Saucy Apples - Week of July 21st

"When life gives you apples, make applesauce." ~Beverly R. Green

Cam is a fan of traditions.  When Jane was little, she helped her grandma make applesauce and then when she was older, she assisted her mom.  Jane's mom, Cam's Oma, has now passed the efforts to our family.

There is a certain apple that, from our perspective, is superior for making apple pies and sauce.  It is the apple most used by Oma's mom in northern Indiana and Michigan called "early transparent."  There are only a couple of local orchards that we've found that grow this special fruit.  Fortunately for us, Miss Amanda knows the people who own one of them.  She and Cam went to pick up a bushel on Monday.

The Early Transparent Apple, more commonly known as the White Transparent or Yellow Transparent, has a fascinating heritage rooted in Eastern Europe and cherished across generations for its early ripening and culinary versatility.  It was discovered around 1850 in Latvia, as a chance seedling at the Wagner nursery.  It was introduced in North America in 1870.  It's one of the earliest apples of the season, often ready by mid-July.  It is best used for cooking rather than eating because of its creamy puree texture. The process is a bit arduous, but the chinois strainer makes the job easier since you don't have to peel or even fully core the apples.  Our kitchen turned into an applesauce-making assembly line.

During the week, Chris and Cam made their way to Kyle's house to pick up the Mary Free Bed Wheelchair Power Soccer Champions t-shirts!

The weather has been extra warm and humid in Michigan this week.  We headed to the cottage on Sunday to see Auntie Karen and her sister, Sue, along with Oma.  

Lake Michigan was the perfect temperature for swimming so Cam and his dad made quite a few trips in to cool off.

We all relaxed by the water.  The outside temp was actually 89 degrees at the beach, which doesn't happen too often.

The sun shone brightly all afternoon without a cloud in the sky!

For dinner, we joined forces by combining our offerings and ate on the cottage deck.  The different brat varieties from Mac's Meats provided by Auntie Karen and Sue were most delicious.  If you're ever near Rothbury, we highly recommend the blueberry brats and pizza brats.  Even though the flavors sound strange, they were incredibly tasty.  

Our time together was too short.  

We did, however, manage to share one of the best beach days of the summer!

Upon return home, we were greeted by our neighborhood wildlife.  The fawns are quite adventurous while the baby turkeys stay close to their parent.

Our son was happy to be closer to his bed after spending the day at the lake and his parents welcomed slumber as well!

Camology Quotes:

Cameron is very time-conscious. He always wants to arrive early.  To ensure an on-time departure, he now sets alarms in his mom's office.  He figured out how to do this by using Alexa and saying something like "Alexa, set an alarm for 2:15p today on Jane's office."

A Cause for Celebration - Week of July 14th

"We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give." ~Winston Churchill

Cameron's parents didn't know much about the non-profit world before he was born.  Thanks to their son, they currently serve on multiple boards and together, they work to bring awareness to local community organizations.

Cam and Ms. Amanda stayed busy this week, enjoying daily strolls (when it wasn't 80 degrees by 9am!) at our local park.  The two visited a few stores for errands and did some baking.

On Friday, Cameron was scheduled to work at Grand Valley State University with the PT graduate students.  Two sessions were held back to back.  Cam teaches the students how to assist with transfers, the different tone in his muscles, and his skills.  He makes certain to follow all safety precautions.  The professors and assistants always comment about how patient and thorough he is!  As an added bonus, he also saw one of his friends, Onji, who was working with a different group.

Friday evening, our family hosted a Renew Mobility celebration, in honor of the incredible work the staff and volunteers have accomplished in 2025.  Renew Mobility's mission is to enhance independence through access to mobility equipment. As a non-profit, Renew's vision is to become the central hub of West Michigan for the for recycling, distributing, and maintaining mobility equipment for those in need. 

We welcomed close to 30 people in our backyard.  We couldn't have asked for better weather- no humidity, a slight breeze and a tranquil evening.  Chris masterfully grilled an array of choices while Jane, Cam and Ms. Amanda, along with some helpers readied the side dishes and drinks. 

Mr. Matt, who is on the board of directors with Cam's mom, brought a gift of thanks and the Renew staff presented us with a hanging flower basket.  We told the group we should make this a yearly summer gathering and everyone agreed.

By Sunday late morning, we had everything cleaned up.  Cam and his mom were ready to head out for their afternoon visit with Oma.  They were on a mission to bring her a "new" used laptop, thanks to Chris.

It didn't take long to ensure the new computer had internet connectivity and was in working order.  We decided to stroll around the Rosy Mound complex outdoors.  

The flowers are vibrant at every turn and we enjoyed quite a few laughs during our visit.  

It is always fun to visit Oma and always a cause for celebration!

Camology Quotes:

It is typical that Cam is solo on his iPad before dinner while Jane is finishing up work in her downstairs office.  He is accustomed to sending voice messages to his mom's phone.  Sometimes, instead of listening to the message, Jane will just walk upstairs to see if he needs anything or has a question. This week, Cam added his own disclaimer at the close of each one.  After making a comment about something or asking a question, he now ends every voice message with the following phrase.

"Mom, I repeat this is not an emergency by any means..."

Memories in the Making - Week of July 7th

“To be one, to be united is a great thing. But to respect the right to be different is maybe even greater.” ~Bono 

The exact first use of the term “sleepaway camp” in Michigan isn’t clearly documented in public records or historical archives. 

However, the concept of overnight summer camps in Michigan dates back over a century. 

For example: Camp Ohiyesa, operated by the YMCA, has been running since 1919 in Holly, MI. Camp Walden, a traditional sleepaway camp in Cheboygan, was founded in 1959.

Camp Miniwanca, run by the American Youth Foundation, began in the 1920s and has long offered overnight experiences. It is also a camp where Jane' dad was a counselor long before she was born.

The term “sleepaway camp” itself became more commonly used in the 1970s, according to Merriam-Webster, to distinguish overnight camps from day camps. So while Michigan had overnight camps much earlier, the label “sleepaway” likely entered local usage around that time.

When Cam's parents arrived to pick him up from his 5-night sleepaway camp before lunch on Friday, he appeared to be a happy camper!  

During his week at Indian Trails, he told us that he went on scavenger hunts, the adaptive playground, the pontoon and the splash pad.  Cameron purchased a shirt in the camp store.  One of his favorite activities was the dance that took place on Thursday.  Chris and Jane kept themselves busy while Cam was away- Verve Pipe concert, visiting family and friends, seeing the F1 movie and taking Chris out for his birthday dinner. Upon picking up Cam, one of the counselors shared that three girls were surrounding him during the dance event.  

Friday afternoon was relaxing for our family.  We welcomed our dear friends and neighbors for dinner that evening. Ms. Patti and Mr. Steve, Ms. Cara and Mr. Craig joined us for a grilled feast with everyone contributing something different.  We all had our first taste of zucchini tots!

Outdoor and indoor projects filled the weekend.  We were all a bit tuckered out from the week's activities.  Chris had an early morning golf outing on Sunday while Cam and his mom talked about all of the different memories made over the last several days.  And in light of the early mornings at camp, Cameron slept in until almost 9am!

Camology Quotes:

One of the campers in the same cabin as Cam was a fellow baseball player.  Each morning, Cam said Ephram would wake up at 7am and come over to his bed.  Cam said each morning he responded with the same comment (we're certain, in his best 'parental' voice):

"Ephram, you need to go back to bed. It's not time to get up yet."

The Lake Awaits - Week of June 30th

"Looking out over the lake, I felt enveloped in the most peaceful, loving utopia." ~Laurie Kahn

"Stay close to the serenity of a lake to meet your own piece of mind." ~Munia Khan 

We were anticipating our long holiday weekend before it even began. 

The first order of business for Cam, though, were some power wheelchair adjustments. Fortunately for us, Mr. Dewayne makes house calls and he arrived promptly for the scheduled Monday morning visit. 

Ms. Amanda and Cam decided to make some homemade bread. The recipe we have from Ms. Patti is the best. We use our breadmaker to need the dough and help it rise a bit. Then the dough is split into two loaves and placed in bread pans. After finding a sunny spot for continued rising, the bread was then baked to a golden brown. 

Wednesday evening, we were invited to a celebration cookout. On June 25, the Power Soccer Team that Cam is a part of, won the national championship in Fort Wayne, Indiana!  

The Mary Free Bed Overdrive Power Soccer Team from Grand Rapids, Michigan, won the 2025 MK Battery Conference Cup Series Founders Conference National Championship in Fort Wayne, Indiana. This championship is a notable accomplishment for the team and adaptive sports in West Michigan. Overdrive dominated the tournament, securing three shutout victories in pool play and advancing with wins of 7-0 and 2-0 before winning the final game against the Metro Eagles 1-0 in double overtime. 

Kyle, who scored the winning goal in the championship match, was recognized as the tournament MVP. The Overdrive team is part of the Mary Free Bed Wheelchair and Adaptive Sports program and began in 2018. It has since grown to include 13 players.  

The cookout was held at Kyle's house and even though Cam didn't participate in the championship game, he was still a part of the celebration.

The trophy cup was actually a bit heavy, which made it even more impressive.  We told Cameron it was definitely the biggest gathering of power chair users we had ever been to.  And there was an elevator in their home that Cam and his mom rode up and down in.  The coaches gave short speeches about how awesome the players, parents, fellow coaches and the program itself have changed each of them.

Thursday afternoon, we were on our way to the cottage for the next two nights.  Oma planned to meet us there and stay with us too.  We were able to squeak in some beach time and feel the warm lake water.

After a fun dinner with cousins on the deck, we were able to enjoy a beautiful sunset.

Friday was our national Independence holiday, the 4th of July! Although Cam is not the biggest fan of fireworks due to the loud noise level, he was excited about our beach plans.  And, as an added bonus, he had a good sleep at the cottage.

Our great friends, Greg and Jill and their kids arrived after lunch for some beach time and the wind was whipping at the shoreline. We all had fun playing with the little cousins too.  We briefly saw some fireworks that night but agreed that it was far quieter at the cottage than back in Grand Rapids.  

Saturday was another busy beach day with Steffanie and her family as well as our neighbors, Dave and Ms. Cris from GR.  It's also such a bonus for Cam to be able to relax with Oma and his parents in Oma's cottage.  Saturday evening, we were on our way back to our home in Grand Rapids.  We were so thankful for our time with Cam's grandma, friends and cousins.

Cameron requested to sleep at his house Saturday night since he had to pack for his five-night camp adventure at Indian Trails!  

Sunday afternoon, he checked over the list twice with Jane to ensure he had everything.  We arrived at camp shortly after our check in time and patiently waited for our turn go over things and meet Cam's counselors.  

Once we were introduced, he was ready to roll.  Even though this was his first time spending 5 nights away from his parents, he took it all in stride and told us he'd see us on Friday.

As they made their way back to the van, Chris and Jane commented that did, indeed, have a really awesome son!

Camology Quotes:

During the week, Cam and Ms. Amanda found an online contest to vote for the state with the best looking police cruiser.  Cam proceeded to text it to as many people as he could.  Amanda sent us a screenshot showing that the Michigan State Police was currently in first place! She wanted Cam to know because she was convinced that it was due to all of his texting.  When we told him, he responded with:

"Whoa! I did not think that I had helped that much."