My grandson, Alexander and I, Poppy have been collecting Lionel trains for a number of years. Each year we put a train layout around the Christmas tree at his house and at mine. We buy new items each year and showcase them in the next layout. My daughter, Alexanders mom and I started this tradition in 1986 using my trains that I had from when I was a kid in the early 1950s. We now have 28 Lionel Christmas box cars to commemorate this event.
Please enjoy our video and feel free to comment.
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You know Christmas in July is coming when it's Memorial Day.... Seriously, though, thanks for sharing - very nice video & very nice Christmas layout. Hope you both had lots of fun with it. Though, no Christmas M&Ms for the loader?!? 
What a fun tradition! Love the film making project, too. Christmas, building the layout, running the trains, filming and editing...a lot of memories for Alexander to carry Poppy with him years into the future.
How big is the layout? Just boxed up our Christmas layout this weekend and simultaneously bid on and won a 95 piece FasTrack auction so we can double up next year. Looking to do something similar to what you showed with 3 lines.
Great video, it has a very nice Christmas layout. I am sure you guys enjoyed a lot making this video.
Thanks for the feedback. The M&Ms are Minis. The regular size are to big. They get jammed in the hopper car. We can't find the M&M Minis in Christmas colors. I use FasTrack because it is much more stable on the rug and snow drop cloth. This last year we replaced the Lionel trestles for 027 track with the FasTrack ones from MTH. We also use Lionel 153IRs to trigger our post war Lionel accessories. It runs the cost up but it makes the wiring easier.
My Grandson showed me how to use the Movie Maker and he wires most of the layout. I told him he's thirteen now and soon he will want to do other things, but he assures me that even when I'm eighty he'll push me around the train shows in my wheelchair.
WOW
Nice video - just what I needed on a 85F day.
Excellent. The music adds the special touch. Really brings out the Christmas feeling. Makes me all sappy with old memories. Wish like hell I could go back for one more of those Christmases with my parents. The best moments ever! But I'm blessed to be starting them over with my boys.
Thanks for the sentimental boost. Think I'll go hide and cry now!!
This is for MOONs post. The size of the layout this past year 12 foot by 9 foot triangle. My wife says no larger. I think she said that the year before and the year before that .........
Next time we will build it higher. More levels, more trains. We had four counting the Santa pump car all running off the ZWs. We have more transformers.
My grandson also sets up a layout at his house. We fight over who gets the new stuff. We already have a No. 38 Pumping Water Tower, No. 175 Rocket Launcher and No. 352 Ice Depot Set.
We haven't finished the movie of his Christmas tree layout yet. Our Lionel trains are only set up at Christmas. We have an HO layout in the basement. I'm also a model builder and we do car shows in the summer.
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