Another weekend gone, bringing us one step closer to what is quite possibly my favorite celebration of the summer: July 4th!

My family’s tradition is to head up to my Aunt and Uncle’s lake house along with a couple dozen cousins, aunts, uncles and of course the matriarch of our gang, Grandma Rea!

Now, I know my beloved Grandma will probably give me an earful for mentioning her in a column (sorry, Grandma!) but I truly cherish every moment I get to spend with the toughest and most admirable woman I know.

If you want to know how to live a satisfying and full life, talk to my Grandma and she’ll explain it from the perspective of someone who’s only about halfway finished (none of us in the family doubt she’ll be around another century to pass her love and wisdom on to great-great-great grandchildren).

Anyway - now that I’ve finished embarrassing my family - July 4th at Lake Brantingham is always an amazing experience. There’s about a million different things to do to satisfy any desire for the perfect summer weekend getaway.

Motorboating, tubing, swimming, hiking, card games, yard games, and all manner of delicious food to fill the most cavernous of bellies.

Personally, I have three things that I have to check off my to-do list each Independence Day visit.

The first is canoeing/kayaking. I have always loved getting into one of the little one-man kayaks and taking a few laps around the lake. My favorite time to do this will probably come as a shock to many of my more avid followers (and perhaps even those not familiar with my monthly complaints).

There is nothing more peaceful and mesmerizing then hopping into a kayak before dawn and paddling out into the center of the lake to watch the sun rise above the horizon. The trick is to do it before any of the hundreds of gas-powered boats have invaded the still of the water.

The fog that has gently crept across the crystaline surface during the night glows with one hundred hues of orange, red, and yellow giving the impression of floating in a pool of liquid gold.