Hello Honor & Commitment Reader! We are so glad you have found us here where we can continually add resources on topics in this chapter relevant to the fire life.
If you don’t have a copy of the book yet, you can click here to get your own!
24/48, 72/96, Monday – Friday, on call…The schedules in the fire life can be crazy and unpredictable at time. In Chapter 4 we give some examples how calendaring, routines, and a large helping of grace helps get through the beautiful chaos these schedules can bring to our everyday lives. Have you mastered the scheduling logistics in your family?
Picking Vacation Days!
Choosing Vacation Days for Fire Families
Every station handles how vacation days are given differently. In this post we hear from fire families on how their vacation days are chosen, dealing with blended families, planning in advance, holidays, mismatched vacation days, and trades.
Separate the Fire Station from the Vacation
How to Disconnect the Fire Brain on Vacation
Firefighters aren’t the only ones who have a hard time turning off work and being present. Recover, reconnect, and be all in on your time off with your loved ones.
Community Discussions
If you are not yet a member of the Honor Guard for Men or the Fire Wife Sisterhood, you can register here.
- Coming soon!
We Recommend…..
- Watching this video on “How We Track Schedules in a Fire Marriage”
More Articles From Our Online Resource Library
Another Bad Call
ANOTHER. BAD. CALL. Unfortunately, we don't always know when our firefighters have had a bad call. Sometimes they fly right under the radar, getting hidden in a compartment somewhere they didn’t even know they had. Our husbands are almost constantly exposed to...
Don’t Hoard the Trauma
You don’t have to hoard the trauma - throw it out. Well, maybe it’s not as easy as throwing it out… but we do have the ability to fight trauma head-on as it happens versus storing it away to grow into a bigger problem over time. Listen to this new way to look...
Have you normalized DefCon5 in your house?
Did you know (or forget?) that when someone is regularly around crazy high levels of crisis (which is every single first responder, and their families secondarily), that high level of crazy can be normalized? You don't even feel the crazy, until the...
New Traditions in the Face of a Covid Thanksgiving
The Fire Community is no stranger to disappointing holidays. We’ve all had to learn to adapt to scheduling conflicts, unexpected changes and spouses/families being alone on some of the most special days of the year. We have to get creative and create new...
Fire Family Protocols: Lessen the Spread of Contagions from the Firehouse to Home
Dear Fire Wife Sisters, What crazy times we are facing. But some of you are no stranger to this. Our firefighters are "first in" on many contagious situations. And for some of you, this is a first. Maybe you are a new fire family or simply haven't faced this situation...
Social Distancing: Covid-19
WHY IS COVID-19 DIFFERENT THAN INFLUENZA AND WHY IS SOCIAL DISTANCING IS IMPORTANT? Some thoughts / tips to understand facts and see how I’m handling this as a mom, fire family and business owner: NUMBERS AND MATH DON’T LIE I say this to my kids and...
You Become Like the 5 People You Hang Around the Most
You become like the 5 people you hang around the most. Chances are you’ve heard this statement before in some form. I know I’ve heard it in business, in faith circles, in fitness endeavors, etc. Have you ever taken some time to consider what it might mean for...
Step Away From Your Devices: Your Summer Unplugged
Often we struggle as fire families to make time to do things together. For some of you, the fire service gets nearly every free moment - life shouldn't be that way. (*ahem* I will not call you out so harshly, but if you're not giving your spouse and family...
New Year’s Eve – Date Night Delight or Dud?
Jackpot. A night off on a holiday. It feels like it never happens, right? All the good ones always fall on shift. He gets transferred from station to station and is always back in the rotation where BAM - holidays are workdays. This is the life we signed up....
The Promotional Process Stole Our Christmas
Last Christmas day, my husband sat across the room and said he felt like this Christmas didn't really feel like Christmas. He hadn't really seen any of the gifts that I had been scrambling around the past month to buy for the kids. And...