iron horse

My handsome brother John-Isaac works on the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad. It's pretty sweet that we can get the hookup to ride. Saturday we surprised Kaden with a trip up to Silverton. I can't begin to describe how excited he was. The ride is 3 1/2 hours and I thought he might eventually get bored, but he savored every minute and never wanted it to end. I think that one of my very greatest joys of being a mom is seeing my little ones light up with happiness and excitement. I think that the trip was as great for Dad and I as it was for Kaden. We loved it.

We got there early and saw the train hook up to the cars. Kaden was in awe. He is so funny when he is thrilled about something. He can get so excited and awestruck that he is completely quiet, just soaking it all up. He was like that much of the time, but every now and then he would get giddy and do a little dance and squeal with delight.

Kaden stood on his seat or wanted me to hold him up the entire ride. He hung his head out and wanted to see everything. We were the first gondola (open car) behind the engine and it was awesome. We could hear the engine chugging away and could see JI up in the engine. We saw the steam, the smoke, and ended up covered in cinders. Kaden's hair was full of cinders and his face was so black.

The views were absolutely incredible. I am always in awe at the beautiful place I live. I am so grateful for a God who made such a spectacular world. There is nowhere I can feel more spiritual, more connected, more aware of God's love than in the mountains, by a river, seeing and hearing all of the beauty around me.

I love my dad so much. He was so happy being there with us. He is so cute with my little boys and it's fun to see such a soft side to him. Kaden is his pal and the three of us couldn't have had a better time together.

It was really fun to get to see John-Isaac do his job. We had the perfect view from our seats. When we stopped for water we got to watch him get out and climb up on the coal and refill. He was the fireman on the train, and shovels between 5 and 7 TONS of coal roundtrip. Most of it is shoveled on the way up. The train travels nearly 4,000 feet up in elevation.

When we got up to Silverton Kaden got the special treatment. He got to climb up into the engine. He got to see all of the cool knobs, sensors, and gadgets. Uncle "Bud" is someone Kaden adores and looks up to. He thinks he's pretty much the coolest person on earth since he gets to work on the train everyday. Bud was so cool to take the time to show him things, let him follow him around while he oiled things up, and help make the day so special for my little man.

This picture pretty much sums it all up. I think it was one of the best days of his life.