I was contacted recently by a representative of Child’s Play Communications to see if I was interested in receiving samples of K’NEX Brands’ new spring product line to review. My answer was a resounding “YES!”

I love the story of how K’NEX were invented:

Joel Glickman, a veteran entrepreneur with extensive experience in the plastics industry, came up with the design concept for K’NEX while at a noisy, crowded wedding in June 1988. Simply to pass the time, Mr. Glickman was tinkering with one straw… then another… and yet another. As he bent the straws into different geometric shapes, he was struck with an idea: There had to be a way to connect the straws so children could build actual models from them. That seed of an idea became K’NEX (pronounced con-NECTS), and a new generation of creative construction toy sets for kids was born.

We tested the Cool Construction 10 Model Building Set and the Rescue Assortment, consisting of four unique sets: Police, Fire, Ambulance, and Rescue. My 11-year-old daughter chose the Cool Construction 10 Model Building Set; just look at the concentration on her face! As a mother, one of my favorite things about it is the handy storage case.

My 6-year-old son wanted the Rescue Building Set; this is a perfect toy for a boy his age. He really had fun putting the stickers on it, too!

My 4-year-old daughter and I built the Fire Rescue Set. She was so proud of herself when it was finished!

My 8-year-old daughter built the Police Rescue Set with some help from her 17-year-old brother, who got in on the action, too.

We had so much fun playing with these exciting new K’NEX building sets and were thankful for the opportunity to review them. I’m sure your children will enjoy them, too!