Wayyyy back in the day when I was a first-time mom with just one kid I really wanted to get to know other moms and joined a local mom group. I went to several of the activities and while none of the people I met grew into friendships, the annual fire station tradition was BORN.
I started putting together my own group to attend a fire station outing each summer! We’ve literally been going since Kye was like 18 months old and we’ve yet to miss a summer. Yes, even last year the kids and I ran by the station to say hey since we didn’t feel like it was the right vibe to bring a whole group 😉
This year though? We. Were. BACK!
I love that so many local mamas said they missed getting to attend last summer and were just as pumped as we were to get to go back this year.
I took the kids a little early to run by and get donuts for the firemen to thank them for hosting us, and of course we all got a little donut treat too 😉
I HIGHLY recommend calling your local fire station. Ours LOVES having us come out. They truly missed our group last summer and they always do a great job!
They walk through fire safety reminders including how to make a family fire safety plan. They also show the kids the gear and equipment. A big concern with house fires is that kids will HIDE and then be AFRAID of the firemen or firewomen who are they to help them. They went over the importance of not being afraid and also showed the kids what a smoke detector and fire alarm are and what they sound like.
Of course the favorite part for the kids is always getting to get INTO the trucks and check ’em all out! Some years the firemen pull out out the big truck and sometimes even let people climb the ladder! Spear was in HEAVEN!
He was cracking me up because he wanted to see ALL the parts and kept asking what things were on the truck and wanted to figure out what the different things did and how they worked. The guys were super patient with him and kept telling me it was fine for him to explore and that there wasn’t anything he could break.
I think the biggest surprise of the morning was that KYE was still really into it. I worried he might be too old and be embarrassed. I didn’t push anything on him. He ASKED for a picture of him in the truck. He WANTED to do all the things!
It actually worked out perfectly because some of the mamas who could attend also had boys his age who are his buds so they all hung out together and I think that made it more fun for all of them too and made them feel less uncomfortable or awkward!
Tessie wore MY shirt from childhood 🙂 I love that she’s big enough to wear it now and it’s so cute on her!
Spear was thrilled to get to be with Cam! We love that our cousins got to come and we had SUCH a great turnout this year with so many fun friends!
Another favorite moment of our annual visit is when the firemen let the kids work the water hose! Everyone gets a turn to spray the hose and they all love it. It was so funny to me that Spear had ZERO INTEREST in it yet Kye made sure to get in line for his turn 🙂
With Spear? Just give him even the tiniest pile of any sort of dirt and he’s totally content. He didn’t care one bit about that water hose, he just wanted to play with his firetruck in the dirt!
Such a great group of kids came out – it was awesome to get to all be together again and to welcome some new friends too!
I love me a good comparison picture and this one doesn’t disappoint!!!! My little baby Kyyyyyyeeeeee. SO STINKING CUTE. Love that we’ve kept this tradition going and I have no plans on stopping it!
Another part of the tradition has been to hit up Chick-Fil-A for lunch after we leave the fire station. It’s always a super casual, open invitation for whoever can make it!
I loved the group this year on our lunch date because it was a mix of family, longer time friends, and new friends too. The kids all loved getting to visit and us mamas made decent conversation in-between momming moments 😉
Some years the firemen give out hats and this year was a goody bag year with fire safety reminders and even an activity booklet the girls LOVED working through when we got home!
It was another year of another super fun time! I’ve really, really cut back on the pressure I put on myself to DO ALL THE THINGS during the summertime but this is one must-do tradition that I won’t ever let go of. My kids will be 18 and I’ll still be dragging ’em to the fire station 😉
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