Trains, Trains, Trains

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Me and the kids are on week 3 of an extended vacation.  My husband and I spent a lot of time before the trip getting our kids psyched up about how much fun we'd have.  When we initially told Elijah, our 5-year-old, about the California portion of the trip, the very next thing out of his mouth was, "Can we go see the train?" 

The Train is at Roaring Camp Big Trees Railroad near Santa Cruz.  I'm not sure it matters (to kids a train is a train), but this train ride in particular is amazing!  You go up more than a 9% grade on a switchback, winding through an ancient forest full of majestic trees, and reach the top of Bear Mountain, where you can get out and walk through a grove of redwoods.  If you're ever in Northern California, you should check this out.

We arrived in California last Monday and spent the next few days resting.  During the day on Thursday, though, I could tell that the kids were ready to be on the move again.  Miciah and her cousin Dea, also her best friend, started saying, "I'm bored," and Elijah started causing trouble.  He worships Dea and always wants to be near her, which often bothers her.  He'll poke at her and demand to sit beside her--like RIGHT beside her.

I rolled my eyes.  After listening to Dea and Miciah complain and repeatedly telling Elijah to leave them alone, I made Elijah take a time out.  He was sitting on a chair right next to me while I was chatting with my husband, far away in Ohio.  I was obviously being ineffective with Elijah, so I asked Rob to talk to him for a minute.  I listened to what Elijah had to say.

"Dea won't let me sit next to her," he started.  I could tell he was trying to be tough, but still tears came to his eyes.  He wiped them away as he continued, "Plus, we're in California, and I haven't seen a single train."

Right then my heart broke.  I had just been annoyed with my son for bugging Dea, when really he was dealing with the disappointment of what must have looked, through 5-year-old eyes, like a broken promise.  Hadn't I said that we'd see a train in California?  And weren't we now IN California?!

I took Elijah in my arms and resolved to fix the problem as soon as possible, which ended up being 2 days later. And by coincidence, Thomas the Tank Engine was there, so I got to be the Cool Mom, just for a day:  I took my children to see Thomas. 

I took lots of pictures, most of them with just Elijah and the train, to remind me--tomorrow til 20 years from now--of the importance of a promise.