$4 of Fun

Spencer was in Toccoa this weekend so the kids and I didn't have too much going on. We made our usual trip to the farmer's market Saturday morning then after Rane's nap I surprised Ella Ann and told her we were going to ride MARTA all the way to the airport and back! Yes thrilling, I know, but to a 4-year-old it truly is! We see the MARTA train all the time and a month or so back I told Ella Ann that one day soon we would ride it. We drove to the train station closest to our house and, once we got our ticket bought (the kids were free so it was just $4 for me), we waited by the tracks for about 5 minutes. Rane was already hating the stroller but Ella Ann had fun watching the countdown on a screen as to when the train would be arriving.......
Once it came roaring into the station we hopped on and got our seats. Ella Ann was grinning from ear-to-ear and couldn't wait for the train to get going! Rane was fascinated as well with the automatic doors, people going in and out and just the train car itself.
The underground tunnels were pretty neat to Ella Ann but she really enjoyed seeing the city and all the fun sights (like going over cars on the highway or right beside them....ohhh and it goes super fast too). Rane sat happily in his stroller for most of the trip down to the airport but then I got him out so he could look out the window as well.....They both LOVED it! It was so cute to watch them get so excited over something so simple. I had only ridden MARTA once a couple of years ago so I thought it was pretty neat too. Once we got to the airport we got off and went inside. It was packed and I was hoping to be able to watch the planes take off and land but I quickly found out that that wouldn't happen since we would've had to cross through security. I miss the gold ole' days of airports being fun and exciting! So after a quick tour of baggage claim and the lobby of the airport we got back on the northbound train and headed home. Rane screamed the entire 20 minutes on the packed car because he was over riding MARTA and wanted to walk around. It was a nightmare so if I ever, ever do this again it will only be with children that are old enough to handle the trip both to AND from!

Side note, I'm sure you can see that I had Rane's hair chopped. His curls are all gone...sniff, sniff. It was a big mistake that I will not be making again. I didn't mean for the stylist to cut ALL of his hair off but she did. When I picked up Ella Ann after school that afternoon the first thing she said to me was, "Mom! Where are Rane's curls????" I told her that he got a haircut and her response was, "Mooooooommmm, I want you to put his curls back on!" Me too, Ella Ann, me too. He looks about 3 years old now and so different.