Birthdays...and Snow!

We were excited when the week started on Tuesday with a birthday celebration for TWO of our friends:  Liz and Patrick!  Their actual birthdays are on November 11.  So they got to extend their celebrations to include us today!  Tuesday was also a bowling day, so we knew it was going to be a party vibe when we got to the AMF Lanes!  

But before we could break out the cake, we had to bowl our first game.  We had a special guest on Tuesday, Renee Brubaker.  She is a friend of Alexis and Lisa's...AND she's a member of the Virginia Bowling Hall of Fame! 🎳🏆🎳🏆  She bowled with us, and gave us lots of tips and encouragement!  Here, she is telling Devin she wants to see him bowl before offering any suggestions.  He said OK, and then went on to bowl a strike!  Renee told him to "Keep up what you're doing!" 😃

Kacie asked Renee for some help with her release.  Renee worked with Kacie on her follow through, and Kacie went on to bowl well and get a strike and a spare!

Abraham was inspired by Renee's bowling!  Here, he is running to get a double high-five from Patrick after his first of three strikes on the day!

Can't hide the "strike joy" as Annmarie got one too!

Devin gave Sam a fist bump after Sam picked up a spare!  Renee was our good luck charm! 🍀

When the piping hot pizza arrived, we knew it was really time to party!  We want to thank Birthday Boy Patrick's mom, Sue, for treating us to pizza today.  Patrick and all of his friends really like our pizza lunches!

Birthday Girl Liz's mom provided the beautiful cupcake cake (shown up close in the first picture at the top of this post)!  We want to thank her, too, for this special treat!  Here, we were singing to Patrick and Liz before they blew out the candles.  We hope their wishes come true!

Happy Birthday, Liz and Patrick!  We're so happy we got to celebrate YOU!

We want to thank Renee, too, for helping us improve our games today!  By the way, Renee's birthday is the SAME day as Patrick's and Liz's!  So, Happy Birthday and THANK YOU, Renee!  We appreciate your support!

By the time bowling was over, Mother Nature was delivering snow and sleet so we couldn't take a walk or play at a park!  We returned to AFCC for Choice Time!

It's not easy to see in this picture, but the snow was coming down nicely around 2:30, and looked pretty with the colorful trees as a backdrop.  We knew it would be short-lived, but it was pretty as it fell!

On Wednesday morning, we trained Kate on shelving library books.  She did well for a first-timer, so she'll be back!

Later on Wednesday morning we had a "thinking" lesson.  We worked in small groups to figure out which item in a group consisting of a black marker, a black pen, and a pencil was "different" from the others.  After putting our heads together in our groups, and having a discussion with everyone, we came to the conclusion that each item was different in its own way...just like each of us is!

The December calendar from The Arc of GW was ready to be mailed out to our members, so we prepared it and got it in the mail!

🎄Being December, the Holiday Dinner Dance is coming up!  It's on Saturday, December 14th, and is an event not to be missed.  Be sure to sign up for that and other fun and engaging events, and return your sign up sheet to Bette Faye before the deadline!🎅

While one team was working on the mailing, another team was preparing our chicken soup and cheese toast for lunch.  Sam and Devin had the task of shredding cooked chicken.

Laura helped get the broth going, and then added a bag of mixed veggies.

Laura then helped Patrick place cheese slices on the bread so we could toast it.

Considering it was barely 40 degrees outside, it was the perfect day for chicken soup!

We bet Yoga Patti would have liked a bowl of our chicken soup!  She had to miss our class again this week because she has a cold and lost her voice.  We decided to do "Frozen" yoga with Jaime, since we had frost and snow yesterday! 

 "Frozen" is one of our favorite routines that Jaime offers.  Everyone knows the story, but they still listen closely!

Here's Kevin posing as Marshmallow, the enchanted snow-monster who serves as the Snow Queen's palace guard.  Nice pose, Kevin!

We had 5 friends who were not with us on Wednesday!  Thanks to the others, like Abraham, who step up and help cover the chores for those who are absent!

As we usually do, we had a great and productive day at Eaton on Thursday.  James set us up with several tasks that kept us busy.

Removing the pink-colored film from these aluminum plates is a job that suits Xavier, Kevin, Annmarie, and Laura well.  They work quietly, listening and/or singing softly to the Disney music playing in the background.

Not only did Patrick and Abraham sort four tubs of parts, they also carefully stacked them into new tubs, so as to fit more than if they are randomly tossed into the tubs.  This made them understandably proud!

With Liz under the weather and absent today, Bo handled the gasketing station on his own.  He also enjoys working quietly and singing along to Disney tunes...though a little more loudly than the others.  He has the voice for it, too! 🎵🎤

They forgot to count how many light bulbs they unpacked, but Alexis and Kacie went through some boxes!  Many hands make "light" work. 😁💡😁

See that bin full of parts?  Devin and Sam had to break two small pieces off of each part, and then neatly stack them on the table until the bin was empty.

Then, they had to pack them back into the bin.  The parts looked much better after repacking, too!  Before they did this, they counted and discovered there were 327 of them.  Good coordination of the hand-off here!

Later in the work day, some of the associates moved on to assembly of PowerSlide Doors.  Carol asked for teamwork, and she got it!

Our guys said they worked hard and earned a Wendy's stop for Frosties.  We are thankful to Meemaw (she couldn't be with us at Eaton today), who gave us "Boo" coupons for free Frosties for Halloween.  Our guys weren't afraid to enjoy them on a chilly day!

Back at AFCC, we went looking for Mr. Stutt so we could give him the birthday cards we made.  Students had been dismissed at noon, but he wasn't in his office getting work done, so we had to wait for the secretary to track him down.

When he finally walked in our guys began singing the birthday song to him (we hadn't discussed doing this!), and he was really touched!

He took the time to read every one of their cards, too!  He's pretty cool...for a principal!

The 18th state to join the Union was Louisiana, and we learned about the Pelican State (also known as the Bayou State) on Friday.  It is a diverse state, combining many cultures, and producing a lot of good food and great music.

Our guys love music of all kinds, but when we played various samples of music that originated in Louisiana, such as jazz, cajun, and zydeco, everyone had their toes tapping.  Louis Armstrong's "When the Saints Go Marching In" brought a few of them to their feet!

After learning that jambalaya is a popular dish from Louisiana, combining influences from France, Spain, and West Africa, we set about to make some!  Annmarie and Laura cut up green peppers.

Liz helped Nan peel shrimp and Kacie whipped up a batch of cornbread!

Sam and Devin cut the sausage into bite-sized pieces while Becky and Alexis did the same with the chicken.

We didn't have any luck getting Patrick to try the jambalaya, but he did a good job of sauteing peppers and onions, and adding garlic and cajun seasonings. He's becoming quite the chef!

Doesn't our jambalaya with cornbread and corn on the cob look tasty?!  Our guys raved about this one!  

We added a new activity to our weekly study of the states, and had to take a "quiz" after learning all about Louisiana.  We had resources like maps and fact sheets, plus our own brains (of course), to help find the answers!

No one complained about the extra work!  They enjoy getting smarter!

Alexis's cousins Kelly and Haley visited today, and we even put this little learner to work!  You have to start 'em while they're little!  She didn't complain, either!

Liz got excited when we played Louisiana native Harry Connick, Jr.  She said she "likes" him, but her mom "loves" him! 😜  Oh, those blue eyes...

Mickey Mouse will turn 91 years old on Monday, so that's a good reason to have a little "party," right?  Here's our Friday group posing with our visitors and Mickey's cupcakes!  We were missing a few friends today 😞.

We hope all your wishes come true, Mickey!

We figured Mickey would be happy if we ended our week with a game of Disney Song Trivia.  The boys won today, 10-8, against the girls.  Devin told them they played a "good game."  That kind of sportsmanship is a really nice way to end the week!

Looks like we have wrapped up the first half of November.  Here's what we'll be up to as we head into the second half of the month next week:

Tuesday:  We are hoping for good weather as we plan to visit Freedom Park to check on the garden and Waller Mill Park to eat lunch, enjoy the outdoors, and take a hike to collect leaves for a future project.  If it rains, we will enjoy a day at "home" at AFCC.  😊  Please wear Arc shirts and bring a bag lunch, and think positively!

Wednesday:  We'll welcome our Rotary friend, Jeff, as we work in the computer lab today.  It's National Absurdity Day!  Hmm...what will we do to celebrate that?! Plus, we'll have Yoga w/ Patti, if she's well!  Dress to stretch and lunch on your own.

Thursday:  Today is the Great American Smokeout Day, so we will have health lessons today related to taking care of our heart and lungs.  It's also Leaf Art Day, which sounds like a great time for a crafty project!  Lunch on your own.

Friday:  Today we will learn about the 19th state to join the Union, Indiana!  From our research, it seems Indiana is not renowned for its cuisine. However, they do have an official state pie, which is called Sugar Cream or Hoosier Pie, so we will make that as a nod to them.  We'll revisit an old favorite, and make meatball subs on a stick for lunch.  

Reminder:  The AoA will be in session on Monday and Tuesday, November 25 and 26 during Thanksgiving Week, and will be closed Wednesday-Friday. 🦃🦃

Looking Ahead:  The AoA will be closed for Winter Break the weeks of December 24-27 and December 31-January 3.  We will reopen on Tuesday, January 7. 🎄🎅,

Have a great weekend,

Lisa, Carol, Nan, and the AoA Gang