Being a children’s book author means you are a perpetual child. So…what kidlit writer can resist the Lego store, with its massive wall of colorful interlocking bricks? NOT THIS ONE!
So I whistled Pink Floyd, picked me a bucket of Legos and went home to play.
The result: a Lego Fidget Spinner!
Now, I know what you’re thinking–it doesn’t have the same heft or speed as the real thing (did I just call fidget spinners “real”?). And you would be right.
BUT…
It’s a fun activity for littler kids (3 to 6) and doesn’t require any messy hot glue or complicated directions. You can be creative with the color and design, too. And it only takes 24 pieces you can find on the WALL OF BRICKS.
The spinners come in two pieces that you snap together. Here’s what they look like:
Assembly is E-Z.
First, make a cross with your 2×8 pieces.
Snap your spinners together, then place one in the middle on the front and one on the back.
Decorate the ends of each bar with four 1×1 pieces in your desired colors and pattern. For extra pizzazz, give it a couple of googly eyes.
I was debating putting a dot of oil in the Lego spinner hole before snapping them together, to see if that improved the spinability. (Is that a word?) But I didn’t. (Womp, womp.)
Remember folks, after you’re done playing, your inner child will be recharged and you can get right back to WRITING.
Hope everyone is having a super summer!
18 comments
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July 31, 2017 at 3:43 pm
Mark
Have a great summer too Tara, and to all of the Storystormers…
July 31, 2017 at 3:49 pm
daniduckart
Great idea! I think we have all the pieces at home except the spinners. Gah! The Lego store scares me. We could be hours in there while my son creates things (and that’s really hard when I have an 18 month old). I’ll go, but if you never hear from me again it’s because of the Lego store.
On my epitaph please write: She thought she had her life together, but really everything was in pieces.
July 31, 2017 at 4:35 pm
Lindsay Leslie
My son and I are going to get right on this. He is a fidget spinner + Lego fanatic!
July 31, 2017 at 4:55 pm
Rebecca
Fun! I found a tutorial for a Lego fidget cube that I am going to try. Like you, I can’t resist the Lego store. You should see how many pick-a-brick cups I have in my family room!
July 31, 2017 at 5:55 pm
Deb Lund
See, everyone? This is why Tara’s books are so much fun, too. (Don’t grow up, dear one…)
July 31, 2017 at 6:07 pm
mariagianferrari
Bring the play on!! Looks like you had fun doing it too, Tara 🙂
July 31, 2017 at 9:06 pm
pennymorrison
So fun! But I’m too Australian to read this without commenting that ‘Lego’ is plural. Isn’t it? We can have one piece of Lego or one bucket of Lego. We can have Lego bricks but not ‘Legos’.
Actually, I can’t have a bucket of Lego. You win, because in Australia we don’t even have one of those amazing Lego shops with the irresistible wall. Poor us! I don’t get to pick a brick, so I’m picking at punctuation instead. It’s not as fun.
(Now I’ve got ‘we don’t need no education’ in my head)
August 7, 2017 at 4:57 pm
Tara Lazar
We don’t use “Lego” as plural in the US, at least not in this part of the country.
July 31, 2017 at 11:09 pm
Denita Johnson
Thanks for the great idea. Enjoy your summer!
August 1, 2017 at 12:09 am
Ali Earle Pichardo
I love Legos! I hope you’re having a great summer Tara.
August 1, 2017 at 7:32 am
Donna L Martin
Personally, I’m kinda over the whole fidget spinner thing…probably because I deal with 30+ kids every day who have an average of 2.5 each of them.
But YOUR fidget spinner, Tara, I could go for…;~)
Cute post!
August 1, 2017 at 8:48 am
marlainawrites
LOL. My son also loves the Lego store. I’m going to show this to him and let him make it because I do not have Lego skills.
August 1, 2017 at 1:25 pm
Tina Barbour
This is a fun idea! My co-worker got everyone in the office “real” fidget spinners. I think it makes me MORE anxious. LOL
August 1, 2017 at 9:39 pm
carole calladine
Play. I love it. It works for me!
August 2, 2017 at 2:13 pm
seschipper
Like your fidget spinner better than the “real” spinners!!!
Hope you enjoyed your time in LBI!!! My favorite getaway…with or without “spinners”!!!
August 6, 2017 at 12:35 pm
Brenda Maier
How fun, Tara. Where’s this Lego store?
August 7, 2017 at 4:55 pm
Tara Lazar
The photo isn’t from my store….but the Lego store I go to is in Bridgewater Commons Mall in NJ.
August 6, 2017 at 7:05 pm
jacob193
Great!