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Christmas

A word of advice for anyone who has bought Playmobil or similar for a Christmas present.

60 replies

AdventCaroline · 11/12/2014 10:53

Wink

It will take longer than you think to assemble.

Way, way longer than you think. Way, way longer.

You will be peering in bewilderment at the instructions and scrabbling through innumerable plastic bags (which when opened, will scatter their tiny cargo everywhere) trying to find the exact teeny tiny piece you need, and sticking tiny little stickers, with a hand that is shaking from the effort, for ages.

Don't even think of trying to do it on Christmas day with the eager recipient bouncing around you.

Don't do it while drunk. It will take even longer.

Be aware that if you try to do it with someone else's help (ie your DH) you will probably end up not speaking to one another.

So do it now! Find a quiet three hours hour, put on some relaxing music, and do it now.

You will thank me later Wink

OP posts:
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CorporateRockWhore · 11/12/2014 10:58

I hadn't even considered opening the box! Thank you Flowers

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Deux · 11/12/2014 11:01

Why on earth are you assembling it before Christmas?

Isn't assembling it with the child part of the fun? Why aren't you just wrapping the box and putting it under the tree?

Just you wait till you trying doing that with Lego Death Star ......

Is this a new trend or something?

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haggisaggis · 11/12/2014 11:09

I always assembled the big playmobil stuff in advance as to me it's not the same as lego. With lego it is a construction toy and building it is part of it but with Playmobil they just want to play with it. And the big stuff does take ages.

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mewkins · 11/12/2014 11:12

I remember getting a lego fort for Christmas and my dad spending hours building it. Ditto a barbie caravan complee with hundreds of stickers.

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AdventCaroline · 11/12/2014 11:13

Lego is different, building it is the point! With Playmobil playing with it is the point.

No way I want to be pissing about with a tiny screwdriver and measuring lengths of thread before threading them through tiny anchors, whilst vital pieces get hidden under bits of wrapping paper on Christmas day!

(Have just spent a troubling couple of hours building a pirate ship Grin)

OP posts:
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WannaBe · 11/12/2014 11:13

it's not the same as lego. And assembling it is not part of the fun, well not after the first half hour when the child has got bored and is upset they can't play with their toy yet. playmobil takes hours to assemble.

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Showy · 11/12/2014 11:14

Mine love the assembly part. I don't relate to the op at all. Grin

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SoonToBeSix · 11/12/2014 11:15

My dd loves assembling her own playmobil. That is the fun part, she would be really upset if it was done for her.

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AdventCaroline · 11/12/2014 11:16

Showy you should hire out your DC as assemblers! Grin

OP posts:
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Waitingonasunnyday · 11/12/2014 11:23

I LOVE that Playmobil takes ages to assemble. I would help with the washing up, I would entertain the ILs, I would do xyz but the Children Need My Help.

A couple of hours building with a child is lovely. Its like helping them with colouring in. So soothing and so nice to spend time in their company on their terms, looking at how they see the world.

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Footlight · 11/12/2014 11:24

Yes, I have been there with a playmobile hospital. I also glue it together together now as I go (after dropping said hospital down the stairs and having to start again).

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Lucyccfc · 11/12/2014 11:29

The circus took about 4 hours to build and the police station just over 2 hours. Build any play mobile on Xmas Eve or you will spend most of Xmas day doing it.

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ThinkIveBeenHacked · 11/12/2014 11:31

I have the School for dd and intend to build it on Christmas Eve. Am fully prepared for it to take about 4 hours. The prosecco might make it take longer.

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Deux · 11/12/2014 11:34

Don't get the distinction at all. Both come with pieces, instructions and need to be assembled.

Building it together with the DCs has always been a key part of it and they would have been really upset if it had already been assembled.

Glad I'm not alone in my bafflement though.

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Footlight · 11/12/2014 11:43

I think it depends on how old your kids are. We got the hospital when dd was 3 or 4. She wouldn't have been able to put it together herself and as I had a 'helpful' toddler at the time as well as Xmas dinner for 12 to cook, she would have had to wait till Boxing Day at least for me to put it together with her.

As it was, watching her little face take the paper off the already assembled hospital was priceless. And she was able to play with it straight away.

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WhispersOfWickedness · 11/12/2014 11:44

I'm with Waiting, I got out of all Christmas dinner preparation tasks last year - 'no, of course I can't help, can't you see I am building your child's Christmas present?!' WinkGrin
I had a VERY enjoyable Christmas Day, immersed in Playmobil Smile This year they have only got a couple of the smaller kits, so not much building to be done Sad

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TinklyLittleLaugh · 11/12/2014 11:45

I said this on the other thread, but my kids always use their Playmobile as a construction set.

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IsItMeOr · 11/12/2014 11:47

I agree it depends on the specific child and their age.

I would always recommend opening the box to form a considered view - wih the knowledge of your own child - before wrapping up any of the big playmobil sets.

Now, if we did that with 5yo DS's lego sets...(shudders).

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Zucker · 11/12/2014 11:47

No need for the bafflement really. Some people would rather not help the DC for 5 hours on Christmas day putting fiddley little bits together. Some kids love putting it together, some kids that would be beyond them.

still having nightmares about Sylvanian families houses

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FrackingHell · 11/12/2014 11:49

Hey there naysayers, no need to be so sniffy with all that exaggerated bafflement. I absolutely relate to and agree with the OP. She's not super-gluing lego together, she's making it possible to play straightaway! Who knows, maybe when my kids are older the assembly will be part of the fun. For 3-4 year olds it'd just be painful.

Also playmobil is nothing like lego. Nothing. lego is way better

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TheFairyCaravan · 11/12/2014 11:51

We always used to assemble it first so the DC could get on and play with it.

When we bought some for our nephew we didn't, it was fab. I didn't have to help anyone or join in with anything else, I was too busy with Playmobil!

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MaryWestmacott · 11/12/2014 11:58

oh yes, thankfully, we'd been told this last Christmas, we got the playmobile pirate ship. The official line is it takes an hour to do, it took DH rather longer. (I sent him to the garage to do it on 22nd last year, glad we didn't leave it any later)

Playmobile isn't like lego, making it isn't part of the fun, once you've made lego stuff, they tend to just be clunky, not very good versions of whatever it is - it's the making it that's the point of lego. Playmobile the playing with it, not making it that matters, or else they'd make it possible for a 4 year old to actually assemble it.

The same goes for any large toys actually, a toy kitchen that's 8 bits of wood and some screws in a box is better to be assembled in advance - even if that's more like a 20 minute job.

20 minutes of "can I play with it yet?" is fine, 1.5 hours, it'll be strops and arguments before you've even put the water on for the sprouts.

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RaptorInaPorkPieHat · 11/12/2014 12:03

Oh god yes..........

DD got a playmobil house one year.

It was dark by the time DH had got it assembled.

It reminded me of the year I got a Sindy doll house (complete with lift). Apparently my poor dad was up most of the night putting it together, I did love it though Xmas Grin

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Notso · 11/12/2014 12:08

My older two weren't into PlayMobil so they never had any.
I got DS2 then 3 the Campervan last year and spend ages building it a few days before so he could play with it straight away.
I found it was awful to build, not fun like Lego just annoying and finger-hurty.
He did love playing with it but it couldn't stand up to the clumsy play of a 3 and 2 year old and I had to get rid of it.
Wasn't impressed really so have steered him towards more Duplo this year.

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nousernamesleft · 11/12/2014 12:08

thinkivebeenhacked ds has the school, and it took me about 8 hours to.build. And glue the bloody thing together, else your fil will think it's hilarious when he knocks it off the shelf and it disintegrates into a squillion pieces, until you cry, at which point he will run away.

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