He still got a candy cane from Santa though, which he loved (me, not so much, what with the exceedingly sticky hands and face afterward):



Josh and Daddy were pretty happy too:



Overall, a very cold but very fun night.

Then, as it turns out, Josh does remember the Polar Express ride. As we've read the book at bedtime this month, Josh has talked about when we rode the Polar Express, on the "other" Christmas (he doesn't use temporal words like "last year" or "yesterday" yet; it's just the "other" one). He remembers getting the hot chocolate and, especially, getting his bell. But he isn't disappointed this year, the Holiday Express was satisfying enough and he's thrilled to have ridden with Santa again. But next year, it may be back to Hood River RR for us.



Brothers. They kill me with their cuteness sometimes (lots of times).