Choo-Choo

So before I get to the real reason for this post, Dave insisted that I include a picture for my Aunt Mary of the hydrangea flowers in our front yard. :) Eat your heart out, Aunt Mary!! :)

Okay....moving on. Dave and I had been looking forward to this past weekend for about a month. Three weeks ago, we took a modern train (Amtrak) to D.C. This weekend, we took an historic train ride to nowhere in particular. I had learned about the James River Rambler some months ago and I just knew that Dave would love to go on the 3 hour trip. So, on Saturday, we woke up early and drove the 1.5 hours to the small town of Dillwyn (to the south west of Richmond) to take a train ride. We arrived early and had a chance to tour an historic locomotive and caboose.

The Old Dominion Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society owns the train we were going to ride on and offers scenic rides in both the spring and fall as a means of fundraising. We were only too happy to contribute to the cause.

Here comes our train. Choo-choo!!!!

The trip was a total of 32 miles and took 3 hours. We left Dillwyn and made our way through several small towns before coming to a bridge crossing the James River. All of the cars on the train dated to the 1930's. The air conditioned car (which we did not sit in) was so vintage I could imagine an Agatha Christie novel taking place there. :) The locomotive was a push/pull engine meaning that on the trip out it pulled the cars and on the trip back, it pushed them. As the rails were built for freight purposes....it wasn't the smoothest ride...but it was still so much fun!!!

Before arriving, we had decided that we would try to sit in the open air car. Seating on the whole train is first come, first serve but Dave made sure we were 3rd in line when it came time to board so we had our pick of seats. I don't know if you can see the contents of my purse but if you can, you will notice "Jessica's 3 must have's" for traveling during this pregnancy: String Cheese, Dried Craisins, and water. While the train had a commissary, they also allowed you to bring small coolers and snacks.

The end of the first leg of the trip found us sitting on a bridge spanning the James River for several minutes so people could enjoy the view and take pictures. It was a beautiful view but there was something rather disconcerting about just sitting on a bridge over a river.

The trip back to Dillwyn passed at a leisurely pace. The countryside with its farms and dense woods was just beautiful and so easy on the eyes.

Our trip on the Buckingham Branch was a delightful way to spend a Saturday. We both loved it and can't wait to go back possibly in the fall and enjoy all the fall colors!

This weekend also marked a turning point for us. As of my doctors appointment this Wednesday, I will be limited in my ability to travel. My doctor does not want me going further than an hour away from the hospital. That is fine by me as daily contractions (so far they've just been Braxton-Hicks) have me a little unnerved. This was a perfect way to spend the day and see a part of Virginia we had never seen.

Coming up: the transformation of Oggie's Nursery!!!!