Happy Birthday to Drew and Annmarie!

🎉🥳🎉🥳🎉🥳🎉🥳🎉🥳

We had a great week that began and ended with birthday celebrations for our friends Drew and Annmarie!  We threw in a Mardi Gras party, too!  All the partying was fun, but we also went bowling, volunteered at Grove, learned about bugs and polar bears, and worked at Pet Supplies Plus.  The month of March is here, and we "marched" right into it with a wonderful and busy week.  

Tuesday, March 4

It was a great day to have a great day...and a birthday celebration for Drew!  He loves bowling and pizza, so what could be more perfect than having a birthday fall on bowling/pizza day?!  Actually, his birthday was on Sunday, but he didn't mind celebrating with his friends today!  🥳🎉🎳

Back at the center, we welcomed Drew's parents, Andy and Donna, who graciously treated us to a pizza party to celebrate their birthday boy!  We also welcomed Tracy and JaVante, who filled in for Lisa and Nan today as they (and Alexis) traveled to North Carolina for a family funeral.  Thanks Tracy and JaVante!  Your help is really appreciated...and it was your lucky day to get to join us for Drew's party!

Thank you so much, Donna and Andy, for today's pizza party.  We all know how much Drew loves pizza, and we do, too!  We enjoyed hanging out with you, and getting to surprise Drew!  We're so blessed by your friendship and generosity.

Drew, we hope all your wishes come true (besides pizza parties)!  

Believe it or not, after Drew's birthday party, we took a Choice Time break and then transitioned to a Mardi Gras party!  (Hey, we can't control the calendar!)  Our sweet friend Moose Patti made sure we had a king cake...which her father, who lives in New Orleans, arranges to be sent to us!  Patti has made sure we could have this fun celebration for a few years now, and we enjoy it very much!  

What a gorgeous king cake!  We iced it and put the colorful sugar sprinkles on, and Carol hid the little plastic baby and a gold coin inside.  Who would get the pieces with the baby and the gold coin?!

We also watched a video about the history of Mardi Gras, and then made masks so we could hide our identities while we partied!

Thomas got the piece with the little plastic baby hidden inside, and JaVante got the piece with the gold coin!  They were our kings for the day, and will have good fortune in the year to come!

These are our Mardi Gras masks and the king cake box.  Moose Patti, we missed you at today's party, but we know you were here in spirit as we enjoyed the king cake and the party atmosphere.  Thank you, and your dad, for your kindness in sending us a beautiful and delicious king cake, straight from New Orleans!  We are blessed by your friendship and generosity!

Wednesday, March 5

As we do most Wednesday mornings, we volunteered at Grove Christian Outreach Center (GCOC) this morning, helping to unload the delivery truck and then help prepare 144 bags of canned and boxed food items.

We had to wait briefly for the truck to arrive, so we helped Peggy and Ursula sort potato chips.

Here we are with the production line all set up!

Devin got a kick out of seeing this box of cereal.  He's a fan of Jason Kelce, who played for Dev's Eagles...and Jason's brother, Travis, "is ok, too."

Ursula made delicious brownies.  Yummy!

Meanwhile, back at the center, the rest of us worked on updating our calendar for March, and starting our room decorations.  It's going to be a busy month as we celebrate birthdays, St. Patrick's Day, AND our Arc of Abilities 9th Anniversary!

Sam glued our daily event strips to green and gold squares so our calendar will be colorful for March.

Alexis and Patrick found images online to match our events.  They copy, print, and paste the images onto the squares.

Allison, Drew, and Annmarie used St. Patty's colors for the large bubble letters that spell MARCH, which will be posted on our wall.

Abraham and Thomas did a great job removing decorations from February, and making sure the walls and windows were cleaned of the sticky putty stuff we use to adhere things to the walls and windows.

Once the calendar squares were finished, Sam and Drew put them into the correct slots on the calendar.  We're ready for a busy month!

💔💔💔

We received sad news this week.  Sam's grandmother, Coach Teri's mom, and our AoA friend and supporter, Nina, passed away on March 2.  Nina was 89 years old and lived in Arizona.  Sam and his family visited with her during January, after she had taken a fall and broke her hip.  We sent her cheer cards and hoped she would recover, but Coach Teri says she died truly from a broken heart.  She lost her beloved husband in 2017, and missed him so very much.  

We will miss Nina!  She was a big fan of our program, all of us, and our blog posts, which she read each week!  We were the recipients of Nina's generosity, as she often gifted us things like gift cards for pizza or Frosties, mixing bowls, and most recently, an updated color printer last Christmas.  The first gift she gave us, and one that we use ALL the time, was our oven, in 2017, which we named The Nina, and still fondly refer to it by that name every time we use it!  

To Sam and Coach Teri, and their entire family,  we send our deepest condolences on your loss.  We will miss oppportunities to send cards to Nina, and to hear about her antics with her friends at the retirement home, The Ranch.  She was quite a character, and she had a life well-lived.  May she rest in peace, and may your memories bring you comfort. 

The last time Nina visited Virginia, and us, was during the holidays in 2019.  She joined us for sloppy joes and holiday fun.  Today, we wrote sympathy cards for Sam's family, and we also sent one to his Uncle Jay in Arizona.

Thursday, March 6

It was a relatively laid back day for us today as we slowed down a bit and enjoyed hanging out with each other.  After our dance warm up, we checked last week's blog, took a walk outside, and spent the rest of the morning making special cards and learning about polar bears!

Shh...don't let Annmarie know that we got her birthday cards made today.  She's going to love getting them tomorrow!

Shh...don't tell Moose Patti she'll soon receive this thank you card for the delicious king cake she sent us!

Last Thursday was National Polar Bear Day, but we didn't get a chance to "celebrate" with our busy schedule.  They are fun animals to learn about, so we enjoyed a lesson today.  We learned many things, including that their fur is transparent, and only looks white because it reflects light.  Beneath the fur, a polar bear's skin is black, which is great for absorbing heat from the sun.  When grown, they also have about 4 1/2 inches of blubber, which keeps them warm in the Arctic climate!  After learning so many facts, we made a polar bear craft, which was a great opportunity for us to follow directions.  We did an excellent job!

After lunch, we listened to our read-aloud, The Wild Robot, and played card games.  We recently got several new card games, and we are having fun as we learn to play them.

Thomas, Kate, and Devin learned the Pizza Party game.

Laura and Annmarie love to play Go Fish with each other, but today they played with Sam and Michelle.

Carol worked with Alexis, Bryan, and Erik to learn a new game called Garbage Monsters.

Over at Nan's table, a lively game of War was taking place between Abraham, Drew, and Kevin.

Lisa worked with Cameron, Patrick, and Liz to learn the game of Spoons.  It's a little tricky for us!

Friday, March 7

Once again, we delighted in a day of work balanced with a celebration!  Today, it was working at Pet Supplies Plus and cleaning at the center first, then a birthday party for Annmarie!

There is always a lot to stock when we work at PSP after a delivery.  Today was one of those days, and we worked efficiently and attentively to stock plenty of supplies for the pets in our community!

We were doubly lucky today to get to work with both Roxanne and Scott.  They are great job coaches and friends, and we appreciate the opportunity to work for them.  We want to thank them for the donation of a large bag of birdseed, too!!  Also, Happy Birthday to Annmarie!! 

Back at the center we were busy working on thank you cards for the families of Drew and Annmarie, who began and ended our week with wonderful birthday lunch parties for their amazing kids!  We are beyond blessed by our loving AoA families. 🙏💗

We also put some elbow grease into cleaning the microwave, The Nina, our yoga mats, and the tables, too!  

After that workout, we took it easy with a hallway walk!

We got ready for Annmarie's party, too!

Aww!  Isn't this a precious picture of Andy and Teresa with their sweet birthday girl?  Annmarie celebrates her 29th birthday on Saturday!!

Thank you, Andy and Teresa, for treating us to a lunch of fried chicken and "fixings" today.  (Can someone say mac and cheese?!)  It was delicious!  We are blessed by your friendship and generosity.  

Annmarie and her bestie, Laura, holding the fried chicken from Publix, which we heartily endorse as excellent!

We hope all your wishes come true, Annmarie!!

We have an update on Tessa's road to recovery.  This week, she stood for a little longer, and also made a pivot (slight turn) as she moved toward her wheelchair under the loving guidance of her stepfather, Chris.  We are so happy to see you on your feet, Tessa, and we send you lots of positive juju to keep getting stronger!  Your beautiful smile makes our hearts smile!  We miss you!

WOW, what a wonderful week we had.  We're so thankful for our many blessings.  💞

Next week will be here before we know it, especially since it's the weekend we have to "spring forward" and give up an hour!  Here's a look at our plans for next week, when we will mark the 9th anniversary of the Arc of Abilities!

Tuesday:  Today we are traveling to The Mariners' Museum where Wisteria and her team have something different planned for us:  we're going to serve as a "focus" group to help them with some planning ideas.  We appreciate being asked to provide feedback for their mission!  The weather forecast is calling for a sunny and mild day, so we will plan to have lunch at the park and then explore the Noland Trail for signs of spring.  Please bring a bagged lunch.  Arc shirts optional.

Wednesday:  We'll begin the day volunteering at GCOC, so please wear Arc shirts today.  The group that remains at the center will be busy preparing for tomorrow's luncheon with Mike...and our Arc of Abilities anniversary celebration!  We will also welcome Girl Scout Haley and her sister/assistant Jordan to lead us in a Girl Scout cookie taste test as we celebrate National Girl Scout Day!  That's going to be fun and tasty!  Lunch on your own.  JRES Cafeteria is offering some more new choices:  Asian Chicken with Rice or BBQ Flatbread.  😋

Thursday:  It will be festive today as we welcome Mike from the Watermen's Museum for a lesson and celebration of St. Patrick's Day (yes, he promises music!), and a chance to show our appreciation for his support of our program with a luncheon of Chicken and Pasta Caesar Salad, Lime Jell-O, and Blarney Stone Cookies.  Wear your St. Patrick's Day colors!  We will also be celebrating the Arc of Abilities 9th Anniversary, which is March 16th.  We'll reminisce with "memory lane blog checks" as we share our favorite memories, dance to our top song picks, and play favorite games, including the first Disney song trivia we ever played!  

Friday:  It's back to business today as we travel to Eaton for a work day, so please wear Eaton shirts and bring a bagged lunch.  We'll keep an eye on the weather for a possible picnic and walk/play at the park.  If the weather doesn't cooperate, we'll return to AFCC for yoga with Jaime.  We'll know more about our plans by Thursday!

Don't forget Daylight Saving Time begins this week, so set your clocks ahead on Sunday...we don't want you to be late on Tuesday!! 

Make the most of the shorter weekend!

Lisa, Carol, Nan, and the AoA Gang

Beautiful Four Day Week

We were back at full speed this week with no snow, ice, or other inclement weather in sight!  The weather was gorgeous and allowed us to enjoy being outdoors for the first time in a while.  We began the week at Jamestown Settlement where our friends Jay and Lara were excellent guides and storytellers.  On Wednesday we volunteered at Grove and on Thursday we welcomed a new member to the Parks & Rec team with a luncheon that also celebrated National Chili Day.  We wrapped up our great week with an Eaton work day on Friday and a surprise visit from Pam.  It's nice to be on the move again!

Tuesday, February 25

By the time we arrived at Jamestown Settlement the sun was shining brightly and we were happy to see our friends and guides, Jay and Lara.  They began today's lesson with a segment called "Heroes and Villains."  They gave us the scoop on John Smith, who contributed to the success of the Jamestown colony in many ways, but who was also something of a "villain" because his methods weren't always "nice."  😕  We also learned about Opechancanough, Chief Powhatan's brother who took over after Powhatan's death, and was beloved by his tribe for his efforts to stop the advancement of the Europeans (which was largely unsuccessful).

Another hero we learned about was Queen Nzinga from what is present-day Angola.  She literally led her people into combat (check out her battle axe) to defend against Portuguese slave traders.

Before heading outside, Jay and Lara pointed out the Virginia artists on display for Black History Month, and they include our very own, Steve Prince, Xavier's stepfather!  A couple of his prints are featured, which makes Xavier (and us) very proud! 👐

This print depicts James Baldwin, a prominent figure in the civil rights movement.  It's called Ubuntu:  Baldwin's House.  Ubuntu being a concept from an African proverb and meaning related to the idea of community and mutual support.

After we made our way outside, we stopped to meet a muskeeter named Fred who taught us how muskets were used by the colonists.  One thing we learned was that a fired musket ball had about twice the range of a shot arrow.

Next, Jay and Lara stopped to explain the use of armor as protection, and of course, we had a few models!  

In the governor's house we met a surgeon, and Lara explained that he would have attended medical school in England.  When we were surprised that there were medical schools back then, she added that medical schools had been around since ancient Greece!

The only ship at the dock today was the Godspeed as the Susan Constant and Discovery are away for repair.  Something cool we learned about the ships is that their colors and/or color patterns were different from each other so the ships would be easily recognized when they were docked at bigger ports, such as London.

Our wonderful tour with Jay and Lara ended in the Powhatan Village where we learned about making a dugout canoe from a tree trunk, using fire and oyster shells (for scraping and scooping).  We also sat on deer pelt covered benches in a yehakin, which is what the Powhatan called their house.  We learned that the Powhatan spent most of their time working outside of the yehakin, though!

Thank you, Jay and Lara, for this interesting and educational visit.  We enjoy the stories you share, and learning new things each visit we spend with you.   

We were pleased with the amount of walking we did outside at Jamestown on this gorgeous day!

Lunch was enjoyed at Jamestown Beach along with some leisure time before we returned to the center to call it a perfect day!

Wednesday, February 26

Today was a productive day as we spent it working at the library, vounteering at GCOC, and preparing for tomorrow's luncheon.  We like being busy!

Our library helpers are proud of their shelving abilities.  Laura is showing the guide letter "I."  She places books on the floor by the first letter of the author's last name  Lexi, Liz, and Emma alphabetize the books within each letter and place them on the shelves in order.  We appreciate Mr. Nonnemacher and Ms. Ortega for trusting us with this task that requires attention to detail!

At GCOC today, the group helped unload the truck and set up the assembly line.  Next, they worked with Peggy, Joel, Tom, and Thom to fill the distribution bags.  It was a great workout, and another task that requires attention to detail!  We missed Ursula, who was traveling to New Jersey to visit family.

Peggy warmed our hearts with a treat of homemade chocolate chip cookies which we took back to share with our friends who were working at the center.  Thank you for your thoughtfulness, Peggy.  The cookies were quite delicious and hit the spot after lunch!

This group held down the fort at the center and worked on preparing  decorations for tomorrow's luncheon.  We are hosting Tracy and her new supervisor, Conor.  We'll be meeting Conor for the first time and welcoming him to the Arc/Parks & Rec partnership.  Great job, guys!

Check out the bulb pot we planted with the master gardeners last October.  We have enjoyed the colorful pansies all winter, but now the bulbs have started to grow.  We're expecting tulips, daffodils, and hyacinths!  Can't wait for their bursts of color...and also to begin working the the MGs again in April!

A highlight today was learning about pistachios as we celebrated National Pistachio Day!  We learned that pistachios are actually the seeds of the pistachio tree, but we all call them "nuts."  The shell grows inside of a pinkish and green outer covering, like a soft husk.  As the nut grows, the shell cracks open.  (The outer husk/covering is removed during harvesting.)

This machine shakes the trees, helping to release the 10,000 or so pistachios that grow on each one.  Believe it or not, the United States (specifically, California) is the world's largest producer and exporter of pistachios...about 61% of the world's total.  Wow! 😮

Today's brain work consisted of each group reading a fact sheet on pistachios which included a recipe for making pistachio pudding in a plastic sandwich bag...which we did!

To make the pudding we had to shell a few pistachios, put them in a plastic bag, and crush them gently using our water bottles.

 

The next step was to mix 2 tablespoons of pistachio pudding mix (instant) with 1/2 cup of milk in another bag.  Shaking the bag was fun!

The final step was to cut the tip off the plastic bag and squirt the pudding into small cups, top with the crushed pistachios, and enjoy!  We also sampled whole pistachios.  What a fun and tasty day!

Thursday, February 27

This morning was spent dancing, cooking, talking about our pets, and playing cornhole.  Doesn't get much better than that!

After the dance warm up, we prepared to celebrate National Chili Day.  Kevin and Xavier mixed beans, tomatoes, and spices while Bryan browned the onions.

Erik and Sam encouraged Drew in his meat-browning skills!

Pat, Liz, Nan, and Michelle made sure we had a colorful veggie tray, while Thomas and Emma whipped up chocolate cookies for dessert.  Lexi, Laura, and Kate prepped soup spoons and napkins which they wrapped in napkin rings that said "WELCOME."  We had a new friend joining us for lunch...

We always have plenty of taste-testers!

While the chili simmered and the cookies baked, we took advantage of the warm weather to have our movement outside with a game of cornhole.  Everyone had fun, but the boys won today!

These friends brought photos of their pets to share with us in a belated celebration of Love Your Pet Day, which was last Thursday when we were having a snow day.  This is a favorite activity we do every year!  🐈🐕

We'd like to introduce everyone to Conor Dibble, who is working for Parks & Rec now as Operations Manager for Community Recreation.  Tracy and Katrina brought him to meet us today and join in our celebration of National Chili Day.  He said he enjoyed lunch very much!!

Welcome to the Parks & Rec team and the Arc team, Conor!  We look forward to working with you.  Thanks in advance for your support of us!

Friday, February 28

Well, February is behind us.  Wow, that was quick!  Our Friday seemed to pass by quickly, too.  We worked at Eaton, had time to take a walk at New Quarter Park, enjoyed cookies with Pam to end her "birthday week," relaxed with yoga, and got an update from Devin who was in Florida.  It was a really good day!

There was a lot of unpacking at Eaton today, and moving parts from large containers to smaller ones

Something for everyone!

Our teamwork skills always shine at Eaton!

We share the work space in this room with Ereka, who always takes time to chat with us and catch up.  Today, Ereka was touched by the beautiful drawings Emma gave her to brighten the wall space above her work area!

Time for a quick group shot before our brisk walk at New Quarter Park.  We had to return to AFCC for lunch because the bathrooms at the picnic area were closed and we didn't wish to use the porta-potties!  😆😲

Pam stopped by to meet with Lisa, Carol, and Nan, and also to thank us for the birthday cards we sent earlier this week.  She brought us a sweet treat, too!  Thanks, Pam.  We hope all your wishes come true.  It's always a pleasure to see you!

While the staff meeting took place, we relaxed with a yoga session from our online instructor, Jaime.  Thanks, Liz, for taking a couple of shots for the blog!

Our friend Devin was here on Tuesday, then he and his dad headed to Tampa for spring training camp with the Phillies.  Scott sent us a few pics, and it's clear that Devin was having a great time.  A highlight for him was getting the autograph of 3rd baseman, #82, Otto Kemp!  WOW!  We missed you Dev, but we're so happy for you to have this experience!  Thanks for the pictures, Scott!

What a great week for all of us!  Last week, we thought the groundhog's prediction for 6 more weeks of winter was true, but this week, we're doubting him because it felt like early spring to us! 

 Next week looks a little cooler, with the possibility of some rain, but we won't let that hamper our plans as we kick off Spring (almost) Birthday Season with celebrations for Drew and Annmarie!  Here's a look at our plans for the first week of March:

Tuesday:  We have A LOT to celebrate (and be grateful for) today!  We're going bowling and celebrating Drew's birthday with a pizza party for lunch! 🥳🍕 Thank you, Andy and Donna for providing our lunch today ,and for sharing Drew with us all these years!  We'll take a short break after Drew's party before switching gears to celebrate Mardi Gras!  Our beloved friend, Moose Patti, has provided us a king cake again this year, all the way from none other than New Orleans!  We'll learn about Mardi Gras, make masks, and dance away the calories with some upbeat jazz music.  Thank you, Moose Patti, and your dad in New Orleans, for treating us to an authentic king cake.  We just love this tradition!!  Feel free to wear Mardi Gras colors today - purple, gold, and green.  

Wednesday:  Today we will volunteer at Grove, so please wear Arc shirts.  We will also update our calendar and room decorations for March, and make up our bug/symmetry lesson that we didn't get to last week.  Lunch on your own.  JRES Cafeteria is offering something we've not seen on the menu before:  Chicken and Waffles!  Or, you can choose Yogurt Combo.  😏

Thursday:  It will be kind of low key today as we spend time this morning making birthday cards for Annmarie, and having a lesson about Polar Bears since we missed Polar Bear Day last week.  We'll play card games after lunch, and continue our read aloud, The Wild Robot.  Lunch on your own.  JRES Cafeteria is serving Domino's Pizza, Meatball Sub, or Chef Salad.

Friday:  It's another day for us to be thankful for what we get to celebrate - Annmarie's birthday!  Her family is treating us to fried chicken and fixings for lunch!  Thank you, Andy and Teresa, for this special treat that has become a favorite tradition.  We know how much Annmarie loves her fried chicken!  BUT, before the celebrating, we will be working at Pet Supplies Plus, so please wear PSP shirts today.  The group that stays at AFCC will clean, organize, and get the room ready for the birthday party!  We'll end the week with yoga, too.

Enjoy the weekend,

Lisa, Carol, Nan, and the AoA Gang