When I was a kid, I loved playing with Legos. My dad was a tinkerer, a builder and a pretty creative guy. He made sure that I had toys that allowed me to do the same, Legos, Tinker Toys, blocks and stuff like that. He always spent time building with me. We made tons of things out of Legos. He would be so amazed today at all the different shaped and colored Lego blocks. Back then it was red, white and blue and they were all square or rectangular bricks. You really had to have an imagination when trying to make something out of just squares.
As I got older, Lego came out with more shapes and more sets to build specific things that didn’t just come from your imagination. I think it helped to build skills like recognizing shapes and also following and interpreting directions. The sets were expensive though. I remember always wanting the Lego Police Station but it was too expensive so I tried to make something similar out of the blocks that I had. I also remember always loving the pirate ships but back then they were not available in the US. Bummer, but I am sure they would have been too expensive for us too.
Once the space sets came out, I knew I had to get some, even if it were only the small items. I would save up birthday and holiday money and see if my parents would let me get something. I was able to get a few of the smaller items and my parents got me the moon base for Christmas. Those sets were awesome. I am sure today’s kids wouldn’t think so but I still think they were great. One day when I clean out this house I hope to find all the pieces that are packed away somewhere and I can rebuild them.
Yes, I still build Legos today. Maybe not the usual hobby for a gal my age but I still really enjoy it. Its harder to do these days. Some of those dang parts are so small. The days that the arthritis in my hands bothers me it is so hard to pick up the pieces and snap them together. I really think it’s good for me though. I think it helps keep my hands nimbler than they would be otherwise. I also find the directions a little harder to follow. It really is amazing at how some things seemed so much easier when you were younger but in my defense some of these sets are intricate.
The sets are even more expensive today (the Millennium Falcon goes for $799.99 and it is always out of stock) but I always get a set or two for Christmas and sometimes my birthday. I order a set or two for myself but there are always sets just out of my reach financially. I did splurge and buy Slave I, before it was retired, which is Boba Fetts space ship for those that don’t know Star Wars. It’s the most I ever spend on a Lego and it was so worth it! It was close to 7,000 pieces and for me a pretty hard build. Never mind the night it fell off the shelf and broke into a million pieces that I had to figure out how to put back together. I still have a few pieces left over.
I just finished The Razors Crest ship from the Mandalorian that Jo Ann got me for Christmas and now I am working on Boba Fett’s helmet that I got from Ben for Christmas. I got a micro Star Wars ship from Dina for my birthday that I built this year too. I enjoy building the vehicles, some of the Star Wars stuff and they have a few NASA sets that are pretty cool. I have my eyes set on a few things to fill out the year if finances allow. Someday when I have a larger space I would love to be able to build some of the larger sets and be able to display them.