5.Versluys'.us

During our visit to the Zampedris, we were delighted to spend several days in a row visiting with (GREAT) Aunt Cherie.

There was a bargain-hunting (and finding) trip to IKEA, where we had lunch and topped off the fun with ice cream.

Roma spent some time at Aunt Cherie’s house, visiting the chickens. Doesn’t everyone do farm work wearing fairy wings?

Quincy was granted her own wings when Roma returned, and my sweet little girls were transformed into psycho fairy guerrillas. Great-Grandpa Z didn’t waste time fighting back, though.

We also had some chill time watching Aristocats and playing cards with Aunt Cherie, but the highlight of the entire trip was going to the Roaring Camp Railroads in Felton and surprising Roma with a Day Out With Thomas.

We had told Roma there would be a surprise on this trip, and as we drove towards the Santa Cruz mountains on Friday, she kept herself busy guessing at the nature of the surprise. I was shocked by her patience – she was definitely curious, but didn’t demand to know the secret (as I would have after just 30 minutes of hinting).

We arrived at the railroad camp, and the minute Roma saw trains, her decibel level tripled. She still didn’t know it was Thomas, but as any true train lover knows, any train is appreciated even when it’s not the king of tank engines.

And when she saw Thomas, let’s just say I’m glad I watch my words around the kids – her exclamation of choice was “oh my goodness”, repeated over and over again.

Quincy just alternated between a wide-eyed “O” expression and a big grin whenever she heard the train whistles, which was quite often.

We had 11:30 tickets to ride behind Thomas, so we took in a puppet show and played with bubbles before boarding.

Roma, my independent free-thinker, participated reluctantly in the puppet show until she was instructed to do something she clearly considered stupid. At that point she dropped the puppet and walked away to blow bubbles.

We’ll continue to work on politeness, but I take comfort in the fact that my kid’s not a sheep.

The ride in passenger cars pulled by Thomas was a squeal-filled experience for both girls, and we older folks (Aunt Cherie, Jojo, Mo and I) enjoyed the gorgeous redwoods and lush greenery that characterizes the Santa Cruz mountainscape. That is one of my favorite places in California.

Quincy and Jojo were clearly thrilled by the 100-year-old bridge.

They had more fun on the hay bales after lunch. We had a delicious Aunt Cherie-catered picnic lunch, which just added one more delightful dimension to the already spectacular day.

After a photo-op with Sir Topham Hat…

... a test drive on a miniature Thomas…

... and several tattoos later, we headed home. It was a full day, and I don’t think Roma’s had a better surprise. She still talks about going to see Thomas “at the surprise”. And Quincy pines away for the chocolate chip cookies.

Thank you, Aunt Cherie! We loved seeing you, and had a wonderful time!

Check out the full photo gallery!