duluth with three of their friends.  Thank you to Grandma Linda and Papa for coming too.  We needed the extra hands.

6 year old brothers.

Brothers plus sister.

They need two hands to show their age now.

The Forces unite.

Blowing out their candles, sort of.  Will got them all.

Waiting for wristbands.

The boys had pop for the first time today.

The girls were right in the action with the boys.

Hungry boys.



The crew.  They had a fabulous time.

1st Hockey Tournament

Last weekend the Hermantown Pioneers Mite 1 team participated in the Duluth Heights Mite 1 Tournament.  They had a great community building with two outdoor rinks and a stocked concession stand.  The boys loved every minute of it, even though the temperatures were in the single digits.  They played one game on Friday night and two games on Saturday.  With much needed encouragement from Moose, I brought the girls to the tournament in between games.  They joined right in with the other kids, running around and having fun.  We watched the first half of the second game before we headed out to finish up our Saturday errands to Target and Sam's Club.

On our way to the game.
It was so bright, we just had to wear our shades.

The 2013-2014 Hermantown Pioneers Mite 1 team
plus random Duluth Heights kid.

Frozen Tundra Breeds Cabin Fever

After a great snowfall on the Sunday before Christmas, the Northland sunk into a deep freeze and the Benners went little stir-crazy.  Below are shots of pillow jungle.

All cushions and pillows off of the couch.

First rule of pillow jungle, no jumping on couches without cushions.  Jack can attest to that.

Will "pushing" Jack into the jungle.

They decided to jump together.

Ready...

Set...

Go!

 

Sydnee forgot to jump.

Group shot.

They wanted to attempt another group jump with Allison.

Jack snuggling between his sisters ' as he opens his gift from Grandpa and Grandma Benner.

Will prefers to work alone.

This is what I found when I checked on the boys last night.  Reading in bed with there headlamps.

Christmas Day

 Over night, our house was not only visited by Santa, but the Tooth Fairy as well.  Will lost another tooth yesterday and immediately put it under his pillow.  Three of the four kids were up around 6:00.  Sydnee needed some convincing from her dad to join us downstairs.



Jack and Will found their scooters right away.

Allison and her new Biscuit book.

Sydnee was happy that she got one too.



Will investigating his stocking.



Jack and his bubble tape.

With some help, Moose got to open a few presents too.

They are going to love this more than we are
(65 pieces of Transformer fun).

The girls doing some teamwork to open their Doc McStuffins kit.

Their best TMNT pose.

She loves her Steppers.

Allison really likes her Steppers and her headlamp.

One of my favorite gifts.

 After lunch we headed outside to explore the lake.  Giant fluffy flakes had fallen all morning and the snow was soft and deep.  The temperature was perfect for a winter wonderland adventure.

Christmas Eve

This morning the kids were up early (6:30ish).  They were on a self-directed mission to find Allison's slippers.  It was cute listening to them work together to find them.  Sydnee was the leader.  In the end, Rich set it up so that Will was the one who found them.  Then I left for a workout and a little shopping at Old Navy.  Strange I know, but I had a ton of Rewards from my Gap card and a great coupon for Old Navy.  Plus, their prices were crazy.  Meanwhile, Moose cleared the deck of snow and the boys played outside for awhile.  After lunch we watched Despicable Me 2.

Then the preparation started.  Now that the kids are a little older and it seems to be more manageable, we thought we would attempt to attend a Christmas service.  We went to Grace Lutheran in Hermantown this afternoon.  I had an idea of what I wanted the kids to wear.  I was 0/4.  At least Will put on a "handsome" shirt.  We made it to the service and lasted until the offering.  After at least 4 trips to the bathroom, it was time to go, literally.

Allison, Sydnee, Jack (minus a front tooth), and Will
ready for church.

Will being Will.

Sisterly love.

 After church, the kids put on a "show" with their stuffed animals.  This year's theme was "A Star Wars Christmas."

Sydnee and her best ninja for Charades.

Benner/Lutz Christmas

When we moved back to Minnesota, we declared Christmas in Duluth.  It was lovely not having to load the kids and half the house up.  Instead, our family had "white-knuckle" drives to celebrate Christmas with us.  It snowed all day and into the evening.  Thank you to them for making the drive.  Merry Christmas!

Showing off their Christmas outfits.

Waiting for family.

Cheese!  We love Grandma Linda!

Drew enjoying a snack without the girls.

Drew and Kathy opening his gift.

He takes after his dad.  Must adorn everything he opens.

Jack is so happy about his gifts.

The Benner Six (6)

The Benners

Uncle Bear and Aunt Katie

The newlyweds, Papa and Grandma Linda.

Aunt Kathy, Uncle Robb, and the cutest nephew/cousin
and family favorite, Drew.