Angel's Birthday Party

I did not realize how long it was since I last posted until I saw that the blogger website format was not even the same when I logged in. I guess Robb and I have both been pretty busy. Between school, hiking, team-up-for-one, athletes-serving-athletes, KEEN, bowling, track and Horseback riding, my only solid time with Robb is hanging out on the weekends or during Special Olympics practice. That's why when Angel, Robb's prom date and a fellow Autism on the Seas traveler, invited all of us to her Birthday party, it seemed like a great opportunity to not only celebrate her birthday, but also to spend some quality time together.
So, Robb along with my younger brother, my mom, and me all got dressed up and packed into the car on Saturday afternoon to head over to the Birthday extravaganza! At the party, not only the faculty at Robb's school but also staff from Autism on the Seas were all in attendance, and the familiar faces, along with the bags of chips and fruit-cups on the table, made Robb as surprised and excited as Angel about the party. Robb immediately charged to the front with all of us close behind to get the prime spot in front of the DJ, and throughout the event, so many people came up and talked to him that I had not even known beforehand I felt like I was with a celebrity.
The event was a reminder to me about the closeness of our community. It does not really matter how long you have known people or how well you know them or even if you have just meet them because you are in on the secret: to know people with intellectual disabilities is a privilege and so often, it is in the special needs community that we all find the most joy.