F is for Family

Family, home, travel, life

Day Out With Thomas

Sofia is a huge Thomas the Train fan so, when I heard that “A Day Out With Thomas” was being held at the Florida Railroad Museum we knew it was a must. We surprised her with the trip and even thought it was almost 2hrs away but definitely recommended if you have a Thomas fan. Check out tip #9 below for a link to Love Laugh Create’s Facebook page where we got our amazing matching tees.  

The event was set up with a bunch of tents with different activities, train sets, gift shops and a scavenger hunt to get a “prize”. The prize was a little bit of a let down, it was basically a mat that showed all the characters and their names. But all in all Sofia had a blast. 


I’m not sure what I was thinking but I didn’t think about a “museum” being outdoor. But it was and other than inside the tents, there was little to no covering. With a long wait to actually ride the train, this was an issue for our little dude who overheats easily.

These are my tips for surviving A Day Out With Thomas:

  1. Water…tons of water
  2. Be prepared for a port-a-potty visit if you have a potty trained little or stop for a bathroom break just before you arrive
  3.  SUNSCREEN I’m not sure how but this is something I forgot
  4. Hats for the kids
  5. Stroller fan or blanket (if you are in colder weather)
  6. Snacks
  7. Camera, don’t forget the camera!
  8. If you see a break in the picture line for Thomas…RUN TO GET THERE!
  9. Get Your Thomas tees from Love-Laugh-Create on Facebook, I love her tees!!!
  10. Enjoy all the chaos…there is plenty of it!
My only regret is that we missed getting a picture with Thomas because to was extremely hot and required standing in a long line with no cover. I highly recommend this event if you have toddlers. 


Day Out With Thomas

Sofia is a huge Thomas the Train fan so, when I heard that “A Day Out With Thomas” was being held at the Florida Railroad Museum we knew it was a must. We surprised her with the trip and even thought it was almost 2hrs away but definitely recommended if you have a Thomas fan. Check out tip #9 below for a link to Love Laugh Create’s Facebook page where we got our amazing matching tees.  

The event was set up with a bunch of tents with different activities, train sets, gift shops and a scavenger hunt to get a “prize”. The prize was a little bit of a let down, it was basically a mat that showed all the characters and their names. But all in all Sofia had a blast. 


I’m not sure what I was thinking but I didn’t think about a “museum” being outdoor. But it was and other than inside the tents, there was little to no covering. With a long wait to actually ride the train, this was an issue for our little dude who overheats easily.

These are my tips for surviving A Day Out With Thomas:

  1. Water…tons of water
  2. Be prepared for a port-a-potty visit if you have a potty trained little or stop for a bathroom break just before you arrive
  3.  SUNSCREEN I’m not sure how but this is something I forgot
  4. Hats for the kids
  5. Stroller fan or blanket (if you are in colder weather)
  6. Snacks
  7. Camera, don’t forget the camera!
  8. If you see a break in the picture line for Thomas…RUN TO GET THERE!
  9. Get Your Thomas tees from Love-Laugh-Create on Facebook, I love her tees!!!
  10. Enjoy all the chaos…there is plenty of it!
My only regret is that we missed getting a picture with Thomas because to was extremely hot and required standing in a long line with no cover. I highly recommend this event if you have toddlers. 


Day Out With Thomas

Sofia is a huge Thomas the Train fan so, when I heard that “A Day Out With Thomas” was being held at the Florida Railroad Museum we knew it was a must. We surprised her with the trip and even thought it was almost 2hrs away but definitely recommended if you have a Thomas fan. Check out tip #9 below for a link to Love Laugh Create’s Facebook page where we got our amazing matching tees.  

The event was set up with a bunch of tents with different activities, train sets, gift shops and a scavenger hunt to get a “prize”. The prize was a little bit of a let down, it was basically a mat that showed all the characters and their names. But all in all Sofia had a blast. 


I’m not sure what I was thinking but I didn’t think about a “museum” being outdoor. But it was and other than inside the tents, there was little to no covering. With a long wait to actually ride the train, this was an issue for our little dude who overheats easily.

These are my tips for surviving A Day Out With Thomas:

  1. Water…tons of water
  2. Be prepared for a port-a-potty visit if you have a potty trained little or stop for a bathroom break just before you arrive
  3.  SUNSCREEN I’m not sure how but this is something I forgot
  4. Hats for the kids
  5. Stroller fan or blanket (if you are in colder weather)
  6. Snacks
  7. Camera, don’t forget the camera!
  8. If you see a break in the picture line for Thomas…RUN TO GET THERE!
  9. Get Your Thomas tees from Love-Laugh-Create on Facebook, I love her tees!!!
  10. Enjoy all the chaos…there is plenty of it!
My only regret is that we missed getting a picture with Thomas because to was extremely hot and required standing in a long line with no cover. I highly recommend this event if you have toddlers. 


Brought By The Letter “A”

I’ve noticed Sofia asking a lot about reading and “how do you spell” words. About a year ago, I went to a local shop that sells teacher and classroom supplies and bought some fun wall decor that would help with learning the alphabet. Well, my little overachiever went and learned the alphabet all on her own and had little need for my original idea. I should really be wise to my children making plans of their own by now!

 Needless to say, I’ve been trying to rack my brain about how to supplement learning at home. One of my favorite sites 1+1+1=1, has amazing printables. I went through and decided to stop thinking about the letters individually and take it up a notch and focus on words that start with the letter of the week. We colored in the letter “A” and read the “Aa is for apple” line and pointing out sounds we recognized. We practiced writing our letter and she LOVED that sheet the most. She was so proud of herself and did a great job tracing the line. Her perfectionist side came out and she got a little upset about not drawing a perfect line on one attempt. I let her know that she did a great job and that her line looked great and she perked back up and kept going. She matched some shadow pictures and a small puzzle. She worked on a few pages independently and she was so proud to come back and show me when she was all done.

While searching through 1+1+1=1, I found that some of the sheets didn’t seem like things that would really grab her attention so, I opted to only print the pages I felt would interest her. I also chose a color of the week, red…her favorite color and a shape, circle. I found some additional printables at Education.com that would help trace circles. She loved all of it!

We set her up to start last night and first thing this morning, she asked to work on her worksheets! Today, I will also add some word family words that end in “-at”. She loves Super Why and rhyming words so, I think she will love it.

Baby brother even got in on the action! We chose a new “sign” for him to learn this week. So, we are learning “again” and practicing our animals and animal sounds. As soon as I laminate some of these pages, he can play with big sissies sheets too.

Brought By The Letter “A”

I’ve noticed Sofia asking a lot about reading and “how do you spell” words. About a year ago, I went to a local shop that sells teacher and classroom supplies and bought some fun wall decor that would help with learning the alphabet. Well, my little overachiever went and learned the alphabet all on her own and had little need for my original idea. I should really be wise to my children making plans of their own by now!

 Needless to say, I’ve been trying to rack my brain about how to supplement learning at home. One of my favorite sites 1+1+1=1, has amazing printables. I went through and decided to stop thinking about the letters individually and take it up a notch and focus on words that start with the letter of the week. We colored in the letter “A” and read the “Aa is for apple” line and pointing out sounds we recognized. We practiced writing our letter and she LOVED that sheet the most. She was so proud of herself and did a great job tracing the line. Her perfectionist side came out and she got a little upset about not drawing a perfect line on one attempt. I let her know that she did a great job and that her line looked great and she perked back up and kept going. She matched some shadow pictures and a small puzzle. She worked on a few pages independently and she was so proud to come back and show me when she was all done.

While searching through 1+1+1=1, I found that some of the sheets didn’t seem like things that would really grab her attention so, I opted to only print the pages I felt would interest her. I also chose a color of the week, red…her favorite color and a shape, circle. I found some additional printables at Education.com that would help trace circles. She loved all of it!

We set her up to start last night and first thing this morning, she asked to work on her worksheets! Today, I will also add some word family words that end in “-at”. She loves Super Why and rhyming words so, I think she will love it.

Baby brother even got in on the action! We chose a new “sign” for him to learn this week. So, we are learning “again” and practicing our animals and animal sounds. As soon as I laminate some of these pages, he can play with big sissies sheets too.

Brought By The Letter “A”

I’ve noticed Sofia asking a lot about reading and “how do you spell” words. About a year ago, I went to a local shop that sells teacher and classroom supplies and bought some fun wall decor that would help with learning the alphabet. Well, my little overachiever went and learned the alphabet all on her own and had little need for my original idea. I should really be wise to my children making plans of their own by now!

 Needless to say, I’ve been trying to rack my brain about how to supplement learning at home. One of my favorite sites 1+1+1=1, has amazing printables. I went through and decided to stop thinking about the letters individually and take it up a notch and focus on words that start with the letter of the week. We colored in the letter “A” and read the “Aa is for apple” line and pointing out sounds we recognized. We practiced writing our letter and she LOVED that sheet the most. She was so proud of herself and did a great job tracing the line. Her perfectionist side came out and she got a little upset about not drawing a perfect line on one attempt. I let her know that she did a great job and that her line looked great and she perked back up and kept going. She matched some shadow pictures and a small puzzle. She worked on a few pages independently and she was so proud to come back and show me when she was all done.

While searching through 1+1+1=1, I found that some of the sheets didn’t seem like things that would really grab her attention so, I opted to only print the pages I felt would interest her. I also chose a color of the week, red…her favorite color and a shape, circle. I found some additional printables at Education.com that would help trace circles. She loved all of it!

We set her up to start last night and first thing this morning, she asked to work on her worksheets! Today, I will also add some word family words that end in “-at”. She loves Super Why and rhyming words so, I think she will love it.

Baby brother even got in on the action! We chose a new “sign” for him to learn this week. So, we are learning “again” and practicing our animals and animal sounds. As soon as I laminate some of these pages, he can play with big sissies sheets too.

Reflections

My husband I are fairly confident that we are done having children. Adding another person to any relationship is a challenge. Even if it’s a child. It’s another persons needs and of course a baby has tons of those, another persons schedule and eventually, another set of opinions and likes to take into consideration. Each new baby disrupts the existing cohesion and it takes some time to find a new groove that works for everyone.

Maybe other couples have an easier time but being completely honest, we suck at the baby stage. We are exhausted and our patience is minimal at best. Our fiery side is definitely lit during those first months. It’s tough for a while. 
I think we hit our stride again after the first full year. But with the 2nd baby, you still have the needs of the first happening at the same time! So, the struggle to get Jackson to sleep has mixed with Sofia fighting through cronic ear infections. It’s at times enough to make you lose your mind.
But tonight we sat back and talked about this being our last “first birthday”. Jackson’s “first” are our “last first”. It’s bittersweet. Our little guy is also fighting an ear infection that we just can’t shake. He was uncomfortable and in pain tonight. I was able to slow down and appreciate this moment where he needed me just for comfort. 
After finally getting him comfortable enough to fall asleep, big sister started crying out too. We went in to her room, both of us and rocked our “big girl”, gave her some drops for her ears and waited till she was comfortable enough to sleep. 

Tonight they needed us. We may not sleep much during these days but we are needed and loved. I hope I’m able to be in these moments more often and appreciate even the difficult moments because they pass so quickly and these are our last moments for these young littles that need us.
When Sofia was a baby, I read a Meme of Facebook that said “My baby isn’t giving me a hard time, they are having a tough time”. I’ve never forgotten those words. I haven’t gotten much of my “to do” list for organization accomplished these last few weeks but I’ve gotten in a ton of snuggles and giggles. Everything else can wait, these little moments won’t and these are our “lasts”.

Reflections

My husband I are fairly confident that we are done having children. Adding another person to any relationship is a challenge. Even if it’s a child. It’s another persons needs and of course a baby has tons of those, another persons schedule and eventually, another set of opinions and likes to take into consideration. Each new baby disrupts the existing cohesion and it takes some time to find a new groove that works for everyone.

Maybe other couples have an easier time but being completely honest, we suck at the baby stage. We are exhausted and our patience is minimal at best. Our fiery side is definitely lit during those first months. It’s tough for a while. 
I think we hit our stride again after the first full year. But with the 2nd baby, you still have the needs of the first happening at the same time! So, the struggle to get Jackson to sleep has mixed with Sofia fighting through cronic ear infections. It’s at times enough to make you lose your mind.
But tonight we sat back and talked about this being our last “first birthday”. Jackson’s “first” are our “last first”. It’s bittersweet. Our little guy is also fighting an ear infection that we just can’t shake. He was uncomfortable and in pain tonight. I was able to slow down and appreciate this moment where he needed me just for comfort. 
After finally getting him comfortable enough to fall asleep, big sister started crying out too. We went in to her room, both of us and rocked our “big girl”, gave her some drops for her ears and waited till she was comfortable enough to sleep. 

Tonight they needed us. We may not sleep much during these days but we are needed and loved. I hope I’m able to be in these moments more often and appreciate even the difficult moments because they pass so quickly and these are our last moments for these young littles that need us.
When Sofia was a baby, I read a Meme of Facebook that said “My baby isn’t giving me a hard time, they are having a tough time”. I’ve never forgotten those words. I haven’t gotten much of my “to do” list for organization accomplished these last few weeks but I’ve gotten in a ton of snuggles and giggles. Everything else can wait, these little moments won’t and these are our “lasts”.

Reflections

My husband I are fairly confident that we are done having children. Adding another person to any relationship is a challenge. Even if it’s a child. It’s another persons needs and of course a baby has tons of those, another persons schedule and eventually, another set of opinions and likes to take into consideration. Each new baby disrupts the existing cohesion and it takes some time to find a new groove that works for everyone.

Maybe other couples have an easier time but being completely honest, we suck at the baby stage. We are exhausted and our patience is minimal at best. Our fiery side is definitely lit during those first months. It’s tough for a while. 
I think we hit our stride again after the first full year. But with the 2nd baby, you still have the needs of the first happening at the same time! So, the struggle to get Jackson to sleep has mixed with Sofia fighting through cronic ear infections. It’s at times enough to make you lose your mind.
But tonight we sat back and talked about this being our last “first birthday”. Jackson’s “first” are our “last first”. It’s bittersweet. Our little guy is also fighting an ear infection that we just can’t shake. He was uncomfortable and in pain tonight. I was able to slow down and appreciate this moment where he needed me just for comfort. 
After finally getting him comfortable enough to fall asleep, big sister started crying out too. We went in to her room, both of us and rocked our “big girl”, gave her some drops for her ears and waited till she was comfortable enough to sleep. 

Tonight they needed us. We may not sleep much during these days but we are needed and loved. I hope I’m able to be in these moments more often and appreciate even the difficult moments because they pass so quickly and these are our last moments for these young littles that need us.
When Sofia was a baby, I read a Meme of Facebook that said “My baby isn’t giving me a hard time, they are having a tough time”. I’ve never forgotten those words. I haven’t gotten much of my “to do” list for organization accomplished these last few weeks but I’ve gotten in a ton of snuggles and giggles. Everything else can wait, these little moments won’t and these are our “lasts”.

Michael’s AD