Relocation Week 1 is in the books and it was a good one! It helped that we had the Juneteenth holiday on Thursday, and were out and about on the other days. We enjoyed a visit to The Mariners' Museum on Tuesday, and Freedom Park for a walk with our therapy dog friends on Wednesday. On Friday. a group worked at Pet Supplies Plus, so we didn't have too many in the room that morning. Friday afternoon was spent with Tracy and Janice, a new to us Parks & Rec friend, in the gym for :Longest Day of Play" activities. It seemed as if the week flew by!
Tuesday, June 17
It was a drizzly morning when we headed to The Mariners' Museum. Not to see Wisteria, but on our own this time. We thought it would be fun (and cool on a warm June day) to try one of the museum's scavenger hunts. We divided into groups and spent over an hour on the search! It was fun!!
The scavenger hunt covered most of the galleries, and we found ourselves quickly finding some things because we were familiar with them from our experiences with Wisteria. Other things we really had to search for, so we learned new things, too!
Gail tries to keep her balance on a portion of netting which sailors would use to cross from one side of a 72-foot catamaran to the other side. It is made of a material stronger than steel.
Thomas got up to 86 rpms on a piece of "techno-gym" equipment in the Speed and Innovation Gallery!
Carol's group met up with Nan's group in the Exploration Gallery, and they set sail for who knows where!? (Probably a lunch spot with Devin and Sam leading the way! 😂)
One of the highlights on the hunt was getting to ring the bell on the Monitor's deck!
After completing the scavenger hunt, everyone got to pick a prize from the treasure chest! That was fun, and so was our morning at The Mariners' Museum, even if we were "on our own."
By noon the sun was trying to peek out, and it was steamy outside. We decided to forgo walking on the Noland Trail. "We walked all over the museum," said 5 people at once! Besides that, "Everyone is starving," said 10 people at once! So, we stopped at the shelter at Deer Park, where it was surprisingly pleasant, and ate lunch before heading back to the school.
We enjoyed a swig of root beer since today was National Root Beer Day. We learned that the use of the sassafras tree to flavor root beer dates back to the indigenous people of Native America who didn't make root beer as we know it today, but used it for medicinal and cooking purposes. (We were also reminded that we LOVE having a large screen, but taking pictures in front of it is kind of wonky!)
While we enjoyed the root beer, Lisa began reading the third and final book in the Wild Robot series. This one is The Wild Robot Protects and, unlike the second book with 90 chapters, this one only has 80!
We got an update from Michelle and Tessa today! Michelle is on Summer Break from her teaching position, and will spend it working with Tessa at home, and also taking her for more rigorous outpatient physical therapy. Look at how much Tessa's walking has improved just since we saw her a few weeks ago! GO, TESSA, GO! 👐
This week, Tessa began field trips with Michelle and loved being out and about in the car! She requested a visit to Pierce's for her favorite snack...fries! Yum! Her fine motor skills are much improved and she is using her thumb and pointer finger to pick things up. Her stamina is much improved, too! 👏 She'll continue to work on balance and getting stronger every day! KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK, TESSA! We love and miss you! 😘😘😘
.jpg)
Wednesday, June 19
It was quite warm and muggy yesterday, and that continued today as we seem to be getting into "real" summer. It didn't stop us from meeting some of our therapy dog friends at Freedom Park for a walk, though! Marisol, along with her corgis Tucker, Louis, and Nellie were our guides for today's walk, and they decided we would take it easy with a stroll through the garden with all of its shady paths. Check out our adventure!
At the start of our walk Carol S. and Casey posed with a few of us.
As we got closer to the garden, you can see Marisol with Tucker, Louis, and Nellie up front along with Erik and Kevin. Caroline and Pip, and Carol D. and Darby were behind them with the rest of our group.
Along the way, we met a master naturalist named Pat who was working on recreating a ravine. She enthusiastically explained that a ravine like this would have been carved out of the earth tens of thousands of years ago when glaciers covered the land. She pointed out that she had placed a Chesapecten Jeffersonian fossil here. It's from an extinct form of scallop. Pat said these particular types of fossils can be found all around our area, in places like Jamestown and York River State Park. Later, we found out that it is also Virginia's state fossil.
We had an opportunity to share with our therapy dog friends that we work in the Therapeutic Garden with our master gardener friends! We showed them the herbs, fruits, and veggies we are growing, including the potatoes, shown here with Xavier, Thomas, and Gail. They seem to be dying back a little, so they may soon be ready for harvesting! We'll see the MGs next week for an update.
We also checked the button bush tree that MG Rick showed us on our tree walk recently. He said it would have white, fragrant blooms soon, and we saw them today! They were very fragrant, and we noticed a lot of bees on them.
We continued our walk with Marisol and the others, noticing all kinds of interesting things. The dogs were a little bit curious, but mostly they seemed to just enjoy walking with us!
Caroline, Alexis, Lise, Laura, Pip, Liz, Darby, and Carol D
Thanks, Marisol, for being our cheerful guide today! Your spirit is infectious, and your love for the "magical" Freedom Park really shows! There is nothing like a good walk in nature to clear our minds and feed our souls!
Marisol, Abraham, Thomas, Gail, Emma, Xavier, Michelle, Erik, Devin, Sam, Patrick, Kevin (standing), Annmarie, Drew, Nan (on bench), and Louis, Nellie, and Tucker
Due to the steamy weather, we decided to return to the school and enjoy lunch in the cool cafeteria!
The next task was to arrange flowers for CSL and water the plants and feed the birds in the garden outside our AFCC window! Divide and conquer!
We have cherry tomatoes on our plant!
We made an extra arrangement and delivered it to Walt, the very helpful IT guy at James River Elementary School. Walt came to our rescue in Room 144 yesterday and taught us how to connect to the big screen with our Arc computer. Turns out it was easy-peasy...the way he explained it! He told us he will be here every day and to let him know if we need any more assistance! Thank you, Walt!
We ended the day with a lesson about the significance of Juneteenth, and why it is a federal holiday. June 19, 1865 is the anniversary of Union General Gordon Granger's arrival in Galveston, Texas to announce the freedom of enslaved Americans. It had taken over 2 years for the enforcement of President Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation to reach all areas in Confederate territory.
We learned that red foods and beverages are often served during Juneteenth celebrations to symbolize the bloodshed and sacrifices of enslaved people, and to also represent resilience and cultural heritage. We thank Lisa for baking red velvet cookies at home last night for our enjoyment after this lesson!
Thursday, June 19
Friday, June 20
The Arc of Abilities was back in session this morning. A crew stayed in Room 144 to work on thank you cards and begin prep work for a party we're having next week. Our second crew headed to PSP to see how they could help.
While we are in Room 144 we can't see when our friends arrive, so Patrick and Alexis man the front door from 8:30-9:00 to let everyone in. Thanks, Lexi and Pat!
Devin, Lexi, Patrick, Emma, Abraham, and Laura were on the center crew. (We had 5 friends absent today.) They colored big letters to use in making banners, and also small pictures to use on some thank you cards.
This crew also composed letters for the thank you cards. Here, Devin is being our editor as he proofreads one of them. Our thank you cards were for the JRES office staff and custodial team.
After finishing the cards and party preps, this crew got in a bit of corn hole practice.
Over at Pet Supplies Plus, Kevin and Xavier helped Scott feed the fish.
Liz mentored Gail and Thomas on stocking the shelves, as they are still learning the ropes at PSP. Thanks, Liz. You are a good teacher! (It helps to have great students like Gail and Thomas, too!)
Liz also taught Thomas how to "fold" towels by rolling them.
Bryan and Erik paid attention to detail as they stocked both fish and bird items.
Kevin also assisted Scott with washing down the dog bathing area. Laura assisted Scott with this task last week, but we overlooked putting her photo in, so we added it today. This was a new skill and they both did well with it!
AoA would like to showcase the beautiful and stylish clothes available at PSP for your pets. Come check them out! Scott and Roxanne, we appreciate you allowing us to work at your pet store. We have learned so many skills and love seeing all the animals. Thanks for your support, and for believing in us!
Upon arrival in the gym, we walked a few laps and then participated in a stretching session. Tracy's coworker, Janice, helped with the activity, too.
Everyone earned a prize for having fun and being active! Thank you Tracy, and Janice, for a fun ending to our week. We loved kicking off summer (officially) with you!
As we headed home for the weekend, we were thinking about the forecast for next week. The heat index is going to be over 100 degrees, so we will need to pace ourselves. Our plans have us out and about all week. Be sure to bring water bottles each day, wear sunscreen as needed (especially Tuesday), and bring your hats for outside! (We have extra sunscreen and will take our water cooler so bottles can be refilled.)
Tuesday: We'll meet our master gardener friends for a tour of the Historic Triangle Community Garden. After this, we are going to Sal's for a pre-Summer Break celebration lunch. 😉 Please bring $12 for lunch, and you will get a choice of pizza or 1/2 sub, and fries. After lunch we will return to Room 144 for choice time, read-aloud, and to make cards for Friday's honored guest!
Wednesday: This morning we will arrange flowers for CSL and volunteer at GCOC, so please wear Arc shirts. Other activities today will include a make up for American Eagle Day, and a "celebration" of National Leon Day, which always falls on June 25, six months before Christmas (hint: Leon spelled backwards is Noel)! Lunch on your own. Microwave available.
Thursday: We'll brave the heat long enough to load the vans for a trip to the Williamsburg Regional Library. We'll take a tour and enjoy a movie in their theater. The gang voted for us to watch Shrek. We'll return to Room 144 for lunch on your own. Microwave available. After lunch we will squeeze in this year's July 4th lesson, and celebrate Bomb Pop Day with a cool treat!
Friday: We are going to have a busy morning! First, we will go to Eaton for a work session, so please wear Eaton shirts. When we return to Room 144 we'll celebrate our friend JaVante who is not only having a birthday, but is preparing to move to Knoxville to attend grad school at the University of Tennessee. We are going to miss him! Lisa and Carol will prepare Chicken Pasta Caesar Salad and Jell-O with pineapple for lunch (at their homes Thursday evening). JaVante requested this "specialty" dish of ours! Oh, we have a special cake planned, too!
Reminder: The Arc of Abilities will be closed July 1-4 for Summer Break.
Enjoy the weekend,
Lisa, Carol, Nan, and the AoA Gang
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.