V is for van and we took trips in the vans, graciously provided by JCC Parks & Rec, three times this week. V is also for variety, and we enjoyed a variety of experiences this week, too. Check out our adventures and see just how very versatile we are! It was a great first week of November!
Tuesday
We look forward to the first Tuesday each month when we go bowling! We only had 12 in attendance today, but it was enough to make three teams and have lots of fun. Devin B and Laura found themselves at the line together, though Dev got his ball down the lane a little faster than Laura!
Patrick and Xavier made their approach at the same time, and they each got strikes on this turn, too! Wow!
Drew and Devin T go back a long way as friends, so Drew decided to coach Devin on rolling his ball right down the middle of the lane!
Liz was super happy to give Annmarie a high five for a big strike! Annmarie was beside herself with excitement!
Everyone was happy to see Nan this morning! She kept her mask on because later she was going to see Gdad, and it's important to prevent him from being exposed to germs. He's fighting his leukemia like a champ.
Check out the new sign at the bowling center. It's not AMF Lanes anymore. It's now:
It's always been our tradition to have pizza for lunch when we bowl, but the price of pizza at the bowling center has gone up significantly. So now, we get a deal on take-out from Domino's on Richmond Rd., and when the weather is beautiful, like today, we eat outside at Kiwanis Park. (Last month, we had to return to AFCC to eat our pizza.) We like Domino's and we like saving a little "dough," too! 🍕
Back at the center, we had Choice Time but Adia, Alexis, and Liz offered to put gaskets on parts for Eaton. James needs them when we go on Friday. Thanks, girls!!
We ended the day with a discussion about it being National Autistics Speaking Day. It's a day to let people with autism share their stories, if they wish. We watched an informative video that helped us further understand what autism is, and it focused on the challenges that some autistic people have with sensory overload. We have friends in our program who face these challenges from time to time, so we want to make sure we're keeping our empathy skills sharp!
Wednesday
We had a busy and productive day! It's the first of the month, so we worked on the November calendar. Lexi, Adia, Patrick, and Liz waited patiently for the computers to boot up so they could match pictures to our daily plans. Erik, in the background, went around the room and removed all Halloween decor!
Devin T and Annmarie made colorful letters to help spell NOVEMBER, and Sam glued the description words to the calendar squares.
Kevin wasn't here today for this job, so Devin B, Devin T, and Drew handled the task of taking October events out of the pockets, rearranging the numbers to match November dates, and putting November events in the pockets. Yes, it's as complicated as it sounds, but our team aces it every month!
We wouldn't have the welcoming and colorful room we have if it weren't for our picture coloring team! Everyone chips in on this at one time or another, but this morning, Liz, Erik, Abraham, Xavier, Michelle, Laura, and Annmarie got a lot of turkeys colored! (We just can't believe we're decorating with turkeys already!)
It was too nice of a day not to spend part of it outside. Pat and Devin T were shooting hoops!
Laura, Abraham, and Annmarie were rolling a hoop!
Xavier led a walking group that included Michelle, Alexis, Erik, and Liz.
Drew chased Alexis for some reason?!?!?
We almost waited too long to try and get a group picture with pretty fall colors in the background. The leaves are falling fast!
We still had almost an hour before lunch so Alexis, Adia, Liz, and Erik did gasketing work for Eaton.
The rest of us grabbed the wipes and got to cleaning! Xavier, Abraham, Drew, and Devin T worked on tables in the kitchen area, while Laura and Patrick cleaned the ovens and one of our microwaves. After this, they went to our big room and cleaned our work tables really well, too!
Michelle and Annmarie were a great team and they tackled this microwave before moving on to the fridge!
Meanwhile, Sam and Devin worked on organizing our construction paper supply. It had gotten out of hand in one of our storage closets.
The Virginia Corn Thunder cheered for Devin T, and he earned a point for their team on his next toss!
It was another victory for the Corn Thunder today, so they go up in our Fall Challenge 2-0. No worries, the Minions are going to work on a few adjustments and come back swinging next time!!
Thursday
A really fun day was on the National Day Calendar today: National Men Make Dinner Day. We changed it to Men Make Lunch Day...and here's how it went!
We had to send a couple of men (Erik, Devin B) to work at Pet Supplies Plus, but Kevin, Sam, Xavier, and Patrick remained as part of what we celebrated as Men Make Lunch Day!
It was also National Sandwich Day, and Drew and Devin T were also available men to help with lunch, which was going to be BLT sandwiches!
Our side dish was pasta salad. Patrick and Xavier cut veggies for it. They were working on cucumbers in this photo.
Sam put on an apron and got busy cooking the bacon! We needed quite a bit of that!
After the veggies were cut (and pasta cooked), Drew and Devin T were responsible for assembling the pasta salad. They not only held steady with the veggies for this picture, they also successfully scraped the veggies into the bowl of pasta, added the dressing, and gave it a good stir!
Alexis was the lone female who remained at AFCC to serve as sous chef for the guys. She gave Kevin an assist in toasting the bread. By now, we were almost overcome by the aroma of bacon, and were hoping the PSP group would be back soon so we could eat!
Speaking of the PSP group, they did stocking and straightening of product on shelves, and also saw that PSP is now offering cats for adoption. Liz said "hello" to this cute little fella!
The group chose greeting cards as the "Featured Product" for this visit. If you have an animal lover with a birthday coming up, you could find a "purrfect" or "doggone" nice card for them at Pet Supplies Plus!
Once the PSP group returned, the men (and Lexi) who made lunch were ready! Yum! Great job, men!!
We took a walk around the front of the school this afternoon. We found spots for photo ops. There are large and beautiful mums around the flagpole.
Near the entrance are other fall decorations. The guys look handsome on this beautiful, and very warm, fall afternoon!
Just as lovely are the girls! We missed Annmarie today, and Kate is home with the flu! What a way for Kate to end her amazing trip to Portugal. Feel better, Kate, and we will see you next week!
We'll be at Eaton tomorrow so we had our yoga session with Jaime today. In this shot, we were getting into "guitar" pose! 🎸
Self-hugs are always a good feeling!! 🤗
This was "iguana" pose! What a nice stretch to end a busy day!
Friday
We had a good work day at Eaton! Lisa spent the day at the hospital with her dad, so Liz's mom, Lise filled in! Thank you, Lise! We appreciate your assistance today and hope you enjoyed working with us at Eaton! Isn't it great?!
There was a lot of unpacking to do today. What a hardworking crew. Can you also tell that shelving has begun to be installed along the walls?
Michelle, Adia, Xavier, and Erik seem to be getting a system going for unpacking these parts.
Liz and Alexis are clipping small pieces off of these plates. They have plenty to keep them busy!
Last, but most certainly not least, we have our spectacular substitute, Lise, and her partners Annmarie and Abraham, also making a big dent in their work. Thank you, again, Lise, for your help today. Lisa sends you a great big hug!!
We are thankful for another fun and productive week at the AoA. November is off to a great start!
Here's what we have to look forward to next week:
Tuesday: We're going to visit Wisteria at The Mariners' Museum for a lesson on Foodways of the Americas. That sounds right up our alley! Speaking of food, the Mariners' Cafe remains closed for renovations, so we will have lunch at a restaurant called Angelo's that is near by. We will order burgers and fries, which we hear are very good there! Please wear your Arc shirt and bring $10 for lunch.
Wednesday: Yesterday was National STEM Day, so we will explore science, technology, engineering, and math activities today. We'll also study state #6, Massachusetts, which we accidentally skipped recently when we learned about #7, Maryland! We're going to prepare lunch too: Roasted sweet potatoes, using our recent harvest of Beauregards from the garden, salad with grilled chicken, and, to honor Massachusetts, Boston Cream Pie for dessert.
Thursday: It's our lucky week! We get to visit another one of our amazing museum partners, Mike, at The Watermen's Museum! The weather forecast looks questionable but hopefully it will be nice and we can do our usual picnic and take a walk or play games. If not, Plan B (to be determined) when we get back to AFCC! Wear your Arc shirt and bring a bagged lunch.
Friday: It's Birthday Time again, and it's a double! Happy Birthday today to Liz AND Patrick! We will dance to their favorite tunes, play games, and have hot dogs, baked beans, and fresh fruit for lunch. For birthday dessert, their moms are treating us to pies and punch! Yum! Thanks, Lise and Sue! We're going to make a new friend, today, too. A local artist named Jeff Helm is coming to meet us and we'll make a plan to work on an art project with him! Liz met him recently, and hooked us up!! Finally, we will have a lesson on Veterans Day, and then end our week with yoga, so dress to stretch!
Hope to see you at the 5k tomorrow (November 5)! Thanks again to our AWESOME sponsors!!
Enjoy the weekend,
Lisa, Carol, Nan, and the AoA Gang
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