Happy Birthday, Bryan!

Just as we expected, it was a warm week and we were feeling summer vibes!  Luckily, it wasn't as humid as it will get, but we definitely felt the warmth as we worked with the master gardeners, visited with the therapy dogs, hung out with our WUMC friends, worked at PSP, and celebrated Bryan's 30th birthday!  We also visited the Board of Supervisors for a thank you presentation, and a surprise for Lisa... Here's a look at our week:

Tuesday

We began our spring sessions with the master gardeners on what felt like a summer morning.  It was a perfect day to kick off our time as April 14 is National Gardening Day!  The sun was out and so were the bees and butterflies, and it was great to reconnect with our MG friends.  We even met some new ones!

Our first task was to clear the beds of the winter growth.  We put on gloves and starting pulling everything up except the potatoes and herbs.  Pretty soon, the compost wagon was full!

Later, Erik and Kevin accompanied Rick to the compost bin to empty the wagon.

Patrick, Erik, and Devin helped Karen tidy up the Fairy Garden with fresh soil and a few new knick knacks, while Karen's husband, Steve, hung our "Happy Gardening Day" banner.

Once the beds were cleared and new soil added, we planted lettuce, collard, and kale plants, and carrot, arugula, and beet seeds.  There might be a tasty salad in our future!

Thank you MGs for a great start to the spring sessions!  We really appreciate everything you teach us, and the wonderful friendship, too.  Happy National Gardening Day!

We ate our lunch while still at the garden and then we had a surprise.

We did not realize that today was Free Scoop Day at Ben & Jerry's!  Thanks to Laura's mom, Lisa P., for letting us know.  Since we were at Freedom Park, and Ben & Jerry's is at the outlet mall, it only made sense for us to stop by for a scoop on this summer-like afternoon!  Thanks, Ben & Jerry's!

One of the gentlemen working at Ben & Jerry's recognized several of us from the Night to Shine event!  Ben & Jerry's was serving ice cream that night. 

 We love a sweet ending to a great day!

After hours on Tuesday found a number of our families joining us at the James City County Board of Supervisors meeting.  We were there to thank them for their support of The Arc of Greater Williamsburg and the Arc of Abilities for 10 amazing years at AFCC.  Many thanks to our families for their support tonight!

Devin opened the meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance and did an excellent job.  Here, he was meeting Ruth Larson, who represents his district on the Board of Supervisors.

We stood on the stage with our posters and banner, and Annmarie passed out cards to each supervisor, but it was hectic and our photos aren't great!  (Sorry to have cut off Board Chair, John McGlennon.)

After our thank you presentation, Lisa was also surprised, and touched, when she was given a Community Citation presented by Chair John McGlennon to honor her 42 years of service in education and the nonprofit sector.  Lisa says thank you to Pam and everyone involved in coordinating such an honor.  It was a very special moment!

Wednesday

Today began with the news that Nan, who thought she was battling the flu, was actually developing AFib and had been hospitalized overnight.  She immediately began responding to treatment, and is home now and itching to get back to us for her last couple of weeks.  We'll see, Nan...we'll see!  Nan sends a heartfelt thanks to everyone for their prayers and good wishes, which made a difference!💗

📣📣Shout out to Carol and all of the gang, including Allison and Kasey, for keeping things rolling along today while Lisa and Alexis were with Nan. 📣📣

First, look at this week's flower arrangements.  There wasn't a large donation of flowers this week, but they still look beautiful.  Allison is a miracle worker, and we appreciate her for working on them today so we could enjoy time with the therapy dogs!

As always, we had a great visit with our therapy dog friends!  Today we read books about nature and Earth Day during our reading rotations.

Our dog handler friends and Carol planned a surprise to say good-bye to Lisa, not knowing she would not be able to be here today.  They brought cookies and lemonade, and Kent played his guitar while Carol sang.  

We were able to FaceTime with Lisa who was at the hospital with Nan so they could see everyone and hear our singing.  Lisa would like to thank our therapy dog friends for their thoughtful gifts of a plant and book, and their best wishes on her upcoming retirement.  She was sorry to miss it in person, but is thankful for the FaceTime opportunity (Thanks, Liz). 💖

Our next joyful event for today was celebrating Bryan's 30th birthday!  His parents provided us with an amazing taco bar, including homemade guacamole, and delicious key lime pie for dessert. 

Thank you very much, Dave and Karen, for a wonderful celebration for Bryan's "Big 3-0" celebration!  The tacos really hit the spot and the key lime pie was tasty and refreshing!

Happy Birthday, Bryan! We hope all your wishes come true!

Everyone enjoyed a game of birthday corn hole!  What a fun time celebrating Bryan!

Thursday

It was hard to believe it had been a month already since we had a great time with our Williamsburg United Methodist Church Women's Circle friends, but here we were again.  And what a blast we had with today's science themed activities!

Stations were set up for demonstrations, experiments, hands-on activities, and sensory time.

We enjoyed making a sensory bottle and planting herbs in small pots!  What fun to get to take them home, too!

 

Thank you, Gayle, Jeannie, Lynn, Nella, Ann, Linda, and Linda!  (Yes, two Lindas!)  We really enjoyed the science stations with you today!  We appreciate all the supplies you provided so we could make take home projects.  We learned a few things, too!

After we returned to the center, Lisa left to spend time with Nan at the hospital and we enjoyed lunch and Choice Time.  Kasey joined us for the afternoon for our read-aloud time and Titanic lesson, but we didn't get any more photos.  We also had a visit from a local reporter who saw us at the Board of Supervisors meeting and wanted to check us out!  Not sure what may come of that, but we'll keep you posted!

Friday

We had a busy morning!  The PSP Crew did their thing at the pet store, and the Cooking Crew did theirs at the center!  

There is usually a lot of product to place on the shelves at Pet Supplies Plus.  Our team must pay attention to details for this job!

Kate and Liz stocked the shelves with food treats.

           Sara stocked pet toys.

Looks like Erik and Thomas were taking care of health supplies.

Bryan worked with Roxanne to pack individual pet food bags for animal shelters.

🎝 Take me out to the ball game! 🎝 Pet Supplies Plus has plenty of baseball clothes and toys for your furry friends!  Great job, PSP Crew!  Thanks, Roxanne, for working with us on vocational training today!

Meanwhile, back at lunch central...

Lexi called Nan on FaceTime and we were all smiles to say "hi" and find out that she was coming home today!  She's doing very well and hopes to be back next week...she's motivated to see us! 😉

You're a tough one, Nan!  We have missed you but have sent lots of love and prayers.  So glad you are feeling better and coming home today! 💖💖💖

After the FaceTime call, we started lunch preps.  Everyone on the cooking crew did more than one job today, but these are the pics we got.  Xavier unwrapped and sorted silverware from packets that were recently donated.  Tessa and Devin washed apples and blueberries.  Gail peeled Cuties, Laura and Annmarie baked cookie bars, and Lexi put soft butter on the bread for our grilled cheese sandwiches.  Earlier, Gail had also helped prepare the cheeseball for National Cheeseball Day!

Kevin and Devin went to the JRES Cafeteria to get ice, and Lexi took their picture.  Abraham cut the cookie bars into serving pieces, and Annmarie was busy making runs to the fridge to bring us various items, including strawberries.

Some of us colored decorative pictures and others did brain work in between other tasks.

The room smelled great when the PSP Crew returned.  Our cheeseball, crackers, blueberry grilled cheese sandwiches, and cookie bars were very good, too!

After lunch we had Choice Time and relaxed with a yoga segment with Jaime.  Lisa and Lexi left to bring Nan home, and took the camera, so no more pics today...but if you close your eyes and think "Namaste" you can probably picture us stretched out on the yoga mats!  A calm ending to another busy week!  

Here's what we have planned for next week:

Tuesday:  We are going to visit Christina this morning at The Art Museums of Colonial Williamsburg.  The forecast looks nearly perfect (very spring-like) for a walk after our visit and lunch at the park, so please bring a bagged lunch.  We're celebrating National Exercise Day which we missed since it was on Saturday this year! 

Wednesday:  It's Service Work Wednesday, so please wear Arc shirts.  We'll work in the JRES Library, volunteer at Grove, and arrange flowers for CSL.  Marisol and the corgis are coming for a bonus therapy dog visit, too.  We're also celebrating Kate's birthday today!  Sandra is providing her specialty Colombian pork and garlic rice for lunch, and we'll also have Wicked cupcakes!  Kate has requested a dance party so we'll even burn off a few calories!

Thursday:  It looks like another pretty day so we are planning to head to Yorktown for our first visit of the season.  We'll ride the trolley, walk/explore, play corn hole, and celebrate National Picnic Day, so please bring a bagged lunch.

Friday:  It's an Eaton Work Day, so please wear Eaton shirts.  We'll return to the center for lunch on your own.  JRES Cafeteria is offering Corn Dog Nuggets or "Special" of the Day.  After Choice Time we'll end the week with a lesson about Arbor Day and a game of Musical Chairs/Hallway Jammin' Walk.

Enjoy the weekend,

Lisa, Carol, Nan, and the AoA Gang