October: Fire Safety Month

 McKenna's preschool got a visit from the local fire department.

I figured Will would like to see the big trucks so we stuck around.

 I had just taken a picture of his super cute shoes when he ran across the pavement and did a face plant on the blacktop. That resulted in lots of screaming, a huge knot on his forehead and a torn up bloody nose. Just great.

 So I snapped a few quick pictures of McKenna with her friends and then Will and I got out of there so everyone else could enjoy the firetrucks without Will screaming in the background.

 I mean really.

 She got to climb up in the back.

 She was not about to try on that hat, so this little guy did.

See McKenna grabbing for Gwennie's hand?

She's been known to do this on the soccer field too.

I guess it's just a good think McKenna loves her friends so much.

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While we're talking about Fire Safety Month...

Here's a few things we do in our house this month:

1. Talk about and go to a family meeting place. Ours is our mailbox. The kids know that if there's a fire, they should get out of the house and I will be waiting for them there (I will actually be panicking and screaming and searching for them....but they think I'll calmly be standing by the mailbox).

2. Make sure your kids know how to unlock your windows and kick out the screen (they need to know that it's okay to break the screen if they need to).

We just practiced this. Christian can unlock the window and get it up and kick out the screen. McKenna can unlock the window but she can't get the window up. Good info for me to know.

3. Have a family fire drill and make your kids go out the window. They need to know that they can get out of the house in other ways besides the door. I actually do have my kids climb out the window. I don't help them. I make them do it themselves or help each other so they can get over the fear of going out the window. We do this every year and they think it's fun. But really it has put the idea in their head that if they're ever stuck they do have options.

4. We talk about how to get out of the basement and I show them how to open the cellar doors. Neither of them are strong enough to actually lift the cellar door, but you never know what they might be able to do in a real emergency.

5. They talk all about stop-drop & roll at school and lots of other important stuff, but there are some things unique to your house that you need to talk about while you're sitting in your home. Make a point of practicing and talking through some of those things this month!!