Auntie Rhonda started Roman on his most recent craze – trains – when she bought him the heavily-rotated “Choo-Choo Soul” CD/DVD a year back. I never thought anything would surpass his love of airplanes, but I think trains may have actually done that as of late.
So it was a no-brainer when my co-worker called to tell me that the North Atlanta Trade Center was hosting their annual Train Expo, less than 5 miles from my house, no less. We went immediately after his afternoon nap and the trip did not disappoint.
I know there are people who have fetishes and preferences of all kinds, but it is always a little intimidating to me when I meet people like this. I mean, folks who have tattoos and brands of the object of their affection – in this case, trains. I saw grown men with tattoos of diesel engines and couples with matching conductor outfits right down to the striped overalls (which ALL look like Osh Kosh B’Gosh, no matter how old the person is who is wearing them). But overall it was a great showcase of some pretty amazing trains. Model trains that ran through microscopic copies of rural towns to a small village set up with 2 ft long train cars. The favorite of the afternoon for the Bostick Family – an entire city made of Legos’, including a mechanical drawbridge and replica of the Georgia Dome. Yup – you heard me, the GA DOME! The large-scale train set up was a hit too, mainly bc it was placed on the ground and Roman could watch without us holding him (a plus for all involved) and also bc the models were so large, I think he could have actually ridden them. Trust me, he tried a few times to get over that fence.
After we watched all types of trains and brought yet ANOTHER wooden Thomas, which will undoubtedly be lost between the cracks of the sofa or the underside of Mommy’s seat in the car, we headed home with a new found appreciation for trains and their fans.
Late last month, I finally got my act together and scheduled family pictures for the Bostick’s. Now, I know, most of you have seen hubby, Roman and I in multiple pictures I have taken over the last 19 months of Roman’s life, but I wanted something that was done a little more formally than with my 3 year old, dying digital cam. And I have a soft spot in my heart for well done pictures of a child – they are the easiest way to remember what I imagine are some of the best moments of your life as time moves by so fast.
So the idea of getting pictures done was initially easier than the actual feat. I perused websites and made calls and found that I was not the only one with the “bright idea” to try and schedule a sitting so close to the holidays. Either too expensive, too late or too exotic (one site had a baby dressed in full makeup and peacock feathers…..uh, yeah) I was almost going to give up when I got a recommendation from within one of my mommy groups for a woman who also had a toddler close to Roman’s age. They described her as “local, reasonably priced and very accommodating”. Three better phrases had not been uttered. Even better – it turned out the mommy/photog in question was the parent of one of Roman’s new classmates. Doesn’t get better than that! (Uh, yes, I know I have yet to post the blog about Roman’s new school…..don’t judge me, I’m a busy momma!)
Picture Mommy let me schedule a sitting, and then reschedule when the weather was crap all day, and ended up giving us a 2 hour session that I could not have been happier with. We picked a place that we thought would showcase Roman, which 2 months ago I would have said was Atlanta-Hartsfield Airport, but as of late has been….the train tracks. Yes, we have abandoned our love for 747’s for a new love of double T – Thomas the Train, that is. Doesn’t mean he doesn’t love a good airplane still (hence the tee) but given his preference nowadays, it looks like Amtrak over Airtran apparently.
Picture Mommy met us at a local, deserted track….or so we thought. We lucked up on finding a train sitting idle and got a few great pics there while Roman marveled at the much bigger version of his choo-choo friend. At some point, the train seemed to be “talking” to us, and made a couple of incriminating puffs, so we abandoned it and settled on the closed tracks, which suited Roman just fine.
Daddy joined us and we got to play around on all the things Roman had heard about but never seen up close – the trail switches, signals and more.
From there we headed to a park but never quite made it. We got caught up in the beauty that is Emory’s campus and spent our last hour enjoying green grass and silly faces.
I have to say that I was so impressed with Picture Mommy's professionalism, patience (if you know me, then you know how fast I move…and Roman makes me look sedentary!) and sense of fun. The pics were ready that evening and printed shortly thereafter. I couldn’t have been more thrilled.
Hopefully you enjoy our family pics – I am keeping some of the best for a possible holiday card, if I can ever get my act together. In the meantime, if you should be in the Atlanta area and need a great family photographer, I highly recommend Ms. Picture Mommy and her camera services. Nothing short of a great time!
Its a weekend evening and I have no time for a blog, but I HAD to share this school picture Roman took last week.
I could not stop laughing when I saw this adorable, but clearly "ham-tastic" photo my son took. My take was that he looked like a Vegas lounge singer looking to break in to a verse of Love Boat. Hubby thinks he's a stand up comedian starting his set. You decide it, but anyway you slice it, its funny!
So Maurice and I both come from pretty small families, which means Roman also has a pretty small, immediate family. Save for my brother (who lives in DC) and brother-in-law’s families, its not a big group when it comes to cousins for him. Which is why I love that, in addition to his biological cousins, two of my best friends have little boys that Roman will grow up being close with even though they aren't nearby.
The first is my girlfriend Rhonda, who’s son Charles is 6 months older than Roman. Charles has been, for a while, a measuring stick of sorts for Roman, who wears Charles' hand-me-downs, reads his book recommendations, watches his DVD favorites (Choo-Choo Soul is still a classic!) and generally lives by the advice that Charles’ mother and I hash out during our daily morning drive-talks. Charles turned 2 this September 7th, same b-day as the hubby, so I scheduled a trip to fly up to DC for his birthday bonanza to ensure the two have time together.
We flew in the day before to spend some QT with my brother’s kids, who each adore Roman and have had the chance to see him some in the last year due to travel both ways by us and them. (See pic from our house a few months back when they visited). They know Roman loves airplanes (by now, who DOESN’T?) and brought him a great plane that even makes noise and lights up. No explaination needed on his excitement.
Then we were off to the party that Saturday afternoon, but clearly unprepared for the “fun house” Charles’ mother had prepared for us. Why, you ask? B/c Rhonda’s Aunt Gail owns not one, not two, but THREE bounce houses! Yeah, this is the woman you want on your block as a kid. Roman was hesitant at first but took to the toys like a champ.
Later, it was time to cut cake and sing to Charles, but as you can….someone did NOT like their birthday hat.
Roman and Ethan had a blast on the push toys, with Roman trying to maneuver around his big cousin, who loved being the “bigger boy” for once.
The trip didn’t last long bc we had to head up to NY to see the newest addition to our “extended” family. BFF Janpeg and hubby Nic just had a bounding baby boy named Jackson James Steele this past August (the 6th, to be exact) and I could not wait to get up there and introduce Roman to his “little brother”. Instead of flying to NY, we decided to ride the evening train from Union Station, assuming Roman would sleep the whole way on the 8pm departure. Uhhh, not sure what we were smoking, but 3 ½ hours later, Maurice and I were delirious from lack of sleep and Roman was calling every passing train Thomas. When Uncle Nic scooped us from Penn Station, Roman proceeded to mark the trip back to the house in Long Island by reciting the letters he saw on all the shiny buildings. There is no video footage of this due to our sheer exhaustion and utter amazement at his lack of sleep. He outlasted both of us and finally was knocked out at 11:30pm….and up the next morning at, you guessed it, 7:15am.
As Godparents to Roman, Peg and Nic have been at all walks of his life, including his christening and b-day party, which was the last time they saw him. He’s grown a bunch since then, but being able to share the time with them and their new bundle of joy was priceless. That is, for me. Roman, on the other hand, took a little *ahem* getting use to for baby Jackson, especially when Mommy was carrying baby and not Roman. I have never seen such jealousy!
But after a day, he was ready to be the bigger man and even let me take Jackson out of his carseat and hold him (while he hovered nearby to make sure I didn’t run off and leave him!) Isn't he just the cutest thing you've ever seen? In his usual newborn stage, I didn't get many pics with his eyes open, but these few were classic! Baby Jackson is a little too small for he and Roman to take pics together, but all the girls agree that the day when we can get all 3 of the boys in a photoshoot will be unforgettable!
I can't wait to watch them grow together, learn together and to share such precious memories with two of the most important people in my life. I wasn't blessed to have sisters of my own to share the experience of motherhood with...but my girlfriends (and their babies) suit me just fine!
I know, I know, I am SO LATE! Our trip to Puerto Rico was so, like, last month. Still, I couldn’t let such a wonderful (and comical) occasion go by with documentation. So here goes:
Our decision to go to PR was driven primarily by the fact that:
Hubby said the trip MUST have a beach Mommy said the trip MUST be no more than 4 hours away Roman demanded the trip include an airplane ride
Previous readers of the blog are familiar with Roman’s obsession with airplanes, and we though this would be just the thing to bring it to life. I’ve been to PR no less than 5 times (EJ – our trip was still the best, no offense Mom – though we DID have the best guacamole!), but I enjoy it so much and think it’s a perfect quick getaway so we were all on board. We invited my mother-in-law bc she has actually never traveled to the Caribbean and hadn’t been on vacation in decades (yes, decades) unless you count trips to visit family. She was thrilled to join us and to have so much time to spend with her grandson. Our flight left Saturday morning, and as you can see, Roman is NOT a morning person.
Once we reached the airport, things changed dramatically. He has been known for being able to “spot” planes from a distance by simply hearing their sound, so visiting the airport was visceral overload. The many planes flying overhead was exciting for him and caused a bit of a struggle just to get past security check. But once we hit the terminal – excitement ensued!
The flight was relatively uneventful once we boarded, and Roman jumped from seat to seat between us and Grandma Pat. He slept the balance of the flight and woke up just as we were touching down.
Since Maurice is a road warrior for work, we used his Marriott points to stay at the Marriott Stellaris Casino and Resort, a 5-star family hotel that boasted a beautiful view from every room and the 2nd best part of the trip (at least for Roman)…a kiddie pool. The first day was primarily spent exploring the hotel, since we arrived at almost 3pm.
I initially underestimated how good the kiddie pool would be. Not sure who was the actual inventor of this creation, but the key ingredient in a true kiddie pool is a graduated entry and a maximum depth of less than 3 ft. This one had both, which meant Roman could walk in and pretty much go anywhere he wanted without needing to know how to swim. It also had a few “lips” that let you sit in 9 inch water and play with the hotel-provided tools. JACKPOT!
By day two, we were ready to venture past the hotel doors….to the secluded beach behind the hotel. I assumed that Roman would be fascinated by the sand and expansive ocean, but both were only lukewarm wins. The sand was fun until he realized how hard it is to get it off of your hands when they are wet. As for the ocean, well, I think it was a little too “wide open” for him, though he enjoyed a few healthy dips with Daddy until the tide came in. Then it was off to the comfort of the beach chair and a few graham crackers to soak in the sun. Apparently the graham crackers were not sufficient, so he filled his belly with something less "conventional"
That afternoon, we high tailed it to Old San Juan to tour the city and the fort, El Morro. Even with the stroller umbrella and numerous bottles of water and Gatorade, we were all pretty tuckered out by the sun once we reached the fort. I thought it might be a “bust” of an afternoon, until Roman spotted the kites.
For those of you who have never ventured to Old San Juan on a weekend, El Morro is flanked on both sides by a sea of green, rolling hills that are inhabited by kite fliers of all ages. I figured that kites couldn’t be that far behind airplanes in terms of interest, and I was right. As soon as he saw them, he went ballistic and shot out of the stroller. Luckily, my mother brought me a “backpack strap” for my trip to help keep up with him.
If you’ve never seen this contraption, it is a backpack that you wear around your chest like a harness, with a twist….a long strap that extends of the back that acts like a “leash” to help you keep tabs on your kid while letting them also have the freedom to wander at will. When she initially showed it to me, I declared that there was NO WAY that I would be using such a thing. My mother chuckled and proceeded to tell me about how both my brother and I had them when we were little, and I particularly due to my propensity to run off like a maniac at inopportune times (read: in the middle of the store with many people watching). I had a brief vision of Roman’s first contact with the kites and determined that the backpack DID serve a good purpose (it held his Goldfish and cup) and couldn’t be too bad if it also came with a handle.
In the end, it wasn’t really needed, as the fort itself is pretty steep in most places and required Roman to be carried by Maurice or I. But the view was as breathtaking as I remembered and we enjoyed the sweet breeze as the whole family stole a few private moments to reflect. But after kites and forts and views, Roman declared that he had his fill. Our third day, Pat took off for the rainforest (El Yunque, which you MUST visit if you are childless on your trip) and we stayed close to the pool and beach. When she returned that afternoon, we took off for the local park and spent the later afternoon with Roman trying to make friends with all the Spanish-speaking kids in the area. I think the curly hair fooled most, as they kept trying to talk to him in Spanish, even the mothers and nannies we met.
That evening, we got dinner nearby the hotel for monfongo and plantains and then took a stroll on the beach at sunset. A perfect end to a great day that wiped us all out! The following morning, we got set to head out but not before we took another dip and laid out at the pool for our last time. A very nice lady offered to take some pics of the family, so we got a few pictures of all of us on the pool lip as a going away gift.
The flight home was uneventful, save for the hour we spent watching planes from the tower with my son calling them all out as if he was air traffic control. We landed and went straight home to rest up for our next day of normalcy, though Roman would have clearly preferred to have more of the late nights he enjoyed in PR. Still, during our night prayers, he made sure we added the “airplane” in with our list of thank you’s.
Auntie Rhonda started Roman on his most recent craze – trains – when she bought him the heavily-rotated “Choo-Choo Soul” CD/DVD a year back. I never thought anything would surpass his love of airplanes, but I think trains may have actually done that as of late.
After we watched all types of trains and brought yet ANOTHER wooden Thomas, which will undoubtedly be lost between the cracks of the sofa or the underside of Mommy’s seat in the car, we headed home with a new found appreciation for trains and their fans. 
At some point, the train seemed to be “talking” to us, and made a couple of incriminating puffs, so we abandoned it and settled on the closed tracks, which suited Roman just fine. 
I have to say that I was so impressed with 
Later, it was time to cut cake and sing to Charles, but as you can….someone did NOT like their birthday hat.
The trip didn’t last long bc we had to head up to NY to see the newest addition to our “extended” family. BFF Janpeg and hubby Nic just had a bounding baby boy named Jackson James Steele this past August (the 6th, to be exact) and I could not wait to get up there and introduce Roman to his “little brother”. Instead of flying to NY, we decided to ride the evening train from Union Station, assuming Roman would sleep the whole way on the 8pm 
Isn't he just the cutest thing you've ever seen? In his usual newborn stage, I didn't get many pics with his eyes open, but these few were classic! Baby Jackson is a little too small for he and Roman to take pics together, but all the girls agree that the day when we can get all 3 of the boys in a photoshoot will be unforgettable!
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