Time for some imagination...

Her is Valda. She now appears as a key player in the Princess Sara Quest.

How is she going to fit in? 
I love making stuff up.

I may have mentioned this before but there was a time when my kids were little that we 'made up' bed time stories once in a while.

I usually started it with something like: Once upon a time there was a little boy who became a Prince and he lived in a castle. But he didn't know he was a Prince, he thought he was just a common person. 

So the story would go on for a bit and then the next night I would ask one of the boys to add to the story.

My older son would add wonderful bits and pieces to the story and expand on the characters and scenery. It was great fun.

And...then sometimes my youngest would  add great ideas to the story....OR...
do something diabolical. "...the young Prince then gathered monsters together and beheaded everyone in the castle. Theeee End." Of course he'd smile sweetly and pull his blanket up. 

Theee End.

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So Valda, who are you? At first I couldn't decide who she was or how she fit into the Princess Sara Quest. 
Who is Valda?
Valda is from a Germanic name meaning: Renowned Ruler, Power, Authority.
I admit, she looks pretty tough.

Valda is one of the Wild Ones. Obviously, she has no fear and rides a dragon and at other times rides a Thestral.

I googled for a name meaning 'powerful leader' and got Valda as a choice.

Someone over on Flickr....AC...suggested that Valda was .. um.. me? You know, maybe he was right? Valda is a Wild One, a Warrior, and she gets things done. I can see that! [the name Val-da...who would've thunk it???]

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Back to the Princess Sara journey...

The Frog finally caught up to Princess Sara and delivered her more news regarding her Quest.

A true Princess always accepts things that happen to her with grace and Sara has done this time and time again.

Princess Sara seeks out the Little People of the Forest to hear about the Dragon's Plight and the Stolen Egg. In her pure heart, knows that this is part of her quest.

The Little People of the Forest travel to seek help from the Wild Ones. They meet Valda and explain the  situation. 

Valda agrees to help. After all she would never turn down an offer enter into a conflagration. She is an avid lover of the Dragons and would do anything to help them.

Her Dragons wait behind her patiently.

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Now~~~

Just for fun I thought that my Wild Ones and Forest People needed something other than Lego bricks to be their homes. It all started with a couple of pieces of broken birch branches and cardboard. 

This project is not my first stick build. I've done it before and had great fun creating something out of items that I had on hand.

With the help of a glue gun and some moss, I was able to create modular pieces to use in different ways.

Cardboard, sticks, glue, and moss. Easy, free, fun.

It is easier and less expensive than trying to buy bricks to make 'scenes'. If I break a stick I can replace it easily. I made the pieces in sections so I can build and rebuild in different ways.

Other adults do wonderful crafts and hobbies for entertainment. I go for the Adult Play.

Adult play boosts creativity, helps with a sense of humor, and is a major player in reducing stress. When my mind is on creating a make believe story through 'toys', my mind is not consumed by my Caregiving duties.

I can do both things at the same time. I can create play while in the house giving care. It is a welcome relief to drop into a world of imagination for just a bit.

It's complicated!

My neighbor friend, Olive, thought Rich would like a fun puzzle to do this winter. She purchased this not Lego set from Amazon.

It has over 3,000 pieces. When we opened it we were surprised at how tiny the pieces were!
The big surprise is that these pieces are 'micro mini blocks'.

How many pie tins and little containers does it take for sorting? More than we had. But the continued sorting has kept someone very engaged. The miniature pieces are terrible to handle when you have shaky hands, but he keeps at it until it frustrates him and he has to quit for a bit.

Even a regular sized Lego person is surprised by how tiny the pieces are.

The instructions are interesting. Each layer that is already built gets greyed out which is terribly difficult when dealing with grey pieces or figuring out what goes where.

I've had to use a flashlight to see details. I finally got my light assisted magnifying glass out so I could count how many bumps are on pieces for construction. 

We keep at it until my eyes get worn out and then set it aside.

But we are making progress.

Below is a dime stuck in with the pieces and a view of the instructions.

This is where we left off last night. It is starting to look like something cool!
I sent this photo to Olive and she wanted to know how the instructions were. Hmmm, bad...but IF we can get this mini build actually finished, WE could build anything!

I went into our old stash of plastic containers handed down from my Mother in Law and we sorted more bricks. We have 14 containers of pieces.

The box says ages 6 and up. Hmmm. I think they should have noted 60 and up because you need a ton of patience to figure this one out.

After building in fits and starts for a week, Rich was still interested by was frustrated with the fact that he couldn't handle the tiny pieces to put them together.

The clear pieces are driving me absolutely nuts, but I like a challenge anyway.

The instructions are diabolical. They include two steps at once and require intense concentration.

So when I went out to pick up groceries for the week, I searched for a more suitable project for hubby.
I found a Lego Lotus in the 'cheaper' section.

After the box inspection and lunch from DQ....

Somebody started to work on it. The only help he asked for is putting on the stickers.

This may seem odd to some folks. Legos are not cheap, but this is better than taking him to therapy for activities to stimulate conversation, thinking, and small motor skills.

When he has something to figure out, he is not sitting still blankly staring out the window at nothing and being nowhere. These simple bricks and booklets, give him a sense of building and doing something.

Both his mental health providers and PCP think this is an amazing activity for him. The sorting of the bricks appeals to his sense of order of things. Building these projects is similar in a way to what he used to do as the owner of a Welding Shop. He can create and use his rusty thinking skills.

Me?
I find it a relaxing to be with him while we both work on the projects. 

What will I do with the vehicles he builds? Eventually I'll take them apart and put them in their boxes. Somewhere down the line I will gift them to some kids I know or sell them as used.

They are serving a great purpose.

Forgive the photos, they were taken with my crappy old cell phone.