Oh, Happy Day!

School's been going well. Our moods have been elevating. Things are, knock on wood, going much better.

Today was a very happy day for a cute 11 year old. Bob came home for lunch and announced to Thomas that yes, he would indeed take Thomas to the model railroad club meeting tonight and join up. Oh my gosh -- that kid was nearly bouncing off the walls he was so excited!

Surprisingly, Thomas had a wonderful afternoon of school. He worked hard, paid attention and did good work. I thought I was in for with that news, but Thomas is maturing.

Tonight the two boys were off. I had the house to myself for three hours. THREE hours. Good grief, I cannot remember having so much quiet during waking hours -- in the comfort of my own home, that is. I ended up reading catalogs and watching a TV show on 9-11. I was just so stunned and almost frozen, I didn't know what to do with myself. I will be making grand plans for next week!

I must admit I started looking out the window for approaching headlights about twenty minutes before my boys re-appeared. It actually got a little too quiet.

Anyway, that quiet was short-lived because when they returned home, Thomas burst in the door and talked 300 words per minute. Oh, mom, it was great -- they let me run the trains. I saw the Big Boy, they let me run the trains, I saw a Challenger, they let me run the trains, they took some scenery apart so I could see it, they let me run the trains, they were really nice to me, they let me run the trains, they ran Gordon from the Thomas set for me, they let me run the trains. Mom, they showed me the electrical wiring and there was so much wire and it was soooo cool. And mom, they let me run the trains.

Did I mention, they let Thomas run the trains?

Bob's version was great, too. First thing he mentioned was that they went to the restaurant right next door to have their business meeting. Bob was impressed that Thomas got to see first-hand how a meeting is run. Roberts Rules of Order. So Bob wants to teach Thomas all about "da
rules. "

Bob then reported that these guys were fantastic to Thomas. He said it's mostly a bunch of grandpas and they all showed a great interest in Thomas. Thomas's enthusiasm was equal to theirs as they all love trains. He said he just stepped back and watched. He enjoyed seeing his child so happy.

Bob was actually dreading doing this, but decided to because he knew how much it would mean to Thomas. I think he was a little surprised that he actually had a good time as well.

Bob and I have been debating what to get Thomas for Christmas. Santa always brings him a nice gift. Bob mentioned to Thomas that perhaps he should wait on a train set until we figure out what's good, what they want, etc. Thomas agreed. Thomas later whispered to me how disappointed he was.

Well, Santa had better get busy and get something. We've decided to buy an Atlas True_Track layout. I don't know which one we're going to get yet. I do know we can't afford nor do we have room for anything larger than a 4x8 layout. Of course we'll also have to get him an engine and a few cars. We haven't even started looking at the engines yet, it's hard enough to decide on the track! All I know for sure is that our engine will most definitely be a Union Pacific. Out of love for my dad, who worked for Union Pacific for over 40 years, how could we choose anything but? Even though Bob worked for Burlington Northern for 14 years, Union Pacific wins out.

It really was a happy day. I think I'm most happy because -- pardon to my secular friends -- my prayers were answered in regard to what were we going to do for a social outlet when scouts was over. This is an excellent beginning. For a child whose grandpa lives a two-day drive away, for a child who just lost his other grandpa, what a wonderful place for him to be. And there were even other kids at the meeting tonight, too.

Oh happy day indeed.

All aboard!