Train Time

When you live in Wisconsin, you look forward to signs of spring. Whether it's early tulips and daffodils poking through the cold ground, the grass slowly turning green or the warmer days, they're all harbingers of spring. Teddy's favorite sign of spring, though, is the start of train rides at the National Railroad Museum. 

We're fortunate to live within an hour of this incredible train museum. Like our membership at EAA, one day I hope to go and actually read all the exhibits, but for now I get to enjoy bits and pieces, whatever I can read in the moments that Teddy stays in one place. Usually, though, he's on the go exploring all the trains. This museum is fantastic because so much of the exhibits are a "yes," not a "no" for Teddy. What I mean by this is that you're allowed to climb inside and walk through more of the displays than not, which is exactly what Teddy wants. 

I mean, really, it's not enough to just see a train. You have to walk through it, sit in it and, of course, try to drive the engines! That's how you experience the full joy!

One of the great things with a membership is that we can visit for 20 minutes if Teddy isn't feeling it (usually never the case) or as long as we want. A membership means a quick visit is just as worth it as a long visit when you're not paying an individual fee for entrance only to have a tough day and have to leave early. 

The best part of the membership, though, is the train rides that are included! There's a 20-minute or so train ride every 2 hours during the warmer months. A perfectly time visit starts with a train ride, followed by exploring all the trains and exhibits, capped off with a second train ride. (We might be the only family to double up on train rides, but I doubt it.)

Train rides are one of the best things!

This past weekend was the NFL draft, hosted in Green Bay. This meant the population of the city was more than doubled in size to host this event, which made people shy away from the city if they weren't there for the draft. It also meant the train museum ran train rides on the hour.

So we drove the hour north, hedging our bets that traffic wouldn't be a nightmare and that parking at the museum wouldn't be too bad. And we struck gold. Since so many people didn't venture out, the museum was remarkably quiet. In fact, we had the first train ride as a private train ride, during which Teddy befriended the conductor and made him sit right next to him. It was a great experience, fantastic to hear this kind volunteer who trains all other conductors take interest in Teddy and share how they are dementia certified and work to make it a great experience for all people. We got to witness this in action on the second train ride of the day when another child who plays in Teddy's baseball league was really excited and then agitated and sharing that with vocalizations. The conductor simply paused in his tour when necessary and picked right back up, never judging or making the experience anything less for anyone ... well, except maybe Teddy who still thought the conductor should sit right by him again. 

Teddy and his new best friend, all smiles!