Trains....

Trains became a prominent member of our household when we made a second-hand purchase of a fairly large train set in 2018. Then stuff started happening.

 October 13, 2018

 October 26, 2018

Notice that there are some loose ends and unfinished parts. They soon learned that unfinished tracks were unacceptable, and that maximum linkage and finishing all loose ends at all costs were the hallmarks of professionalism in train building.

 November 15, 2018

 November 25, 2018

 December 30, 2018

January 6, 2019

As far as track beauty, this is one of my favorites.

The trains were purchased for Chris, though all the children (but mostly Daddy) like to play with them. Chris has gotten more and more creative with his track combinations. And we have added a few more pieces to open up more possibilities. The track below has something like 34 possible permutations. It's all about the Y pieces.

May 3, 2020

Sometimes their creativity goes unchecked and this sort of thing happens.

June 9, 2020

It is a huge spiral approachable from two different directions, and it terminates in a very steep, 3-level bridge series.

Then we moved, and the fun didn't stop.

 July 16, 2020

It is two inter-locked, non-overlapping loops. The mountain ties the loops together.

And a side view.

And this train stuff keeps happening.

July 28, 2020

August 4, 2020

Mommy said the track can't block the path to her sewing room, so we had to relocate and re-engineer half of it. Challenge accepted.

August 5, 2020

Challenge conquered.

Family Home Evening lesson: The Covenant of the Anti-Nephi-Lehies

An excerpt from the record of Alma, chapter 24, from The Book of Mormon:

6 Now there was not one soul among all the people who had been converted unto the Lord that would take up arms against their brethren; nay, they would not even make any preparations for war; yea, and also their king commanded them that they should not.

7 Now, these are the words which he said unto the people concerning the matter: I thank my God, my beloved people, that our great God has in goodness sent these our brethren, the Nephites, unto us to preach unto us, and to convince us of the traditions of our wicked fathers.

8 And behold, I thank my great God that he has given us a portion of his Spirit to soften our hearts, that we have opened a correspondence with these brethren, the Nephites.

9 And behold, I also thank my God, that by opening this correspondence we have been convinced of our sins, and of the many murders which we have committed.

10 And I also thank my God, yea, my great God, that he hath granted unto us that we might repent of these things, and also that he hath forgiven us of those our many sins and murders which we have committed, and taken away the guilt from our hearts, through the merits of his Son.

11 And now behold, my brethren, since it has been all that we could do (as we were the most lost of all mankind) to repent of all our sins and the many murders which we have committed, and to get God to take them away from our hearts, for it was all we could do to repent sufficiently before God that he would take away our stain—

12 Now, my best beloved brethren, since God hath taken away our stains, and our swords have become bright, then let us stain our swords no more with the blood of our brethren.

13 Behold, I say unto you, Nay, let us retain our swords that they be not stained with the blood of our brethren; for perhaps, if we should stain our swords again they can no more be washed bright through the blood of the Son of our great God, which shall be shed for the atonement of our sins.

14 And the great God has had mercy on us, and made these things known unto us that we might not perish; yea, and he has made these things known unto us beforehand, because he loveth our souls as well as he loveth our children; therefore, in his mercy he doth visit us by his angels, that the plan of salvation might be made known unto us as well as unto future generations.

15 Oh, how merciful is our God! And now behold, since it has been as much as we could do to get our stains taken away from us, and our swords are made bright, let us hide them away that they may be kept bright, as a testimony to our God at the last day, or at the day that we shall be brought to stand before him to be judged, that we have not stained our swords in the blood of our brethren since he imparted his word unto us and has made us clean thereby.

 16 And now, my brethren, if our brethren seek to destroy us, behold, we will hide away our swords, yea, even we will bury them deep in the earth, that they may be kept bright, as a testimony that we have never used them, at the last day; and if our brethren destroy us, behold, we shall go to our God and shall be saved.

17 And now it came to pass that when the king had made an end of these sayings, and all the people were assembled together, they took their swords, and all the weapons which were used for the shedding of man’s blood, and they did bury them up deep in the earth.

 18 And this they did, it being in their view a testimony to God, and also to men, that they never would use weapons again for the shedding of man’s blood; and this they did, vouching and covenanting with God, that rather than shed the blood of their brethren they would give up their own lives; and rather than take away from a brother they would give unto him; and rather than spend their days in idleness they would labor abundantly with their hands.

19 And thus we see that, when these Lamanites were brought to believe and to know the truth, they were firm, and would suffer even unto death rather than commit sin; and thus we see that they buried their weapons of peace, or they buried the weapons of war, for peace.