Winter Strikes Again

Another abbreviated week at the AoA!  When will Spring get here?  Let's hope the next several weeks pass quickly, and warmly...

Nevertheless, we did a few things on our two day week.  Here's a rundown:

At bowling we caught Laura doing a dance of sorts before her roll.  We dubbed it the "Laura Strike Dance" because, well, she got a strike afterward!

Chris offers congratulations!

We welcomed some special visitors on Tuesday.  Patrick's sister, Katie, hung out with us.  She was visiting from Portland, Oregon!

Carol's sons David and Matthew were enjoying some time off from their jobs this week so they hung out with us, too.  Here, David joined Cameron, Chris, and Sam for some bowling competition!

When they weren't bowling, Matthew gave Katie some video game tips!

These guys posed with David and Matthew!

Here's another shot with Katie.  This is also our last picture with Josie.  We're sad for us, but happy for her, to report that she is moving to a new home in Newport News and will be attending a day support program through Versability.  She seemed excited about her new opportunity and we wish her all the best!

Since it wasn't too cold or windy, we went to the Rec Center on Longhill for a brisk walk after bowling.  Here are the leaders of the pack!  That would be Chris, Cameron, and Xavier.

Here are the rest of us!  We all made it back to the van...

Coming in on a two hour delay Friday was interesting.  We greeted each other and then danced for a bit.  After that we had time to create a thank you note for our friends at Williamsburg Moose Lodge, and then it was lunch time!

Here, Kate is proof-reading our note.  The associates brainstorm ideas we want to convey in our message and then help to draft sentences, with a little help from the staff.  Their heartfelt gratitude has always been there, but as we do more and more of these types of cards, we notice their vocabulary and sentence structure getting stronger!!

This is our finished product, which Patti will post on the bulletin board at the Moose Lodge, alongside of our other cards. She says they love seeing our cards up on the wall!

We spent Friday afternoon on Eaton work.  On Tuesday, James had brought us a LOT of work to do at AFCC until we can get back over to the Eaton site.  He delivered 180 power slide doors and a lot of photo cell plates, which Drew, Laura, and Kacie worked on.  Drew kept the pace by feeding the first part to Laura, who steadily fed them to Kacie so she could attach the big wire part. Drew was also responsible for making the rounds to other tables to gather up trash for his fellow workers.  He was all over the place!  

Cameron also kept the pace going by unpacking doors so Kate could attach the windows.  He was all over, too, as he had to get the doors to the next station in a timely manner!

Alexis and Liz manned the label table!

Patrick, Chris, Kevin and Sam loaded up the doors with nuts and bolts.  Each door has four sets that must be set by hand.

Remember that power drill gizmo we got last week?  Carol trained Sam and Chris in using it to tighten the screws.  

Not to be overlooked, our friend Xavier worked on a sorting job and we missed getting his picture.  Here's one from December...he worked hard on Friday and we want him to be represented, too!

We missed Bo, who had a dental appointment, and Devin and Chloe, who weren't feeling well on Friday.  We appreciate families for their vigilance in checking for fevers or other symptoms that warrant a day (or two or three) of rest at home.  Sam came back this week after a bout with the flu and several others actually needed the snow days to help with wicked colds.  We are washing hands a lot and using Clorox wipes and Lysol!  Like we said at the beginning of this post, when will Spring arrive?! 😷

Once again, we will look forward to a full week next week.  The weather forecast looks promising!  Here's some of what we have planned:

Tuesday:  Fun, fun, fun today!  It's Cameron's birthday and we will celebrate with bowling and pizza for lunch courtesy of his family!  Back at the center, we'll continue his celebration with a sweet treat, cards, balloons, and of course, singing! Wear your Arc shirts!

Wednesday:  Busy, busy, busy today!  We will make up MLK, Jr. Day with a history lesson, and also celebrate Sticker Day (which we missed) by making farewell cards for Josie that we will send her in the mail.  We'll use stickers of her favorite things (like sparkles and butterflies) to make the cards that we would have created on her last day with us if it weren't for ❄❄❄.  It's also YOGA with PATTI so dress appropriately!!  Lunch on your own!

Thursday:  Chili Cook Off make up day!  First you'll cook it, then you'll eat it!! Which team will prevail...or will it be a tie? 😉😋

  We will also make up Winnie the Pooh Day with some fun Disney activities.  Wear your Pooh (or any Disney) clothes if you like!  If you have POLKA DOTS, wear them...as we will also celebrate Minnie Mouse getting a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in honor of her 90th birthday!  

Friday:  We will spend a large part of the day on Eaton work and also celebrate Peanut Butter Day...Opposite Day...and Compliment Day...all of which occur this week!  Lunch on your own!

HEADS UP:  The buzz has started about Valentine's Day!  💕  We will party and dance, and exchange Valentines.  This was a big hit last year...it's fun and we say you're never too old to share the love!  We'll send a list of everyone's names next week. 💕 

Hope everyone has a great weekend with sunshine and warmer temperatures!  😎

Lisa, Carol, and Nan