It is a new era in our household-the Lego era. Charlie got a Batman Lego set for Christmas, and it has probably been his favorite, most played with toy since then. It has not yet left our living room to make the trip up to Charlie’s room because he plays with it so much.
This is where Charlie now spends a lot of his days!
I spent 3 hours putting that thing together during Maddie’s naptime on Christmas Eve, with Charlie sitting next to me on the floor hanging onto my every move. It is honestly a memory I will cherish.
What I will not cherish, however, is the fallout from the Legos. I noticed on the box that the recommended age for this particular set was 7-14. I had no problem putting it together and it really was quite fun to do-kind of like putting together a puzzle. There were several characters included like Batman, the Joker, and the Riddler, and there were two different vehicles to assemble, and the set itself is really cool. There are trap doors and ropes that dip people in vats of acid.
But, let me tell you, there is a reason that the recommended age for this particular toy is 7-14. Charlie loves his Legos and spends a great part of his day playing with the set-and I spend a great part of my day reassembling it. He is constantly tearing it up or knocking part of it off, and he can’t put it back together by himself, so I have to do it.
This has had a couple of negative repercussions…
1. It has made one of my New Year’s goals (not yelling) very hard to reach, and while I don’t think I have yelled about the Lego set, I have used a not-so-nice tone after assembling Joker’s funhouse for the gazillionth time.
2. It has made another of my New Year’s goals (saying “yes” more often) harder to reach. I really, really, really want to say “No, I will not put it back together again.” I did tell Charlie that if he tore it apart again, he would have to reassemble it himself (That was yesterday-I spent approximately 2 hours on the living room floor reassembling it for him this afternoon, so obviously I didn’t stick to my guns on that one.).
…and also some positive repercussions:
1. It gives Charlie and I something fun to do together that we both enjoy. It really is fun to put together, and he loves playing with it so much, which brings joy to both of us.
2. It caused me to examine my actions and reactions. I was getting really upset over Charlie destroying the Lego set. I finally told Jason last night (after Jason accidentally stepped on the funhouse and Charlie got teary because I had told him I wouldn’t put it together again) that I just needed to let go. It wasn’t a masterpiece that I had invented; I had assembled a set of Legos made for children. It is a toy that is meant to be played with.
3. I have realized that one day soon Charlie won’t need me to put together his Legos for him anymore. One day he will take his Lego box up to his room, dump it out on the floor, and do it himself. That day is coming quickly, guys, and even though I always want him to need me to assemble his Legos for him, he won’t always need that. I need to cherish these moments and take advantage of them while I can.
4. It has opened up a whole new world to us! Legos are awesome, people. Did you know that there is a movie coming out next month?
So event though it has been a little difficult for me and challenged me right away on some of my New Year’s goals, I am so glad Charlie got the Legos for Christmas. And guess what he picked out today as his prize for being so brave at the doctor this morning?
That’s right….
Already put it together….twice.
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Can I add a sixth goal for this year? If I could add one more then it would be to enjoy every repetitive moment. I shouldn’t complain about reading “Time for Bed, Otis” or “Elmo Loves You” 17 times in one night. Thanks for the reminder.
Ah, yes, we all have a few books like that, Casey. The ones we have memorized. That actually came in handy for me one night when Charlie was little and we were spending the night at Grandma’s house and I forgot “Goodnight Moon.” I just recited it to him and he was happy.
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No one’s too old or too young for Lego! It’s such a great tool for bonding and teaching. Careful not to step on them though! 😉
Now that is the truth!!!