Sandy Candles - Week of July 31st

"The more sand that has escaped from the hourglass of our life, the clearer we should see through it."  ~Jean Paul

Summer's timer keeps on ticking and we keep soaking it up.
The unexpected invite to a backyard pool on a weeknight is a summer treat for our family.
Emma and her dad popped over to ask if we all wanted to take an evening swim at their family friend's pool.  Although most things solar-heated in Michigan take a temperature dip after dinnertime, it is still refreshing.  Cam and Emma seemed impervious to the coolness, wanting to continue water games for quite some time.

Emma and her creative mind designed a makeshift restaurant and provided play money for Cam to order from her extensive menu.  As she cooked, she pretended all sorts of creative disasters took place in her kitchen and even had to interview new employees, aka stuffed animals.

Our awesome friends and neighbors are always present since they're just a backyard path away.  Whether we share dinners, evening walks, ice cream treats or playtime, these lifelong buddies bring smiles every time we're together.

Summer time also means some work effort needs to be put forth and Cam is always willing to help out.  His dad expertly rigged up a fastener for the wheelbarrow saving his father lugging the weeds across the yard to the woods.

The best laid plans sometimes don't go as expected.  Friday afternoon was reserved for a trip to Stony Lake to see our close family friends, the Hueys.  A rainy day squashed our intentions to swim, boat and waterski.  However, we did love the opportunity to really chat, catch up and share a most delicious meal complete with freshly husked corn, thanks to Oma and Cam.  And Oma's homemade pies were a bit hit.  Since Stony is only 15 minutes from the cottage, our evening ride 'home' was a quick one.  We caught a nice sunset back at Oma & Opa's deck since it decided to clear up about 8pm.

Sunday, though, was a picture perfect beach day.  When Jane was younger and spent her summers on Lake Michigan, a favorite craft was making sand candles with her mom.  Oma had talked to Cam about this in May and he hadn't forgotten, reminding her nearly every time they were together it would need to be an upcoming activity.  Thank goodness for Amazon and internet instructions providing a candle making kit with directions and online videos.  The best part of sand candles is making your own mold to pour the wax into.  Such a fun technique and great way to spend our morning.

Even though big lake waters hadn't made it to the 70 degree mark, Chris and his son still went swimming with the Cam mobile.  On days like this, we forget how cold our winters will be and soak up every ounce of pure Michigan summer goodness.

Upon arrival back in Grand Rapids, a family of deer were slowly making their way through our yard.  Traveling from the rural area of Cam's grandparents back to city isn't quite as shocking when you have this kind of greeting awaiting you.

Camology Quotes:

Cam is an intuitive kid.  He seems keenly aware of when to play up a joke or offer a hug when needed most.  Sometimes, juggling a full-time job and personal business is tough during a work day for Jane.  There were some parts in need of repair on Cam's powerchair and a 'quick' call to rattle off the list turned into a twenty minute conversation figuring out an appointment time.  After the 'go-fish- session, Jane finally disconnected and Cam came over to her.


"I know it's a lot to do, Mom but it is important that we get it done."

And with that simple phrase, frustration melts into a smile.  A later game of finding father and son hiding in the bathroom completely turned the day around!