The Rental House

There is one house in our neighborhood that we "affectionately" call The Rental House.  It's not the only rental house in the neighborhood, but it is the one with the most turnover.  In the 4 1/2 years that we've lived here, there have been 3, maybe 4 different families, all with their own unique brand of drama.

Tenants #1: We witnessed two fights take place there, with the cops called both times.
Tenants #2: One of the members of the family was murdered, then his body was dumped at the end of the road.  They (understandably) moved out soon after.
Tenants #3: Where to begin?  We witnessed a verbal screaming match in which a guy called his girlfriend a C U N Texas.  Cops were called.  Then one of them shot a neighbor's chihuahua.  Cops were called.  I suspect that they're dealing drugs.  One just bought a new truck-- then their appliances were repo'd.  Now they're moving, and a UHaul truck has been parked outside for the past 3 days.  Today is the first day I've actually seen them loading it.

Now, I know I have my Judgy McJudgerson pants on when it comes to this house, but really.  It just has bad karma, and seems to attract some shady folk.  Our neighbor informed us that it was used as a drug house before we even moved here. 

I'm so excited to see who will move in next!

I don't get out much.

The first rule of baby fight club...don't talk about baby fight club

Someone is learning to pull herself up on things.  As such, she now has a scratch on her chin, one on her nose, and a small fading bruise on her cheek.

You should see the other guy.

Homesick

A couple of weeks ago the kids and I embarked on a trip home to Georgia to surprise my parents.  The surprise went off without a hitch.  We visited with friends and family, sat outside on the back porch, went swimming at my aunt and uncle's house, and just had an all around great time.  The icing on the cake was on the way home-- Ty and I weren't assigned seats together, so when they looked up available seats, we ended up getting a free upgrade to first class!  This is the second time that has happened with Airtran-- thanks, Ty!  A two hour trip with a 2 year old and a 7 month old is much more enjoyable in big leather seats, with plenty of leg room.  PLUS the kids slept- Ty for the whole flight and Lily for about an hour.  Ahhh, it was bliss!


My only regret about the trip was that I didn't get to spend time in Atlanta (the airport doesn't count).  I lived there for 6 years, during and after college, and I have some great friends there that I haven't seen in about two years.  I know the traffic and the crime sucks, but I REALLY miss Atlanta...or more specifically, Decatur (where Agnes Scott is located, and where I actually lived).  I miss walking around the downtown area, eating at Brickstore, walking around the quiet neighborhoods full of green trees.  And while Steve would rather die than live there again, I hope to be able to get back there soon to visit friends.  It didn't help that I watched the movie "Life As We Know It," which was filmed in Atlanta.  I even got a little homesick during the scene where Josh Duhamel stands on an overpass, and looks pensively out at the Atlanta skyline.  I thought, "Damn, I know where that is."  It's sad when you start missing Atlanta overpasses...

For the record, I think the overpass was the one near Tech, around 10th street.  Am I right?

Karma is a bitch.

Up until today, I thought Lily calmly eating her own poop in the bathtub would be the thing that would scar me for life.

Dislocating my son's elbow tops that.

It was AWFUL.  After changing his diaper, I pulled Ty up by his arms to a sitting position (which I do all the time).  But this time it caused his left elbow to pop out of place.  I knew something was wrong when he starting crying, and wouldn't let me touch him.  He screamed and shook when I tried to move his elbow.  I knew immediately what had happened, as I read quite a bit about nursemaid's elbow while working as a parenting teacher (and one of my best friend's kid had it happen to him).  While I tried to calm Ty down with fruit snacks and "Dinosaur Train," I frantically Googled what to do.  During an emergency, all knowledge goes right out of my head.  Dr. Google suggested I call my pediatrician.  20 minutes later (!) the nurse called me back, and told me to come in at 2:45 (!!).  This was at 10:45. 

When I asked what I should do in the meantime, she suggested some Motrin and ice.  Yeah, I don't think so, lady.  I was not about to let my kid cry in pain for another 4 hours.

So I packed up the kids and hauled ass to the ER.  In less than an hour, Ty was fine and slurping on a popsicle.  Now he and Lily are sleeping, and I'm drinking my guilt away with a white chocolate mocha.

In conclusion, I want to apologize to my mom.  I'm sorry I teased you for so many years about dislocating my shoulder when I was little.  I will never laugh about that again.

Boo yeah!

Thank you, Mr. President.

*I did not make this picture.  I got it from a friend's facebook- I don't even know if he made the picture or got it from somewhere else!