Overnight at the Lake - Week of May 19th

Memorial Day weekend has always felt like the kickoff to summer.  On Saturday morning, we headed to Lake Michigan to stay with Oma and Opa.  We couldn't have asked for better weather.
Oddly enough, the big lake was incredibly calm the entire weekend.
We spotted this paddleboarder (a rarity on Lake Michigan) with his dog- very impressive that the pup stayed so still.

We happily headed down to the beach for the afternoon and had some company with us- Molly, Gordy and his girls, Kendall and Kiley.  Although the water was a bit too chilly to swim in, playing in the sand was a blast. Cam couldn't get enough of digging holes, playing with the bucket, and putting his toes in the water.


After all of the sand construction work, the group headed up to have dinner on the deck.  It was a perfect evening, complete with a lake breeze.
Someone noticed that Gordy and Cam had similar plaid shorts on, so we had to capture them together.  Gordy loves to give Cam tickle attacks and make him laugh hysterically.
Not only did the shorts match, but it turns out, Opa and Cam were actually wearing the exact same shirt- Lake Michigan Unsalted!
Please note, these parallel wardrobe choices were completely unplanned.
Saturday was Cam's first overnight at Oma and Opa's since last year.  He almost made it through the night without waking up, but it is tough to be away from your own bed.

Even with interrupted sleep, though, Cam was ready for a beach day again on Sunday.  Aunt Joyce brought Cam some of her beach "treasures" to play with (this term "treasures" comes from finding a bucket or shovel or beach toy during the off-season while walking).  After a day of plastic boat races and sand castle design, we made our way back to Grand Rapids.

We are left with the comforting realization that the beach, the lake and more beautiful sunsets await us...