Pups, trains, and snowman cookies
52 Week Plan—3 Goals
to something new
Say yes, instead of no, or maybe
Get off the couch
With the above goals firmly in my head, I figure out the next step in my 52-week plan. It’s an adventure with our two-year-old grand-daughter, her dad, and my husband. We’re taking an epic trek to North Van to see the—gasp, wait for it—cast of Paw Patrol live.
Yes, our grand-daughter will be within sniffing distance of her doggy heroes. She might even catch a glimpse of Marshall the fire/medic pup from the cartoon series Paw Patrol. If she does, she may have a dog-niption (I know, not a word). She’ll either go crazy with excitement or have a melt down, there’s no predicting the reactions of a two-year-old.
Paw Patrol isn’t the only reason we’re off to North Van. We’re taking our grand-daughter to ride the Christmas train at the Lynn Valley Centre. It’s my brother-in-law’s train and our grand-daughter is finally big enough to go for a ride.
It sounds like fun—noisy fun (a mob of screaming toddlers confronted by their doggy heroes could be as frenzied as fans at a Metallica concert).
With that in mind, I do some research to make sure we all survive the trip.
.
Here are a few online tips for travelling toddlers:
Get a good night’s sleep—oh wait, that means make sure your toddler is well rested, not me
Travel with snacks
Reserve space next to the car seat
Have a back-up plan
Here’s how our epic Paw Patrol Adventure unfolds:
The ad says: Meet the popular Paw Pups
That translates to: Come and see giant-sized Chase and Marshall costumed-actors
We miss the hordes of adoring fans and find a handful of toddlers and their parents milling about, waiting for a chance to give their puppy idols a hug.
What does our little Paw Patroller do?
She hides behind her dad, poking her head out far enough to track the puppy progress. Woe to the pup who waggles an over-sized paw in her direction. When the dawg-tired actors head off for a rest, our little paw-gazer wanders in circles calling, “Marshhh, Chase, where you go?”
As for the great train adventure:
Our grand-daughter and her dad wait in line three times before her bottom actually touches the seat. That contact lasts less than a second before she’s back in her dad’s arms
Line up time number four—she makes it onto the seat, has her seat belt fastened and starts her train ride
Loop one—she is head down, staring at her toes
Loop two—the tears start—big fat tears rolling down her cheeks dripping onto her knees
Loop three—the train conductor says, “Should I take her off?”
Loop four—the train makes an unscheduled stop for a passenger to disembark
What did I learn?
Get a good night’s sleep—you need energy to keep up with a two-year-old
Travel with snacks—no snacks? Snowman cookies with Smarties buttons are a great fill-in.
Reserve space next to the car seat—preferably for someone else to sit in. Travelling with a toddler is messy. Note to self: anyone sitting next to said toddler is guaranteed to be smeared by the above snack
Back up plans are good—the habit of changing strategies on the fly comes back to you fast—so do Plans B, C, and D
To round out our day, we stop at the mall for a quick shop. Our tired toddler finally has her ride (a rental car stroller with a steering wheel so she can drive). We stay long enough to remember that malls are something to avoid the week before Christmas. All in all, the trip is a great addition to my 52-Week adventure. We make it home in time for me to kick the cats off the couch.