Tuesday
What a surprise this morning when our old friend, Devin T., rejoined our group! He moved to Arizona with his family 3 years ago, but never forgot us. We didn't forget him, either! Now, his family is back in Williamsburg, and he's back at the AoA. Nothing fazed him about returning as he remembered every routine. It was as if he never left! He even told friends he'd never met (Erik, Michelle, and Abraham) that he "missed them" too! We love it. Welcome back, Devin T. and family!! 💙💚💛💜
DJ Liz knew the perfect song to play during dance warm up this morning!
It was the first Tuesday of the month, so off we went to bowling. We had a large group today, as everyone was here, including Cameron, who joins us a couple of days each month. There was yet another new assistant manager on duty, but she was ready for us and even had "our" lanes 1-4 on reserve! Her name is Wendy and she's super nice...but we couldn't get a picture because she was super busy running the center AND working in the kitchen. We sure wish there was more help available for our friends at the bowling center. They are always working hard. 👏 We are grateful.
There are always celebrations taking place for friends' achievements. 😍
Speaking of celebrations, there was a big one when the pizza arrived! We applauded Wendy for getting them ready, and Cameron and his family for sponsoring them! Thank you, Brian and Stacey, for continuing to support us in this tasty way, and for working it out for Cameron to spend time with us each month...especially on bowling day, which is his favorite!!
Drew was happily surprised when his former counselor from the JCC Parks and Recreation Rec Connect program popped in to say hi! This is Zolly, and he and Drew (as well as Devin T., Annmarie, and Xavier) go back a LONG way!! Zolly is involved with other programming now, but Tracy told him we would be here and he made it a point to stop by and see his old friends!
They crank up the tunes around noon at the lanes, and if our guys aren't singing, they are dancing (or both). We got this shot of Annmarie, Tracy, and Abraham getting down to a catchy beat! Thank you, Tracy, for helping us in Carol's absence today! You are so cool and a really good dancer, too!
Patrick, Drew, Alexis, and Kate gathered for a group pic in front of the cooking area. This is where the pizza magic happens!
These handsome fellas, Devin, Sam, Abraham, and Erik, posed for a picture near the shooting star on the outside of the building. They and their friends are definitely bowling stars!
On behalf of us all, Xavier, Liz, Laura, and Cameron wish to thank The Arc of Greater Williamsburg for the use of a van today. We could only borrow one van from Parks & Rec due to Spring Break camps taking place.
We headed to the playground area at the Rec Center on Longhill Rd. after bowling, and we got one more group pic with Michelle, Kevin, Annamarie, and Devin T. It was a nice afternoon to be outside!
We didn't get a picture, but Tracy, Erik, Devin B., Sam, Liz, and Alexis headed for a walk on the paved trail. The others enjoyed using the equipment on the accessible playground. Devin T. and Kate found the swings to be very relaxing.
Xavier had just crawled along a platform and under these bars but Patrick gave it a pass. Kind of tricky for tall guys! In the background, Laura was on the tire swing.
Cameron used his long legs to help propel himself, Annmarie, and Laura around and around on this piece of equipment. Thanks for the assist, Cameron!
Drew, Abraham, and Xavier tickled themselves silly bouncing on this thing! We really enjoyed our bowling, walking, and playground outing today!
Wednesday
We had a great day at Eaton working on several tasks, and Carol would be proud! Arc board member and Liz's dad, Greg, helped us keep things running smoothly. Many thanks, Greg, for your assistance, patience, and good humor! We enjoyed working with you!
Lisa had a challenge trying to get pictures because of being "in charge" with Carol gone, but it's clear from what we got that our guys were on the ball and knew just what to do. Before lunch, several of them worked on assembling PowerSlide doors.
Plant Manager Andy stopped by to chat with us today! He is so friendly, and said some very appreciative words to our team!! The entire Eaton organization has embraced the AoA, and we feel it each time we work. The relationships we have with Jorie, James, Kesha, Shante, Adair, Andy, and every other Eaton employee we may cross paths with are what makes it special. It's definitely a win-win for everyone!
Not to be forgotten, this amazing crew worked in the break room unpacking amps as if they were opening presents on Christmas morning! This task is seemingly easy, but it requires focus to only remove from the box what Eaton needs, and to discard extra pieces in the box that are not needed. We then pack the needed parts neatly into the gray bins, and when Eaton assembly workers need them on the production floor, they just have to make a quick grab instead of stopping to unpack the box. Jorie says they really appreciate what we do to help them save time. Check out Devin T. picking up just where he left off working at Eaton 3 years ago! 👏👏
Later, Jorie brought Devin T. his official Eaton work shirt which he changed into right away. Welcome back to the team, Devin!
Cameron and Erik made a great team as they clipped pieces off of these plates. It required precision, as they needed to make two clips on each plate so things would be smooth. According to Greg, these two were "cutting up" all day! 😂😂😂
We insisted on getting a close up of Greg as he wielded the electric screwdriver to complete the doors! Later, Jorie gave him a tour of the plant. He may not be retired much longer... 😜
After lunch, we transitioned from assembling doors to counting and packing screws into bags and unpacking light bulbs. So busy! And of course, we had our music blasting in the background. It was another successful Eaton work day. Yay, us! 👍👍
Thursday
The April birthday season got underway today as we celebrated Sam! During our dance warm up, DJ Kate played a song/video about having a birthday, complete with balloons and convertibles. Sam loved it!
It's not often we get to use the playground equipment, so we made a stop for some climbing, sliding, and swinging. Here, Alexis was telling Laura to choose another slide because there was a cute little frog parked on this one!
Sam went for a birthday slide down the one we call the "Butt-Bumper." We can't explain...you'll have to come and try it for yourself!
Michelle went for a smoother slide, while in the background Kate and Erik enjoyed swinging.
We're not sure what this "ride" is called, but Abraham, Alexis, Kevin, and Kate had fun making it bounce up and down! (How do they get that low to sit on the thing?! 😂)
Back inside and it was time for lunch. Sam's mom, Coach Teri, brought us a delicious lunch of pulled pork sandwiches, baked beans, chips, and pie! We forgot to take a picture before digging in, but Abraham still had a sandwich on his plate, and gave it a thumbs up! We also forgot to get a picture with Coach Teri...but we wish to thank her very much for treating us today. She made the pulled pork herself and it was so tender and juicy!! Coach Teri, you are a great cook and we loved celebrating your son today!
Here's Sam's official birthday portrait with his AoA friends. We missed Annmarie and Liz today, but everyone else wished him a very happy 35th Birthday! 🥳🎈🥳🎈
He blew out a candle on a chocolate birthday pie! We all know he is a pie guy! Sam, we hope all your wishes come true!
Sam passed out goodie bags to his friends! How thoughtful, and so much fun!! Also...Kevin and Devin were twinning today in their Arc 5k shirts! Looking good, guys!
We had a few volunteers for a game of Ice Cube Melt! Each pair was given an ice cube with a gummy bear frozen inside and had to take turns warming it up with their hands to see who could melt the ice first and free the gummy bear!
We had fewer volunteers for our version of a pie eating contest, but our contestants gave it all they had trying to find the gummy bear hidden in a bowlful of whipped topping! Only using their mouths, Kate, Devin T., and Devin B. got off to a fast start!
Look at the intensity on Sam's face as he tries to find the elusive gummy bear!
We got a winner! It was Devin B. by a split second over Kate!
At Sam's request, and because he loves pie, we wrapped up party games with the Pie Face game. Sam was victorious over Devin!
Devin had the faster hand in this round...
But Abraham didn't mind getting the pie in his face! He rolled around in laughter on the floor!! We love birthday parties and games!
Friday
Things were a bit different than usual today. Michelle was the only girl in attendance (besides Lisa and Nan), and ALL 9 of the boys were here! A couple of the girls were traveling with their families, and the others were not feeling well. Michelle hung in there with the guys just fine, though, and we had a great day!
Patrick stepped up to be our DJ this morning! The girls almost always handle this job, but Pat knew everyone's favorite tunes, and he played them all. Thanks, Pat!
The 5 absent girls will have to catch up on Tuesday, but Michelle and the guys made birthday cards for Jorie today! We're going to see her next week when we work at Eaton. Her special day is on the 17th, but we'll be celebrating on Wednesday! 🥳🎉🥳🎉
We're kicking off our spring sessions with the master gardeners on Tuesday, so we took a good look at our bulb pots today so we can let them know what grew. Devin, Michelle, and Drew noticed something about the tulips - they have red stripes like candy canes!
We went for another walk around the JRES campus today, and grabbed this picture of Michelle reacting to her day with the guys! LOL! She was just pretending to have a headache. It really was a fun day!
We got caught in a bit of drizzle before making it back to the front door. Luckily, none of us melted!
Look what happened when we moved the bird feeders to a different spot this afternoon! Every seat is taken! This is beside the tree outside our green door. We moved the feeders back to our "garden area" at the end of the day, but we'll try moving them again next week. We can't figure out why the birds aren't eating at the feeders like they did in the past. We thought it was because of habitat loss due to nearby construction, but this picture kind of makes us wonder about that theory!
Choice Time after lunch was a little longer today! With the gym available due to Spring Break, Sam, Kevin, Devin, and Erik got in several laps of walking and talking...and talking...and talking. 😁
Drew and Devin T. enjoyed listening to music on an old iPad of Drew's. They used to do this together before Devin moved, and it was one of the first things Devin asked about when he came back!
No surprise here! Xavier enjoys putting puzzles together very much!
Instead of reading aloud from the mystery about Thomas Jefferson's lost treasure, Lisa asked the gang if they would like to listen to a silly video story instead. Sam and Devin rallied the votes and the guys picked Creepy Pair of Underwear! (Michelle abstained from voting!) It was quite hilarious, and even Michelle, Nan, and Lisa laughed!
Michelle was up front for yoga setting a good example for the guys!
Our yoga lesson today was Jaime's version of the story from the movie Trolls. Definitely a fun way to wrap up the week!
Carol's week wrapped up with a safe flight home from beautiful Mexico! Here she is with Matt and David in the beautiful town of Loreto, with the Sea of Cortez in the background, just a few days ago. We hope they had a memorable adventure, and welcome home! (Carol...we will see you on Tuesday!)
Here's what Carol, and the rest of us, have to look forward to next week. It just so happens that our calendar finds us out and about every day!
Tuesday: Today, we begin our spring sessions with the master gardeners. We will meet with them at Freedom Park and the Williamsburg Botanical Garden two Tuesdays a month in April and May. They have a lot of fun and educational activities planned for us! Wear your Arc shirts and bring a bagged lunch. After lunch, we will go shopping for the silent auction items for the British Car Show. Thanks for the donations, and please come out on April 23rd to see our wonderful contributions!
Wednesday: Things are hopping over at Eaton and Jorie and James need us again this week! We're happy to help...and today we will also celebrate Jorie's upcoming birthday! Wear your Eaton shirts and bring a bagged lunch. We'll have birthday cake for dessert!
Thursday: It's the 2nd Thursday of the month which means we visit with Mike at The Watermen's Museum! We're going to make "pizza mobiles" (???) and try our hands at ropemaking, too! We'll also welcome a visitor, Adia. She is interested in joining the AoA, so this will be the first of two trial visits for her. Please wear Arc shirts again, and bring another bagged lunch. We'll try for a picnic by the York River if it's not too windy! And, Spring Corn Hole Challenge, too!
Friday: We took a break while Carol was traveling, but today it's back to help at Pet Supplies Plus for a small group of us. The Cooking Crew (who stays at AFCC) will prepare chicken casserole and peach cobbler (National Peach Cobbler Day was Wednesday) for lunch. We'll make extra to share with our beloved volunteer, Becky, and her family, in honor of Becky's birthday (13th) and her being home from rehab where she continues her recovery from the broken leg and ribs. We'll squeeze in a belated celebration of Unicorn Day, too. Please wear your PSP shirts and stretchy pants, as we will also have Friday yoga!
Wow, we're going to be busier than the candy makers and the Easter Bunny this week! Can't wait!
Have a great weekend,
Lisa, Carol, Nan, and the AoA Gang
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