Apparently Thomas travels all around the country this time of year and it happened that he would be at the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O) for just 2 short weekends in April and May. Little did I know, these tickets go on sale early in the year and sell out quickly, so 2 weeks ago when I tried to get us tickets, they were completely sold out...all 6 days! I got on the DC MOMS listserve to see if anyone on there was selling their tickets and got one response, a person who advised to me to go the railroad station in person and try to purchase tickets because they have a limited number available for sale there. Well, Baltimore is about an hours drive up the B-W Pkwy and anyone that we have picked up from the airport knows that you don't just hop on the parkway and drive off. It's usually stop and go on this beautifully landscaped main artery between DC and Baltimore. So, that idea was out. Next I hear from my cousin that she was able to obtain tickets in the past on Craigslist and thus began my stalking of Craigslist for 14 consecutive days...long story short, after 2 of my offers to various people fell through I got into contact with someone willing to sell me tickets for Saturday May 2nd! Yippee! Thomas here we come!
Robert and I...errr, I guess I was a little more excited in the beginning then anyone else...but I digress...So we were all pretty excited to set out for Baltimore at 10am Saturday morning. Owen fell asleep on the drive up (and thankfully, because it was going to be a long day for him) so we stopped and picked up the tickets and headed to the station. We pulled into the parking lot and were directed to park in between an antique steam engine and an old red caboose. We decided to wake Owen up at this point and boy do I wish I had a video camera on him. He yawned, opened his eyes and glanced out the side window. Suddenly things came into focus and he realize he had woken up on the Island of Sodor! (aka, Thomas-land) He couldn't get the words out fast enough or mask his uncontrollable excitement as he looked around and saw trains everywhere! Priceless!
The whole rest of the afternoon was right on par with that first moment in the parking lot. From seeing the real, full sized Thomas the Tank Engine for the first time, to going for a ride on him,to taking pictures with Sir Topham Hat, to walking in and out of all of the old train cars, it was a day designed for little Owen. He soaked up every second of it as did Robert and myself. The trouble for the tickets was so worth it, and next year, I'll be the first one online when those Day out with Thomas tix go on sale! Thank you Thomas and Friends, for making this the best day in his young 22 months of life so far :)
Hours spent online looking for tickets- More then I care to admit
Hours in the car-3
Tickets for the event- $36
Souvenirs- $25
The look on his face when he woke up on the Island of Sodor- PRICELESS!
There are some things money can't buy...
Awe, I love reading your few blogs Stac. I hate that we are not by each other anymore, but it is nice to be able to read about the little man :)
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