Eli's birthday is in the same month as Christmas, so we try to spread gifts out as much as possible. Granddad recently arrived with what might be The Best Birthday Gift Ever. He built Eli a Lego board.
Basically, my father-in-law got very thick plywood (so it wouldn't flex), and covered it with Lego base plates using glue with teeny nails for backup. He used green, gray, and blue plates rather than one color so Eli could pretend part is grass, pavement/moon surface, and water. Carl measured our coffee table and then built a frame underneath the Lego board so that the board fits perfectly and won't slide off. Some felt pads underneath keep the Lego board from scuffing the tabletop. And the grownups can easily lift the Lego board off the table whenever we want to, safely setting Eli's creations aside or moving them to a new play location. Because of the frame, the Lego board sits at a nice height on the floor too; sitting cross-legged, Eli is in easy reach of it. Carl even put some furniture "feet" on the corners of the frame so the Lego table won't scratch our floors. He thought of everything!
I love that Eli can build cities or landscapes that can go on for days and days without being in the way. I also love that Eli can easily be at eye-level, disappearing into the play.
The Lego table is definitely a hit. Whenever Eli's buddies come to visit, they pounce on it with enthusiasm. Of all Eli's toys, Lego is the one that Brian and I enjoy doing with him the most, so we like having it where our family can all get into the action. And I love it that Eli has something handmade from his grandfather that he can pass down someday.
It took some time and effort to build the Lego table, and the smooch says it all. We love you too, Granddad! Thanks so much!
(Want to build your own Lego board or table? Do an online search. There are lots of tutorials out there. Several are exact instructions for turning cheap IKEA tables into Lego tables, but you can use the tutorials as a starting place like Carl did and create one all your own.)