For you big kids that have little kids.....

Discussion of general LEGO topics
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Troy T. Moore
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For you big kids that have little kids.....

Post by Troy T. Moore »

..do they get to play with your Lego collection?

My daughter is 9 and my son 7. Last year I figured I had been an "ogre" long enough. "Ok, you two can play with my Lego (Castle, army etc.) but I only ask three things; 1) Do not exchange any minifig weapons, helms etc. Leave then as they are. 2) When having battles, etc. do not bash the minifigs together or play rough so as not to scratch the minifigs and 3) Cover everything back up with the dust covers when you are done."

Sounds simple, right? Well after a few weeks of me not keeping tabs on them, but rather "trusting" them there were helmets, weapons, you name it changed around and often my Lego table was left uncovered. There is no "blowing your stack" emoticon, but let me tell you.....

The rules are now, "Keep away from my collection!!!" Sometimes if I am building and the kids are around I let them play around in the castle or whatever, but always under my watchful eye. That rule will stand for the foreseeable future.
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Ye Olde Republic
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Post by Ye Olde Republic »

We don't have any kids......yet.....but I'd like to think that the LEGO will be a great way to play with my kids. I imagine that they'll get LEGO for all birthdays and Christmas of their own, but will always want to play with Dad because his stuff is waaaay cooler.;)
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LEGOFREAK
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Post by LEGOFREAK »

ok - well I am a pretty laid back guy, and the only time I blew my stack was when my son opened a collectible star wars action figure that I had specifically forbid him to open.. (Boba Fett!) :roll:
Anyhoo, about the lego thing. I have let Alex play with mine since he was old enough to sit upright. He only ate a couple of the smaller pieces, and eventually - well I could have gotten them back, but I decided to just let them pass. :lol:
Now - while sometimes my room is a chaotic mess, it's worth it for me when my son and I have a battle or two, or he makes is own creations, and proudly shows them to me.
And... my daughter is just now sitting up. :D

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Glencaer
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Post by Glencaer »

don't have kids yet, but there will definately be dad's pieces and children's pieces - and if possible, mine will be kept in part of the house where they are not allowed. (like garage or a study or something) - so there isn't the temptation of dad's giant pile of unsorted lego.

that being said, I have A LOT of un-used lego that will be donated to the kids pile (like all my blue, yellow, BURPs, and wall pieces).

that being said, i reserve the right to raid their pile ;) after all, they can do the same when they pay the bills.

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Troy T. Moore
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Post by Troy T. Moore »

I should point out the fact that my kids have almost as much Lego as I! It is just kept separate. :)
that being said, i reserve the right to raid their pile after all, they can do the same when they pay the bills.
I thought this way too, but my wife will not allow it! :oops:
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Aidan
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Post by Aidan »

I have four kids and I follow Lenny's rule as best I can. I have given them all the castle wall pieces and lots of others that I don't think I'll ever need.

Of course there are frequent raids :wink: . Especially when I discover that I gave them some old space lego piece that turns out to be worth real money :shock:

They can only play with Daddy's castle when Daddy is there.
Of course, they too have the occasional raids....
Let them come...
They will break upon this fortress like water on rock!
---King Theoden

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?m=the6717
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wlister
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Post by wlister »

I have given my two children enough Lego that my collcetion is not all that interesting to them. In my Lug, my kids have more Lego than half the members. My collection may be a parts resource for them, but they always ask. They'd never find what they want without my help anyway. :wink:

Old_Republic has seen the tubs and tubs of Lego my son has and my daughter has all the Belville Fairy tale sets. It will be a very valuable parts resource if she ever grows out of them. My son is such a builder I doubt he'll ever grow out of his Lego, but thats all right, the world needs more AFOL's. :D

Basically the only rule my kids have about my stuff is that they need to ask. If they really want something and I can afford to give it to them, I do. I built my Daughter a Belville Dollhouse for her birthday and my son a big green and blue house for Christmas. The colors were his choice as were many of the build ideas. He told me what he wanted and I built it for him. Here are the gallery links:

My son's house.
http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=66425

My Daughter's Belville Doll House.
http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=63955

These are great examples of the Bricklink advantage. My son's house cost about $130 US and my daughter's house was about $85.00 US That included shipping to get the parts to my house, so in all pretty reasonable. There are absolutly no official sets that can compare price/piece wise with these.

I'm not bragging, my building style is pretty simple, but Bricklink dollars really go further than I ever expected. This is why I have turned my back a bit on retail purchases, they just can't compete.
I wonder what will happen when the wider world discovers Bricklink. :wink:

The only other advice I have about Lego and your kids is to buy lots and lots of brick, windows, doors and roof pieces. Kids love to build houses; at least the dozens of friends my kids trail through my house do...


Will
After a long absence, I have returned. I can't wait to start building again.
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