To mix up all the Lego into one big storage box?

[deathbylego]

The space sets, the police trucks, the three-in-one robot/dinosaur/sports car/propeller plane sets, the power mining underwater Atlantis space star wars stuff.

At the moment all sets live in their own clear boxes, in various stages of completeness (none really, actually complete). This means I cannot clear up the Lego, as only DS (8) knows where it should go and what piece belongs to what set, and this causes endless arguments. He has no organisational impulses whatsoever. The boxes are everywhere, and I feel my blood pressure rising as sets that should stay together become scattered. His room is a tip, boxes everywhere.

DH is horrified that I want to mix up the sets. But I am itching, ITCHING, to just dump it all in one big box and have done with it. I can feel my stress levels lowering just thinking about it. Then I could just say, 'Tidy up, DS', and he could toss it all into the Big Box. Done.

Please may I? I promise to keep all the instruction booklets.

You have my full permission

If your 8yr old has no organisational skills, it's his problem if he has to search out bits of missing lego.

DS1 and DS2 were exactly like that too.

My DS3 however is a weird freakazoid who actually finds sorting these things relaxing

Bung it all in together. It helps their imaginations

Hee hee I am so with you, if I even move a single piece I get yelled at as x belongs with x model and he will NEVER find it now! Threaten to do it if the current system doesn't get used? I would love to be a fly on the wall the day you actually chuck them all together!! Good luck!

It can have 1 out of 2 outcomes:

1. It fires their imagination and they play more.
2. They get confused with the mess, cant see the wood for the trees, and stop playing with Lego alltogether.

This needs careful consideration and deep knowledge of your child's character before you make this move.

It is possibly one of the most important decision you as a parent will ever make regards to your child's development.

Wait at least a week before you do this....

It is hard to imagine a universe in which DS will stop playing with Lego. Possibly the current chaos amounts to a carefully-contrived organisational system. But I don't think so.

If he stopped playing with it all together, and I could rid the house of it, I would crack open a bottle of bubbly.

No, then you will end up like me with people insisting you pay £15 to replace a missing phoenix from a Harry Potter set on ebay.

In fact that may be another solution, take out all the bits that are worth a lot of money, sell them on ebay, and chuck the rest in a big box to play with.

You could always play smart

Dump the Lego all together in a box and then tell him he's got X amount of time to rebuild everything and he'll win a prize.

When it's all built...just dump them all in separate containers.

put it all in one big box, or several boxes, we have ten million tonnes of lego!! seriously and we use the under bed storage boxes,t hey are on wheels so slide in and out easily and are not too deep so they can find the bits they want etc, we have about 8 of them full of lego!! there is no way in a million years that i would be sorting it out into sets! the boys do keep technic lego seperate and also their current favourite whatever that may be, its bionicle or lego hero at the moment and they have a seperate box they put that into but when i tidy up it goes into whatever box is closest

DS has already lost several crucial, life-sustaining pieces. I assure you that I will not be replacing them via eBay.

It works for DS to have it all in one box. I childmind so definitely cannot be arsed to separate all the different models and DS is not too bothered by it.

I have rather stupidly thrown away lots of the booklets, though. So don't do that!

YANBU!

Nice one, Worra.

Thing is, DH did force him to rebuild-and-store in the boxes. He did it with a number of sets. But he just can't keep it up, bless him. And it makes him feel guilty for playing with the bloody stuff, as it all gets mixed up again. I just want him to enjoy it.

And for me to be able to run the hoover without fear.

Underbed storage boxes, 5madthings. Then I wouldn't even see it.

We have all the sets separately, but if I find a bit, I put it in the unsorted lego tray (admittedly organised by colour). I do not attempt to return it to its original set.

Meh. DS (7) has absolutely shit loads of Lego. He was forever losing the instructions, although has completed many, and undone/redone many. He knows exactly which bit needs to go where, and I too was fed up of having Lego boxes everywhere, so it all got put into one large box.

Thankfully, no harm has been done and he even uses his imagination more to make new things.

Go for it. But if you have instructions, keep them in the box to help him.

Then you will have a very bored child on your hands. That is worse. Much worse.

God, yes, YABvvvvU. You need to put each 'set' into it's own sandwich bag, with the instructions, and the model name and number written on the front.

The ONLY time it is ok to have just a 'box' of Lego bricks is when it's the basic stuff. We have 4 drawers of Lego here, one of basic, one for DS1's sets in sarnie bags, one for DS2's sets in sarnie bags, and one of duplo for DS3.

exactly deathbylego love your name btw they fit under perfectly and are ideal for lego we have found, you can get various different ones, our are clear and have wheels and lids! they werent expensive either :) they also stack on top of each other, tho not when under the bed obviously!

seriously lego is the bane of my life but these boxes are easy to keep it in and the boys seem happy, they can always find the bits they want etc. :)

thinks cardymow has too much time on her hands and no where heanr the amount of lego that we have, 5 kids and 13yrs of buying lego, plus all the lego that was mine and dps as children = a LOT of lego!!! and yet they still want more...weeps...

near

And it's not just me - DS1 would have the biggest tantrum ever (at 10yo!) if I attempted this - HE came up with the sandwich bag storage idea. DS2 finds it harder to stick to, but manages now at 8 and a half.

Dump it into one big box with all the instructions.

Then send it to me - I would love you FOREVER.

Ok I have to ask because I'm a totally nosey fucker....

OP why did you name change to ask a question about lego?

My Lego, my 21yo Dbro's Lego, Lego from boot sales, 14yo DD's Lego, 10yo DS1's Lego, 8yo DS2's Lego, and 1yo DS3's duplo. Yes, I have a LOT of Lego. And it's DS1 who sorts it all out...he enjoys it!

Be prepared to put up with this for A Long Time.
Ds has the equivalent of two full sized wheelie bins of Lego, all divided up into smaller boxes (animals, weapons, figures, Star Wars, Egyptian, Harry Potter etc.)
They cannot be mixed up on pain of death, and he is 16!