Beach Buddies & Nannies - Week of Aug. 23rd

What happens when two best friends both have boys? Well, naturally, the boys become best friends too! Cameron had an awesome visit with his best bud, Will and his wonderful godmother, Joanne. The boys played on the beach, in the water, and definitely enjoyed a few snacks together and did a great job sharing them.

Cam and Will also played on Cam's new kid laptop and some of the grown-ups were convinced the boys were trying to figure out how to access their parent's email accounts.

This week was bittersweet for Cam as he said goodbye to his summer nanny, Nikki. We know that she will stop by and see Cameron during the school year, but she had to return to her science students in junior high. Cam loved his playtime and long walks with Nikki and we all can't thank her enough for the excellent care she provided!

Cam is also lucky enough to spend time some evenings with Sarah. She's a PT student and besides playing with Cameron, also works on stretching and other physical therapy exercises. Fortunately, Sarah will continue to Cam-sit in the evenings.

One more week of summer break before the big boy heads back to school...hope you're all soaking up this beautiful Michigan summer as much as Cam is!

Cam's 3rd Birthday! - Week of Aug. 16th

Since Cameron's 3rd birthday celebration began a few days before his birthday, the fun just continued on through the entire week!

Chris, Jane, Grandma and Grandpa, along with Cam's extended family including Aunt Mary, Uncle Ray, Aunt Joyce, Uncle Joe, Aunt Gay and cousins, Mike, Eric, Kevin, Anne, Dirk, Lisa, Harper and Maya all shared some delicious Ryke's bakery cake and ice cream with Cam. Since this was Cam's first year in school, a school bus seemed appropriate.

Cameron had such fun opening his birthday gifts including a kid's cellphone, Mr. Potato Head, matchbox cars, backpack & lunchbox, bongo drums & books. Cam's parents found a couple additional things to peak his interest- a leapfrog laptop and a tonka remote controlled truck.
Evident of him being a year older is Cam's ability to concentrate and work intently on figuring out new toys.

Back in Grand Rapids, the neighborhood joined in for another cake and ice cream birthday fest complete with candles that Cam blew out. The Raisch family gave Cameron a fingerpainting set for the bathtub, pictured here with Anna.

With all of the celebrations and the many family and friends that Cam was lucky enough to see this week, we all realized a very important lesson...The best gift of all is being surrounded by so many loving people that Cameron has in his life!

Next week, see Cam and his best buddy Will hang out together...

Birthday Celebration begins - Week of Aug. 9th

Monday marked the 7-year wedding anniversary for Chris and Jane. Doesn't seem possible! Cameron enjoyed smelling the beautiful flowers that Chris brought home to commemorate the occasion.

On Thursday, cousin Coco made a special trip to Grand Rapids to pick up Jane & Cam and bring them back to the cottage. It was the Haroldson's last night at the lake. Chris surprised the family by showing up later that eve to say goodbye. Cam is pictured modeling a shirt that the Haroldson family found for him during a trip to Prague...for anyone who might be headed there, it's incredibly difficult to find kid sizes.

Cameron was most fortunate to begin his birthday celebration early by opening a gift from the Haroldson family- Auntie Jay Jay, Unc Jeff, James, Libby, Katie and Coco, as well as Unc Mike, Unc Kevin, and Unc Eric presented their cousin with a major cool Tonka front-loader truck. Cam can't wait to play with the big truck on the beach!

Another outing included Cam, Grandma, and Jane taking a trip to Country Dairy in New Era. It was such a hot day and Cameron was a trooper as ice cream and other goodies were purchased. As a special treat, Cam enjoyed a most delicious chocolate shake on the ride home.

Foolishly, Grandma and Jane thought they would be tasting the majority of the chocolately goodness, but Cam had decided that since he was almost 3 years old, he could most definitely handle such a big milkshake.

A family gathering of Cam's Aunts and Uncles took place on Saturday at the cottage. Stay tuned for next week's blog to see the 2 special Bday celebrations that Cameron was lucky enough to have!

Cousin's Wedding - Week of August 2nd

Cameron was invited to a special occasion this week, cousin Meg's wedding. Jane drove up to the family cottage on Wednesday, so Chris and Cam had a couple of boy's nights to themselves. On Friday, the family was together again and had a busy social calendar.

The Huey family enjoyed an afternoon and evening on Lake Michigan and it was so much fun for Cam to see his friends, Sarah & Matt and their parents, as well as new friends Tim & Stephanie.

The big wedding event was on Saturday. The beautiful event took place at Meg's family cottage and the reception was held at the Peterson family barn/corral.

With every Jellema family gathering, there are always so many cousins to hang out with. Cam is pictured with his cousins Libby, Katie, and Coco- three beautiful sisters who adore receiving kisses from Cam.

Cameron also liked sharing a toy with his sweet cousin, Harry. It's easy to see why Cam looks up to Harry- what great manners he has!

It was a long day for the big boy and Chris and Jane cannot thank Grandma and Grandpa enough for all their help and assistance with the busy days.

It seems that Cam may be contemplating his own future here against the fencepost...definitely looks like a bright forecast ahead!

Chris' Company Picnic & Long Lost Friends - Week of July 26th

Grand Rapids Township Park was the setting for Chris' company picnic. It is a family event and there are always crafts and entertainment. Since there is a great playground right in the park, Cameron had a good time playing on all of the different equipment.

Swinging and slides are at the top of his list! Just like most kids, Cam also loves a really good chocolate brownie...

Jane had a special treat over the weekend when her best friend from 8th grade, Leslie, traveled to Michigan with her husband, Dan and two girls- Erin and Alison. They rented a cottage on Lake Michigan within walking distance of Jane's family cottage. Leslie and Jane had not seen each other in 16 years, so it was pretty exciting to reconnect. Cam loved the girls and both families enjoyed hanging out at the lake.

As promised, it will be much less than 16 years before they all gather together again!

Neighborhood Ice Cream Contest! - Week of July 19th

The Windcrest neighborhood where Cameron lives should be voted one of the best in the country! For the third year in a row, some families gathered for a homemade ice cream taste-test competition.

The three entries included: Scrumptious S'Mores (made by Chris & Cam), Cookies & Creme-a-licious, and Georgia Peach. By a single vote, Scrumptious S'Mores won the grand prize!!! (a very cool ice cream scooper) Cam had lots of fun playing with the neighbor kids in the backyard after enjoying all of that delicious dessert...one of his favorite activities is kicking the soccer ball to all of his buddies.

He did return to school this week after a two-week hiatus and definitely enjoyed getting back to his regular routine.

The weekend included another trip to the family cottage at the lake, where the weather has been picture perfect and the water as warm as any summer one can remember.

Cameron is pictured here with Grandma showing off his new U of M jersey given to him by the Krauss family. Could Cam be a future Wolverine?

Family Visitors and Cookouts- Week of July 12th

Grandma Suzanne and Patricia arrived for a visit to spend some time with Cameron, Chris and Jane. They brought Cam some adorable puppets to play with. The ladies had fun and were a bit surprised by our warm weather, considering they live in Arizona!

Social gatherings are definitely a favorite of Cameron's, especially in the summer. The Raisch girls joined the family for a picnic. Emma and Cam had a sticker contest, trying to get the most stickers on their clothes. It may have been a tie!

The weekend included a cookout with the Wordens and friends. Although the big John Deere tractor in their barn looked intimidating, Chris placed Cam right in the seat and he really liked it! The tractor did remain in the barn since Cameron doesn't have his driver's license yet.

After a fun-filled weekend, Cam is getting ready to head back to school next week after a two-week hiatus.

Let's hope he's just as excited heading back to his classmates and teachers as he has been about all of his extra activities!

Chris' Bday & Grandparents Cam-Sit - Week of July 5th

Cameron's visiting relatives were in full force this week! Cousin Steffanie arrived from Kentucky and couldn't wait to see Cam. They had a great visit with each other. Grandma & Grandpa then stayed with their grandson for two nights while Chris & Jane traveled to the cottage to enjoy some time together as well as with friends and family. Many thanks to Grandma & Grandpa for the house-swap and Cam-sitting!

Chris' birthday on Saturday included some delicious cake, beach time and a surprise present from Jane- a new gas grill. Cam helped his Dad open a few gifts, including a funny book from 'Auntie' Jo.

Sunday was a very special occasion for the entire family. Jane's godson, Will, was baptized and everyone enjoyed a brunch together afterwards.

Cameron certainly had a great time with his Dad playing 'hoops' in the church community room. The basketball hoop was just tall enough that Chris could get Cam over the rim to make a basket!

We were all honored to share such a special day with Joanne & her son, Will.

Stay tuned next week for Grandma Suzanne's visit...