All Aboard the Polar Express, and SNOW!

Traveling on the Polar Express

What a crazy surprise! We took the boys to ride the Polar Express over the weekend, and woke up the next morning to the beginning of a blizzard. We traveled to Bryson City, North Carolina for a magical train ride, and a visit to this quaint little mountain town. Not only was the train ride a memory of a lifetime, but the ride home in a blizzard was an unexpected adventure.

My youngest is train-obsessed, with Thomas “people” his favorite toys. We surprised the boys with their tickets, sealed in envelopes wrapped up with a tiny bell on a ribbon.

Ready to ride the Polar Express

The boys dressed in their pajamas and robes for the journey, where they were serenaded by chefs, served hot chocolate and cookies, and visited by the man himself. They each received a beautiful bell on a velvet cord as a souvenir, and we brought along our copy of the book to read at the station while waiting to board.

All aboard!

The snow was beautiful, and the boys were wishing they could be outside playing in it instead of watching it from the car windows. The excitement from the visit and train ride continued as we got closer to home and they knew they’d get to play in the snow.

Magic . . .

We had quite a journey driving home — turning a three hour trip into a six hour trip, but we managed to make it before all of the interstates were shut down. the authorities were actually closing the interstate right behind us as we went, so we were afraid that if we exited, we wouldn’t get back on. So, we trudged, slowly, along the blanketed roads to try to make it home.

. . . and Wonder.

As soon as the boys woke up Saturday, they hurried outside to build the first snowman of the season, and then we snuggled in (happy to be home) with some hot chocolate and our favorite snow books: