Police Games

It was time for the annual Durham Police Children's Games!
Nick has so much fun every year, and this will be our third year attending. We look forward to it every year (and I have next year in my calendar as well).

Every year the kids are organized into different police groups. Nick was in the Traffic Group. And they all go whistles!

Each group has a couple of leaders. Nick's leader was a teacher he knew from Campbell's, and then we had a couple of police officers with us as well. There are a number of different games to play and the kids get points (after practice time).

A shooting game

Pushing the big ball (Nick's favorite thing to do)

Bowling

Basketball

Golf

Curling

Nick got to play curling against his friend Reid

There was a dress up game, how quickly can you dress the police man

Nick liked dressing himself

We learned over the last couple of years that this would happen. Since Nick wants to use his walker at the beginning of we day, we used it for the first part of the day and then kept the wheelchair in the main room for when he started to get tired

Then it was time for some hockey

With the police as goalie

And wheelchair rugby against another team

Nick wasn't that interested in the game, he just wanted to play with his friends

But he did like being goalie

They had a couple of characters around for the kids
There was Spiderman

And Anna and Elsa

Elsa really liked Nick's new sunglasses!

The Police games is about the sports and trying out new sports, as well as an opportunity for Nick to meet up with his friends again. Nick was happy that he got to meet up with some of his friends from Campbell's that he may not have seen since June

Alejandra and Nick have known each other since they were babies, but were still excited to spend the day together

Nick and Reid met in school last year and had a lot of fun together

They spent a lot of their time play fighting and wrestling

They were inseparable during the games

Nick also got to meet up with his EA from Campbell's, Mrs Pam!

Nick also got to meet a Sledge Hockey Paralympian champion, and see his bronze medal!
And he was born with spina bifida, just like Nick

Nick had a great time at the Police games, and asks when he can go back (the bad news, is that it is next year)

  The team got to have a team photo, and everyone got their medals.
 

Nick is excited to bring his medal to school next week

Thank you so much to the Durham Regional Policy for another great Children's Games! Can't wait until next year!

Children's Police Games

In our second of year of what I expect to be an annual tradition of participating in the Durham Regional Police (DRP) Children's Games. The website is pretty awful. Just writing, you can't actually get how exciting and fun these games are!

We went last year for the first time. It is a free event hosted by the Durham Regional Police for children with physical disabilities to participate and compete in a variety of athletic events.

The kids get divided up into teams, the Grandview/Campbell's kids from the school were together in one team. Nick was part of the Auxiliary team this year. Actually Auxiliary police are part of our team as well. Last year Nick got tired and overwhelmed. This year he was excited.

The day starts with a parade of the kids coming in. Nick was all ready to lead the pack this year!

There was a moment of silence for solider, Cpl Nathan Cirillo killed at the Tomb of the Unknown Solider at the War Memorial in Ottawa in the attack on the Canadian Parliament this week. And honouring everyone whose job it is to protect us every day. It was very emotional having the moment of silence and bagpipes playing.

There were other speeches in the opening ceremony and then it was time for the games to begin!

Katheryn came for a little while, but then she got bored and left with Kyle to be with grandma and have fun.

Nick played the games, they had some practice shots, and then actual shots that counted as points for the competition part of it.

There was bowling

And basketball

There was golf

 And wheelchair rugby!
(That was my favorite)

There was a relay. To dress (and undress) the police man

And hockey

There was parachute game (Nick's favorite part was playing under the parachute)

But the actual game was the put the balls into the specific holes

There was a big ball that needed to be pushed from one end of the gym to another.
Nick ran in his walker, pushing the ball with is head

There was also curling

And some bocci ball

Nick got the spend the day with his friend Alej!

Between some of the games we had time for a team photo.
This is the kids on the team, the volunteer helpers (one of them Nick's EA from school and her son, another a retired teacher from Campbells), and the Police who were part of our team.

They also had Nova's Ark was there with a bunch of their critters, including this tarantula spider (but they also had some fluffy things)

 And there was Elsa.
Nick saw her while we were playing one of the games and all he wanted to do was have a picture taken with Elsa!

As expected Nick got tired during the games. Part of the day is spent in the tennis courts, and part is spent in one of the large party rooms. So this year we brought Nick's walker and wheelchair in with us so that when this happened...

We had a backup plan

"No Mommy, I'm not tired"

There was a big lunch with a live band and we got to have some pictures taken together

We even stole up on the stage!

After lunch they had a game of wheelchair rugby between the police and the highest team. The kids team won (of course) something like 20-1. It was a lot of fun to watch (even though Nick doesn't look like he is having fun)

At the end of the day every kid got to go  up and get a medal. And one participant from each team got a Spirit Award. And Nick won!

It was another great day! Can't wait until next year!