Beating the Heat.

We were pleasantly suprised by a visit from Stacie (Dee Dee) and Anna yesterday morning!

Notice that my child was still in her pajamas and it was nearly lunch time. (She had just woken up and finished breakfast when Deed arrived!!)

Brooke and Anna are starting to figure each other out!

Brooke has some strange need to show everyone her belly...weird, I know...but Anna didn't seem to mind!

We took a trip with Deed and Anna to Walmart to grab a few things - and to take advantage of any air conditioning we could get! This heat is unbelievable!

My oldest niece turned 6!

Zoe's birthday is the 4th of July - how lucky is she to have fireworks for her birthday every year!!

We packed up for Belletown last evening to have cake and ice cream with the birthday girl!

How is it possible that Marlee will be 2 at the end of next month!!!???

Red cheeks, sweaty foreheads, and sticky legs...

We haven't been successful at beating this heat.

M&M McFlurry?? Hey - it's worth a shot!

Still Recovering.

In my last post about our time in Benezette, I mentioned that our family if 3 got very little sleep. Add to that, our whirlwind trip to State College for the fireworks and an early morning trip to Newport to see Grammy Kathy, you've got the perfect combination for a SUPER SLEEPY Brooke.

We are STILL recovering and catching up on sleep from the weekend. On Monday, Brooke took an (almost) 4 hour nap in the afternoon, she has slept until after 10:00 am every morning, and has napped/gone down for bed relatively easily since we've been home.

As much as I'm enjoying the sleeping child that God has given me this summer, I'm already starting to dread what it's going to be like to start waking Brooke for school NEXT MONTH!!

Anywho...

What have we been doing while in recovery?

We've been keeping watch over Pap and Nana's house - they'll be home today! We traveled to the 'hills' in the evenings to check on the weird things that my Dad worries about - freezers, garage heat, door jams, any running water, etc.

Brooke decided to continue her love affair with bubbles...even though Pap wasn't there to see her success!!

"Look at me, Pap!"

I had the brilliant idea to set up Brooke's pool at Nan and Pap's - to beat these awfully hot days, and to have a little bit more swimming privacy. Turns out, we never used it...but it was a great idea.

No comment.

My artsy-farty babe is still loving the stickers and other crafts left-over from Benezette...

If I'm being honest, I'll tell you that I've actually hidden these stickers because I'M SO SICK OF CLEANING THEM UP!!

The recovery process has not been helped by this insane heat wave we're having, so we headed to Michelle's pool again today for some swimming and fun with friends... I'm beginning to LOVE these days with the girls (and Caleb!)

Brooke used a new floating device that I didn't catch any pictures of... She's learning slowly to not fear the water, and this floatie seemed to help! I'll try to snap a few pictures of all 3 kids wearing their floaties soon!


Brooke finally got up enough courage to jump on Malaina's trampoline! So funny to watch little legs jump! She talked about this toy the rest of the evening...she told Zig about "jump, jumping..."

The after-effects of swimming on a 100 degree day...

I had 2 layers of sunscreen on this child and she STILL burned! I'm praying that she'll wake up this morning perfectly golden brown!

Benezette 2010 and The 4th.

I think that my head has finally stopped spinning, and I have enough sense about me to compose yet another exciting blog post!

There are 2 different events to document, so pay attention!

The 4th of July has turned into the annual weekend for our Richard family Benezette retreat!

My dad fell in love with the Winslow Lodge as he would 'weekend' there with his "Warriors." (Don't ask.) So, last year was the first time we spent a long weekend there as a family - my parents, my family of 3, and Meg's family. Remember this post?

Even though this wasn't Brooke's first visit to Benezette, it held so many 'firsts' for her - and I can't wait to tell you all about them!
(Picture overload below...didn't want you to miss a thing!!)

Brooke didn't seem to remember Benezette, but did she ever love it there!

We left Thursday morning and arrived before lunch time. Brooke was so excited to see Nana and Pap who had been at the lodge since Wednesday. Pap made us his super special grilled ham and cheese on the grill...I think I'm in love with this sandwich. Meg, Jason, Josh and Lauren arrived shortly after lunch and the rest of the day was filled with lots of playtime for the kids!

It was a little chilly on this first day...only about 65 degrees in the afternoon!

It was Lo's maiden voyage to the lodge - it's so hard to believe that this little baby was Brooke last summer!

Brooke found a new love in her Nana's whoopie pies!

She's had bites before (since Mommy has trouble sharing these pieces of heaven) but in Benezette, Brooke thought she should have her own 'pies.' Every day, she wanted 'pies' for her snack, another for dessert, and one before bed. Hey, when you're camping, anything goes!!

Daddy kept watch over the fire, as usual. He made us S'mores and Mountain Pies every night! YUM!
The cool evenings are so wonderful! We played on the deck, sat around the fire, took walks through the yard, and watched for Elk...

Day 2.

Brooke fell in love with the millions of bubble wands that Aunt Meg brought for the kids! Blowing bubbles was all she wanted to do!

Meg and I made a special place out front for the kids to play with the bubbles...

Blowing bubbles made them hot and hungry -

So, we filled up the pool with some freezing cold hose water, added a little hot tub water, gave them some cookies and had a perfect afternoon! See?

Do I really have a blonde-haired, green-eyed baby??

Saturday morning, the kids were just finishing up their breakfasts when we spotted 7 Elk grazing towards the lodge. They walked and fed for the longest time, and they even let me snap their pictures!

Zig and I went for a ride in the evening and spotted a HUGE bull elk along the road - it was a monster - and something that reminded me a lot of our trip out west!

They're so gorgeous!

Aunt Meg had the awesome idea to let thekids have a picnic for lunch on Day 3!

Lunchables, ravioli, and plenty of sweets on Pap's Harley blanket! So fun!

Since it was the warmest day we'd had, we warmed up the pool water again and caught a few rays!

And once the kids got tired of swimming,

Aunt Meg broke out the PAINT!

They created beautiful masterpieces!

It was the first time that Brooke had ever painted - she concentrated and made such awesome colors and shapes!

Is it me, or is she the most gorgeous thing you've ever seen?

Sunday morning, th 4th, we fed the kids breakfast and started the 'packing up' process. It's my least favorite part of the vacations, but we were anxious to get home. Brooke didn't sleep well in Benezette, so she napped the whole way home...and was super excited to see her home and toys!

When we got home, we unpacked, started a little laundry, ate lunch, got showered, and even tubbed Brooke!

We were packing the car right back up and heading over to State College for the 4th of July fireworks!!

It has probably been since I was in college that I watched the fireworks in State, and I've NEVER actually gone to the stadium to see them!

Some of Zig's family had the motorhome at Beaver Stadium and were 'camping out' all day...and we were so excited to join them!

How cool is this?

There were 2 skydivers that fell with this ENORMOUS American Flag!

So patriotic!

We were right next to the stadium...

Penn State football, anyone???

Brooke was all decked out for the holiday and had so much fun playing outside!

It was over 90 degrees, so we didn't stay out much until the sun went down...

Mommy and her American Sweetheart!

(We both got a lot of sun in Benezette!)

Brooke played so hard with her cousins...

This is Dylan.

And this is Noah!

(Jenn asked me to feed Noah while she prepped supper - and for a split second, holding him made me want another baby!! And then...the moment passed!)

And this is Sawyer!

It was our first time meeting this handsome man - this family makes such cute kids!!

And this, my friends, is what you get after a long vacation with very little sleep...

A very sleepy Brookie.

She couldn't even stand herself - she was so tired.

We took her inside the motorhome for some quiet time with the "Bee Movie" and she literally fell over and passed right out.

We woke her up just in time to walk around the stadium for the fireworks.

(I'll spare you the story of her screaming her head off the entire time we were walking...)

We were right at the base of Beaver Stadium and had perfect seats for the show!

It took Brooke a little while to decide that she liked the fireworks! We were SO close to the display and they were very loud! She wouldn't let me hold her- I think she felt safer with Zig.

I love fireworks so much!

And I loved sharing such a cool American tradition with Brooke!

I'm already excited to head back over next year with Jenn, Mike, Noah, Chrissy, Brett, Sawyer, Corey, Kylie, Dylan and any other Hertzler cousins that join into the madness!!!

Our summer is flying by so quickly!

We're busier than we've ever been, but Brooke is experiencing so many great things!

I know that she's young, but I hope she remembers some of these fun trips we've taken with her!

Next up - THE BEACH!

Stay tuned!!