All Aboard
My daughter-in-law left me a Facebook message on Monday saying that our two-year old grandson Bryce woke up in the morning and asked, “Opa come see me?” That was hard to resist, so Opa (my husband Joe) and I set up a play date to take Bryce out for some fun. Once down the mountain, we could have just stayed home with him and played pirates (his idea), but we were more interested in creating a memory, and because Bryce is at the age where he soaks up everything around him like sponge, we wanted to go somewhere interesting, somewhere all of us could enjoy.
It turned out that Bryce had already been to the Virginia Museum of Transportation, but neither Joe or I had.
There’s something about train sets and Christmas and little boys. And there’s something about train sets that brings out the little girl who wants to play dollhouse in me.
We tried to come up with a train song but ended up singing Puff the Magic Dragon. So Bryce incorporated a dragon in his play while engineering one of the locomotives in the rail yard museum collection.
I found the old passenger cars with sleeping quarters and dining rooms the most interesting part of the tour, and eerie, like something out of Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Nile. Being on the old trains reminded me of when I was just a little older than Bryce and went to Edaville Railroad in Carver, Massachusetts with my family. We rode a train and saw the festival of lights through the windows. I was convinced we were in the North Pole. I remember my grandmother wore a fur coat. I thought she was rich and had some connections and that maybe she’d get us in to see Santa Claus.
Can you believe that Eisenhower was president when I was Bryce’s age?
December 15th, 2010 10:33 am
i see you in Bryce, especially in the first picture. i love trains, too. we have a steam engine that still runs here, and caleb and i have ridden it a couple of times. always fun!
December 15th, 2010 11:07 am
fun for all!
December 15th, 2010 2:08 pm
I can believe it about Eisenhower I remember him being president too 🙂
So cute that your Grandson is asking for you. Our 20 month granddaughter has just graduated from gragaw to grandma to sukhima in a couple weeks time she has names for everyone now that she has mastered the basics Papa is Grandpa, daddy her father mama has just become mommy so she can call me mama too (for short) it’s really funny she got tongue twisted going around the table telling us who was “too tall” (her dad is 6′-5″ so she started with him 🙂
Trains are fascinating your little one is really lucky to have you present in his life to build memories and share the precious fleeting moments of his childhood.
December 15th, 2010 8:50 pm
The likeness between you and Bryce is the very first thing I noticed. You’re making great memories for him!!! Love your blog!
December 16th, 2010 9:26 am
OMG!! He does look like you in that first picture.
What great memories…..I love the pics. xo
December 16th, 2010 10:41 am
My favourite is the photo of Joe and Bryce on the locomotive…not sure who’s having more fun!
Wendy
December 20th, 2010 10:18 am
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