Parks Town Hall

Monday, August 10th:

This was Theo's last full week home before he goes back to school! And of course, it rained ALL week, so we were stuck in the house a lot.

Due to the Open Space Lands Acquisition and Development Grant (OSLAD) many City Councils and Parks Departments around the state are renovating and upgrading their public parks. They are making the parks more accessible by adding in ADA swings, merry-go-rounds, carousels, ramps, musical instruments, teeter totters, and more!

I’ve been reaching out to various Parks Departments over the last year and asked them to please include accessible bathrooms that have height adjustable, adult sized changing tables when (and if) they do renovations. A lot of the Parks Departments did respond to me, but none of them would commit to putting in height adjustable, adult sized changing tables.

I went to two Town Hall meetings in Minooka this last year where two local parks were discussed. The first one that is going to be renovated is the Lion’s Park. I am so excited about this because it’s literally down the street from our house. I talked to the Minooka Village Board members and they seemed interested, but hesitant about the changing table idea. 

On Monday I went to another Town Hall meeting with my friend Shannon and her daughter who are also disability advocates. They showed us plans for a brand new park in Minooka. I again talked to the Minooka Village Board members about including accessible bathrooms that have height adjustable, adult size changing tables. They said that they are concerned about vandalism, so they probably aren’t going to put a table in.

It sucks. It really does. We have multiple parks close to use that have accessible equipment that Theo can use, but we can’t go because there’s no bathroom for Theo to use. I only know of two parks in the entire state that have height adjustable, adult size changing tables: Hope Helps All Inclusive Playground in Coal City and the Tricentennial Playground in Peoria.

I’m going to continue to fight for parks to be truly accessible! Please let me know if you know of any parks that have height adjustable, adult changing tables or if there is a park being renovated by you and I'll reach out to them!

[Theo on a swing at a park in Joliet]

I wish we had more parks like the Tricentennial Playground in Peoria. It has accessible equipment, a fence, AND a height adjustable adult sized changing table.

As we were leaving the Town Hall, we saw the Fire Chief in the parking lot. It was perfect timing because we were just talking about Project Fire Buddies and how Minooka is the only town in the area without Project Fire Buddies! 

The Fire Chief was very excited about the program and we exchanged information. Hopefully we can schedule a time to meet with him soon and talk about the next steps!

Tuesday, August 11th:

Theo, Josh, and I went to Ottawa for Theo's yearly check up with his Pediatrician. While we were there the tornado sirens went off and Josh was worried about a giant tree falling on the van, but we were all fine! We caught up with Dr Davé and our favorite APN Pahroul. They signed Theo's paperwork for school and we made an appointment to see them in one year, unless Theo gets sick this winter *knock on wood*

That afternoon I had a company meeting with my fellow owners and a lawyer who is going to update our Operating Agreement. The meeting went well and I am excited to get the agreement updated and out of the way.

That afternoon we took Theo to The Legacy Ranch for lessons with Ms. Kaylin and Ajax. Sherman is still healing, but he is getting better!

Wednesday, August 12th:

Today Theo and I headed to Hanger Clinic to pick up Theo's new AFOs and SMOs. They are pirate theme and fit perfectly!

Of course, on our way home we drove through an insane storm. The rain came down so quickly that we couldn't drive more than 20 mph and it took us an hour to get home, BUT we were safe!

We were not able to see the Total Solar Eclipse here, but we watched it live on TV and it was so cool! Who wants to meet me for the 2045 Total Eclipse?! Where should we meet? There are a lot of options! I'm thinking maybe we should go on an eclipse cruise. That way we can see one sooner 😎

That afternoon Theo had feeding/speech therapy with Ms. Jen. He has been doing really great with his teeth brushing lately! I am so glad that Jen told us about Toothbrushing 1-2-3.

They opened a Stan's Donuts at the local Marianos. That can be dangerous!

I think the baby doves are almost ready to head out!

Thursday, August 13th:

Did you know that we live in Tornado Alley? Yeah. It's fun.

Thursday evening we went to an Open House at Theo's school. We dropped off three boxes of supplies and met with Theo's teacher, Ms. Kate. Theo will have a 1:1 aid and Nurse Patti will go with him to school every day. We are so excited to see what this year brings!

Friday, August 14th:

This weekend is D23 and there were so many awesome announcements and panels!

[Frozen 3, Zootopia 3, Incredibles 3]

[Kindgom Hearts news!]

[Star Wars!]

Weekend:

It was a rainy weekend, but that didn't stop us from going out. We went to the Naperville Summerfest Farmers Market and to the d'Escoto company picnic. It was nice to finally meet all of the d'Escoto people in person. Josh has worked for them for almost 10 years and they have always treated us so well!