Train Ride

This last week, we traveled to Colorado for a family reunion in Manitou Springs.  After the reunion, we stayed a couple of days to make the most of the 12 hour drive.  My parents, my brother, my sister, and her (new) fiancee were with us on the trip.  My granddad also rode out with us, but he traveled back with one of my uncles.  It was a true family vacation.

The night before we left, Paxton was showing some signs of respiratory distress, so I took him to urgent care.  He was diagnosed with an upper respiratory infection, ear infections in both ears and bronchiolitis.  He was to do breathing treatments four times a day, antibiotics once a day and ear drops for pain.  When I told the doctor we were going to Colorado, she strongly suggested I do not take him into the mountains.  Bummer!  One of the main events for the family reunion was a trip up Pikes Peak.

I had been pretty nervous about the ride up and down the mountain.  I had been up as a kid, and I remembered my mom being scared, and almost every adult woman I told we were going said to prepare myself... it's nerve wracking.  I knew I would be telling Jackson to slow down, and that would make him mad, so I figured it wouldn't have been a very fun trip for anyone in our van.  To me, Paxton's illness was a pretty convenient way out.  I struggled with the decision not to go up with the rest of the family.  Several people offered to stay down with poor, little Paxie, and Jackson really wanted me to go up with he and the other kids.  In the end, I stayed with Paxton.  My dad and Granddad rode up with Jackson and the kids (Thank goodness he took them with him because Camden threw up on the way back down).  I had been anxious about the thought of driving up, and after hearing all of the family talk about the trip up, I was certain I had made the right choice.

Traveling with four kids and extended family can be really stressful.  Especially for me who was having to keep track of the budget and keep Paxton on his medicine regime.  I had a break down a couple of days into the trip.  We went to Garden of the Gods, souvenir shopping and to lunch with my entire branch of the family tree.  Jackson and my sister's fiancee went  to play golf, so I was solely in charge of ordering and making sure the kids ate.  Susana, my sister, was riding with me and she and my parents were helping out with the kids, but I was feeling totally overwhelmed at that point.  We ate lunch and all went back to the hotel.  I laid down and took a nap while my parents took the older kids swimming.  I woke up feeling better, but I really would have liked to just go home at that point.  I knew that wasn't an option though because the thing my kids were most looking forward to was the train ride the next day.

The entire family just before the train ride.  

We all had decided to go on a train ride on the Royal Gorge Route Railroad in Cañon City, Colorado.  We had been watching carefully because there were wildfires in that area.  Two days before, the train had been running half routes because debris from the Royal Gorge Bridge had fallen onto the tracks. On the day of our trip, the train was back up and running!  We spent the morning walking around historic Manitou Springs.  We did some shopping, the kids played at an arcade, and we had a very nice lunch.  Then we drove about an hour down to the train depot.


I was a little nervous about the train ride, too.  I have been having some trouble with anxiety, and I was worried I would get anxious when we started going.  I really had nothing to worry about... as usual.  We all found our seats and started on the trip.  Shortly after the trip began, everyone decided to venture out to the open air car.  I stayed inside for a little while, but the views were really spectacular outside.  We all went outside except my brother, Jamin.  Jamin has autism and has trouble with sensory integration.  He has always struggled with walking down steps that you can see through, swinging bridges and that sort of thing.  He was perfectly content sitting in his seat on the train.

My mom and dad had tried to get him to go outside, but he wanted to stay put.  I hated leaving him inside by himself, so I asked him to come out with me.  He often answers a question with a question, so his response was, "What if I want to stay here?" I told him that was okay, but I thought he would really like it outside.  He asked if the train would stop moving.  I said, "Yes, eventually it will, but not for a while."  So we sat.  Then Gray came in and asked Jamin if he wanted to come out.  "What if I don't want to?"  I asked him, "Do you really not want to, or are you scared?"  "Will the train stop moving?"

Finally I said, "Just give me your hands.  I'll walk with you."  He reached out his hands and quickly pulled them back, crossing his arms.  Then he put both hands on the seat like he was going to push up out of the seat.  But he pulled his hands back, vigorously rubbed his thighs and crossed his arms again.  He looked up at me, then back down.  Rubbed the palms of his hands together and crossed his arms.  I said, "Come on, trust me."  Still holding out my hands... I knew he was close to getting up.  I wasn't certain he would do it, but I could tell he wanted to.  We continued several minutes.  I was saying encouraging words.  Jamin was rubbing palms, rubbing thighs and crossing arms.  Looking up at me, looking back down.  Almost standing up, but never really lifting off the seat.

"Who's out there?" he asked.  "Everyone but us."  He looked down for a moment then he put his hands on mine.  He stood up, and took off running.  "I'm coming, I'm coming, I'm coming..."  He yells all the way down the aisle.  I chase after him, surprised we aren't walking slow, shuffling steps.  I open the door between the two cars and he yells "I'm coming, I'm coming".  Just when he gets to my mom and dad, he says, "I'm here."  That moment was worth all of the stress of the entire trip.  We laughed and enjoyed the scenery.  Enjoyed our family time.  Jamin didn't go back inside until the trip was almost over. 

Jamin and I after he came out of the train car.

Jamin, much more at ease.

After all of the worry, will I be anxious, could I get motion sick, is it going to be uncomfortably hot? The train ride was my favorite part of the trip.  It was relaxing.  It was beautiful.  Everyone enjoyed it.  The next day we were heading home, and I was wishing we could stay longer.   Quite a change from the day before, when I was wishing we could just skip the train ride and go home.

I love that we can make memories with our family.  My kids get to take trips with their grandparents, aunts and uncles... things some kids never get to experience.  Traveling can get crazy sometimes, especially with a stressed out, anxious momma.  I have to try my best to let go of the anxieties because the entire trip usually turns out just like the train ride... wonderful!  We have fabulous photos, fun souvenirs and loads of stories. 

My family at Garden of the Gods.