Yaba Daba Therapeutic Recreation

08/07/2024

Sharing this because the kids look like they are having the best time ever! Flow Recreation Therapy has a program called Ability Acres, where kids with medical complexities can play with, care for, and spend time on the farm with horses and other animals.

ID: The header is a photo of 3 horses. Text: Ability Acres: In this 6 week program participants will experience hands on farm and animal based activities. This program is an opportunity for children, youth, and young adults to meet new people, expand their knowledge of animals and animal care as well as engage in hands on activities for 6 weeks of fun! In this program, participants will experience recreation and fun, animal interaction and care, riding and barn experiences.
Fall program starts the week of September 17th.
Tuesdays 10-11:30 young adults living with various abilities and disabilities
Wednesdays 6-7:30 Children and Youth living with various abilities and disabilities
Location: Nautical Equestrian- 332 Forced Road, Russel Ontario

For more info: https://flowrecreationtherapy.ca/

01/23/2024

Voting is now open. Links below. You can vote once per day! Thanks for your support ❤️

Im honoured to be nominated in 2 categories this year in the Ottawa awards. These are two of my passions and I am so grateful to have made a career out of both!

Music and Art- Acting Coach
Vote here:
http://facesmag.ca/awards/ #/gallery/?group=473038

Health and Wellness- Wellness Coach
Vote here:
http://facesmag.ca/awards/ #/gallery?group=473032

Image description: A Black background compliments gold lettering that says Mattamy Homes presents the 2024 Ottawa Awards. A gold trophy sits beside the letters abc the word nominee is written on the bottom.

11/21/2023

11/15/2023

Tomorrow is Children’s Grief Awareness day. I wrote this book to teach children (and their grown-ups) that there is no right or wrong way to grieve, that there are supports and that they aren’t alone. All proceeds are donated to Roger Neilson House . Consider getting a copy to have on hand, in case you need it. 💕

https://www.amazon.ca/Grief-Mixed-Stew-Samantha-Smadella/dp/B0BMSNY9R3

alt: A screenshot of an Amazon listing with a book titled: Grief is A Mixed Up Stew. A drawing of a bow of stew is on the blue cover.

10/23/2023

Check out these talented students in my musical theatre class at Kanata Acting Studio! These 9 & 10 year olds decided to be their own orchestra for the final showcase and are working hard to learn their parts.

10/19/2023

The gym at Play On Pediatric Therapy is so much fun! Registrations are open for our next sensory circle program for babies-preschoolers!

10/19/2023

The wind tunnel was a huge hit at Sensory circle and Early On programs this week!

10/13/2023

A big pile of these CNIB Lake Joe At Home Halloween Spooktacular boxes was just picked up for shipping! It is packed with games, goodies and activities that will challenge all of the senses! I can’t wait for this Halloween event. If you know someone who is living with blindness, low vision or vision loss, let them know about the free virtual programs offered by CNIB Lake Joe!

We host virtual programs like karaoke, improv club, coffee break, fitness classes, song writing, book club, and campfire. We also have super fun events where we sent out a free box of goodies to participants and play games, make music, and have laughs with an awesome group of people.

https://www.cnib.ca/en/programs-and-services/play/cnib-lake-joe/come-camp-cnib-lake-joe-programs/cniblakejoehome-virtual?region=on

Image Description: a black shipping box with a white label. The label says Halloween spooktacular with a Halloweenized version of the logo of a house with a marshmallow roasting over a campfire inside it, and the words CNIB Lake Joe at Home on the right. This variation has a ghost in an orange witch hat holding the stick with the marshmallow. A black creature with pointy ears and yellow eyes peeks over the CNIB logo. A spiderweb is hanging from the peak of the roof.

10/05/2023

October is ! 🎊
"Better to be blind and see with your heart, than to have two good eyes and see nothing." -Helen Keller

10/04/2023

The ReStore in Stittsville has wheelchair costumes! They are $25 each. They have Pokémon, mini mouse, chase from Paw Patrol, and a Minecraft pig left in stock!

10/03/2023

These baby foxes had fun exploring the leaves, picking apples, and singing songs during today’s fall-themed sensory play session at Play On Pediatric Therapy.
Image description:
Photo 1: A toddler is dressed in a cozy orange fox costume. He bends down to retreive a ball from a basket.
2: A baby in a fox costume pokes his head over the top of a soft play slide.
3: A wreath with contact paper in the centre is decorated with artificial leaves and a flower.
4: The wreath from photo 3 is hanging from the ceiling. Clothes pins are attached around the edges to demonstrate different ways to incorporate fine motor skills into this craft.

09/25/2023

A great post for explaining cancer to children!

Image Description:
A blue background contains thd heading “Developmentally Appropriate Ways To Explain Cancer” and the logo for the Association of Child Life Professionals: a symbol depicting a large and medium person, built like a semi-colon and the mirror image of one, formed together like a heart. Inside, there is an image of a child. The design is all in white. The author’s name, Nicole Bengston, CCLS, is written on the bottom. A table in yellow, blue and white contains the following information:

Cells: Cells are the building blocks to our body and they work together to keep our bodies strong and healthy.

White Blood Cells: White blood cells are our “ninja cells”. These are cells that fight off any sick germs that may enter our bodies.

Red Blood Cells: These cells carry oxygen throughout our body and give us energy to do all of the things we love to do.

Platelet: These cells are like Band-Aids inside our body. Platelets help heal our cuts or scratches and are what stops us from bleeding.

Cancer: Cells that are in your body that became sick and are called cancer cells. They are cells that grow faster than healthy cells which can cause your body to hurt or feel sick.

Tumor: A tumor can be referred to as a bump or a ball of sick cells. A tumor is made up of cancer cells.

Chemotherapy: This is medication or treatment that is used to treat cells that grow fast. This medicine or treatment will target the cancer in your body.

Common Misconceptions: Cancer is not contagious. You cannot catch cancer or give it to anyone else. The child did not do or say anything to make them get cancer, and all cancers are different.

Check out this graphic from Nicolle Bengtson, CCLS featured on our Blog!

"There are so many aspects of supporting children with cancer, but one area I think is extremely important is to provide the child and their family with developmentally appropriate diagnosis education focusing on their type of cancer and their personalized treatment plan," they write. "It is vital for the child to understand what cancer is and why they have to receive treatment for a prolonged period of time."

Read the full post now: https://ow.ly/n4HY50PHhLp