A Birthday & Some Basting - Week of Mar. 18th

Cameron was quite excited about Katherine's birthday this year!  He helped Jane create a photo book that contained lots of pictures of he and "Ah-Dah" (Cam's nickname for Katherine).  He had a balloon bouquet all ready for her when she arrived at his house on Thursday and he helped her open a funny card that sang!

Due to work travel for Chris and Jane, Cam's grandparents came to spend the night with one lucky boy...

A fun activity included some egg coloring with Grandma.  Cameron had a good time "basting" the eggs with color, dipping them with a whisk.
Many Thanks to Oma & Opa for providing Cam with some special grandparents time!

The pretty colors on the eggs held the promise of spring.  Even though some snowflakes made their way into Michigan this week, we're hoping that groundhog redeems himself with his early spring prediction!

A Little Green - Week of Mar. 11th

It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade. ~Charles Dickens


Cameron continues to fight a cold virus that is hanging on, but seeing the sunshine and being able to soak it up a bit certainly makes a person feel better.

The sunroom in our home is such a great place to hang out on a bright day.  One of Cam's favorite Christmas presents was this name puzzle from Grandma and Grandpa!  The puzzle has multiple functions with the different colored letters and pieces to remove and place in the correct position.
Another "color-coordinated" partner is the abacus given to Cam by the Huey family.  Although he isn't using it to solve math problems just yet, it's a great tool to work on fine motor skills.
Some toys that Cam plays with seem timeless.  The Fisher Price school bus is still a go-to preference, especially when Emma and her sisters come over for playtime.  The endless games of pretend and taking people on and off the bus at different stops always provides quality entertainment.

In honor of St. Patrick's Day, the boys give a big shout-out to all of our Irish friends.  And, when your nose is runny, it helps to lay on your back for a bit!

Time for a Surprise - Week of Mar. 4th

With winter still hanging on, there are some days when a new activity has to be created to keep kids occupied.  Chris had the genius idea of putting together a "time capsule" to bury in the snow bank outside.
Cameron, Emma and Sarah each added an item to the container.
Once it was ready, they collectively decided as a group where to bury it.  A note was placed inside that the contents were only to be opened by the Time Capsule Team.
Each team member took a turn digging and filling the hole with snow.  Cam is in charge of checking the snow each day to see if it's melted enough to reveal the capsule.

On Saturday, Chris, Jane and Cam took part in surprising Miss Ann for her birthday!  Katherine came up with the brilliant idea for a surprise party and Cam couldn't wait to scream when she came in the door.  A "cover story" was created to have Miss Ann "Cam-Sit" for the evening.  Imagine her joy when she came sneaking into the living room to find Cam and found a huge group of people waiting to celebrate her special day!
The dinner menu included a favorite of Cam's - homemade french fries and hot dogs wrapped in crescent rolls...yum!  And for dessert- a delicious cake along with a "spoonlickers" sundae bar where you choose all of your own toppings.  As a family, we were honored to be a part of it all and hope to celebrate many more birthdays with Miss Ann!


Here's also hoping spring is just around the corner...a group of ducks in our backyard making their way through the snow seemed to think so...

Curious about Inside and Out - Week of Feb. 25th

The snow is sticking around and although there are days we long for spring, the white stuff provides lots of outdoor fun at Cameron's school. 
Cam  arrives in his winter gear- snowpants, coat, hat and mittens and is ready to head out to the playground right when he gets off his bus. 

Pictured with him are friends, Carter and Morgan enjoying the outside playtime.

Some days, it's also advantageous to stay inside.  Cam's buddy, Emma, had a "snowball fight" with him with the fluffy, soft-stuffed "indoor snowballs."  After playing with the inside snow, it was time to get warm with the George blanket.  Cam thinks it is totally hilarious when Emma does her super silly faces!

The George blanket had quite a bit of use when Emma's family headed over Friday evening to visit and play some games on the iPad.

Then, there are those days, when a cozy blanket and a sleepy parent makes a great combination...

Since Cameron is such a big Curious George fan, we thought it appropriate to share the words to the favorite theme song: 

You never do know what's around the bend
A big adventure or a brand new friend
When you're curious, like Curious George
When everyday (everyday!) is so glorious (glorious!) 
Then everything (everything!) is so wonderous (wonderous!) 
There's more to explore
When you open your door
And meet friends like this
You just can't miss
Get curious (curious!) and that's marvelous (marvelous!) 
And that's your reward
You'll never be bored
If you ask yourself, what is this?
Like curious, like curious, like Curious George!

Welcome to Camville - Week of Feb. 18th

We knew when Katherine became Cam's nanny, she was pretty special.  We are reminded so often that her talents are endless, as is her warm and caring nature.

As a special surprise for Valentine's, Katherine presented Cameron with a cozy warm blanket she made herself, featuring Cam's favorite show these days- Curious George!  It is most unfortunate that Jane didn't capture the moment of the reveal on video- Cam literally squealed and screamed with delight...he was that excited!!  The blanket had to follow Cameron from the couch to the living room rug where Stella found it quite cozy when everyone was outside. 

School was cancelled two days this week- Monday for President's Day and Tuesday for winter weather.  
Katherine found an ingenious way
to make the days inside fun for Cameron- she created "CamVille!"  CamVille featured a small village complete with a train around the town, a bus stop,  a Starbucks coffee shop and live music in the streets.  A drum solo by the town's namesake rocked the place out!

It was time to say goodbye to our sweet "Auntie" Ronda as she prepared to return to Brazil.  Cam was helping her pack.  He made sure she had a picture in her suitcase of him to remind her of his winning smile.  We will miss her while she's away, but know she is working with others who will benefit greatly from her influence.  A quote to describe both Ronda and Katherine is framed in our home:  "Some people come into our lives, leave footprints on our hearts, and we are never the same."

All My Valentine's - Week of Feb. 11th

"All you need is love.  But a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt." 
~ Charles M. Schulz

Ms. Kathy

There are so many people that touch our lives on a daily basis, by their actions, kindness, thoughts and words.  We wanted Cam to "give back" to those individuals who provide so much to promote his learning in education and life.

Jane reached out to Cam's teacher, Ms. Kathy, to ask if she could snap some pictures and send them to Jane so that Cam could make special V-Day cards for each person. Ms. Kathy and our boy took a wagon ride around the school to find all of the people to smile for the camera.

Ms. Kasey- teacher

We have decided Ms. Kathy is an overachiever because she sent Jane 10 pictures of teachers and therapists from his school that interact with Cam on a weekly basis.  Jane designed individual cards on the computer with their pic on the front.  Cam decorated each card himself and signed them and his mom printed her original poem on the inside:

Ms. Kate- teacher

How can we Thank You
What can we say
To express our thoughts On Valentine’s Day
You make such a BIG difference for one special boy
It’s easy to see, It’s YOU he enjoys
Know every little thing you do,
Makes such a huge impact on those around you!

Ms. Heidi

Ms. Julie

Ms. Kelly - Speech

Ms. Liz - PT

Mr. Mike - PT Grad Student

Ms. Shannon - OT 
(has known Cam since he was a baby!)

Ms. Pam

By the smiling boy in every one of the pictures posted, it's easy to see how much Cam enjoys his school and all of the people in it!!

Snow Days - Week of Feb. 4th

Even though the famous groundhog has promised us an early spring, winter is doing its best to hang around as long as possible..

After a couple of treacherous days of driving, the sun reminded us that it does indeed shine on even the coldest days!

Cameron had to "go to work" early Saturday afternoon at Grand Valley where he "taught" a roomful of more than 30 people.  It may have been a bit overwhelming for him, so a photo opp wasn't on the agenda.  As always, we are grateful for the opportunity to work with the university as well as M.O.V.E. International.

Cam was able to spend some extra time with his Grandma this week and thought that sitting on the snow bank was pretty cool.
Chris found a new snow tube for backyard fun in the white stuff.  Cameron was determined to help his dad blow up the tube.  After some "manual" attempts, the boys decided that an automatic pump may be better equipped for the task.



Although they haven't actually gone (or taken us) on a sleigh ride, the deer are ever present in the backyard.  Even though they are frequent visitors, we never tire of their natural beauty or visitation rights.

Super Time - Week of Jan. 28th

During the winter months in Michigan, there are days when we anxiously await spring, especially when we see the wildlife forage for food.  Yet, there are also moments we revel in the playtime we have for a bit in the fluffy white snow...

Cameron has finally gotten some serious use with his sled in our backyard.  The tiered hills make for a pretty long run with Cam leading the pack!

We celebrated Opa's birthday on Friday and Cam is not saying how old his Grandpa is because Opa asked him not to!

In the afternoon, we had a small "See You Later, Not Goodbye" party for Cam's speech therapist, Miss Felicia.   Ms. Felicia has been a big part of Cameron's accomplishments this year in school.  She has also been at Cam's house every Friday for a home session.  Ms. Felicia provides a great combination of challenging kids while making things fun at the same time.  We know she'll continue to be a part of our lives and we're so thankful for everything she's done.  She couldn't resist a famous Cam super snuggle after he opened a sweet present from her.

On Sunday, it was time to celebrate the SuperBowl!  Cam's buddies kept him company before and during the first portion of the football game.

The girls and Cameron even picked squares to guess the score at the end of each quarter.  No money was exchanged, but a promise of ice cream treats will be delivered next week for the lucky winners.

Whether your favorite team won or lost, we hope your game time was spent with good friends and good food, too!