Riding the Rails

It has been a week since we road the rails, even longer since I've blogged. Sorry. I was sick. And then I was exhausted from being sick. And then I was catching up on all the stuff that didn't get done cause I was sick.

But I'm back. And here's what we did last Sunday.

We rode the rails.

But first we rode the freeway to Griffith Park.

Because they have trains there. Lots of them.

And we love trains. (some of us more than others)

We started here.

This was our train.

It wasn't just the boys who were excited to ride the train.

At least she was excited until Daddy put her in the caboose.

"Why Daddy? Why?"

There was lots to see.

The train goes over a trestle bridge, through a tunnel and a dilapidated, old western town.

It's a good ride.

But that was just the first train ride of the day.

Nest stop: the Live Steamers

I don't know who was more excited about riding these trains, Aaron or the boys.

Real life miniature steam engines.

Real life engineers.

It was pretty cool.

They only run on Sundays, and even though we got there when they opened,

there was a bit of a line.

The boys were very patient. See those arms and legs poking through the fence?

The wait is worth it when this is your train.

When you get on it, you might just be in train heaven.

The tracks run through miniature villages, past miniature mining towns, over lots of bridges and through tunnels.

They loved it so much they made me take a turn.

I agree. It was one cool ride.

But we weren't done yet.

Next stop....

The Travel Town Museum.

Where they have real rails, real railroad cars and where we had a really good time.

Isn't it amazing? The boys just loved looking at all these real trains.

It was a great place for taking pictures.

You think there are a lot of pictures on this post?

It's just the tip of the iceberg friends.

Really, could she be any more adorable?

Every where we go, the kids get lots of looks. I think it's all the blond hair.

I hear this comment every single day, "Wow! You have beautiful children."

But Lilly?

She's a real show stopper.

Everyone loves her.

Sorry boys, but your sister gets far more attention than you guys ever did.

That hair, that tan, those eyes, that dimple, and of course,

those legs.

The best part of the trains was climbing on them.

Here goes one.

And another.

And another. She won't be left behind, no sir!

They all enjoy the view.

Mommy gets a turn, too.

These trains are big. Really big.

The day wouldn't be complete

without one last train ride.

There's one at Travel Town.

It was such a great day. Going somewhere new, seeing different things and most of all being together. Sometimes it is nice to take a trip to get away from it all.

Even if you are just riding a train in a circle.

I will be posting more pics and info about the Griffith Park trains on Picnics in the Park.

Check there tomorrow.

There is Always More Work to be Done

Did you see these over at Picnics in the Park? If not, head over there for a minute to find out where they came from. Done? OK. Let's go on.

One of my favorite preschool memories (yes, I remember preschool) is the wash tubs that were out in the play yard. At recess, there were always boys tearing around on the bikes, girls swinging around on the monkey bars and lots of kids playing in the sand pile. But I liked the wash tubs the best.

They were filled with water and soap and next to them was a pile of dolls and a pile of dishes. According to your preference, you could pick up whichever one you wanted to, and wash away. I liked washing the babies best. Soaping their hair and their little arms and legs made me feel like a real mommy. I am sure that is why I loved those spending my recess minutes at those wash tubs; I felt like I was dong something real.
I remembered that when I came home from an estate sale with a bin full of dirty baking tins. I remembered how good it makes my kids feel when I let them help me. I remembered that they like real work too.

So they got to it.
Even Lilly was in on it. See that soapy little hand?
Oh yes, they got all 3 tubs soapy, even though I showed them one was for washing, the next for rinsing and the 3rd for the extra rinse. It didn't really matter. What mattered was that they were being helpful. They were getting wet. They were having fun. They were doing real work!
They didn't finish all of them. (There are a lot!) But I had them set the ones they washed out in the sun, and I finished the rest while they had a cool drink. We are also learning how much better it is when we all help each other to finish a job.

When I was done, we looked at all the different tins and began to dream of the yummy treats we'll be baking in them soon.

Together, of course.

The Gang's All Here

My kids are blessed in the cousin department. Not only do they have lots of cousins, they have lots of cousins that they love. One of my favorite things in the world is watching my babies grow up with their cousins. I know they are making wonderful memories.

A few days ago, some of the cousins came over. A good time was had by all. Here are some highlights.

The baby girls. Born 1 week apart. Friends already.

I made a tent for the big kids.

They immediately named it "The Clubhouse" and played family in it for hours.

Their familial roles: Scotty-ranger, James-Daddy, Cora-Mommy, William-monkey

Because every family needs a monkey

They posted signs that said "No Grownups", but I was allowed because I brought them

cookies and popcorn.

When Lilly woke up, Cora took care of her. Boy did Lilly like being the baby!

She let Cora carry her, and get her water and cover her up with blankets and play

bed time.

She especially liked being rocked.

The boys played in the pool.

When Lizzy came back, we made some cousin sandwiches.

Thank you Lord for our family.

We love them so much.

We are blessed indeed.

Bone Tired

We went to the beach 3 days in a row. We're trying to get back to the no naps=early bed time. And so, I am doing all I can to keep this little boy awake through the day.

It's not working.

He was so tired, he fell asleep on the living room floor. We have hard wood. I walked into the kitchen, and when I came back, there he was.

He lasted the drive home, but eventually, the siren call of sleep was too powerful.

And so, he was asleep at 5, up at 10, starving, and finally back asleep at 12.

Tell me, will I ever sleep like a normal person again?

Just wondering.