June update

 

June was a massive month for me, and I did so much! The highlight was definitely my day trip to Rotorua. I went for a hikoi in the Redwoods, which felt a bit long, but I absolutely loved playing Lumberjack mini golf at Motion Entertainment with my friends afterwards. I also went to Fairy Village day at the Historical Village. It was super hectic with so many people in costumes, so I was really relieved when it was time to sit down for lunch. If you ever visit, you should definitely check out the latest fairy garden there. Another big moment was my Individual Personal Plan meeting. I told the staff I was nervous, but with Aunty Jolene there to support me, I got through it. I chose all my goals and I am really looking forward to the next 12 months at Arohanui.

I have also been spending a lot of time in the kitchen and feel like my confidence is growing. I helped peel apples for an apple crumble, prepared carrots and celery for a veggie soup, and measured out butter and sugar for a chocolate self-saucing pudding. I even helped make a chocolate fudge slice to give to our friends at the Wilrose Centre to thank them for giving plants to our seedling library. When I wasn't cooking, I was working hard in the Rebuilders Club. We have been revamping our sensory door, which needs a lot of TLC. It is hard work using a heat gun to strip away the old paint and cleaning it all up off the floor, but someone has to do it.

Thursday mornings are my absolute favourite because of iDance. I always tell everyone how excited I am when I arrive, and I love trying to push myself to dance a little bit longer than the week before. One week the plans changed to a Cultural session instead, which upset me at first. However, I came around to the idea and ended up loving it! I got to help run the session about Matariki, and we made premade stars that will be displayed in the studio. To finish off the month, we had some great discussions about building healthy relationships in personal empowerment. My favourite session was learning how to understand and communicate with my non-verbal friends. We all shared our different laughs so we could identify them, and it turned into a hilarious and engaging session.