Thomas the Tank Engine

We have been waiting patiently all year to go see Thomas at Tweetsie. We waited for tickets to go on sale, finally got them in February, and then couldn't wait for June! We took Aidan to see him last Friday. He had a ball! Aidan has a shy personality and doesn't always immediately let on that he is having a good time. He knew why he was there, and was excited to see something new but he wasn't acting as happy as I would have liked. When he got his first peek at Thomas he tried to hide his excitement, but when he came around the turn and was right in front of him, Aidan could not hide it anymore. His entire face lit up!!!! I was so happy that he was happy! We had a 10:00 ride time which worked out well because we were able to check things out a bit and get a snack before our ride time. We got there at 8:30 (had a great parking space!), got in at 9, and let Aidan burn off some of his energy. He and Dada shared a soft pretzel and next thing we knew, Thomas was back and ready to pick us up.

Me and Aidan sat by the window so he could see a little better, and he sat perfectly in my lap and was as content as he could be. Sitting still for 25 minutes doesn't happen very often with him! When we would get to a curve he could see Thomas up ahead chugging along. I think that excited him too because he was on a real train ride with Thomas just like in the movies!!! Of course, the ride was too short and over before we knew it! We would have liked to have been able to ride again, but they only allow one ride per day.

After the train ride we went to see what rides they had. Aidan very emphatically told me "I need to ride the ferris wheel." What??? How do you know what a ferris wheel is???? He knows everything!!!!! Andy and I don't normally do rides. Not because we are afraid or don't want to, just isn't something we do. Looks like this is about to change! We all got on the ferris wheel, and Aidan and I enjoyed it. Dada, not so much! Aidan just giggled and beamed the whole time we were on it! I could almost cry out of happiness for him! Then we rode the carousel twice (his favorite ride), and then we did what I never thought we would do at this age. We put him on a ride by himself. He loves planes and helicoptors and of course, there would be a plane and helicoptor kiddie ride. Adults weren't allowed, and he was basically begging to ride. Andy strapped him in, and we waited (me, nervously) for it to start. Fortunately for me, two other kids wanted to ride so the operator asked if they could ride with Aidan. That made me feel better, but I think it took a lot away for Aidan. I am sure he still enjoyed it though. He sat perfectly still and didn't try to climb out like I had feared!

Next were the "race" cars with Dada. Just one lap around but Aidan thought it was very cool to get to drive a "real" car!!! Then he helped dada play skee ball and won 5 little army men. They later turned into the entertainment at dinner........hitting them with a fork resulted in them flying off the table.........:):):)

Before we left we let Aidan play at the park, go to the gem mine where he enjoyed playing in the water, and stopped for a pic with Sir Topham Hat. Aidan did not care for him, and fortunately did not realize he was standing behind us when we had our pic taken! He ended up falling asleep before we made it out, and was happy as could be when he woke up to a Chick fil A peach milkshake!

We all had a fantastic day, and I really hope it is something Aidan will remember. Thomas is making another stop in the state later in the year, and I would love to visit him again, but that may take away some of the excitement for Aidan. We will see! Spending time as a family is our absolute favorite thing to do!

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