Station 16

"Spontaneous" used to be my middle name. I lived off of impromptu visits and surprising people. Don'tcha know I was loved for that.

Then life happened. I had to go to class if I wanted to pass and graduate. I had to go to sleep at a descent time if I wanted to be a fully functioning adult and productive worker the next day. I tasted the bitter sweetness of an unplanned visitor (with undergarments precariously perched for viewing). I met, fell in love with and married a born and bred, registered, card-carrying Planner and then we had our first child. I don't know about you, but my idea of enjoying myself does not happen around a child that is either hungry, tired or sick, so spontaneity doesn't always work.

That was when I officially dropped my middle name and just went by my first and last name. Or was hereby referred to as 'Katherine's mommy'.

Deep down inside, I'm still a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants kinda gal. Circumstances can make it more difficult at times, but I know what actions my brain overrides in my heart.

That's why today was so incredibly awesome! I pulled out the spontaneity card, just like the old days. The kids were perplexed but impressed.

For months, I've been wanting to take the kids to a Fire Station and have them look at the trucks. I know Katherine saw one up close at school, but Nathan hasn't and talks about them often. So today, while driving by a station we will be passing by 22 times/week starting in the Fall, I pulled into the parking lot and decided to chance it.

Both bigger kids sat in the back asking questions like, "Where are you going? Do we get out? Who is that man? Is that a fire truck, mom? Can I look at it? Are you coming back?"

"Just wait a second" was my response. They just love that answer I'm sure, because I just loved hearing my mom say it.

I walked into the bay, kindly introduced myself to a fireman standing next to a fire truck, asked if they do tours for 2-year-old boys who love trucks and asked if I needed to schedule one. Much to my surprise his responses were "Nice to meet you, I'm Colin." "Yes." and "No."

He said they'd be more than happy to show my kiddos around so I walked back to the car with the biggest grin my face has ever produced, kind of like 'pudding face'.
After explaining what we were about to do, admiring the squealing, unbuckling little 'uns and directing them where to go, we all 4 headed up to the bay where a total of 5 firemen were standing ready to give us the tour.
I must start off by saying that I really like Fire Stations. They're so clean and it was one of my first comments when we were walking in.
What an awesome experience! I thoroughly enjoyed myself and I think the kids did also. Our tour guides were nice, kid-friendly, helpful, entertaining, educational and, um, did I mention nice?
Other than the 150-degree weather, I couldn't have asked for a better experience. We learned about the 3 trucks in their bay and looked in almost every nook and cranny on the big truck. I'm pretty sure I was asking all the questions because my two were shell-shocked and in awe of the huge, shiny red truck they were getting to stand next to and inside of.
I asked lots of questions, just like my mom tells me I did when I was little, except they were very random questions. "Do you like to park the truck, at a call, in a certain direction because the water controls are on this side?" "Who cooks supper? You wouldn't want to be on my shift when I was cooking!" "Is this a typical layout for a station for Marion County?" "How much schooling did you go through?" "Do you know X? I went to school with him and his wife." (I'm such a name-dropper) "Can graduates of the Fire College go to other states?" "I'm assuming a graduate might be having a tough time getting a job in Florida now?" "Do any of you have any kids?" (That is such a mom-question)
Thank you to the firefighters at Station 16 for your kindness and willingness to educate the crazy mom and 3 kids that stopped by today. We truly enjoyed it!