A Day Out with Thomas

This summer was the summer of Thomas trains.

The kids played trains most days, and the train track was/is a semi-permanent fixture on our living room carpet. A lot of time is spent debating who is which train, and who is faster, etcetera. A lot of time was also spent by the older two throwing their bodies on top of their piles of trains to shield them from the approaching baby brother, which often made things worse.

We visited my cousin's family the other weekend, and picked up some great Thomas paraphernalia that his son Dylan had grown out of, to fan the flames of Thomas hysteria, and prepare for an upcoming Day Out with Thomas. Lots of new wooden trains, some DVDs, games, puzzles, and books, as well as some clothes. I also bought a Day Out with Thomas t-shirt on ebay ahead of time, so we wouldn't be pressured to shell out the big bucks at the event to buy memorabilia. I thought that was pretty clever and forward-thinking. We only caved and bought the big kids Thomas pez dispensers.

Our family trip to A Day Out with Thomas was in Lakeville one Sunday morning earlier this month. Here the kids posed with Sir Topham Hatt. Colin started crying when Mike tried putting him in the picture, and I don't blame him! He is the Master of the Railways, however.

I think the train we rode on was a reject from the Metro commuter rails we used to take downtown Chicago from the suburbs back in the day. It sure was a different experience riding the train with our three children- we've come a long way! The view from inside Thomas the Tank Engine was not too spectacular (Lakeville farm fields- oh, I mean the magical island of Sodor), but the kids had a nice time. And we managed to keep Colin seated for the majority of the ride with a snacktrap full of Goldfish.