Safety Girl

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A person can never be too safe, right?  I'm pretty good with common sense stuff and make the safest choice for things when possible.  But there are some things I never really paid attention to - like what to do with emergencies that don't happen where I live.

Lucky for me, I have a kid who likes to read.  She reads anything and everything as long as it's in the bathroom.  This has been a point of contention for me for a long time but in reality, it makes sense. Your mom or sister can't bug you (isn't allowed) when you're in the bathroom.  That rule was set to give me a few minutes of peace when the girls were little.  Now they hole themselves in there (individually) so they can steal about a half hour of silence.  It's weird - and it's caused every single caretaker we've had to think that one kid in particular has digestive issues.  Every time I've had to explain that no, she isn't ill.  She just wants quiet.

One of the things we had in the bathroom was the FEMA guide for what to do in an emergency.  It was just there and I never thought about it.  But M not only thought about it but read it.  Cover to cover.

All of this came in quite handy the day we were in Sodus Point, NY and a microburst hit.  The windows blew in and I realized I had not only never heard of a microburst but I also had no idea what to do about it.  As I stood there trying to hold the windows together, A says she sees a funnel cloud.  Crap.  I have no idea what to do in a house without a basement.

And then I hear a little voice.  "I know what to do.  I read the FEMA book."

Wha??

Sure enough, that kid knew what to do.  I was impressed.

Now, fast forward a few years.  We went to the NBC Health and Fitness Fair last month in DC.  We stumbled upon the FEMA booth as we were leaving.  M walked up and asked if the new version of the book was available.  She explained that she read the last one cover to cover - and it helped her know what to do in an emergency.  The FEMA person was so excited to meet this kid who wanted to learn all about FEMA stuff that she gave her an emergency radio.  It's pretty cool.  And she promised to mail her the handbook because she didn't have any there.

So we waited a few weeks.  Nothing.  Then the mail came on friday.

And now I have one happy kid!

It's funny the things that bring out the proud mama in me.  This is one.

Comments

  1. AlissaFebruary 15, 2015 at 2:50 PM

    Good for her for asking them about it! And way to go FEMA for following through!

    ReplyDelete

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