Hard Hats, Elevators & Rooftops...

Today was memorable! I'm not sure who enjoyed it more...me or the kids :)

My husband is a Lineman and was able to pull a few strings to get us a field trip. We got to go see how Electricity is actually made! From the coal coming off the train to the steam to the ash! It was neat to see it all in action.



We were able to invite a few friends along with us and their children. One of the moms said to me, "This will be remembered far longer than the same thing read in a text book." I'm so blessed to be able to give these memories to my children! Not to mention the generosity we received from the Plant Manager and Service Manager! They, literally, took us everywhere they could. We seen offices, stair cases, elevators, an antique 1925 Boiler and vintage house meters.

With us three moms and our 9 kids, we just followed in amazement. Like these little tidbits:

Did you know...The left over water and steam is pumped into a pond where the ash is settled, then the water is filtered and put back into the Mississippi. The water goes back in better than they found it.

Did you know...The ash that settles on the bottom of that pond is gathered and shipped down to a concrete business to use as fill for roads, sidewalks, etc.

Did you know...This plant uses low sulfur coal that's shipped in from Wyoming. Illinois coal has a 2% Sulfur level and Wyoming coal has 0.3% Sulfur level.

Did you know...Mid American Generating Plant has the best and longest record for safety.

Did you know...This generating plant was the largest West of the Mississippi until the mid 70's.



My children were able to see the coal being ground up into a powder form. They were able to see it being dumped in the lines that took it to the boiler. They seen the boilers, seen the fire inside that was a raging 2,500 degrees. They seen the steam stacks, the master control room and lots of buttons and gadgets. This is a day that I know will never be forgotten. The great part is...it's only the beginning... It's the beginning of the year, the beginning of their life ahead. So many more exploring adventures that are ahead of us. Oh...AND THE BEST PART OF THE FIELD TRIP: HARD HATS, ELEVATORS AND ROOFTOPS!!!!!
Speaking of that rooftop, we got to go up on it!


What a gorgeous view!! We were overlooking the Mississippi River! It was beautiful! We were standing right next to the smoke stack that you could see miles and miles away!



Up on the rooftop we also gotto see a train unloading the coal. There was a tractor out there on that huge mound of coal. He was levelling it out as the train slowly pushed along. The coal then goes into this huge elevator and makes it's way through the process. It was quite neat to see all the coal that goes into giving us our lights! What a neat process!


What adventures have you been on lately? Any adventures in your own yard?