Brick by Brick

We have been counting down the days with as much anticipation as fills the days preceding a birthday or a trip to Disney World. At least Michael has been. I suspect the other three, if given a choice, would opt for the birthday or Disney over assisting a Master Lego Builder in the construction of an 8-foot R2D2. But Michael is our resident Lego and Star Wars expert, so you can't fault his enthusiasm.

Every year, the Lego store at the mall builds a giant-size model with the help of all of the local children. It takes two days for the Master Builder to assemble the model using the bricks the children build. I thought today would attract a light crowd since it's a school day and pouring down rain to boot; however, there were school buses parked outside the mall, so apparently this is a pretty big deal. We waded in to join in the fun.

Michael quickly made himself at home at one of the worktables and had a brick finished before the other three had one row assembled. At first, Michael would complete a brick and turn it in before beginning another. However, I saw him steal a glance toward another little boy who was accumulating quite a pile of completed bricks. A collection is certainly an easier way to show off your work, so he began his own pile.

Finally, I was able to drag him away from the tables, and we headed to the money trap Lego store to redeem our coupons for Master Builder Assistant certificates. Since Giant R2D2 is still in phase 1 of construction, we had to settle for a photo in front of last year's project.