Fall Festivities - Week of Sept. 12th

"The soul should always stand ajar, ready to welcome the ecstatic experience." ~Emily Dickinson

"Every new experience brings its own maturity and a greater clarity of vision." ~Indira Ghandi

We don't have any shortage of wildlife around, but Chris was quite surprised
when he almost stepped on a snake while walking into the house.  He had to bring it in to show Cam and then Stella was curious.  Cam's dad seemed a bit perplexed that no one in the family was scared of the small reptile.

Early in the week, Cam started coughing a bit and didn't quite feel himself.  He requested a pickup early from school and stayed home the next day.  We had a puppy visit from our friend Mary.  Her dog, Jada, had two Berna doodle pups and she wanted them to meet Cam.  The adorable dogs loved running into the grass, sniffing everything.

By Friday, Cam was feeling better and was relieved about his negative covid test.  Chris was volunteering at a charity golf event for Lori's Voice that afternoon.  Jane and her son drove to the course in Marne after dinner.  They saw their friend, Erica, who recently received her Trak chair, able to travel over nearly any surface.  We all thought it looked so cool and Erica showed us the controls.

Upon waking up on Saturday morning, Cam declared he was feeling normal again.  His WMML baseball game was scheduled for 10am and it was truly a perfect weather day to play ball.  Brody was back in action and the boys had a great time on the field together.  The video scoreboard shows each player's picture when they are up to bat and the cheering is always present for each and every kid. The Aquinas Girls Softball team were the volunteers for the day.  Cam's helper, Ellie, snapped a photo of our group including Brody's mom and grandma.  Prior to leaving the ballfield, we solidified our plans for that evening.

Cam and his best bud Brody had purchased tickets for the Homecoming Dance.  Neither of them had formal dates, but they wanted to go and hang out with their friends.  We had received communication from the boys' teachers that there would be over 1,000 kids there.  Dressing up was a requirement.  

We all met at Ucello's for an early dinner.  The delicious meal was capped off by a chocolate cake dessert.  We arrived at the dance a little after 7:30p.  It was scheduled from 8p-10p.  

After a short photo op, the freshman boys made their way inside. Cam's parents and Brody's mom drove to a nearby restaurant.  When we arrived back at the high school before 10p, we saw Brody outside.  After parking and walking up, we asked him where Cam was and he told us he wasn't sure.  Cam headed out the door in short order, cracking up because they had been looking for each other knowing it was about time to be picked up.  When Jane asked her son if it was fun, he loudly responded, "Yes!"

It was a late night to bed and a bit of sleeping in the next morning. After a few hours, we packed some things for lunch and headed to Grand Haven, excited to see Oma and Opa.  The sunshine was abundant and we planned a picnic lunch in their courtyard.  

With all of the accessibility, Cam wants to visit more often.  We're pretty certain this would be just fine with his grandparents!

Camology Quotes:

Cam and his parents are actively involved in the community, volunteering for non-profits and serving as board members.  We were surprised and excited to see Cam's picture appear with one of our favorite local broadcasters, Tessa. Tessa moved to west Michigan a year ago and the longer commercial introduces her to our local viewers.  In fact, the photo appeared long enough for Jane to snap a picture of the tv.  When she showed Cam the next morning, he took it in stride.

"I remember that night and I like that picture. I'm glad they used it."