Hey there guys - OP here chiming in.

To clarify a few things...

The track that came with the Jingle Bell Express is all the track I have as the two add ons I bought had zero track in them. So, any sort of expansion out requires some additional E-Z Track purchases. But, I would like to incorporate what he already bought.

Im not sure what I am doing in designing. I am not very creative especially when large amounts of money are involved. So, I am turning to the denizens of the forum for help.

Hey there all. I am a dad who has a 6 year old who is overly passionate and vocal about wanting to have a railroading set. I am acutely aware of how this hobby goes as my dad was a big train collector back in the day. But, for Christmas, I bought my son a Bachmann all in one set off of Amazon after doing a bit of research.

Today, for his birthday (yes, my son was born the day after Christmas - please send help) he wanted to expand his track like a true rail baron. I went to my local hobby shop and picked up two boxes:

14 Piece E-Z Track Graduated Pier Set
8 Piece E-Z Track Tall Pier Set

Both boxes have pictures of track on it and I thought it would do the trick, but I am guessing anyone reading this knows where this is going... so I will spare you.

So, I am a bit overwhelmed. My son is a bit annoyed. So I turn to you all as a tired dad trying to make this right. I am asking to see if - collectively - "you" could provide me with a layout that incorporates these pieces he spent his money on and provides him with some more immersion. I'd like to finish buying up the pieces we need to expand his track properly.

I will tell you that our scale is HO and currently, he is only running one loco on it. Our space we have set aside for him to play is 5x8 - but we have wiggle room. The kit we got him for Christmas is the Jingle Bell Express - so you can factor in the track we already have.

Thank you in advance for all your help. Sincerely, a very tired exhausted and overworked dad.