The Chair and Creative Play

When I get into the Christmas/Holidays Funk, I read what I wrote last year which was a Satirical Holiday get together for a family much like mine called Unrealistic Expectations totally made up!

I can't help but chuckle when I read it. 

In 2013 I used an old chair combined with a partial Christmas Tree in order to decorate our tiny cottage. This was before the remodel in 2016. The first time I took photos of it was in 2014 when I did it a second time. 

Even a small fake tree just took up too much room in our home. I improvised and found that it was much more fun doing something out of the norm.

This year I am changing things up a bit again. I have to admit that each year when I decorate an old chair it ends up being quite fun and never the same two times in a row. That is probably a good thing for me. The chair gives me a flat spot to continuously change up what is going on. I can walk by it and take a tiny Santa Claus and have him conversing with a dinosaur or perhaps a unicorn.

That old table that I brought in from the porch turned into a Legoland Table. Why not? Rich and I had so much fun over the past month or so building these 3 D puzzles that I decided to use them much like others would use a collection of Christmas Village houses.

The Wood Cabin build was really tough and very detailed.

The Lego Lady Contractor
shows off the Cabin Kitchen

Some of the build was extremely frustrating as the lights and wires really were difficult to work with. We found that we were missing a few pieces and the quality control was sucky at times. 

However, if I hadn't built previous Lego 'Expert' builds [The Gingerbread House], I would have given up. The roof bows and won't fit tight...but I learned a lesson. Lego Bricks Rule. I will probably dismantle parts and re make the house eventually.

The Sasquatch Family has no issues with it at all. They love it. They celebrated Thanksgiving in it before the roof was attached!

The Happy Sasquatch Family

They were so pleased when they got moved into the Lego Village.

Then the serious stuff started. Ol' Man Rich decided to take his ornament Champion Cruiser and find some Christmas Trees.

[When I told Rich that this Lego Person was him, he actually started to enjoy it. He really digs this car ornament and even pushed it around the kitchen table. He checks on what the Ol' Man Rich is doing each day. He denies enjoying it of course. But the smile on his face tells me otherwise.]

And by golly he did! He talked other friends into hauling them to the village!

Even the strange snowperson and the Polar Bears were pleased....

Having Christmas Trees in the Village would be awesome!

And every one rejoiced. I think the Lego

lady with the hair in a bun

was imbibing a bit too much?

Oh it looks like silly play doesn't it? Wasted time. But think about it. When a person decorates for any Holiday they are using their brain to create something beautiful, right? Create. That is play.

When a person knits or crochets, paints, draws, photographs, or does anything creative...they are playing. It keeps their minds active and engaged.

Play is good for the mind and soul.

Now.

If I can only think of cooking and baking as Creative Play. 

meh....

Road Trip sort of

I had to go to LaCrosse for an checkup on our Subaru. I generally take a quick little side trip while I am there.

Yesterday I went over to Goose Island. It is a nice county park with little roads going to different parts of the island. I think there are something like 8 or more picnic shelters that can be reserved and several playgrounds. All along the river access are picnic tables and some trees for shade. There is a campground for tents and a grounds for RV's.

It is on a slough to the Mississippi River and between LaCrosse and Stoddard Wisconsin. It is beautifully maintained and the county road GI is well maintained with wide shoulders to pull off on.

I try to get there a couple of times a year just to enjoy driving around the place and seeing if I can find something to photograph. I'm always on a time crunch as the other half is keeping tabs on my time. I called him to let him know I was taking a drive through the park. 

Time to test more with that long lens!

Here is Chippy! A seven striped Chipmunk. I was tickled that he just sat there while I took his photo. I stayed in my car as not to spook him.

I saw this doe along the slough, so I parked the 'Ru and walked slowly back up the side of the road.

I was able to take 3 shots of her before she took off, bounding through the low lands.

Along WigWam Slough, I found these turtles. I've cropped this but if you can look at it full sized it looks like the turtle on the right is 'snarling' at the one on the left. 

So do you suppose turtles fight?

Ninja Turtles!

A view of the bluff on the other side of highway 35. In regular color and then in Infrared. Wink...wink. You know I couldn't help myself!

The shots were taken in different spots on the county road.

It was warm and the sky was amazing. The clouds kept changing and developing beautiful Cumulus clouds. 

I'll be headed back to get new tires next week. I'll grab my gear and walk to downtown LaCrosse and visit the Riverside Park while I wait for the car to be fitted with new rubber.

Perhaps I will be lucky enough to see one of the Steamboats go by while I am there.

Silliness abounds on the Farm

Really?  What IS the hold up?

Mustang Sally

So you've got a camera and I want to be a star!

Is this my better side?

Or perhaps you want a face on?

As you can see none of the other herd members are interested in getting portraits done!

There is of course...that lazy no good Jack Russell...