The Sounder

Theo loves trains. He has tons of toys, and most of them don't get used every day. Heck, most of them don't even get used every week. There is one exception, however, and that's Theo's wooden train set. He will lay on the floor (to get a better view of the train -- well, perhaps not better but more realistic were it a full size train). We've taken him on the light rail to the airport and to downtown many times -- he's somehow even learned which bridge over the interstate is the train, and points it out each time we go under it. However, there's one train ride Theo had never been on, until last Tuesday: The Sounder. This is Seattle's commuter rail, and it really only runs in the mornings and evenings on weekdays only. So I took the day off work, and we worked out a schedule that allowed us to take a train south out of Seattle and catch one of only two northbound return trips (and had we gone North to start with, there's no return trips at all -- that's how infrequent this service is!) We just missed one train outbound, so we got on the very next one with 20 minutes to spare; we were pleasantly surprised to hear the same sort of warning announcements we use with Theo when we're switching activities: "This train will be leaving in 5 minutes"... "This train will be leaving in two minutes"... "This train will be leaving in one minute". Theo had an absolute blast; pretty much the entire ride was like this video (and at the 1:10 mark, we pass Boeing field and he gets even more excited!). Most surprising of all? The light rail bridge over the highway also crossed over our track, and, yep, Theo pointed it out, despite never having been on the train before. I have no idea how he knows! We of course took Vivian as well, and she had a great time as well, though her attention started to wander a bit on the return ride (which is understandable -- this was a 40 minute trip out, 15 minute layover, and 40 minute return)

Since we've returned from the trip, Theo has taken his three-trestle bridge and now places it alongside the track and calls it a station. I suspect this is because the main station in Seattle is below grade:



See all the photos from the trip! (There are a few from gymnastics earlier in the day mixed in as well.)