Day Out With Thomas - 2009

Saturday, October 17th we took Kyle to his second "Day Out With Thomas" event. He still loves anything and everything Thomas and Friends so we knew he would have a ball seeing him up close and personal once again. As expected, Kyle was so excited to take the twenty five minute train ride with Thomas. He was also able to take his picture in front of Thomas the Train and also with Sir Topham Hatt. Kyle was thrilled to see Sir Topham Hatt at first and even gave him a high five, but after several minutes he was rather unsure about the huge railway suprentindent, as you can see in the photo below. Kyle even received a special personalized letter from Sir Topham Hatt, which will be a great souvenier for him to treasure in the future. It was a great day for The Spence Family and it is always wonderful to see the joy on Kyle's face when he is experiencing the world around him.

Kyle and his favorite train, Thomas

Who is this huge railway conductor...Sir Topham Hatt

Happy to be taking a ride with Thomas

Weekly Blog Hop - 7/7/09: Favorite Photo

Welcome to Keeping Up With The Spences!

I am participating in the "Blog Hop", with the theme of your favorite photo. It was such a difficult decision, but chose the following picture of our three year old son, Kyle. This picture was taken when he met Thomas The Train. Kyle LOVES Thomas the Train and this particular day was such a "magical" and exciting day for Kyle. The picture definitely shows the essence of Kyle's personality!

Circus on Sodor

Saturday morning we took Kyle to see Thomas the Train...Live on Stage! A fun time was had by all, especially our Little Thomas Fan! Kyle was beyond excited when he saw Thomas "choo-choo" onto the stage along with Percy, James, Gordon, and Harold the Helicopter! The show was great and to see the huge smile on Kyle's face made it all worth while! Nothing makes John and me happier than to see Kyle happy...that's what being a parent is all about!

Kyle is patiently waiting to see Thomas! Finally...it's Thomas!!!

Thomas Live!

Yes, Kyle is a HUGE Thomas The Train fan! In April, we are taking Kyle to see Thomas Live on Stage! I realize this phase won't last forever, so I want him to enjoy all the Thomas activities while he is still interested. I'm sure another phase is lurking around the corner, but for now he continues to LOVE Thomas and his friends!

Fun Finds

I wanted to share some of the fun finds I found (sounds like a tongue twister) this morning for Kyle. I always seem to score great deals on children's toys and books at T.J. Maxx and Marshall's. I found a couple of Melissa and Doug items...a ABC Magnetic Book and a Stamp and Sort Mailbox. Melissa and Doug toys are one of my favorite toy brands because they are wooden, durable, and educational. I also found two 3-D Play Sets featuring two of Kyle's favorite characters...Thomas & Friends and Dora The Explorer. Hopefully, Kyle will enjoy playing with his new toys.

After playing with the mailbox, maybe Kyle will learn to love mail time as much as his Mommy. It sure would be nice if he would learn to pay the bills too!

Kyle loves books and puzzles so I'm sure he will enjoy this book and

even work on improving his fine motor skills.

The Dora and Thomas playsets include a 3-D Play scene, stick ons and stand up play pieces. Kyle likes pretend play toys

so I'm sure he will have a ball playing with these sets.

Kyle Meets Thomas

We spent the morning and early afternoon at Day Out With Thomas. Kyle was in heaven...he enjoyed every minute! There were so many activities for Kyle to partake. Our first stop was meeting Sir Topham Hatt, the Superintendent of the railway and having our picture taken with him. Next on our tour was the gift shop, complete with anything and everything Thomas. Kyle wanted every item in the shop, but of course we didn't oblige his requests. He did leave with a special Day Out With Thomas Tanker Car for his wooden railway collection. To add to his collection we also got him Annie and Clarabel, who are Thomas's coaches.

The main attraction was a twenty five minute train ride in which we had a view of the Mississippi River, Downtown St. Louis, and The STL Arch. Kyle thoroughly enjoyed the train ride and even earned a JR. Engineer Certificate. After our ride we waited thirty minutes to have Kyle's picture taken with Thomas. John and I were pleasantly surprised how adorable the picture is...don't you think? There was a cute mini train which Kyle had fun riding...he even had a date on the ride. (Ha!Ha!)

I am so thrilled we decided to take Kyle to this event. It warms my heart to see Kyle having so much fun...smiling and laughing!

Kyle and Thomas the Tank Engine

Kyle meeting Sir Topham Hatt Kyle is overjoyed to be riding the big boy train

Kyle and Daddy on the train

Kyle and Daddy departing the train

Kyle enjoys his ride on the mini train

Kyle and his date. LOL

Day Out With Thomas

I just purchased tickets to take Kyle to Day Out With Thomas in two weeks. I couldn't resist that Thomas will be so close to home. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if Kyle wasn't able to experience seeing Thomas The Train and meet him up close and personal....he will be ecstatic. I can't wait to see his expression! I'm sure I will be back to share all the fun details after the event!

The tour is taking place in many areas so if you are interested click the link above for all the details.

More Third Birthday Festivities

My Little Munchkin's birthday wasn't complete until it was cake time! This was his second favorite part of the day...his favorite being his train table. Kyle enjoyed his cake, especially the icing....probably not a good idea a couple of hours before bedtime! Of course, it was a Thomas the Train cake to fit the "theme". I was even able to find 3 Thomas candles. It was perfect and yummy!

My Little Munchkin Turns THREE!!!!!

I'm not sure where the time has gone...it has truely flown by! I think back to three years ago not knowing what Kyle's future would be. I feel so blessed he beat the odds and has grown into such a happy and healthy little fellow. Kyle has overcome so many obstacles and has come such a long long way! He is my little "miracle" and I love him so very much!

Kyle's birthday weekend has been very busy and tons of fun! I will be writing several posts in the coming days about his celebrations....sorry in advance for the overload, but he only turns three once!

John and I have been super excited about his present....a Thomas train table and Thomas Roundhouse Train Set. We knew he would absolutely love it and I believe it's safe to say it was a huge hit!! The only thing he wanted to do today was play with the trains. We also decorated one wall in his playroom with all of Thomas's friends. The play area looks so cute and Kyle loves it so much!

Thomas train table and Roundhouse Set.

Thomas area in the playroom. Roundhouse Set. Doesn't the wall decor look great?? I spent hours painting and stenciling. Ha...they are stickers!

Kyle grinning from ear to ear.

Playing, playing....

and more playing!

Table Time

Kyle really likes a lot of things, but books and puzzles rank somewhere at the top...especially books and puzzles with sound. People may judge me as a bad Mommy, but I let Kyle watch a little TV everyday. Dora the Explorer and Thomas the Train are favorites, along with the Wonder Pets. A few weeks back I discovered these really cool, fun books...Dora and Thomas Sound Puzzle Books. I felt as though I hit the jackpot because it was multitude of his favorites wrapped up into one. How could I pass these up? I couldn't and Kyle was sure glad I didn't because he loves his new puzzles and books, as you will be able to see in the photos below.

Each day, we attempt to have what we call table time. Kyle will sit at the table and read a book, work on puzzles, play with toys, etc. He is so attentive and focused during this time and I feel it does him good to have some "down" time from running around. He may not really think it's down time since the camera isn't too far away. Poor little guy...he can't get away from that camera, but for some reason he still loves his Mommy!

The Jackpot Winnings

Dora and Thomas Sound Puzzle Books

This is a classic shot of Kyle. When he is really

concentrating he has his tongue out. Looking at Dora...isn't she a cutie?

Really focused and working hard.

Snug As A Bug

I thought these were the cutest pictures of My Little Munchkin. He looks so darn adorable and comfortable all snuggled with his Thomas pillow and blanket. Unfortunately, he doesn't stay like this throughout the night. He doesn't really sleep with any pillows, blankets, etc., but they are there in case he wants them. He must not take after me because I'm a high maintenance sleeper. There's still plenty of time for him to change his mind in this department. At this stage of the game, I should just be thankful he still takes a nap and sleeps through the night.

Kyle may not be a high maintenance sleeper, but he certainly makes up for it in other areas...as you can tell from previous posts. These are all the special things that make Kyle, My Little Munchkin.

Playtime With Friends

This morning we went to playgroup at Regan and Grant's house. Grant, Kate, and Kyle had such a fun time playing and exploring in the backyard. Regan has such an awesome, child friendly yard with such a wonderful playset. All three kiddos had a blast climbing, swinging, and sliding. The temperature was perfect this morning and it was windy which made it feel even better...at least to me!

I was able to snap a few good pictures of the three kiddos, although I didn't have luck getting a group shot. Grant and Kate don't mind having there picture taken, but Kyle runs whenever he sees the camera. I think he is tired of seeing the camera, since I'm constantly taking pictures of him.

Kate having a great time! Kyle getting ready to slide. He is sporting his new Thomas t-shirt. There is a button you press to make train sounds and Kyle thinks it's the coolest shirt.

Grant stops to strike a pose before going down the slide.

Splish Splash

I'M TAKIN' A BATH!!

Kyle loves bathtime...it's one of his favorite times of the day!! He really enjoys the water and everyone is soaked by the end, but a great time is always had by all!! He also enjoys "attempting" to brush his teeth...he could sit all day long and brush brush brush. Mommy and Daddy have to do the actual brushing, but he definitely gets an "A" for effort.

Below are a few pics of Kyle making sure to brush from all angles!

Recently, we found these Thomas and Friends (blue - Thomas, green - Percy, and red - Salty) squirt bath toys. Kyle has so much fun playing with these and thinks it is hilarious when we squirt him. Hopefully his love of baths and tooth brushing will continue for many years to come. Unfortunately, Kyle still isn't feeling 100% so we are still hibernating inside so we don't pass the nasty germs on to anyone else. He is home from preschool this morning, but will hopefully be fine to attend on Friday. We shall see!

Hope everyone in the blog world is having a wonderful week!!

For the Love of....

ELMO AND THOMAS THE TRAIN!!

My Little Munchkin's favorite things "at the moment" are Elmo and Thomas the Train. I say "at the moment" since this will most likely be a phase and he will soon move on to other favorites.

Kyle LOVES LOVES LOVES both characters and is so excited to see them. We possibly may own every toy, book, and DVD that features both Elmo and Thomas. Daddy is super excited for his upcoming birthday or Christmas so we can purchase Kyle a train table. At this point, it will be safe to say we will own everything Thomas.

ELMO

THOMAS THE TANK ENGINE