His first love

When Beau was 18 months old, I bought him a little wind-up Thomas the Tank Engine. I had no idea what I was starting. It wasn't just a stage or a fad but a passion. Every birthday, Christmas or holiday since, he has asked for trains. Most of our outings with Beau have centered around trains. He was obsessed.

Then it happened. He asked for something else. He discovered Transformers. I smiled because he is growing up, but it was a little bittersweet. I thought that soon, the trains would find their way to the garage to be packed away with memories.

But maybe I thought too soon. Last night the news was on and he was lying in his room, supposedly falling asleep. One of the big stories in our part of the country is the hope of high speed rail connecting us to Chicago. In a flash, a little boy was standing in front of the television asking a million questions...

"What about high speed rail?" "Where will it go?" "When can we ride?" "What kind of engine will it have?"

His passion is still there.

Then this morning, on our way to preschool, we passed a trolley bus. Again, he burst with excitement but I really laughed when he said, "Nana, if you go on toytrains.com and click on trolleys, you could buy me one of those for $3!"

Pretty vivid imagination, huh?

He will grow up. He will play with other toys. He will one day leave the toy aisle for bigger and more expensive things, but I have a sneaking suspicion that even when he's a man, a train will elicit a gleam in those gorgeous brown eyes.