LEGO Easter Story

The boys have done the LEGO Easter story the past few years, but this year, they outdid themselves!!! I loved seeing what they thought were important details to add into their story. They truly get the whole meaning of Easter and I love that!! I took a 7 minute video of them telling their story! Such good stuff!

This is the Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus is praying and the disciples are sleeping. 

Here is the Last Supper. Jesus is standing in the back. He's got his chalice of wine and a loaf of bread.

This is Judas after he betrayed Jesus. 

This is when Jesus was sentenced to death by Pilate. Just below Pilate is a Roman guard, and standing behind him is Jesus and Barabbas.The high priests are there on the left. The group of people on the right where shouting, "Crucify him! Crucify him!"

This is the crucifixion scene. The guards are casting lots for his garments, and Mary, Mary, and John were at the feet of Jesus. The little red pieces are the blood dripping from the crosses. Jesus also has his inscription at the top of his cross. Seriously- no detail overlooked! Oh, there are also a bunch of skeleton bones scattered around because Golgotha means "place of the skull."

And here is the tomb where Mary and Mary went to visit Jesus' tomb and saw the stone rolled away and the angel told them, "He is not here, He has risen!"

The Lego Ninjago Movie

Legos have been a HUGE part of our lives since Grant discovered their awesomeness back when he was 4!! We even have a room in our house dedicated only to Legos!! When the Lego Movie came out back in 2014, we saw it in the theater 3 times and bought it the day it came to DVD!! Then Lego Batman came out and we saw that in theaters and bought it the day it came to DVD.  The Lego Ninjago Movie was definitely on our "must-see" list since we saw the previews for the during the Lego Batman movie!! We got super lucky this time because my friend had passes to see an early screening of the movie before it even hit theaters!!! We happened to have 4 passes, so it worked out perfectly that Luke was spending the night with us! We LOVED the movie and cannot wait until its out on DVD so we can buy it...probably the day it comes to DVD! :)

Easter Lego Story

A few years ago, the boys made the Easter Story out of Legos and they thought it would be fun to make one this year. They also did a "live action" video as they told the story. It was so cute! I love their understanding of the story and all the little details they don't overlook.  Like all the guards are the stormtroopers ;-)  Not pictured is the giant curtain since I took these pictures after their live action movie and the curtain was, of course, broken. 

This was the scene of the crucifixion, and the guards casting lots for Jesus' garments as the townspeople look on.

This is where Judas hangs himself. See- no detail overlooked. 

 This is Pontius Pilate talking to the high priests.

This is the angel at the tomb (and the guards passed out) telling the two women that Jesus is not here, He has risen!

Summer Lego Scence

After our fun time creating Easter Lego scenes, Grant was itching to make another one! One afternoon while I was out mowing, Grant made his newest scene- Summer at Our House!! He couldn't wait to show me and explain every last detail!!

So, the structure is their clubhouse and all the blue area is our pool. 

 These are rafts in the pool. Levi is on the left, Mimi is on the white raft (Grant was really proud of the hair he chose because it looks just like "Mimi hair"), I am on the right (I even have a ponytail), and PawPaw is on the bottom, complete with a full mustache. Grant is next to me with the orange hat about to squirt me with a water gun!

 Here on the clubhouse is Luke, in the red hat, and Wyatt in the cowboy hat having a water gun fight. The clear piece coming off the side is the slide.

 Here is Mason, on the pool slide trying to squirt us all with water guns as well.

 And here is PawPaw pickup, or Levi's pickup. He said it could be either one.

 Here is a bird eye view!

I thought it was pretty darn creative!! I just love seeing his little imagination hard at work!!! But now hes anxiously awaiting acting out the real scene!!! Come on Summer!!

Easter Story, Lego Style

Last year, Grant made an impromptu Lego scene of the Easter story. I felt like last year was the first year Grant truly grasped the story of Jesus and the reason for Easter. His scene made perfect sense and I just loved that it was his own idea!! 

But this year, I thought it would be a fun challenge for them each to make their own scene of the Easter story and then tell it to me and I would "judge" the competition. They were so beyond excited and completely up for the challenge! (I did help Wyatt a tiny bit, not with the ideas, but with some of the execution.)

These are, by far, my most favorite creations have they ever made!!

Up first, is Grant's creation! He had a lot going on on one Lego plate!! He had all the events but in one place. 

 The man at the top of the tower is Pontius Pilate. He was addressing the crowd as to what should happen to Jesus. His guards are standing below him and the man in black is the devil. We watched the Passion episode of the miniseries, The Bible, and during this part they show the devil walking around feeding the "Crucify him!" thoughts to the people. The green thing on the top on the opposite side represents the lightning after Jesus died, when the sky became dark and was filled with the lightning. The tall thing its attached to represents the curtain in the temple that ripped in half when Jesus died.  Every detail Grant added was just spot-on!

 Above Jesus' cross is the King of the Jews sign. (I particularly like the gingerbread man body of the neighboring criminal.)

 The men in the blue are the guards who were casting lots for Jesus' garments. I like they are kneeling and looking towards Jesus. Talk about every last detail!

And now, for Wyatt's scene....

Out of this whole scene, I helped him make some of the 12 disciples and that table. The rest was all him.

 Wyatt chose to have an angel hovering over Jesus. He made Jesus' cross standing on a hill. He was very proud to point out Jesus' face....

 Here is the Last Supper. Wyatt carefully chose all their hair and the communion and wine.

Here is Jesus on the left and Peter on the right. These details just made me smile!!! Jesus' flowing locks and Peter's mustache! HA!! 

 And last but not least, the tomb. Here it is with Jesus inside. And here it is on Easter Sunday...

The fact that the boys truly grasp this whole story just makes me so proud and really overcome with emotion. Every last detail. They know it, they feel it, they get it. I am so thankful to be able to raise them to know and feel the love of Jesus in their hearts, the love God has for each of them, and the power behind the Resurrection. No doubt in my mind these boys have a heart for the Lord!

Legoland Birthday Adventure

Aunt Bre and Uncle Zach came up with the great idea to gift us all a trip to Legoland for the boys' birthday instead of gifts!! We were all super excited!! The boys had been begging to go to the Legoland in KC since we moved here!! We went to the one in Dallas about 2 years ago, but hadn't ventured to the local one yet. When we heard they had a new Star Wars exhibit, we knew it was perfect timing!!

The day after their party, on their actual birthday, all the Broeckelman's headed downtown to Legoland. It was a beautiful weekend and was quite crowded around there, but it didn't seem to stop the kids from having a fabulous time!! 

We strolled around Crown Center for a little while, checking out the toy store and the Crayola store! We also got a chance to see the fountain show just outside!! 

 Then we meandered our way into line. You have a window of time to show up to use your tickets, and they guide you in as a group. So we waited til it was our turn to Enter!

 Once we entered, we came in to the "factory" where they explain how Legos are made and kind of the history of how it all began. Because it was Grant and Wyatt's birthday and they were wearing their birthday ribbons, but both got chosen to help with the "making" of the Lego bricks. They thought this was VERY special!!!

 After all that, it was time to head into play!! First off was the Star Wars exhibit. They loved seeing the lifesize C3PO and R2D2, and countless other sets. Both of what they have and also of all the sets they've dreamed of having! It wasn't overly interactive, but definitely a sight to see!!!

 Then it was off to play, watch the movies, and play some more! It was VERY crowded so many of the exhibits, like the car building one, was almost impossible to enjoy- we couldn't even find any wheels!! But they loved the rides!! The Clutch Powers movie was a hit, and then playplace was a favorite. Well, maybe not for Haylie- she didn't want to go down the dark slide to get out. Lucky for her, her brave cousin Wyatt was there to help!

It was definitely a perfect birthday gift for these two Lego-loving little boys!! Spending it with family made it even more special!! Thanks Aunt Bre, Uncle Zach, Haylie, and Layton!

Lego Robot Class

Blue Valley has so many awesome activities!! We are so thankful to be part of a school district that offers so much more than awesome schools!!  The boys have taken part in quite a few activities through there since we moved here, like basketball and gymnastics, but this one was right up Grant's alley! After pouring over the winter catalog and making of a list of all the possible activities we could enroll in, Grant made his decision pretty easily- Lego Robot Class. Funny enough, his friend from school also signed up for the class, and when the discovered they'd be in there together, Grant was even more thrilled!! 

So every Friday afternoon in January, they created a new and amazing Lego robot! Their instructor walked them through the building part of the robot and then they hooked it up to the computer to program it to move and make noise. His instructor said that each week, she usually gave Grant and Luca one set to put together independently while she worked with the other group of students. She raved about their building skills!! 

The first week, they made these spinning chirping robots. Each robot spun a different direction and chirped. Grant showed me how to turn it on and off using the computer. Pretty cool stuff!

The second week, the made spinning tops! They made the handle and the top and when you pressed a button on the computer, it would drop the top and spin. Grant liked this because it reminded him of his Lego Ninjago spinners. 

The third week, they made drumming monkeys. One of the monkeys drummed both hands at the same time, and the other monkey went every other hand. Grant did a good job pointing out to me why each one moved differently. He really liked this one! He's always had a thing for monkeys though :)

The last week, they made chomping alligators. They used motion sensors on these guys. They put a smartie on his mouth and when you reached in to grab the smartie, he would chomp on your finger. They liked experimenting with what happened when your nose got close :)  

It was such a great experience for him and definitely gave brought his Lego enthusiasm to a whole new level! He's already asking to enroll in the next class!! 

But next up, it's Wyatt's turn! Create With Color, here we come!!

Lego Maniac

Grant has been on a roll with his Lego Creations! I actually had to reorganize his Lego space in the playroom to make for more display room!! He can whip out a new creation in 2 seconds it seems, and since he plays Legos for hours a day- that's a lot of creations to store in one room!! So after some rearranging, he now has his own Lego Creation Museum!!

First they looked like this....

And now his creations are displayed like this....all 80+ of them!!!! 

We've been having fun building together too! We work on separate sides of the bin and can't see what the other has made until we are finished! So, I'm proud to say I have 5 or 6 creations displayed in Grant's famous Lego Creation Museum!! Love my little Lego Maniac!!!

Lego Creations

Grant is still as much of a Lego Maniac as ever!! His newest obsession is Lego Star Wars, so he's been making some crazy jets, and fighters, and whatever the heck Star Wars vehicles are called. I'm so still amazed by his symmetry! We were actually putting a new set together today (a Star Wars ship) and one of the wings had an additional "control panel" piece and Grant said he couldn't stand to have it on there because there wasn't one for the other side! HA! He's so my kid!!!

 Many of his creations are getting extremely large!! This one was about the width of a poster board!!

 Don't mind the placement of this creation! Even Lego Maniacs have to brush their teeth!