February 23, 2009

Boys on a Budget





Let me start off by saying, I am a frugal mom. I don't want to spend any money that doesn't make sense, ON anything that isn't going to LAST, and isn't going to improve our lives in one way or another. I live in the country, in Indiana, and my boy's school is a small one. So, thankfully there are no "I HAVE TO HAVE THIS!!!" or whatever. They of course come to me with their requests and we talk about how bad they want something. Do they have money for something that we(mom & dad) aren't willing to shell out the money for? If they don't, then we discuss why we (mom & dad) will not be buying them their desire of the day. They have never walked away upset with our decision.



So, the first thing that I think every boy at age 4 or older should have is LEGOS. My boys play with their Legos, literally every day! We have bought them multiple sets, and they have received lots as gifts. And I don't think there is a Lego that has been wasted!



Don't want all of those tiny pieces all over your house??? I only allow Legos in certain parts of our house. Their rooms, and our basement which is basically their run & play area. They have a basket that they keep all of their Legos in, and they do a pretty good job of keeping them in the basket. They know if they don't, that I will take the pieces I find and throw them out. Actually, between us, I haven't thrown any pieces out, but I have actually taken them away, and they thought I threw them out. This has only happened enough times to count on one hand. But, they know they want to keep their pieces and they take good care of them!



This year, my boys (with my help) built 3D projects for their Learning Fair at school with their Legos.


Here is Deklyn with his TIV (tornado intercept vehicle, for those of you who don't watch the Discovery Channel!):




And here is Austin's Rocket, it's the red thing just above his shoulder:






Legos not only are fun for them, but they can really learn how things work! Like Deklyn learned that there has to be a "base" to build his TIV on. I told him that was called a Chassis. So them we had to figure out how each piece fit together, and how to support different things like the wheels, etc. With Austin, I think his favorite part was building a "control panel" inside. Oh, and putting a coffee cup in there so the Astronaut could drink (that's my Aus).


Plus, they have gotten some big imaginations building boats, cars, trucks, buildings, etc.


So, I would say Legos were one of my top picks for great investments for toys you would buy a boy. You can go HERE to request catalogs and a free Lego Magazine.


Our next Legos? Probably Indiana Jones...


Do your boys play with Legos? What do you think about them???

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

We love legos around here. My boys can only play with them on the rug, so it makes it easier to clean up. We have some Indiana Jones, they are a favorite.
Toni

Genesa said...

Yes, you have to love legos! We have some that were Marks when he was younger! You have to love a toy that actually lasts!

Megan said...

Umm Live without legos NOOOOOOO!!!

That's a big part of everyday around here! Lately of course they've been busy making Star Wars ships!

A tip I learned is to put out a sheet and have them dump the legos out on it, then when it's time to clean up you just gather up the sheet with the legos in the middle and put it in the bin! works GREAT...we have a 18 gal tub full of legos for 4 kids!!

SmilingsMyFavorite said...

Oh I have been so busy I've had no time to read blogs or leave comments so I'm trying to catch up!
Love the lego's and you are very innovative (maybe I should make a new post called "word for the day" in how you used them! We bought Dawson the "big" version of lego's but he gets bored with them easily so I imagine once he's a bit older they will keep him buys for hours and I can watch television on a station that I want for once. ha!