Sloan's World

It is that time of year again! And this year marks Sloan and Wendy's 16th Halloween together! It is our big event of the year, and we always have a great time. This year is our second year including Janie in the fun! We didn't think we could top last year's Barack and Michelle Obama, but this year, Sloan and Janie were the lovely Ogres Shrek and Fiona. They were a big hit at their Reality Ministries TNL costume party Tuesday night, and on Halloween they went to a neighborhood party and then sat in front of the house to hand out treats to the kids in the hood. They both opted out of the green make-up for Halloween night, but they still pulled it off well. Here is a list of all 16 costumes so far (I have to do some more digging to find all the pictures!): 2009- Shrek, with Janie as Fiona 2008- Barack Obama, with Janie as Michelle 2007- Pac Man 2006- Harry Potter 2005- Jack Skellington from Nightmare Before Christmas 2004- King Arthur 2003- Julius Caesar- Won first prize at U

On Sunday, Sloan was in Asheville, NC with all of his family to witness the wedding of his mother Suzanne to his new stepdad Random. It was a very joyous event, with all the family, many friends, a massive amount of food, and in a spectacular home nestled into the Blue Ridge mountains with views all the way around of the autumn color show at its peak. Sloan had such a good time visiting with everyone, he loved the spontaneous sing-alongs, and enjoyed the good food. Sloan had some responsibilities during the weekend though. On Saturday, it was his job to pick his Aunt Maxine up at the airport. He and Wendy had a blast putting together the music list from everyone's favorite songs they sent in. Sloan had also been working for months on his own arrangement of the wedding march on Wii Music. He chose all the instruments and practiced until he played them flawlessly so we could get a good recording. His mom walked down the staircase to the ceremony to his song! Kelly, an old friend of

Instead of Sloan and Janie's regularly scheduled Physical Therapy with Chip on Wednesday afternoon, they had their second annual "Fairapy" session with Chip at the State Fair! Sloan, Janie, Chip, Jen, Danicia and Wendy all were in attendance. You name it, they did it! Games! Janie and Sloan each won a ton of stuffed animals playing games. The weight and age guy wowed us all by guessing Sloan's age exactly right. However, he was not able to guess at all that Wendy and Janie were both born in April. Rides! Everyone rode the Ferris Wheel, and loved it! Sloan then rode the Tilt-A-Whirl with Jen and Danicia, and the Haunted House (twice). He is still an adrenalin junkie. Food! Funnel Cakes (Sloan's favorite), Corn Dogs, onion rings, Caramel apples, and to top it off- Fried Oreos!!! (They are as good and dangerous as they sound.:-) It was a great experience for all, and everyone at the fair was very helpful to us. Thanks so much to Chip for changing his schedule so h

That was definitely the theme of Sloan's last week. It all started with us figuring out a new microphone stand for Sloan and his Wii. He has wanted to play Guitar Hero everyday since. The singing is really helping him strengthen his voice up, and he is consistently getting over 50% accuracy. Rock on Sloan!! Sloan even had a chance to participate in a Guitar Hero competition at the Reality Center for their Chick 'N Chill. (An event hosted by Reality Ministries for students in Durham schools on their early release days. It was awesome! Sloan mingled with over 250 students.) Sloan didn't win, so that may also be why he is wanting to practice so much, but he had a great time listening to the students who made the top. Those kids are awesome!!! And no rock 'n roll experience is complete without staying out all night at a club listening to a rock show! That is exactly what Sloan did on Saturday. His friend Jen invited him and Wendy to a show at the very cool Cat's Cradle

Last week was a fun week of learning and culture for Sloan. He has two new History pages on his computer to study; one about Picasso and another about Shakespeare. Sloan has enjoyed these as he does all of his history, but he was actually able to go out and learn more about these famous artists in person. (almost) The Nasher Museum at Duke had a free Community Day last Tuesday, and Sloan and Wendy went to see their Picasso: The Allure of Language special exhibit. The audio guide they had available was wonderful, and it explained a lot about Picasso's paintings and why he was important, reinforcing what Sloan was already learning on his computer. Sloan and Noah took a trip to the Museum of Life and Science on Wednesday. After learning, there is nothing better than a ride on the train and a good scream in the tunnel! Sloan and Jen went out for barbecue at the Q-Shack, and listened to some live Bluegrass music Wednesday evening. They wrapped up their night with some yummy f

On Friday night, Sloan had another Dude Night! Adam and David came over for loads of fun; eating pizza, snacks and playing the Wii. David is good at Wii boxing, and Adam is "right on the money" with Guitar Hero. Ewan wasn't able to make it this time, and he was very missed. The next Dude Night will be Friday, November 13th. Saturday was for the Ladies. Janie and Amy came over to hang out. Last week was Amy's nineteenth birthday, but she was out of town, so Sloan wanted to do a little party for her. There was a lot of singing involved; High School Musical on the Wii (Janie rocked it!), and of course, Happy Birthday. Sloan had a great time both nights and laughed and talked a lot!

Sloan is a member of a self-advocates group called Common Ground . It is sponsored by the Arc of Durham County. Common Ground meets twice a month for business meetings where Sloan and other self-advocates discuss issues that are important to them, where they can listen to guest speakers, and learn how to be stronger self-advocates. Common Ground also sponsors several social events during the month including a dance (which Janie and Sloan attend frequently), a pizza and game night, and a dinner and movie night. Sloan loves attending all the meetings, and has made a lot of new friends in the group. He especially likes going out to dinner with his friends after the meetings! On October 24th, 2009, Common Ground will be having their own fundraiser to support the good things they do throughout the year, and Sloan is pitching in to help. The Fundraiser is a huge event, coordinated by Sloan's friend Sharon Youse who has put in a tremendous amount of work organizing the fundraiser and who