Blessed to get tickets, we ran from one train (GC Train) to our RV to change Jax into jammies and then ran onto our next (Polar Express). We were headed to the North Pole and a visit from Santa! Jax and I read this book so he is very familiar with the story. He couldn't wait to see the Polar Express, let alone ride on it and when they came out with hot chocolate and cookies, I thought he'd die! The total trip time is 1 hour (1/2 hour to the North Pole and 1/2 hour back). We sang Christmas Carols and listened to a narrated version of the book by the actor, Liam Neeson. While he read, elves walked up and down the aisle of the train, holding the book and turning the pages as it went along. The kids loved the pictures and Jax knew exactly where they were at all times. He could hardly sit still!
Once we reached the North Pole, Santa got on the train and gave each child "the 1st gift of Christmas" (a silver bell from his sleigh). The story goes, you can only hear this bell ringing if you believe in Santa Claus and the spirit of Christmas....so, Jax was ringing his bell in our ears every 10 seconds to make sure we still believed. We were so happy that night - it was a little boy's dream come true. I teared up many times on that little train trip. Seeing Jax so happy and awe-struck at meeting Santa Claus was such a delight for Darren and me. We will definitely do this again!!!
