Cousin camp - Amtrak

The girls returned earlier this week from their annual summer cousin camp with my parents. I'll blog all about that fun week soon, but this post is about the adventure of coming home. Grammy & Dingdaddy, along with my Aunt Veda, surprised the girls with a ride on the Amtrak train from Austin to Ft Worth. They kept it a secret until they got to the train station & then let them figure it out. They had never ridden a train before, but soon learned that this is the way to go! They loved getting to walk around & explore all the cars, play crazy 8's, do crafts, eat in the dining car, and their favorite - NO SEATBELTS! That was the first thing Anna reported to me when they called from the train - "Mom, there are no seatbelts or carseats!" A huge treat for this generation of kids. The grownups all agreed that besides the grouchy train employees, it was an awesome way to travel with kids - lots of room to get the wiggles out & no bathroom stops... although Anna said that pottying on a moving train was "freaky". Judah & I picked them up downtown at the station & everyone got to spend the night before we dropped them back at the station the next day for the trip back to Austin (the adults agreed that they wouldn't speak for the entire four hour ride home after surviving the week with these chatty Cathies!). Thanks Aunt Veda & G & D for a one of a kind travel experience!

The dining car was an experience - the girls was starving because it opened later than their usual lunchtime, and the grown ups said the food was gross, but cool anyway!