A New Friend and a New Job!

It was, as usual, a busy week at the Arc of Abilities.  We were excited to add a new member to the family, return to bowling, celebrate two more birthdays, and take on a new job for Eaton Corporation!  Take a peek at our fabulous week!

We welcomed our latest associate, Sean, and his family, who have recently relocated to the area from New Jersey.  Sean brings a lively personality, with a great sense of humor, to our group.  He was a little hesitant at bowling, since it had been a long time since he last bowled, but with a little help from Kacie's dad, Frank, who joined us this week, and lots of encouragement (of course) from his friends, he bowled two great games (107 and 109)!

Thanks, Frank...we enjoyed your company and your help this week!

It had been 3 weeks since we last bowled and everyone was happy to be back!

Yes, Drew picked up a spare on this turn!

So Kacie and Kate decided they needed to do the same!  Meanwhile, in the background, Devin was cheering for the spare he just got!  No one seemed to have lost their touch during our bowling hiatus.

Tuesday was a gorgeous day so we took a walk around one of the loops at the Rec Center.  We hope the weather will stay springlike and not get too hot or sticky too soon...  

Wednesday was a day of interesting celebrations...Bo's Birthday and Garlic Day!  We made cards for Bo and enjoyed a scrumptious cake after lunch.  (We also enjoyed that cake the next day!  Yum...leftovers!)  To mark Garlic Day, we learned about the "stinking rose" and how to utilize fresh garlic in cooking as we added some to our pasta sauce.  But for our garlic bread, we stuck with the powder form!  

Wednesday morning began with Tai Chi.  We have learned four steps of an eight step routine!

This week our friends at Eaton brought us a new job to try, and we were successful at it!  This one involves screwing a plastic plate into place on a large piece and then adhering stickers to the underside of the large piece.  We found that setting up an assembly line worked very well and at various stages of this task, everyone was working on something!

Meanwhile, we are thankful to have Drew's grandmother, Meemaw (aka Nancy), on hand a couple of days a week to work on other Eaton jobs...like sticking gaskets on parts.  You may recall that Eaton makes things called pedestals that are used at marinas and campgrounds and each one has several parts that need gaskets attached.  Pedestals are where boats and RVs hook up for power.  Spring and Summer are Eaton's busy seasons.  We have been told they are making over 4,000 units a week and our help is essential to keep them on track!  Wow!

Did you know that April 20th is Lima Bean Respect Day?  It's touted as a day for those who may not have liked limas as a child to give them a second chance as adults...so we did!  We discovered that they are excellent sources of both fiber and iron.  Our simple recipe did not add fat as a seasoning (with apologies to the South)...instead we only added some chicken bouillon and they tasted great.  Most of us enjoyed them...but we know they aren't for everyone!

On Thursday, Sam returned from his trip to Boston where he cheered for his dad, Tim, in the Boston Marathon!  Sam and his family enjoyed several days in Boston and saw fun sights.  Sam shared some of his souvenirs with us and gave everyone a button from Bean Town!  Thanks, Sam!!  And congrats to Tim, who successfully completed his 4th Boston Marathon!

We also worked in the Grove Community Garden on Thursday.  It was quite warm but we got a lot done, including weeding, breaking up bread for the birds, and spreading mushroom manure!

On Friday we finally got around to planting the snap pea plants we got last week when we worked at the Botanical Garden in Freedom Park.  According to our research, these should be ready for harvest by late May or early June.  We decided to try planting these in containers instead of in the garden so we can watch the growing process more closely from our room.

We also planted some sunflower seeds.

We topped off Friday by celebrating Kate's birthday.  Her mom treated us to subs and cupcakes for lunch, and they hit the spot!  Kate has the last of five birthdays that we celebrated in April.  What a fun month it was!

The upcoming week looks just as busy, so please keep these details in mind...

Tuesday:  Please wear Arc shirts and bring a bag lunch.  We will travel to Freedom Park for work with the Master Gardeners, a picnic, and a hike.  We will still go, even if it's raining.  In that case, our class will take place in the Interpretive Center and our picnic and hike will take place back at AFCC...indoors!

Wednesday:  Dress for Tai Chi!  We will celebrate Pigs in a Blanket Day (April 24)  and Pretzel Day (today) by making our own lunch of pigs in a blanket and pretzel salad.

Thursday:  We volunteer in the school and so lunch on our own...no time to cook!

Friday:  Field Trip to Ripley's Believe It or Not Museum!  We are being treated to this adventure (including mini-golf) by the manager of the museum who employs Carol's son!  We are excited for this outing!  Please bring a bag lunch as we will picnic at Kiwanis Park before returning to the museum for mini-golf in the afternoon.

Sunday:  Since the weather for April 23 was forecast to be rainy, the outdoor Tai Chi class with Michael has been rescheduled for Sunday, April 30.  We hope to see you there!

Have a great week,

Lisa, Carol, and Nan