It started out innocently enough; I was clicking my way through memory lane, looking at some recently scanned slides from our childhood. There was a picture of my sister Susie proudly holding a Lego house creation. Using that picture and many more, I wrote a blog post about our low tech childhood. Briefly I described some of the tv/tablet/internet-free activities we enjoyed, including playing with Legos. I have so many great memories of sitting on the floor with a pile of blocks and remember the satisfaction of fastening them together, creating doors, windows, and furniture.
I thought that Lily would enjoy them, too (and also wanted to relive some of my own childhood) so I searched for some basic lots of blocks that we could play with. As I looked at the various Lego tubs available and read reviews, it seemed like none of them were what I really wanted. I wanted a lot of 2x6 bricks, the kind that we always ran out of. Unfortunately, many of the reviews complained about what was included in the tubs- specifically the limited number of that holy grail size of brick. So, I went to eBay. Surely someone would be selling a big box of old Legos that they didn't want anymore. I saw a listing for a lot of Legos, with Lego Friends pieces. The picture for the listing showed a pile of multicolored blocks, but there were also interesting little doors, windows, and accessories thrown into the mix. Ooooooooh....If only I had had those nifty little pieces when I was little! I (I mean Lily) had to have them. eBay wasn't exactly giving the stuff away, so off to Amazon I went, where I searched Lego Friends.
I had seen the Lego Friends on display at Target before, but when they came out in 2012, it seemed that Lily was still a little too young to manage them. She had noticed the displays, and was attracted to their girly colors and fun aesthetics, but I always shooed her away because I didn't want to deal with all of the pieces and thought they might frustrate her. She seemed to think that the sets came out of the box the way they were displayed, like a Barbie or Little People house, and didn't understand that they needed to be built. Because of that, I didn't pay that much attention to all of the different sets Lego had come out with- but I'm paying attention now!
I'm actually not a big fan of Lego sets that are intended to build one thing; I think that they potentially limit the imagination. Left to my own devices, I'd rather have a big pile of them and make whatever I wanted, play with it a while, then make something else with the pieces. But, when I saw the sets for Lego Friends, I couldn't help but admire the cute detail and architecture of the series. There were so many wonderful little features like furniture, flowers, trees, food, even an espresso machine! I reasoned that they would be a great jumping off point that could foster a love of Legos. If Lily enjoyed building one planned thing, maybe that would pave the way for her making up her own things. And, when that time comes, she would have a lot of neat elements to use in her creations.
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| This is not an actual kit... This is a hotel created with stock Legos and kit elements. So cool! |
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| Another cool creation, starring Lego Friends! |
I needed to decide which set to get. I wanted a set that had a lot of pieces that could be configured in many different ways, and after looking at the many different options, I ordered the high school and the house. I liked the way that they were separated into modular builds, and the fact that the created modules could be used to create different building configurations. From Amazon, the two sets totaled about $95.00, not bad for 2 nice Christmas presents.
But I couldn't stop there. I'm painfully guilty of wanting to buy EVERYTHING when I get a "toy fever." Past fevers have included old-school Little People (see here), Fisher Price Snap & Style Dolls, new-school Little People, Loving Family Dollhouse people & furniture, play food, etc. As I looked through the pages of different sets available, I thought of the different things that Lily would like her Friends characters to do: go to the cafe, the pool, play in the treehouse... and reasoned that she needed those sets, too. There was also a set cute little makeup table, ballet barre, and a stage! (Squeal!)
Waiting to buy later could have been an option, but then I saw that some of the sets are being retired, and some have already been retired (like the cool Butterfly Salon set that retailed for $25 and now cannot be found for much less than $70 on eBay and Amazon!). There have also been some pretty good sales lately, especially with Christmas coupons. So, as of today, I've spent about $160 on Legos: all for Christmas presents. Now, if only I can keep my hands off of them until December 25th!
Heartlake High $44
Olivia's House $55
Olivia's Treehouse $18
City Park Cafe $25
Rehearsal Stage $18
MUST. STOP. NOW!!!!
... I can't wait to go to Legoland when we go to Kansas City for Thanksgiving. :-)
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| So cool! Munchkinland, made out of Legos! |
Do you love Legos, too? Check out these really great blogs with pictures and inspiration for awesome Lego creations.
http://friendsinspiregirlsglobally.blogspot.com/
http://friendsbricks.blogspot.com/
PS...
Lego Friends received a lot of negative feminist backlash when they released this series in 2012. Many websites and blogs were of the opinion that it was sexist to have Legos with beauty shops, girly figures, and bakeries. I read the assertions in several of the articles, and just don't agree.
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