Dallas firehouse

Today Ben and I went to the oldest (or one of the oldest, at least) firehouse in Dallas.  Our neighbor works with firemen and used her connections to arrange a great tour for her boys and Ben.

The firehouse was right out of a childrens book.  The first thing the boys did (after handing over the baked goods, of course) was sit in the big ol' recliners in front of the big television.  They thought being a firefighter must be great fun!  These thoughts continued when we went upstairs to the bunk room - there they have ping pong and pool tables.  We also saw the kitchen and captain's room.  And then the captain opened the red door to show us the pole.

We went back downstairs to see their shiny new firetruck.  The boys got to crawl around, and then it was time to try on some gear.  Ben was quite amused by the head wrap thing - he asked if they wore it to be like robbers.

Then they pulled the truck out so the boys could spray the hose.

The boys were very eager to try the pole.  First the captain lifted them up as high as he could (easier with Ben's friends, but he managed to lift Ben pretty high too) so they could slide down the bottom.  But the boys insisted on sliding from the top.  Apparently this is not a normal part of the tour, but they let the boys do it.  (Unfortunately I couldn't get these photos turned the right way, so please just turn your head.)