A boy and his love of all things LEGO, especially LEGO Star Wars

After we were done at the LEGO Store we headed down into Chinook Mall's main foyer to help Dan the Master Builder construct the 8 foot tall LEGO Buzz Lightyear. Jesse wasted no time getting in on the action.

Buzz was getting close to completion. Dan was sitting up on a ladder working on finishing Buzz's upper torso. He had a smaller scale model of Buzz that he using as a reference for building the larger one, at a scale of 1:4. Each stud on the small model was equal to 4 studs on the large one).

Tables were set up in the building area, and each had a couple bins of a specific color of 2x4 bricks. In front of each bin was instructions as to what to build using the bricks in the bin, but I believe they were all basically the same thing: a 4x version of 2x4 brick. Once you were done building a brick you gave it Dan to work into the model.

Jesse and I had a go at building a bunch of bricks, and then I took a break to snap some pics of the other cool models they had set-up in the area including a large Woody, a cowgirl, a couple dioramas, and a great LEGO mosaic for the Calgary Stampede which was build by local AFOL Brickwares.

After building a bunch more bricks, we called it a day. Jesse came back the next day to take his cousins to the LEGO store, and to see the finished Buzz Lightyear. Unfortunately it was no where to be found. We're guessing they packed it up over night, perhaps to ship to be built again at another event. It was a bit of a bummer. I'm not sure why they wouldn't leave it up for a week or two so that the people that took part in building it could have a chance to see it completed.

Other than the disappointment over not getting to see the finished 8 foot tall Buzz Lightyear, I have to say that LEGO sure know how to throw a helluva Grand Opening Celebration. The LEGO Store is a great addition to Calgary, and we look forward to visiting over, and over, and over, and over...

Where does the time go? Two Sunday's ago, Jesse, Julie, and I headed down to Chinook Centre to take part in the last day of the Grand Opening Celebration of the Calgary LEGO Store.

The first 300 people to spend $35 at the LEGO Store on Sunday would receive a limited edition minifigure shirt. 300 seemed like a lot of shirts so we weren't in a mad rush to get there, and we arrived just as the doors were opening. We probably should have arrived a little earlier as there was a decent sized line and we ended up waiting an hour to get into the store.

The LEGO staff was on top of keeping us entertained while we waited. They handed out copies of the latest LEGO Club magazine, and one of the staff would go up and down the line asking LEGO trivia questions. Answer correctly and you would get a commemorative LEGO Duplo brick featuring Buzz Lightyear. Jesse had the answer to a few of his questions, but unfortunately wasn't loud enough to be heard over all the other people yelling out answers.

Finally our time came, and after yelling "LEGO!!!" at the top of our lungs we were allowed into the store. I gotta tell you, even though we had been to the LEGO Store in Seattle a couple years ago, it felt pretty awesome to walk into our very own store. I never thought in a million years we would get one so soon. The place was pretty packed. Jesse grabbed the Atlantis Deep Sea Striker, we each filled a couple of canisters full of bulk LEGO, and then waited in line to pay for our goods.

Again the LEGO Store was on top of their game, asking customers waiting to pay if they would like to sign up for the LEGO VIP program. Each dollar spent will get you 1 LEGO VIP point. 100 points gets you $5 your next purchase. Of course we signed up. We also had a frequent buyer card from our trip to Seattle with over $100 accumulated on it, and we were a little worried that it would no longer be valid. There was nothing to fear though because the cashier kindly transferred the $100 spent to our new LEGO VIP account, earning us $5 our next purchase. And to top it off they through in one of the commemorative LEGO Duplo bricks that we missed out on earlier. Yeah haw! LEGO rules, and boy do they know how to throw a party.

Then it was off to help build the 8 foot tall LEGO Buzz Lightyear with Dan the Master Builder. But I'll save that story for next time.

Jesse and I were beyond ecstatic a few months ago when we found out that Canada's first LEGO store would be opening in our hometown Calgary. That day is finally upon us and the Official Grand Opening Celebration is tomorrow through Sunday.

Unfortunately I probably won't be able to get down there until Sunday, but Jesse is going tomorrow to join in the fun with a Master Model Builder constructing an 8-ft tall LEGO model of Buzz Lightyear^™. All participants we'll receive a LEGO Brand Toy Story Certificate of Achievement, which Jesse will proudly add to his Official LEGO Drivers License and club card.

On Saturday and Sunday, if you are one of the first 300 people to spend $35 you will get a free gifty. On Saturday it is an exclusive, limited-edition LEGO rodeo set, while on Sunday you get a exclusive, limited-edition LEGO Minifigure shirt (child sizes only).

We're super stoked that we no longer have to drive 24 hours to Seattle to visit the nearest LEGO store

Jesse hasn't got either of the previous Brickmaster books, Pirates or Castles, but he definitely wants to get his hands on the upcoming LEGO Brickmaster: Star Wars book. The books come with bricks, minifigs, building instructions, a story, and trivia. It looks like you'll get Clone Trooper and Battle Droid minifigs, and be able to build a mini AAT and Republic Attack Shuttle. Very cool. The book is available for pre-order at Amazon.

Order LEGO Brickmaster: Star Wars book @ Amazon >

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Wow... it's been awhile since our last post. To be honest, after Jesse got some more Star Wars LEGO for Christmas, including the Venator-class Republic Attack Cruiser, he has spent most of his time having epic LEGO Star Wars battles. He did built a cool mech which I will hopefully post in the coming weeks. Onto the Lego Custom Minifigures...

Although we were able to get five Series 1 minfigures from the Lego.com site, we had no luck trying to track these down locally for almost a month. We finally got the lowdown that Toys R Us was getting a restock "early" this week. I called the closest store Monday...none...I called Tuesday...none...Wednesday...GOLD!

We drove to the store ready to drive away with a trunk full of figures (just kidding...kinda) only to find out they were behind the customer service desk with a 2 per family limit. That put a serious damper in our plans to try and get a full set, or a LEGO zombie army. Oh well. After collectors wiped the first batch off the shelves in record time I can see why they put the limit.

On a whim I called a Toys R Us on the other end of the city, and they had them as well. The girl I talked to kindly informed me that I would find the at the front of checkout #1. That had my hopes up that we would be able to walk away with more than 2 this time. Thankfully this store had a 4 per person limit, so with the wife in tow we walked away with 12 figures. Well actually 24. The store had two entrances so we purchased the first batch at the back entrance, then went in and bought another 12 from the front entrance.

With all the figures we bought we are only 1 figure short of a complete set. The Cheerleader is apparently the hardest figure to get, and I'm hoping that I can use some of our duplicates to trade someone for her. Or there is always eBay which is going to be the only place to get these, as LEGO is completely sold out.

Keep your eyes peeled for Series 2 in September.

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Jesse and I spent time last weekend putting together a few minifigs. The Star Wars Ghost Commando Clone Trooper uses a modified Clone Trooper, Brick Forge space marine armor, and I believe the weapon came from Little Arms Shop. The other figures were put together using standard LEGO minifig parts. We have some other figures in the works, and will hopefully post them soon.

Ghost Commando Clone Trooper

Bounty Hunter:

Space Pirate:

View more minifigs @ Flickr >

This is the Throne Room Luke figure that is available exclusively with the LEGO Star Wars: The Visual Dictionary that we posted previously. It features Luke in ceremonial grab from the victory/medal ceremony at the end of Star Wars: A New Hope. If you're a fan of LEGO Star Wars, the The Visual Dictionary is a must get.

This Armored Personnel Carrier is probably my favorite Lego model that Jesse has built. His inspiration came from the Iron Mountain Legion Tank that was posted on Brothers Brick. You can tell he put a lot of time and effort into building it. He got pretty frustrated trying to build the axle so that the front wheels could turn. But he persevered and it turned out awesome.

Click here to see more photos >

Jesse and I had long been awaiting the arrival of Star Wars Lego: Echo Base, and it finally showed up at Wal Mart a couple weeks ago. The $29.99 price tag seems a little steep for a 155 piece set, but you do get 2 Hoth Rebel Troopers, 2 Snowtroopers, and parka wearing Han Solo on a freakin tauntaun! We're pretty stoked on this.

Jesse built this huge Separatist Warship during the cold days of last winter. The finished version was almost as long as he was at the time. It met it's end during a planetary invasion thanks to a well placed shot from a bazooka fired by a Republic Clone Trooper.

See more photos of the Separatist Warship here >