We spent this week reminding everyone that we will be temporarily relocating the AoA's meeting place next week. The AFCC will be closed for maintenance work so we will be meeting at the Rec Center on Longhill Rd. for the week of June 28-July1. Then, the week after that, July 5-8, the AoA will be closed for Summer Break...but more on that next week!
Meanwhile, here's how we spent the first week of summer at the AFCC!
Tuesday
We learned that today is the summer solstice, and that means in eastern Virginia the longest amount of daylight all year would be today: over 14 hours and 40 minutes! We did some brain work related to the summer solstice!
With all this extra daylight (5 hours and 3 minutes longer than the winter solstice in December), we had plenty of time to use our brainpower!
We also celebrated National Smoothie Day! We learned that if made mostly of fruit and/or veggies, with a low-sugar base of protein (in our case, yogurt), smoothies could be really nutritious! Carol was our Smoothie Master and she brought her NutriBullet which made whipping them up a breeze. Erik, Alexis, Laura, and Devin were first in line, and they wanted theirs "all the way."
"All the way" included strawberries, blueberries, bananas, oranges, spinach, and carrots! The spinach and carrots did not take away from the taste, it was still very fruity, so adding certain veggies is a great way to get extra nutrition!
Some friends opted for no veggies, but their smoothies were still tasty and nutritious. Liz, Abraham, and Kevin enjoyed theirs that were loaded with strawberries, bananas, and blueberries.
We were excited that this was a treat our friend Devin T. could enjoy. He eats a soft-food only diet, and he LOVES smoothies! His was "all the way" and when he finished he told Carol, "That was good!"
Hester Bateman was a female silversmith in London in the 1760s. She made thousands of pieces, including the shell-shaped spoon in the bottom right of this picture, and her pieces are valuable to this day!
We also saw shell designs that were carved into furniture and painted in pictures from the 18th century, and Christina reminded us that shells were used to create pathways in gardens and along streets, too. We then went to the education studio for a fabulous project! Christina led us step-by-step through a painting project so we would end up with a pretty beach scene inside a shell!
After we painted sand, water, and sky, Christina stamped a beach ball onto each of our shells. Next, Jan "sprinkled the ball with pixie dust" so that it would glow on our shells! By the way, we loved seeing and working with Jan today! It's been a long time since she's been able to join us. Thanks so much for your help, Jan! Christina, thank you for this excellent adventure on National Seashell Day! We LOVE our shells.
June 21 is also National Selfie Day, and Christina LOVES taking selfies! Here's one of all of us with our lovely painted shells! Isn't it great?!
It's hard to see the detail on our shells in the selfie, so Erik agreed to show his artwork up close. Everyone's was a little bit different, and they were ALL beautiful!! We had a great first day of summer!
Wednesday
We are bummed that we aren't able to be working at Eaton due to the broken AC, and Jorie and James are, too. The entire AC unit at Eaton may need to be replaced, so we may not be back for a while. This week, the AC here at the center was also on the fritz, as seems to happen every June! But, we had a couple of fans, and it really wasn't bad today. Our friend and the school system's electrician, Jerry, has been working on it for two days, and today he said he "made a fix" and will be back tomorrow to give it a go! We're glad, because it's going to be heating up again soon.
To help us keep our "cool," we studied the country of Iceland today! Did you know it is slightly smaller than our state of Kentucky?! The capital is Reykjavik, shown above, and over 60% of the population lives in and around that beautiful city. People in Iceland also report being very happy and it's no wonder as there is a good healthcare system, education is free through college, and there is a "collective trust" among society there, with very low crime rates. Plus, there are blueberries that grow all over the countryside! Picking them almost anywhere and anytime is practically a national sport!
Yum, and thanks, Iceland! We had an excuse for a morning treat. Laura and Adia gave high marks to our snack of blueberries and cream in honor of learning about the country of Iceland!
Ladybugs were the subject of another lesson we had today. We learned that they are called "ladybirds" in England, though they are neither bugs nor birds, but a type of beetle. If they feel threatened by a predator, they are able to squirt a yucky liquid from their knees that smells like a combination of nuts, mold, potatoes, and pepper. EWW! We also completed a craft project Krafty Karen sent back with us after last week's lesson with the master gardeners Devin and Drew were drawing designs on their ladybugs' wings.
Liz decorated the wings on her ladybug with traditional black spots. As we learned from Karen last week, there are almost 6,000 species of ladybugs. One of them has 24 black spots, but some have no spots at all, or may have stripes and other geometric pattens.
When finished, our project was a set of adorable ladybug magnets! We know ladybugs like to eat aphids, but we don't think they will find any in our room! Thanks for putting together these fun ladybug making kits for us, Karen! Like many of our projects, no two are alike, but they are all perfect!
Speaking of aphids, we don't have any on our tomato plants so far, but we did have 10 chocolate sprinkle cherry tomatoes that were going to be harvested tomorrow for our pizza. That is until we noticed 6 of them were missing this morning. We immediately picked the remaining 4, and then later we caught a squirrel on the plant eating a green one! Adia wanted to try sprinkling cayenne pepper around the plant and on the ground to see if it will deter the squirrels! We hope so!
We're getting near the end of our Virginia Mystery series story, Escape from Monticello, and today we decided we want to read another book from the series. We're going to try an earlier book, with the same "bad" guy, Jerry. We want to find out what Caitlin, Sam, and Derek did in the past that made Jerry determined to seek revenge on them in our current book!
Thursday
We got sidetracked when we realized our custodians, Heike, Diane, and Sevarina won't be here tomorrow (school staff work M-Th in summer) and then we won't be here for the next 2 weeks, soooo, we had to go find them and chat for a bit! They have been so busy getting JRES ready for new flooring to be installed that they haven't had time to pop in and see us on the Rec side of the building. We miss them! Today, they were unpacking a lot of boxes that were full of new chairs. They are 3 very hard-working ladies!
We stuck to our plan to make pizza using fresh ingredients from the Pizza Pot we planted with the master gardeners. We picked the chocolate sprinkle cherry tomatoes that were left yesterday after we realized a squirrel was also interested in them! Today, Adia, Laura, and Abraham harvested basil.
Michelle harvested oregano! The Pizza Pot Pizzas we were about to make were going to be so good!
We're loving the gym time we get this summer! Our AC was still out (until around 1:30 when Jerry said it was cranking up...yay!) and the gym is a cool place to spread out and get movement.
Our pizza chefs were Erik, Laura, and Liz. Today was National Detroit Style Pizza Day, and we learned that Detroit style is kind of like deep dish, but the pepperoni goes on first, followed by cheese, and the sauce goes on top, in stripes! We made our version, using some of Detroit's ideas!
Here are the chocolate sprinkle tomatoes, basil, and oregano ready to go on the pizzas. We only had enough tomatoes for a couple of pizzas, but everyone who wanted to try them got a slice! They were so sweet and juicy, and the fresh herbs smelled divine!
This is what one of our "Detroit" style pizzas looked like! Pepperoni and ham (for Pink Day) on the crust, followed by cheese, stripes of sauce, and fresh basil and oregano!
Our Pizza Pot Pizzas were so tasty, and there were no leftovers! We also had a spinach salad that we added pink grapefruit and some leftover strawberries and pineapple to, along with a freshly made grapefruit juice, honey, and olive oil dressing. Our refreshing beverage was pink lemonade! It was all yummy!!
As good as the pizza and salad were, the HIGHLIGHT of our day was a surprise visit from Annmarie!
Annmarie and Laura are the best of buddies, and every single day since Annmarie got sick, Laura has asked about her and told us how much she misses her friend. Laura was happy (relieved?) to see Annmarie in person and give her a sweet hug!
Drew waited patiently for a chance to hug Annmarie. With Liz and Kate looking on, she whispered, "Aww, Drew." We thought Annmarie looked great, and her mom told us she wanted to put on her AoA shirt as soon as she got up this morning! She needs a few weeks of OT, PT, and speech therapy, plus time to regain some strength, but she WILL be back soon! We can't wait!
Annmarie wasn't the only surprise today. Her family's dog, an Aussiedoodle named Griffin, visited as well! Griffin was in the van, but we all asked to see him. When Teresa took him out of the van, she accidentally dropped the leash! Griffin took off all over this side of campus with Teresa, Carol, a Parks & Rec worker, Heike, Sevarina, Diane, and even Jerry, the electrician, trying to catch him! We were finally able to entice him with one of Xavier's gluten-free cookies that we keep on hand, and everyone enjoyed petting him and telling him what a "good" boy he is! 😄🐕🍪 Annmarie, Teresa, and Griffin, you are welcome to be our unexpected visitors anytime! It was heartwarming to see you! 💓💓💓
We still had 3 lessons we hadn't gotten to after Annmarie's visit, and we chose to end the day with one about water since it's National Hydration Day! Our video with Dr. Binocs was a very good reminder about how important water is to our health and well-being. We'll save our bees and butterflies lessons with Mystery Doug for another time.
Friday
Some of us were off to Pet Supplies Plus today and others stayed at the center to help get ready for our specially delivered lunch. Everyone chipped in and we were busy!
Erik learned how to make Jell-O! This was step two, adding cold water to the orange gelatin that he had already dissolved in boiling water. Later, we would add mandarin oranges for a refreshing dessert!
Drew, Kevin, and Xavier helped prep the baked beans. Drew was about to drain that big can into the colander. Xavier had returned to his seat, but he found the cans of beans in the pantry for us!
Erik and Adia helped Nan make what we call her "famous cole slaw" and after they did a taste test, Adia said she could see why it's famous! It would taste good on the bbq sandwiches that Gdad was bringing!
Our pet store workers today included Kate, Sam, Devin T., Michelle, Laura, Karryna, and Liz. After unpacking and stocking, they decided that his week's featured pets are fish! You can check them out at Pet Supplies Plus. Our friends are holding some accessories you can put in your aquarium! There is a big selection of fun and colorful items that your new fish will enjoy swimming around. Come visit the store! 🐟🐠🐟🐠
As it neared noon, we saw a red truck pulling up to our green door. It was Lexi's Gdad who was bringing us his speciality, eastern North Carolina style bbq, for lunch. He had heard that Sam was very excited for lunch today, so he made a surprise sign. Sam loved it!! 🐷💛🐷💛
We all enjoyed Gdad's bbq sandwiches with Nan's cole slaw, our baked beans, a few chips, and orange Jell-O! (We forgot to take a picture, though.) The morning crew made a "Thanks, Gdad" sign, but the G in "Gdad" is behind his head in the picture! Before he left, Gdad thanked us for the nice sign and said he enjoyed visiting with us. Thank YOU, Gdad! We enjoyed visiting with you and eating your tasty bbq! We appreciate you for getting up early to cook it for us, and also for delivering it!
We also enjoyed the company of Tracy and Rachel from Parks & Rec! They said Gdad's bbq was delish, and they thanked us for inviting them to join us. We always enjoy a chance to socialize with them!
We are going to have a movie day while at the Longhill Rec Center next week. Kate brought a few of her favorite DVDs and everyone looked them over, had a discussion, and picked one for us to watch. (Carol and Lisa, don't forget to pack the popcorn!) 🎥🍿
We ended our day with Jaime and yoga. We did chair yoga first. We can be seen here rolling our heads gently from side to side. After chair yoga, we did a more active segment on our mats, followed by a gentle "peace out" segment where we almost fell asleep! We had a wonderful day and a great week! We'll miss our "home" at AFCC for the next couple of weeks, but we'll be back before we know it!
Heike, Diane, and Sevarina have a lot of cleaning to do and there is also maintenance work to be done at the AFCC, so it will be closed for the next two weeks. We'll take our program to the Longhill Rec Center next week, followed by a Summer Break week, when we will be closed. Here's what we have planned for our relocation week:
Tuesday: We'll see you at the Longhill Rd. Rec Center today. We're in Room B so enter through the doors on the left side of the building (where Arc events take place). Today we're going to the Williamsburg Botanical Garden for our last spring session with the Master Gardeners. Wear your Arc shirt. After our session with the MGs, we will picnic and take a walk if the weather permits, so bring a bagged lunch. We'll also begin a new read-aloud from the Virginia Mystery series, and probably do some extra dancing, too!
Wednesday: We'll be staying put at the Rec Center so we brought a few things to fill the time. We'll dance and play a fun group game, watch a movie, read, and play Bingo, too. We will also have one of our traditional and fun lessons about Paul Bunyan, as yesterday was Paul Bunyan Day! Bring a bagged lunch (microwave not available).
Thursday: We're going to the Mariners' Museum today for a lesson with our friend, Erika! (Wisteria has another event today, but hopes to pop in to say "hi" to us.) We're going to learn about the night sky! Please bring $10 for lunch at the Mariners' Cafe and wear Arc shirts. On our return trip to the Rec Center, we will stop by AFCC and fill the bird feeders. It's also National Bomb Pop Day, so we will probably have a treat! Note: We will depart from Longhill Rec promptly at 9:10 for our drive to Newport News. Plan to arrive on time! ⌚
Friday: Since we're so close and they open at noon, we're going bowling today!! We'll dance, have a lesson on Independence Day, and play small group games in the morning. Lunch will be Domino's pizza...a treat from Devin T's family! Thank you, Tyree Family. This is very thoughtful of you and we appreciate it. Pizza is a big hit with us! 💖🍕 We'll head to bowling around 12:30 and plan to be back to the Rec Center at 2:30. No yoga this week. You don't need to wear Arc shirts, unless you want to!
The Arc of Abilities will be closed for Summer Break the week of July 5-8.
🏌🏌🏌 Hey, Everyone! COMING SOON - August 6!
Royal New Kent Golf Club 🏌🏌🏌
It's time to get organized and see who's up for being a WOTM Golf Tournament Sponsor and/or player this year! Moose Patti is pounding the pavement to drum up the support of local businesses, as well as lots of her friends, and we hope our AoA Families will jump on board, too! This is a significant FUNdraiser for The Arc, with proceeds supporting the AoA, as well! The Women Of The Moose LOVE us! Please let Lisa know if you'd like to sponsor a hole or form a team, or you can contact Patti directly. Thank you to those who have already sponsored! We will need 3-4 AoA members to volunteer on the day of the tournament. Please check your calendars and see if you can help from about 9-1. It's a lot of fun!! Check out this link to the blog post from the 2021 tournament. It was a huge success...even in the rain!
Also, please save the date for the Arc of Greater Williamsburg's 5k on October 1st! Registration opens soon. We will let you know!
Have a great weekend,
Lisa, Carol, Nan, and The AoA Gang
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