.: Choo-Choo Express (aka the Polar Express)

When Greg left on Christmas Day to go back to Iraq we drove to Lufkin for a few days. I really wasn't sure how the kids were going to react (Sam in particular) to Daddy leaving so I wanted to take them somewhere to distract them for a few days. I looked into going somewhere close but it is really cold right now, so really the only things we could do would be to go to Dallas or Austin, but if we went there we'd be running around going from place to place. I didn't want to stress myself out just trying to take their mind off Daddy leaving. So, we went to see Amah and Da-dah, and of course Baby Austin. That was a great distraction for them. Amah got us tickets to the Polar Express train ride, out of Palestine. I cannot believe how much they truly enjoyed it. We dressed them in their Christmas pajamas and we headed to Palestine. We ended up only having a few minutes to pick up our tickets at Will Call before boarding the train. We weren't supposed to take food on the train but no one said anything as I was bringing nuggets for the girls to eat since it was after 6pm, they hadn't had dinner, and we wouldn't be back until almost 8pm.They ate them quickly and we started the trip to the North Pole. We sang songs most of the way there. Santa brought the girls each a present (a shiny jingle bell, just as in the book). Then we dropped Santa off at the North Pole and turned around and headed back to the station. The North Pole was decorated so brightly and beautifully! The girls really loved it. This really was the perfect year to take them. Next year will be even better, if that's possible! Thanks so much Amah for taking us on such a great adventure. Sam still talks about the "Choo-Choo Express!"