A big change to my hobby

This is very good news. You need to keep your son's interest alive and have a place for him to run trains regularly, WITH YOU.

Good luck with this project and good luck with you photography business. I wish you great success.

That's great! A future train enthusiast and lasting father & son memories - Priceless! 

Great decision that you will never regret.  Quality time with your son will pay very big dividends in the future and not just with trains.  Good move, Dad!

Art

Bringing them up right, that's the spirit!

Great news.

Sounds like a good decision, especially your plans to do something that will allow the active participation of your child.

That is a great plan!  Those memories will last forever.

Jeff Davis

Good news. 

Plus, I'll add the perspective that it's good to get the business based somewhere other than the house. I was an advertising freelancer/one-man agency working out of the house for about 7 years. After a while, you find that you're always at work, or at least stealing away to do just a little bit more. Luckily my business grew and I've been in a downtown space for 8 years now, much better. Plus I rent in a building with other creatives (photographers, artists, editors etc) it's always interesting .

Best of luck with both of your adventures.

Good move. We're probably all guilty of not always viewing things from the child's perspective to see what they want vs. what we want.

Tim,

Totally agree about working from home. Did it for 4 years and found myself running back up to the desk right after supper to "see if that file or email arrived" that I was waiting for, etc.

That is great.

For the guy that posted one of my most favorite threads What did you do on your layout today?

I will be looking forward to your progress on there.

Larry

Sounds like a great idea. I hope his enthusiasm for trains remains high and the layout helps keep it that way. Great to participate with your son too, memories you both will have for many years to come. They grow up so fast, every minute counts.

Good move and good luck with the business

Brent

Jim,

it all sounds great!  I'm glad the business will not be in the house and you will have fun and teaching time with your son!  I Too will look forward to seeing what you are up to.  I hope to tear down the Christmas layout and build a small layout to take its place until our last grown daughter moves out.  I'm ready to buy a ring and tell her long time boyfriend it's time to pop the question!  ;-)

Jim:

Good luck in your photography business.  When planning, or building a new layout, it's easy to get lost in ideas for bigger, more complicated, and scenery-laden layouts.  Your son's request has brought you back to the real world of Kid-Dom, and, that's a good place to be.  As has been said above, these memories will last a lifetime, and will better assure the continuance of the hobby for your son and his children, sometime in the future.  Wishing you a super, child-friendly layout.  Bob S.