The Tactical Mindset

We want to begin by expressing our sincere gratitude for your continued support, even during times when we haven’t been as active as we would like. Each and every one of our followers means a great deal to us.

We felt it was important to share why “The Tactical Mindset” has been less active over the past several months.

As always, our family and children are our top priority, and their health has required our full attention. Many of you know that in September, we came very close to losing our youngest daughter, Sadie. She required hospitalization and blood transfusions. While her levels have improved significantly, she continues to attend weekly pediatric therapy and has ongoing follow-up appointments.

In November, Kelsey began experiencing potential heart-related concerns, which also required time, focus, and medical evaluation.

Between February and April, our family experienced multiple emergency room visits and one hospitalization. Evelyn and Sadie have certainly kept us busy when it comes to their health, but we are incredibly grateful to share that they are both doing very well and are healthier than ever.

Additionally, Brandon has been furthering his education and has spent much of his time in class on his days off. With his coursework concluding at the end of May, he will be able to dedicate more time and energy back into this page and our mission.

Please know that we have not forgotten about you. Life, health, family, and our children’s activities have simply required our attention.

We appreciate your patience and support, and we’re excited to return to a more consistent presence soon. We are already working on some exciting plans for the future.

Thank you again for standing with us—we truly appreciate each of you and hope you’ve all been doing well.

A strong department starts with firefighters who care about the patch they wear and the reputation they represent.

We are proud of the bravery.
And anxious about the cost.
The missed moments. The emotional distance. The parts of them the job keeps.
We support the calling —
But some days we are grieving what it takes from us.

That anger isn’t about you.
It’s not about the kids not listening.
It’s not about that sink full of dishes, the noise, that question you asked, or the timing of everything.

It’s the left over adrenaline.
It’s the unprocessed trauma.
It’s hours of control snapping all at once when they finally feel like they’re safe enough to exhale.

First responders will spend their entire shift:

*Swallowing rage.
*Suppressing the fear they don’t want to show.
*Staying calm in life-or-death situations.
*Making split-second decisions that will haunt them later.

Our spouses don’t get to fall apart on scene, or take that moment to themselves. They don’t get to walk away and come back when their nerves have calmed. So it spills out at home.

Home is the only place they feel they’re aloud to be human.

And as spouses?
We feel it first. We feel all of it.