A Wisconsin realtor tried selling her kid's Playmobil toys online -- she never expected to build a community 4,000+ strong

 

FOX POINT, Wis. (CBS 58) -- If you head down a street in Fox Point, keep an eye out for a front yard filled with dinosaur sculptures hidden in between the plants.

Inside, not only will you find more dinosaurs, but trinkets, funky art, and dozens and dozens of magnets from various family vacations.

The joy-filled and playful atmosphere matches owner and realtor Julie Olson, who is wearing mismatched socks and a big, welcoming smile.

The wife and proud mother of three is sitting behind a desk in her basement, with one pair of glasses on and two more sitting beside her.

"This room is really probably my favorite part of our house," Olson tells CBS 58's Ellie Nakamoto-White.

Sure, there's a comfortable chair and sofa set, a TV, and numerous bookshelves, with MipMip, the family cat, who is carefully watching from the stairs.

But it's behind Olson's desk where the magic really is.

From floor to ceiling is a collection of Playmobil structures and toys that she's gathered over the last 15 years.

"I'm like, damn! Look at all of these good toys!" Olson said laughingly. "I don't even know how to describe just how happy it makes me to sit here and play with my toys."

Her vast stockpile includes animals, playgrounds, yachts, buildings, and of course, more dinosaurs.

"This gas station is really old, and I haggled and haggled with this seller on eBay for it and finally snagged it," Olson said. "I tend to hoard certain Playmobil things. For a while it was RVs, then it was boats."

Some of the items are interactive, including a car wash where you can actually add water into the toy, and a merry-go-round carousel that lights up.

"The hospital was a gift from my husband for our 20th wedding anniversary," Olson recalled. "That airport is a work of art because I've spent months finding all of the missing pieces from it."

Her husband even built shallow shelves that line one wall, where Olson has organized hundreds of mystery figures from Playmobil series 1 through 24.

"25 and 26 are out but they're not available yet," Olson said. “My husband is always like, are you working on your Playmobil? I’m like yes, it’s not playing, I’m working!"

She also owns plenty of rare and unique finds -- like the bison that were gifted to her from her son and haven't been made in decades and a sea captain that was only available in Europe to those who ate a certain amount of fish sticks.

But arguably the most special pieces in her space are featured front and center -- a Dutch woman and a green alien holding a violin.

“My brother, Joshua, and I are very Dutch and when Joshua died, he always said in hospice that he would be just out in the universe playing his violin like an alien," Olson said. "When he died, my daughter and I were in Walmart and they had one random mystery figure package and I bought it just because I like the mystery figures, and it was the alien playing the violin. It was such a sign from Josh that he’s just out there in the universe playing his violin so those two always stay right there."

So, how did this impressive collection begin?

“We had friends in Germany when my kids were really small who would send the kids Playmobil for birthdays and holidays and such and I thought, what is this stuff?" Olson said, comparing to the toy LEGO which is popular in the United States. “You know with LEGO you build things, and it’s built. But with Playmobil, you set up a scene and you can change it and turn it into a different scene.”

As her kids grew older, their interest in Playmobil began to drop. But for Olson, it only went up.

“I thought it was weird that I wanted to keep them, and I struggled really hard with feeling like, what’s wrong with you that you like these toys so much? So, I finally just gave myself permission to collect them and just own it," Olson said.

However, she knew she had to get rid of some -- so she turned to social media to try and sell the toys on Facebook.

"You know, I'm not interested when [a seller] is like 'Playmobil boat,'" Olson said. “I liked imagining the people's lives there and making a house look like something that somebody really lives in and has a life in even though it’s just a toy.”

Her "for sale" posts were soon accompanied by photos and quippy captions, ranging from topics like parenting, marriage, and friendship.

“Life isn’t always perfect, but it is very frequently funny," Olson said. “Sometimes friends would comment and they’re like, is that about me? And I’m like, it was!”

After encouragement from other moms in her community, she created a Facebook page for her made-up scenes, since sale posts get deleted.

"It was named Mommy Plays Playmobil because my daughter in particular, when I would be setting up their toys, she’s like Mommy plays Playmobil," Olson said.

Soon, she began to post content geared more toward Milwaukee -- touching on issues like the seemingly never-ending construction on I-43 and general traffic.

Then, Olson met Ed.

“So, I was digging through my construction stuff, and I found this goofy looking guy wearing a hard hat with this goofy mustache, and I thought oh this is the foreman," Olson said. "He’s usually holding a coffee cup because he doesn’t do a whole lot of work, he just sits and drinks coffee.”

Ed quickly became a beloved and prominent character for Mommy Plays Playmobil, appearing as the scapegoat you can blame for southeastern Wisconsin's problems.

As she continued to post, her followers grew. Now, Mommy Plays Playmobil stands over 4,000 strong -- and what was meant to be a place to get rid of toys has become a strong and supportive community.

"Oops!" Olson said while giggling. "You know there's so many things that are stressful and unhappy about adulthood in particular, and this is something that makes me happy."

As for what she'll do with the toys in the future? It's still being decided.

“I always say when I have grandkids someday, how am I going to keep my grandkids from playing with my toys?” Olson said. "They’ll have to be of a certain age and thoroughly vetted before I allow them access. Sorry babies!”

To keep up with Olson's Playmobil adventures, click here.