LEGO Club: What’s family building like at your house?

Joe: Mom and Dad are the piece finders, no doubt about it. The kids build. Dad will help with the hard parts, but Joshua can pretty much put anything together. When he was six, he put together the new BIONICLE ship that said ages 9-16, so the only thing that is left is probably MINDSTORMS. He has asked for it almost every week for the past two years. We have told him he has to wait until he’s 10, but we’ll see.

At first, Joshua was very determined to always build the sets exactly as the instructions said and never alter them. Even one miscolored piece was not acceptable, and we’d have to hunt in all the bins to find the right piece. Now, he’s a bit more open to using his imagination. When he receives a new LEGO set, he puts it together exactly as the instructions say. After a few weeks, he may start adding pieces on or switching up the design. He’s most creative with BIONICLE, and has made new and different ones combining all the sets together.

Sharing is easy, since Adam just wants the guys and waits while Joshua builds the set. It’s a great partnership. Adam is just now getting into making the sets (he just completed a Power Miners set…he really likes the rock monsters). He even made me a little work guy that I keep on my desk that looks like me.

LEGO Club: Can you share any stories about building with your children?

Joe: Recently, Joshua and I were working on the Agents HQ addition from the Truck (one part of the HQ is in the magazine, the other on the website). It was already past bedtime, and Joshua was really working hard to finish it and didn’t want to go to sleep until it was completed. So, I told him I would finish it while he was sleeping and put it on his dresser when I was done. That seemed acceptable.

It took me about 20 minutes to complete the upper level of the HQ, and both sides were complete. So I sat up to take both parts of the HQ upstairs and dropped the lower part, virtually smashing it unrecognizable. Then, the little pitter-patter of feet from upstairs and down the hall. Joshua called, “Dad, I heard a commotion.” “Nothing, Joshua,” I said. “I just dropped a few pieces.” “It sounded like something broke, Dad.” “Everything is fine, Josh – go to bed.” “Are you done yet, Dad? What’s taking so long?” “Just finishing up, Josh. Go to bed.”

So then I spent the next 10 minutes searching for the magazine instructions (which were by the computer, of course) and then spent the next 30 minutes putting the lower part back together. Very carefully, I walked up to put both sections on Joshua’s dresser. There he was, awake and waiting patiently. He stood up on his bed and gave me a big hug and said thanks and that he loved me. Definitely worthwhile in the end. Of course, daddy still likes playing with LEGO sets too, so it’s not like it’s work or anything.

We also took the kids to LEGOLAND last June for vacation. We all bought passes, but figured we’d only go two days because the kids wouldn’t want to go back. We spent four full days at LEGOLAND. I believe it’s their favorite place in the world. We tried to go to the San Diego Zoo one day, and all the kids wanted to do was go back to LEGOLAND. Who could blame them?

LEGO Club: So what does your family love so much about LEGO bricks and building?

Joe: We love LEGO because it’s more than just bricks. We have all the LEGO video games for the PS2 (some for PSP). When we flew to San Diego, the kids played LEGO Indiana Jones on the PSP. We read the LEGO and BIONICLE books. We have LEGO T-shirts. We are all excited when we get the LEGO catalog.

One time, Joshua was having a really rough time at school for a few days. When his latest LEGO Club issue arrived in the mail, Pam took it down to school for him. Needless to say, his day got a whole lot better.

LEGO Club: What’s today’s LEGO Club like compared to the one you remember?

Joe: There is no comparison. When I joined the LEGO Club as a kid, I thought it was just a badge and a magazine (which, by the way, was cool enough for me). I did feel like I was part of something, which was especially important since I was very passionate about LEGO building.

Today, the LEGO Club is part of our entire family. We all get excited about the new issues and spend a large portion of computer time on the LEGO website. Joshua is interested in the LEGO Club meetings, and if one comes close to home, we might go.

We just finished the Pinewood Derby for the Cub Scouts, and Joshua finished second in his pack. While the other kids made really cool sportscar designs, Joshua’s pinewood derby car was Gresh (a green BIONICLE character). Gresh must be fast.

Joshua constantly copies what the other kids are doing in the magazine. The kids act out the comic sections of the magazine, as well.

LEGO Club: Do you have any tips for other parents who like to (or want to) build with their kids?

Joe:

1. If you can get the kids to keep their sets together, that will save you mountains of time. We’ve had multiple organizational systems, including one by piece size, and another by color. Now we have some by color (white, black, gray) and about 10 other buckets of “assorted.” But looking for the pieces is part of the fun (I just wish it wasn’t so much a part of it).

2. Lots of Tupperware bins.

3. Shelves help for storage and display.

4. Yes, LEGO bricks hurt when you step on them.

5. Decide now if you are going to go after every brick that is swept up by the vacuum cleaner.

Thanks so much for sharing your family building story, Joe! Keep on building!