Train Movies and Thomas

Cole has been watching I Love Toy Trains.  They are videos featuring toy trains that tell about the history of both real railroading and model railroading.  They are very good!  So, since he has been watching them he has begun to put multiple engines together and then face the rear engine backward like the real trains he has been seeing.  We thought it was very clever of him to have caught on to that!

Cole Says:

Cole is laying down for bed tonight on his back.  He bends his knees and crosses one leg over his other knee and moves his foot up and down and exclaims:

"Look, Daddy, it's a pump-jack!"  (the oil things that you see in the middle of fields bobbing up and down).  Very cute and creative.

Bartlesville, Oklahoma: Checking out the AT&SF No.940

 On Christmas Eve we went up to Bartlesville (an hour north of Tulsa) to check out the steam engine they have on display.  They recently acquired and are refurbishing a caboose.  It was cold.  Cole did enjoy it a lot, but he didn't exactly complain when it was time to leave (the cold and his tummy yearning for the Chick-Fil-A he knew was coming helped make this easier)!  On the way home we counted oil pump-jacks!  We counted somewhere in the 40's from Bartlesville to Tulsa.

 What on earth do these things do? Steam engines are amazing. We need to look into this.

 How small he is compared to the wheels.

Merry Christmas!

 

Cole enjoyed Christmas this year.  He went to see Santa, left out cookies, and did all the big kid things having to do with Santa.  He got many things that were on his Christmas "list" and didn't whine about things that he didn't get.  He loves his new bugs, fish, trains, and all of his other toys. 
Cole went shopping with Daddy this year and Daddy got me some earrings (I was heart broken one had broken from the other set he got me a few years ago) and Cole picked out a dolphin necklace with a mommy dolphin and a Cole dolphin leaping side by side.  Very sweet and I will cherish it.

Hope you all had a very Merry Christmas!!!

Salerno Visit, Day 1

 Cole was playing with his Christmas present from Grandpa and Grandma and Uncle Chris on Friday a lot.

 We did a gift exchange since we will not see them for Christmas.  Cole really liked all of his gifts!

 Especially the turtle.

 Saturday we went to Hugh and Virginia Keen's house and checked out the most phenomenal train layout we have ever seen.

 Worlds smallest sawmill:).

 The forklift really works.  Awesome.

 This is old hat to Kolbi since it's her grandpa's layout, but she is still very interested.

 The trains that run under the layout.  Yes, track under the layout, complete with relay cabinet and wiring everywhere!  It was incredible!  Engineers can definitely appreciate it!

 Control panel.  I am scared just looking at it.

These do not do it justice.  Maybe the last one, but you still cannot tell how complex and awesome it is.  We had to drag Cole away.  The only think making him ok with leaving was the fact that he was starving.

Days in OKC

 We went to OKC a few weeks ago and met Kellie and Nate Richards.  We haven't seen them since Nate was weeks old.

 The next weekend (Black Friday, actually) we went back to OKC as a family.  It was so much fun.  We saw a train.  This was the photographic highlight of the trip.

Coming soon is my parent's visit here and the most phenomenal train layout any of us have ever seen!  Coming tonight or tomorrow!  Stay tuned!