It was great to see all of most of our friends when we returned on Tuesday morning. A couple of them were traveling and one had an appointment, but we were excited nonetheless! We hope everyone enjoyed our Summer Break. 🌞🏊🛌📖👪💚🌞
A few of us got together on Saturday afternoon at the Williamsburg Moose Lodge for their annual July 4th picnic. It was nice to see Drew, Sam, Alexis, Carol, Nan, and Meemaw, plus Sam's parents, Carol's husband, and our Arc friend, Chris M. We enjoyed seeing the Moose ladies who are so supportive of the AoA and the burgers, hot dogs, and (surprise) brisket and pulled pork sandwiches were delicious!
There was a nice turnout and the weather couldn't have been better. It was mild and a little breezy. A great evening to enjoy friends!
Sam and his dad enjoyed hanging out and goofing off!
Here we are with Patti. Thank you, Ladies of the Williamsburg Moose, for your enduring support of The Arc and the Arc of Abilities!
On Tuesday morning we reconnected and shared about our week off and then headed to bowling. As always, our guys enjoyed this outing very much.
Chris was on his feet in a flash when Kevin rolled a strike! Great job, Kevin!
We mentioned a while back that Patrick is working hard to transition from lofting the ball from above his head to a more traditional style of roll. He's persevering and while his scores have not yet come to the level he was used to, his technique is being refined with each roll. He has a good aim, and with practice, will become more consistent. We're very proud of him!
Our guys went wacky when these scores showed up! Luckily, they only went up from there!
Thanks to Carol and Lisa for lunch today! We gave the guys a choice of pizza or hot dog...just 'cause we like to change things up every now and then!
We're always big smiles when Tracy pops in! She was on official Parks & Rec business at the bowling center and was just as surprised to see us as we were to see her!
After bowling we stopped by Freedom Park to check the garden. Look at all that green!
Our MG friends told us we could harvest veggies so Laura helped pick cucumbers.
Chris and Alexis got some cherry tomatoes! We didn't get a picture but Kacie also harvested a couple of peppers. These veggies will make a good side for our bag lunches on Thursday!
We wanted to get a group shot at the butterfly garden. There were lots of butterflies fluttering around...and a few bees. Laura got a little sting on her arm...but she's a trouper and after we administered first aid, she was good to go!
So we headed over to the Parkway to gather more rocks for painting. Here are the beachcombers, Chris, Kacie, and Cameron. Sorry for cutting off your arm, Cam! The sun was bright in the photographer's eyes...
By 2 p.m. our few days of cooler and less humid weather were quickly coming to an end. So this is the group of shade seekers! It's ok, guys. The trio above got enough rocks for all!
Bo never misses an opportunity to read and sitting under this tree with a little breeze coming off of the river was a perfect spot for him!
For those who like to know these kinds of things, July 14th (the day this blog goes live) is National Tape Measure Day! So to honor that nifty gadget, we spent time on Wednesday learning a few basics about it, including that it is a "retractable" tape. "Retractable" was our word of the day! Then we had fun taking a measurement scavenger hunt. Kevin, Kacie, and Devin were searching for something 24 inches wide or long.
Patrick, Alexis, and Drew were looking for something about 3 inches in length.
Laura was excited when she, Chris, and Bo found a football in the gym and discovered it was about 10 1/2 inches long!
Look at the shiny gym floor! We don't know what was more fun, playing "hockey soccer" (depending on if you used a stick or your foot) or listening to our shoes squeak on the floor!
Devin may be on to something. Maybe a new way to score a goal?!
We had a blast celebrating the date of "7-11" and getting free Slurpees! It was super busy at the nearby 7-11 so we filled our cups and headed back to AFCC to take this group shot! Cheers!
It felt good to get back to our yoga practice with Patti! It had been 3 weeks since we had a good stretch.
Ahh, the gentle butterfly pose!
This was a new pose for us, called "Rock the Baby." Kevin, Alexis, and Becky are working toward it, but if you look at Drew, he's already there. You hold your leg (the baby) in your arms and rock side to side.
Earlier on Wednesday we got a new present! Our friends the Daytons (Drew's family), along with another friend we haven't met yet named Melinda, donated a refrigerator to our ever-evolving kitchen! This is great because the fridge we share with AFCC gets kind of crowded sometimes, as evidenced here (our stuff is in the box on the middle shelf):
There is space for two refrigerators in the storage room area, so we are thrilled to have one to ourselves! Thank you Andy, Donna, and Melinda! This will serve us well!! Thanks also to Kristin and Sam, Andy's friends from work who helped deliver the fridge to us!
Yoga positions weren't the only butterfly sightings on Wednesday. We can't seem to get the camera ready quickly enough to catch our hummingbirds these days, but this pretty butterfly lingered on our zinnias long enough for us to get this shot!
We took advantage of Paper Bag Day on Thursday by teaming up to prepare our own bag lunches. Kevin and Xavier made sure everyone got a healthy serving of grapes!
Liz and Kacie worked on sandwich orders. When we sat down to eat later, only one bag was missing a sandwich! 😉
Kate and Chloe carefully filled plastic bags with chips and Drew and Devin zipped them closed and made sure we had enough. Our guys like sour cream and onion flavor!
Laura put a bag of grapes in each bag.
We were in the gym again on Thursday, this time for a game of kickball!
Great game, everyone!
Look who's still around! It had been almost a month since we had a Mr. Stutt sighting. Here he is with our twins from Thursday, Devin and Laura!
Thursday was also Arc newsletter assembly day! These guys prepared the August letters.
Movie Madness and Bowling are among the activities being offered in August. Check the calendar and send your sign up sheet to the Arc office by July 23rd!
While some worked on the newsletters, others went back to the gym to shoot hoops. It's so nice to have that big gym at our disposal!
There was a basketball stuck on the rim of this backboard. Kate tried to knock it off, but couldn't get it. Good try, Kate!
It took a few tries, but Chris finally got it down. Being taller seems to be an advantage!
Friday the 13th was a really good day at the AoA! We were busy, as usual, and the day flew by. But when Lisa went to insert the day's pictures into the blog, they vanished! This happened a few weeks ago and it's a mystery to her as to why. 😳 The photos are on an SD card, and each day she transfers them to a dated folder on the card, so they will remain organized. On Friday the 13th, the transfer went awry and the pictures did not move to the folder for this week! So, we have no pictures from the camera to show from today, which is frustrating.
We hung the bird feeders we made from recycled materials this morning, worked on Power Slide doors for Eaton, prepared a lunch of beans and franks, fresh fruit and veggies, and Jell-O parfait for dessert. Thanks to Kacie's family for the fresh tomatoes, Drew's for the juicy watermelon, and Kate's for the apple juice! We also spent time learning about the origins of Friday the 13th and had fun talking about superstitions. After lunch, old friends, Ben and his wife, Melissa, stopped by. Ben and Melissa worked with many of our friends in Williamsburg Young Life/Capernaum when he started a chapter here about 11 or 12 years ago. He has since moved to Michigan, but comes back to visit family often and likes to touch base with his former Capernaum friends. When he and Melissa stopped by today, not only did they see old friends Alexis, Patrick, Xavier, and Drew, but they also made many new friends! They sent a "hi" to Bo, Elizabeth, and Sam, who were in Ben's Capernaum group, too, but were absent from the AoA today. We have a picture of their visit that was taken with a phone...so, here's one of our two pictures from today. It was great to see Ben and Melissa!
Our other picture from today is from a text message we received from Becky, showing her current situation. She broke her foot on Wednesday evening and will be out of the volunteer loop for a week or so. We wish her a speedy recovery!
Looks like we will be investing in a new SD card for next week. Perhaps it is corrupted...or so Google suggests!
Our week back after Summer Break was great, even if we can't show you how it ended! Meanwhile, here's what's up for next week:
Tuesday: Double outing day!! First, we're going to Regal Cinemas Summer Movie Express at New Town to see the movie, Ferdinand. After the movie, we'll stop by Veterans Park for a picnic lunch, and then head over to The Art Museums of Colonial Williamsburg to visit with our friend, Christina. Please wear Arc shirts and bring a bag lunch with drink. (Please do not send money as we discourage movie snacks. They aren't good for us and they're expensive, too! Thanks!)
Wednesday: We're going to be busy catching up on thank you notes and also working on some posters Coach Teri commissioned us to make for a couple of groups she works with. (Our reputation for card-making has spread!) It's also Emoji Day, so we will have fun with that. AND, dress to stretch as it's Yoga with Patti, too! We'll prepare grilled cheese sandwiches and side salads for lunch.
Thursday: We have missed Eaton and they have missed us! We'll head over and work onsite today. Please wear Arc shirts and bring a bag lunch with drink.
Friday: It's Moon Day and we will have fun with activities centered around the moon/space theme. We'll have Rocket Wraps (turkey/cheese), Sun Chips, and Planet Kabobs (melon) for lunch, with mini-Moon Pies for dessert!
Keep in mind...
Just 3 short weeks until the golf tournament! Patti said to remind you that you don't have to be a great golfer, since it's a Captain's Choice...and that means:
Basics of the Captain's Choice
Here's how the basic scramble format works (using 4-person teams):
- Golfers A, B, C, and D all hit drives. They compare the results. Who hit the best drive? Let's say it was B.
- So Golfers A, C, and D pick up their golf balls and move them to where B's ball is. All four now hit their second shots from the location of B's drive.
- Compare the results of those second shots. Which was best? The others on the team move their balls to that spot, and all play their third strokes.
- Repeat until the ball is in the hole.
- So, don't let being a novice hold you back!
If golf isn't really your thing...how about a good walk (or run?) with us at the 9th Annual Williamsburg Landing 5K for The Arc?! It's on Saturday, October 6th and registration is live at this link:
Sign up today and join team "AoA All The Way!" for a great time with your friends from The Arc!
- And last but not least, check out The Arc's new banner...featuring our very own Drew! Isn't it fabulous?!
Enjoy the weekend,
Lisa, Carol, and Nan
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