People are crazy

I pulled up to the first inspection of the day and had to swerve a little in order to avoid running over an unkempt little boy who looked like he had just finished playing in a coal mine and was filthy from head to foot. His hair looked like it was a poorly managed mohawk and I'm sure he should have been in school. When I got out of the truck he followed me around screaming some gibberish that I couldn't understand and didn't seem to make sense to anyone else around either. His aunt met me at the front gate and let me on to the property and I went about my business measuring the home while avoiding the piles of dog logs peppering the yard and kicking the 4 or 5 dogs off my legs as I went.

When I got inside the house the aunt continued to try and rouse the boy's mother (her sister) from bed. After some persuasion she eventually managed roll out of bed and put on enough clothes to make the situation more of a PG-13 than the full blown R we were welcomed in to. (Although that rating is failing to take in to consideration the adult images proudly displayed on the walls of the home) The boy previously mentioned was in and out of the house, still screaming nonsense and being continually screamed at by the various authorities of the home but spent most of his time in the street. 

As I was taking the last picture that I needed of the dedicated parrot room of the home and weighing carefully the added value that piles of bird fecal stalagmites might contribute to the property as a whole, I turned in to the hallway and spotted that the boy's mother was wearing a very bulky anklet and realized she was on house arrest. As I was walking through the front door to go back to the truck I overheard a conversation between the aunt and her sister explaining in whispered tone that "I can't go outside because of this thing" - as she raised her ankle to show off her sporty anklet. The aunt then startled me by screaming for the boy to come  and put some shoes on before playing in the street. I got in to my truck wondering what would happen if the boy were hit by a car while playing in the street (the mom not being able to go more than 5 feet beyond the perimeter of the home) if she would be arrested for violating her house arrest or the negligent care of her child or both. 

Random Stuff

I'm terrible at blogging! Sorry! So, we've been doing lots of stuff, but Eric and I both hate stopping to take pictures, so I don't really have any. We went to the Thanksgiving Point Gardens and I took one picture (and unless you know where he is, you can't really see Jack).

We went to the zoo, and I didn't even bring the camera. We spent a week in Park City with my family. I brought the camera, but I only took 2 pictures...

So, let's skip all the stuff we've been up to that we don't have pictures of. Currently in our house, we are in the middle of a major power struggle! I'm not talking about Eric and I. These kids are crazy! Jack and Addie had been so easy. They had us tricked into thinking the gap between them was perfect because they were so easy. They had their tantrums and things, but seriously, nothing was too hard to handle. We planned baby #3, and were on our way to a 5 person super easy family when everything got flipped upside down! In all fairness, I think part of the problem is my pregnancy. This is the first time being pregnant has actually altered my personality, and its been really hard for me. Then on top of that, Addie has officially entered the terrible 2's, which are nothing compared to the stage Jack is in. He's really trying to figure out where the boundaries are, and what he can get away with. Its driving me nuts! Discipline is soo hard! How do you maintain a level head but convince your child that you're serious and that action is not allowed? Eric thinks I'm funny when I'm mad, and I'm pretty sure Jack does too, so it makes things really difficult and frustrating.

So that's my rant. This next bit is semi unrelated, but that's okay. Addie's favorite past time is putting on makeup. You can find her like this anytime you forget to lock the bathroom door.

Jack was so excited the other day that he was just running around the house in circles. He was going so fast he tripped on a pillow and slammed his face into the fireplace. Luckily nothing broke or even got bloody, but he has a pretty good bruise. Its kind of hard to see in the picture, but it curls around his cheek and goes up into his eye.

This one IS part of our power struggle. Our kids need naps. They get really mean if they skip one, so I try to keep them on track. But I really need them to take naps too. I'm exhausted, and I need that little bit of time in the day to regain my composure after all the craziness. A few days ago, Jack didn't want to take a nap. I told him that was fine, but he needed to stay in his room and play quietly for a little while because we both needed a break. He refused, and said instead he was just going to sit on the top of the stairs. Fine! It got pretty quiet, so I assumed he gave up and went to his room. I went to get Addie from her nap, and found Jack sound asleep on the stairs.