Rambling and Roadtrips

Good morning everyone,

I have a few minutes before church and thought I'd blog since the rest of the day is filled as well.

Here's a pic of Ryan and his Best Buddy, Sam, at the Halloween Dance Friday evening. Ryan was a surgeon and Sam was Indiana Jones. They had a great time. A shout out to Student Council for Exceptional Children and Best Buddies.

Ryan and I actually spent Saturday at home! What a concept, right? Like any other person living in this neck of the woods I tend to get a little manic, living outdoors as much as I can before winter is here. Not that I'm a total houseplant in winter but we don't take all the roadtrips we do in the summer. Fall is such a great time to head out and see the countryside. We love our roadtrips.

Here's a shot from our most recent roadtrip down along the Mississippi River. We stopped at the Nelson Cheese factory and had lunch. All of this time in the community helps Ryan. It gets him out to talk to people, practice ordering food, even figuring out where the line is and how to wait in it becomes a lesson in living.

At the cheese factory you wait in line to place your order. You pay for it and then wait until they call your name OR if you're going to sit in the eating area or on the patio you let them know and they bring it out in a basket. Since eating outside is rarely an option for Ryan we chose the little bistro area. The chairs aren't the best for people with gait issues and coordination issues but with a little care and attention they're fine.

Ryan's adult services plan have allowed us to take advantage of the community more through these roadtrips. We actually crossed the Mississippi after lunch and headed down to Winona where we could view the channel and some barge traffic.

We forgot the FM system, however, which was a real pain in the butt. Ryan hears the best, especially while traveling, when he wears it. Not only that, but it's Soooooooooo much safer for us, since I don't have to try to sign or turn so he can read my lips if he can't hear me.

I hate it when I forget to bring equipment. It's annoying. At any rate, we had an amazing road trip.

I suppose I'd better get my butt in gear. Church starts in half an hour. We only live a couple of blocks away but I like to get my usual spot, you know. We're all such creatures of habit, aren't we?

Take care and we'll talk soon.
Much love and joy,
Karen