We had a great reunion when we returned to the AoA on Tuesday after our Summer Break! Everyone was happy to see their friends, and pick up where we left off on July 1st. We're back at the AFCC with clean, shiny floors and surfaces, and everything looks great. Thank you Heike, Diane, and Sevarina for your hard work to spiff things up for us! Things are so clean that Kevin, Laura, and Drew thought about sitting on the floor all day, until Adia decided to sweep them away! Erik was just shaking his head at their antics! 😂
We also got a few surprises this week, both great and not so great!
Here's how our "Back to Business" week turned out!
Tuesday
We decided to brave the forecasted warm temperatures and take our trip to Historic Jamestowne anyway. We hoped for a cool breeze off the river, and we got it! Can you tell our hair was blowing in the wind?
Our plan was to wander around until we found the Ed Shed, a new exhibit this summer at Historic Jamestowne, that teaches us more about the artifacts found on the site, and lets us touch them. Before finding the Ed Shed, we took a look at some gravestones. Have you ever heard of James Blair? He was a clergyman in Jamestown and the founder of the College of William and Mary. He and his wife Sarah are buried here at Jamestown (though this marker is not theirs).
We sat for a few minutes in the church and talked about how awesome it is that historians and archaeologists care enough to preserve such important history. Virgina's first General Assembly (the first elected legislative assembly in the new world) took place in the church at Jamestown in 1619. Today, Virginia's General Assembly is the oldest continuous law-making body in the Western Hemisphere.
We found the Ed Shed, which is a small, outdoor classroom staffed by college interns. We divided into two groups and got an up close look at artifacts that were found at Jamestown!
Cecilia, a student at W&M who was familiar with The Arc of GW (!), shared interesting facts about pottery, glass, nails, and even had a bone fragment from a cow! She told us that cows were brought to the colony from Europe in 1610. Wow, a cow bone that was over 400 years old!
Iyesha, a student at Randolph College in Lynchburg, also had interesting artifacts to share with her group. She had teeth from pigs and also a lead ball which would have been shot from a musket. Both Iyesha and Cecilia kept our attention with their stories about the artifacts, and we asked some great questions. They did an excellent job educating us!
Next, we stopped at the Glass House to see how glass is made. Glassmaking turned out to not be a profitable enterprise for the colonists, so thank goodness for tobacco, the cash crop! But glassblowing is alive and well at Historic Jamestowne today. Apprentices who want to learn this skill train for 4 years!
One reason the colonists couldn't make money with glassmaking was because the furnace has to be kept at over 2,000 degrees, and the colonists could not keep up with the amount of wood needed for a fire of that magnitude! Today, the furnace is heated by natural gas...and it costs about $6,000 a month!
This apprentice was working on a pear-shaped glass object. We learned that Historic Jamestowne is the only national park site where hand blown glass is made, and the pieces they make here show up in gift shops in national parks across America.
Don, a very friendly volunteer (and a friend of Patrick's), told us that one unique piece is made each year in limited quantities, and is popular among collectors. This blue vase is the 2022 limited edition piece. Don also told us that if you have hand blown glass, do NOT put hot liquid in it!
We carefully visited the gift shop, where we saw samples of the unique pieces made over the years in a display case above items that are for sale. We thought the blue and green pieces were very pretty! We learned that the primary component used in making glass is sand, and that most of the glass made at Jamestown was green, because there is a lot of iron and nickel in the sand around here, which produces a green color. Other raw materials had to be added to make the glass blue.
The temperature was nearing 88 degrees when we decided to eat lunch at the shaded tables. We could still feel a slight breeze coming from the river, and lunch was quite enjoyable. We felt lucky to be outside in July for today's experience! BUT LATER, when we got home, an unwelcome surprise came to light. Some of us were bitten by something...probably chiggers. We are sorry that happened and will avoid woodsy areas in the future as best we can, and we'll also add bug spray to our arsenal. This was a surprise we could have done without!
Wednesday
We had a few good surprises today!
Surprise #1 was the return of Annmarie! We were not expecting to see her for another week or two, but she "passed the swallowing test" and was cleared to return! We have missed her, worried about her, and sent all the good wishes we had, and now she's back with us and we're all so happy! 💙💚💛💜
Not a surprise, but something we needed to get done, was our July calendar update. Even though we only have 3 weeks of activities this month, it's important to make sure we can check our calendar to keep up with our plans. Here, Kevin was changing the dates so they would align with July, Liz was researching pictures to match our activities, and Drew and Kate were coloring big, bubbly letters that would spell JULY.
Alexis and Adia also researched pictures to match our planned activities. This was Adia's first time working on the calendar. She has good word processing skills!
Annmarie and Michelle were coloring summertime pictures for the wall, and Sam was gluing activity descriptions to our calendar squares. Behind them, Abraham, Laura, and Xavier were also coloring decoration pictures, while Patrick worked on the computer.
It wasn't a calendar job, but it was important... We needed someone to grill the hot dogs ahead of us putting together our beans 'n' franks casserole, and Erik was up to the task!
Surprise #2 was a visit from Indy, a therapy dog! Her handler, Caroline, was at the school visiting with Ms. Vallone (AP), who brought them by for a visit. Everyone loved meeting Indy and petting her. Kevin and Indy made an instant connection!
Sam knew how to get on Indy's level, and Indy could tell right away that Sam is a "dog" person! Caroline is going to visit us again, and maybe bring another therapy dog named Pip. She said Indy and Pip would be up for other activities besides just visiting, so we're excited to see what they might be!
Surprise #3 was when Ms. Vallone did a FaceTime call with Mr. Stutt! As a reminder, Mr. Stutt was the principal at JRES when we began in 2016, until being transferred to Matthew Whaley in 2020. We loved him, and he was pretty fond of us, too! You can tell by the reaction from Patrick that we were excited to talk to him. We haven't seen him since Covid hit!
Mr. Stutt was so happy to see us on FaceTime that he decided to ride over and visit us in person! Surprise #4!!! Liz couldn't believe he could just drop his work and come over like that! He noticed right away that we had not had much turnover in members, but wondered who the newbies were (Erik and Adia). We knew he would never forget us! 😍😎😍
We caught Mr. Stutt up on all that's been going on, and he introduced us to his AP at Matthew Whaley. Her name is Diana and this is her first year working with him. (She's in for a treat!) Mr. Stutt invited us to visit him if we are in the Matthew Whaley / CW area this summer, and we told him we would try to do that! 👋 It was great to see him!
We were busy meeting Indy and Caroline, chatting with Ms. Vallone and then seeing Mr. Stutt. Lunch somehow got prepared, but we didn't get any pictures. We did grab a shot before chowing down. Our beans 'n' franks casserole with cornbread topping was tasty and filling. We loved MG Carolyn's recipe for Watermelon, Feta, and Mint salad, too! It was refreshing! 🍉 The lemon juice and olive oil dressing with fresh mint, combined with the saltiness of the feta, gave watermelon a whole new flavor experience for us. Thanks for sharing the recipe, Carolyn!
Time got away and we had to postpone our lesson for Barbershop Music Day, but after lunch we squeezed in our lesson for Cow Appreciation Day. We watched a video and learned that cows are female, bulls are male, and all of them together are cattle! We also learned there are over 200 breeds of cattle! Chick fil-A began Cow Appreciation Day as a marketing strategy back in 2005 to bring attention to it's "Eat Mor Chikin" campaign. If you dressed like a cow on that day, you could get free food. It's been postponed since 2020, but hopes to return "bigger and better" in 2023. As for us, we decided to make cute cow and bull puppets using paper bags...probably because yesterday was also National Paper Bag Day! 👍
Before we knew it, the day was over. Something else we had done earlier was prepare the Arc's August mailing, which everyone brought home today. You know the drill: Check the calendar and complete your sign up sheet. Send it to Bette Faye before the deadline and join your friends for Arc fun in August!
Thursday
We're happy to find out that Annmarie hasn't forgotten our routines. When DJ Kate played The Wiggles during dance warm up, Adia got her moving to the rhythm!
We caught Alexis and Patrick looking ahead on the National Day Calendar to what we might be celebrating on their birthdays in October and November!
We had stopped by Eaton on Tuesday to pick up work to do at our center, and Jorie delivered the news that it may be 6 months or more before the AC is repaired! She's frustrated, but we're here for them! Even though it's a bit of a hassle (more on their end than ours), we can keep stopping by to pick up work. Of course, we can't do everything that they need at our center, but we can keep plugging away, trying to help as much as we can. Today, we had a big team counting screws, thousands of them! We made some bags of 30 and some bags of 50. 👏
We also had a team working on removing small plastic parts from bags. Our music played in the background, and we had a very productive morning! We remain very thankful to Eaton for providing the work for us. It means a lot to our team to be trusted with these tasks!
Liz and Erik made a run to the recycling bin. Liz took the camera and grabbed a selfie! She said the sun was in their eyes, but we think they look marvelous! 🌞🌞
Liz inspired Lisa to try a selfie. You can see how she was the only one interested in it...everyone else was work-focused! We're so proud of this team!
After lunch we had a follow-up lesson on constellations. When we visited the Mariners' Museum last week, Erika inspired us to want to learn more. Today, we explored the constellations that form the zodiac.
It was fun hearing what our personalites and talents might be based on our astrological sign! Everyone's descriptions fit them perfectly! 😉
Friday
Whenever we have a PSP work day, it's busy all around! Today, after the work crew left, the cooking crew had a fun dance warm-up and then got busy preparing lunch. We were making Sloppy Joe Casserole and Sam and Liz had a lot of colorful peppers to chop for us!
Abraham combined the peppers with onions that Lisa had chopped, and when he finished sauteing them, our room was smelling really good! Oh...he threw in a bit of garlic, too!
Meanwhile, Patrick and Xavier were assisting Liz with a dessert so we could celebrate National Gummi Worm Day. They had to make "dirt" using chocolate pudding and whipped topping. along with a few chocolate cookie crumbs on top. Remember that?! Everyone said it was a throwback to the 90's, when most of them were born!
Buddies Annmarie and Laura worked with Nan to wrap our silverware in nice paper rings decorated with casserole pictures. They were happy with their work, and blissfully unaware of Sam, the photo bomber, behind them!
Over at Pet Supplies Plus, our busy work crew had finished unpacking, sorting, and stocking product, so they spent time with PSP's Eric, who told them that he cares for the betta fish, and cleans out their containers twice a week. 🐟
Our gang decided to feature the bearded dragons this week! You may need to zoom in to see better, but Blake, also from PSP, was holding one on Adia's shoulder while Eric (kneeling) held one in his hands. Both Blake and Eric are animal care specialists at PSP. If you're in the market for a reptile, PSP has you covered!
Here's what was waiting for our hungry work crew when they got back from PSP, and an Eaton run to drop off the work we did yesterday. Our Sloppy Joe casserole was delicious! This time, Lisa remembered to bring the ground beef that she was keeping in her freezer. We loved the beef version, but also thought the chicken version we had a few weeks ago was just as good, and a bit healthier!
Happy National Gummi Worm Day! The chocolate "dirt" dessert hit the spot after our savory casserole!
After lunch we played Hangman and heard another chapter from our Virginia Mystery story. Then, it was time for yoga!
Stretching, deep breathing...
On our feet, too! Feels so good!
There's no better way to wrap up the week. We didn't realize a storm was rolling in, but by the time yoga ended, it was raining cats and dogs outside! Our friends had to dash to their vehicles for dismissal, and they got wet! Fortunately, everyone made it home safely. There was a lot of flooding on the roads near JRES! ⛈
Finally, to end this week, we have a shout out... 📣
💜💜 There is a very special day coming up on Tuesday, July 19th. It's Moose Patti's birthday! Here she is (with Liz and Carol) in a photo from last year's Women of the Moose Golf Tourament, which benefits the Arc of GW and the AoA! Patti works diligently throughout the year to make this tournament a success, and we are very thankful for her and our other WOTM friends. They are a dedicated group! We deeply appreciate their love and support! 💜💜
Patti, we wish you a very Happy Birthday on Tuesday! 🥳🥳🥳 Thank you for everything you do to support us, but most of all, for your friendship and love! We have had some good times with you!!
Please consider supporting the WOTM Golf Tournament! There are several levels of sponsorship, including Hole Sponsorships, which are only $50! Patti will display a sign at a designated hole, with a photo of your choosing. We always love to see the signs from our AoA families and friends!!
Let Lisa know if you'd like to sponsor or make a donation...or PLAY!! She'll get you hooked up, but hurry...the tournament is coming up on August 6!
That's a wrap for our week of surprises. We're glad to be back in business! Here's what we have planned for next week:
Tuesday: We're going to visit Christina at the Art Museums today for a lesson related to Moon Day, which is tomorrow! She has a surprise visitor for us!!! If the weather permits, we'll leave early and stop by Matthew Whaley to visit Mr. Stutt, followed by lunch outside the school in the garden area. (But if we suspect bugs, we'll go to Kiwanis Park and eat at the sheltered picnic area, which is on concrete!) Wear Arc shirts and bring a bagged lunch.
Wednesday: Today we'll follow up Christina's lesson with more on Moon Day. It's also Hot Dog Day (July is National Hot Dog Month), so we'll have "regular" hot dogs for lunch and for a side, we'll bake potato wedges using the potatoes we grew and harvested with the master gardeners! We'll add a healthy fruit salad, too. We'll also have a make up lesson on bees with Mystery Doug. 🌒🌭🐝
Thursday: We're going to the Watermen's Museum to hang with Mike today...not sure what our topic is, but it will be fun! We may be pushing our luck, but if the weather is nice, we'll have lunch by the river and play games, walk, and/or ride the trolley. We'll also visit Wendy's since a lot of our friends want to try the Strawberry Frosty before it goes away. Thank you to an anonymous donor for this treat!! 💗🍨 Wear Arc shirts and bring a bagged lunch.
Friday: We're "celebrating" Rat-Catcher's Day and you'll have to be here (or check the blog next week) to see what that is about! Amelia Earhart Day is Sunday, so we'll have a lesson about her, too...it's one of our favorite history lessons! Today is also Mango Day, and that's a fruit we have not learned much about, so we'll learn about it today. Blueberries are in season, so for lunch, we'll prepare one of our all-time favorites, blueberry grilled cheese sandwiches! We'll add a fresh mango and corn salad for a side. We'll end the day with yoga, so dress to stretch!
Lisa, Carol, Nan, and the AoA Gang
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