I love this little train.  Must be in my blood.  My dad has been a model railroader since he was a teenager.  Growing up, we never had a garage like all the other families in the neighborhood.  We had an HO scale model railroad.  The garage was enclosed and carpeted complete with stereo, phone service, and a workbench.  And we were NEVER allowed to call it cute.  It was True To Scale.  Lifelike.  Authentic.  On vacations, we would visit the places my dad’s layout represented in true-to-scale, lifelike authenticity.  One year, I noticed that the station on the layout at home didn’t look exactly like the real thing.  Not the first time I should have learned to keep my thoughts and observations to myself.

Anyway, I love trains.  This one seems like a little boy train and would be perfect for a baby card, but I was actually thinking more along the line of Little Engine That Could.  Not exactly true-to-scale and lifelike but absolutely authentic.

Happiness Train

• Choo Choo and Hope Happens stamp sets; Right on Track wheel
• Real Red, Old Olive, Brocade Blue and Basic Black Classic Ink pads and Stampin’ Write Markers
• Real Red, Old Olive, Kraft, Whisper White and Naturals White cardstock
• Brocade Blue 5/8″ grosgrain ribbon, Natural twine, and Playground Designer Buttons
• Stampin’ Dimensionals and Pop-Up glue dots

And yes, my dad still runs trains.  The garage is still home to the HO layout, but there’s now a Garden Railway winding it’s way in and out of my mom’s beautiful flower beds.  Everyone in the family has a business along the railway, too.  You’ll know which one is mine.  Yep.  Anne’s Stampin’ Up!  Only brick and mortar  Stampin’ Up! business outside of Kanab, Utah.