Warm breezes, blue skies, and -- most importantly -- dry ground: there's no better time to take toy trains outside to play in Seattle than the second half of summer. It's also the best time of year for incorporating objects from nature into train play. There's an abundance of things growing that can ...
Sticker Train Craft for Kids
Ever since the Little Engineer was a toddler, I've been obsessed with collecting different sizes, shapes, and colors of color coding stickers to use for art and craft projects. Not just for him -- I enjoy making pictures with them, too! I love how being limited to a few simple shapes brings out ...
DIY Zoo Train Set for Wooden Trains
The Little Engineer has always loved having animal passengers for his trains, so it's no surprise that we jumped at the chance to make a zoo for his wooden trains as soon as we had the idea! This is by far our most ambitious DIY wooden train set project yet, but it was well worth the investment of a ...
Icy Engine: Cool Summer Train Ice Play
Ice is always nice to play with when it's hot outside. It can be as simple as what we did over the weekend, when I brought a pitcher of ice to the Little Engineer so he could have an ingredient besides water for play cooking in the kiddie pool. Thanks to my Pinterest addiction and all of the ...
Sand Tracks: Train Beach Activity Inspired by Peter’s Railway
Today, I have two things to share with you: a fun beach activity that combines creativity, science, and sensory play, and the inspiration for it, a great series of train books for kids of any age! From what I've seen, it can be difficult to find many books about trains that will appeal to ...
Fizzy Engine: Baking Soda and Vinegar Trains
Mixing baking soda and vinegar is a classic science activity for kids, and once you've tried it with your child, it's easy to understand why. It's hands-on, safe for young kids, and pretty amazing, especially for a child who has never experienced it before. Last year, I introduced one of the cool ...
Portable Small World: Pretend Model Train Set
Safari Ltd. generously provided us with a Train Toob to try out. No positive review was required and all my opinions and observations are, as always, my own. When Safari Ltd. offered to send us a Train Toob, the Little Engineer was so excited I knew I had to do something special with it. I had ...
Waterproof Play Pictures: Flower Train
When I made these laminated train pieces, I wasn't planning to incorporate them in water play. But now that we've happened upon that use for them, I can't wait to make more! These waterproof play pictures are great for both bath time and all kinds of water or messy play. Next time, though, I'm ...
Summer Fun for Kids: Pool Noodle Train Tracks
The sunshine that keeps breaking through our familiar Seattle clouds has been putting thoughts of summer fun in my head. At the same time, the lure of playing wooden trains is hard for the Little Engineer to resist. We often take the trains outside and play with them on a picnic mat in the ...
Blowing Color Steam: Relaxation Technique for Children
This relaxation technique for children is based on Dr. Wendy Sue Swanson's recommendation of teaching anxious children to "blow colors" as a tool to calm themselves down. Please visit her wonderful blog, Seattle Mama Doc, to read Help Your Anxious Child: Blow Colors and watch the accompanying ...
Top 10 Ways to Learn with Trains this Summer
I'm excited to be joining 25+ other fantastic bloggers from the Kids Blogger Network this week to share our Top 10 Learning Lists for Summer. You can see the full list of topics at School's Out: a Top 10 Series by KBN, or follow along on the School's Out Pinterest Board. The Little Engineer's ...
8 Train Books For Summer Reading
When I set about making a list of train books for summer reading, at first I was stumped. There are lots of books about trains set in the winter, but not so many that are really about summertime itself. This is most likely because trains run in every season, in almost any weather. Outside of ...
Steam Streamers for Active Train Pretend Play
The Little Engineer still thinks our Grass Tracks from last year are fun, so I wasn't really looking for a way to make them new again. However, I also wasn't going to ignore the wind when it whispered a way to make our favorite active train play even more fun. ...
Exploring the Art of Steam Train, Dream Train (Part 2)
After we did this train art project, the Little Engineer and I were sitting in Snuffleupagus, our mammoth Japanese lace leaf maple tree. He just discovered this quiet, secret world this spring, and I'm grateful he invites me in with him to sit on the twisted, sturdy branches. Surrounded by ...
Exploring the Art of Steam Train, Dream Train (Part 1)
While searching for train books on Amazon for the eight-hundred-and-seventy-sixth time, I spotted Steam Train, Dream Train. Just from the thumbnail, I was drawn in by the cover art. When I clicked to take a closer look, I knew why. It turned out Steam Train, Dream Train is the new book by ...
Playing Along with Blue Mountain Mystery
If you've read my other posts, you may have noticed that the Little Engineer and I enjoy playing out stories from the books we read. The same goes for videos and games. The Little Engineer doesn't ask to watch a lot of TV, and while he loves certain games on our iPad, he generally prefers to play ...
Gardening with My Little Engineer
I really like the idea of gardening. But not so much the, you know, work. Actually, it's mostly the idea of the work that I don't like, because like most things in life -- making birthday cakes, writing, getting on with the bedtime routine -- it's not so bad once I get going. Last year, I ...
12 Tips for a Magical Day Out With Thomas
If you don't believe in magic, then perhaps you haven't taken a young, train-loving child to Day Out With Thomas. I urge you to do whatever you can to get to one of these events if you have the opportunity to go. If the day goes well -- and hopefully my list of tips below will help make that ...
Dryer Sheet Box Engine Shed (Wooden Train Kids’ Craft)
When I'm asked for advice on beginning a wooden train collection, one of my first recommendations is an engine shed. From the earliest days of his train obsession, the Little Engineer has always loved sheds and roundhouses. The appeal is easy to understand. In addition to the easy-to-relate-to ...
Light Play: Glow Tracks and Angry Bird “Costumes”
While life with a three-year-old can be unpredictable, there are a few reactions I can count on when it comes to the Little Engineer. One of those constants is that if he finds a collection of long, straight objects, he will build railroad tracks. I spotted these glow necklaces on clearance at ...
Coal & Water Steam Engine Sensory Bin
While we've done plenty of sensory activities at our house over the past three years, I haven't put together too many sensory bins. I think the first couple I tried after reading about them fell flat with the Little Engineer, and we didn't do another for a long time. Last year, I bought this ...
Hi, I'm Jessica! While playing trains for the last several years, my Little Engineer and I have had a lot of fun and learned so much together. I'm excited to share our discoveries with other people who have kids who love trains in their lives.