A Stand Up Guy - Week of May 3rd

“Do your best with what you have where you are.” ~Movie 'Stand Up Guys'

We have become accustomed to the lack of social activities on our calendar.  And then the busiest weekend in over 1 year, seemed suddenly upon us. 

Thursday evening was Ms. Amanda's wedding rehearsal and dinner.  Cam decided, of his own choosing, that he wanted to surprise her at the rehearsal with an idea.  Perhaps it was the deer in our backyard finding a tasty treat that spurred his thought.  When Cam saw Ms. Amanda he told her he wanted to go down the aisle in standing mode in his power chair!  There was quite a bit of practice with the group heading back and forth and then we quickly enjoyed a delicious dinner before heading back home since it was a school night.

Oma and Opa arrived Friday, eager to spend the weekend with us and join in all of the festivities.  The day began a bit too early on Saturday with the anticipation and a kiddo who didn't sleep much past 5am.  

Jane headed out first a little before 8am to begin her mistress of ceremonies duty list.  

Cam, his dad, and grandparents all left the house a bit after 9am to cheer on Cam at his baseball game.  For the first time in 575 days, Miracle League baseball returned to Nate Hurwitz Field.  Cam and his best bud, Brody were assigned to the Cubs team.  And their former teacher, Ms. Kathy and her husband Kevin were also in the cheering section.  The middle school Robotics teacher, Mr. Z, made an appearance too to see the kids play ball.  

Directly after the awesome game, the family headed over to the Friendship Christian Reformed Church in Byron Center to join Jane and grab lunch, get changed and then suit up for the wedding.

Cam had been given the wedding party position of Ring Security and dressed in the same duds as the groomsmen.  As such, he needed to be present for professional pictures which were set to be taken at a nearby mill as well as in the church.

As the security kid waited for the group to assemble, he had his first look of Ms. Amanda in her beautiful wedding dress.  To say he was surprised would be an absolute understatement!  To mark the occasion, we came up with the idea of Cam decorating his chair with a chalkboard sign that depicted all of the former wedding dates that were attempted due to the pandemic.  Mr. Ring Security was extremely pleased with his own plan of standing while driving for his trip down and up the aisle.  One of the most memorable moments of the ceremony was when the pastor indicated that Ms. Amanda had told him the service could only be 45 minutes in length.  Amanda, very audibly, added in the phrase "or less" at the perfect juncture.

The reception took place at a nearby family farm in Dorr.  The sun shone brightly and even though the breeze was cooler, the setting couldn't have been more beautiful.  Chris handled his master of ceremonies duties with his great sense of humor while his son thought it was incredibly cool that his own dad announced his name over the microphone as a member of the wedding party.  After 8pm, Cam was fading and indicated he really wanted to go home and get to bed.  The groom, Mr. Nick, told Cam he was tired too and was wishing for the same thing.  Cam and Nick had a shared laugh over that comment!

It was hard to believe the very next morning was Mother's Day.  Even though everyone was a bit tired, father and son headed out to pick up a delicious breakfast from Sundance Restaurant to celebrate.

Jane and Oma really had the royal treatment!  Cam's grandma opened customized cups adorned with pictures and a re-print of Cam's great grandma's autobiography created in Shutterfly by Jane and her son.  

Cam presented his mom with a lightweight blanket with a pic of the two of them and the inscription which he dictated to his dad. "I love you Mom!!! You are the greatest! Thank you for always caring about me like when you make me awesome food. I'm happy to celebrate Mother's Day with you. I am happy that you are my mom.  Your loving son, Cam"

At school, Cam had made a tulip card and arrived home with a homemade cookie mix with a card reading: 'To a mom that's as sweet as cookies. Let's bake some together!' and handmade sugar scrub denoting this message on top: 'I added sugar, because you are so sweet to me. I added oil because you always smooth my way. I added all my love moms are loveable.'

Before Oma and Opa headed up north, their grandson finished a homemade batch of applesauce with his grandma's oversight.

That evening, Jane requested a take-out dinner when exhaustion took over.  A nearby sushi place indicated a 90-minute wait for pickup.  Luckily, the ever popular Culver's had call ahead ready in less than 10 minutes.

It was a win-win dining as a family and partaking in Cam's favorite meal.  Jane's son kept asking if it was ok to have Culver's.  It was more than alright since the reason they were observing the day to begin with was because of Cameron.  After all, his mom always tells him, "You are the only reason I have the name 'mom' and it is reserved just for you."

Camology Quotes:

During some outdoor work on Sunday afternoon, Cam figured out a new way to assist his dad with outside projects... 

"I'll be the checker and you be the fixer!"