Chris' Birthday, the Beach, and a Bridal Shower - Week of July 6th

"Life is a celebration, Enjoy it well." ~ Uruj Shahid

Someone remarked recently that it seems our family has a celebration every week!  How true that is this summer...

The festivities commenced with Chris' birthday when Cam and Jane surprised Chris with a GoPro video camera and handmade cards.  The new toy headed to the cottage with us on Saturday.

 For the first time this summer, Lake Michigan was actually bearable for some swimming.  Cam practiced his back float on an unusually calm day.  He's worked quite a bit on his technique in swimming classes this past year.

The family favorite inflatable kayak made its voyage outing for 2015.  The first trip was an excursion for Cam and his dad, paddling along the lakeshore, visiting family along the way.

Next, Oma, Jane and Cam headed out into lake and paddled quite far looking over the edge to see if they could see the bottom of Lake Michigan.

Cousin Katie and her finance Tyler traveled from New Orleans to spend some time at the lake and attend their first bridal shower.  The couple will be married next spring and they have asked Cam to be their ring bearer!  Cam is totally excited about the upcoming trip and wedding in Louisiana.
Katie was explaining to Tyler that Cam thinks "raspberries on the belly button" are quire funny.

Typical of family gatherings, we attempted a cousins picture on the front deck.  Not only were we missing people, but it seemed near impossible to corral everyone.  Regardless, it made for some funny moments with lots of laughter.

We also enjoyed an outing to Pekadill's with Katie, Tyler, Coco and Libby and Oma to enjoy a tasty lunch and yummy ice cream.

A quick birthday celebration dinner with Steff and Heath completed our weekend.  Steff and Chris share birthdays just 1 week apart from each other.
We all feasted on a delicious steak meal followed by the famous Ryke's cake for dessert.

There may not be an abundance of beach in front of Oma and Opa's, but that certainly hasn't deterred Cam from making the most of any day on the sandy shoreline.

"The only thing you sometimes have control over is perspective. You don't have control over your situation. But you have a choice about how you view it."