Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Around here legos rule

It all started with a gift. A good friend of mine gifted my then 1 year old first born with a bucket of quattros. Until then it hadn't really dawned on me that a little boy could love building blocks so much. So we kept them and at first he loved swatting down structures that Mr. Maricucu built for him (much to Mr. Maricucu's dismay). Then he turned two and suddenly was obsessed with putting together extremely high, spindly towers. Eventually, he progressed on to duplos. Unfortunately for him, a few months later his younger brother was the one interested in swatting down high, spindly towers. Oh the drama!

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But then, younger brother grew into the lego obsession as well. Quite quickly Mr. Maricucu and I figured out that one bin would not be nearly enough. One base? Laughable, when that was the most sought after piece. Thank goodness for grandparents and Christmas. I scored a huge lot of second hand duplos, bases and little people figures on ebay with some grandparent funds. On Christmas Eve Mr. Maricucu set them up on the table for the boys to find when they woke up. There were tunnels, cacti (loved around here!), pods, people, cars and more bases! Woohoo no more fighting over bases!

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Instead they build fire stations for their trucks with holes in the middle for a fireman's pole of course.

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Or high, spindly garages for their matchbox cars.

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I see no indication that the lego love is wavering at all. In fact, they're now eyeing the teeny, tiny original lego pieces with much longing. The same pieces that bring to mind a new extreme sport just for parents - walking across a bed of legos in the dark while trying to find the light switch. Winner gets orthopedic shoes and a possibly needed hip replacement.

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6 comments:

  1. we are all about the little legos here. i have this theory that soon we can eliminate nearly everything but books and our cedar chest/coffee table filled with legos . . . i know that big trash cans and suitcases are also excellent lego options (complete with one of those little dust pans and dust pan broom sets from target . . . )

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  2. Carrie the dust pan idea is brilliant! I just ran it by the lego crew and got a thumbs up from both of them. Hubby thinks the same thing, the legos could be the last thing to ever go.

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  3. We're heavy into legos over here. Obsessive Mommy and Obsessive Son have a wall of sorting drawers. Non-Obsessive Son is not allowed to sort. :) In addition, we have two BIG bins of unsorted legos (where most of the legos end up) topped with - you guessed it - a dustpan to help with the big cleanups.

    I also started a binder to keep the lego instructions in (in sheet protectors so they can see what is what.) It sort of works, but I also have just a place they can throw their instructions when they're cleaning up at night. Turns out hurrying and sheet protectors don't go together.

    And, when the regular legos get boring? Technics, and then Mindstorms. Too much fun.

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  4. Stacy I'm taking notes because like you and Carrie mentioned, it's a lifelong love.

    I have a set of obsessive and non obsessive sons around here too and it's already kind of interesting to see the interaction.

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  5. Hee...Ian is building a Lego Haunted Mansion as I type. Legos are huge over here. We have an embarassing collection of mismatched shoe boxes and plastic boxes for storage. I count on you to provide me with organizational ideas, not the other way around:)

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  6. All hail the legos! Ahh to have invested in the fledgling company huh?

    Marin, organization? I'm just keep an eye on the mishmash of bins to make sure the legos eventually make it back in and are not spawning under their beds like gremlins. Shudder.

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