Stronger.

This is exactly how I feel right now.

At this point I think I could bench-press a Suburban....or perhaps one of those 14-passenger vans.

First Library Book: Interesting choice.

Peyton got to choose his first library book.  He was so excited to show me.  He pulled it out and said, "Mom!  Look what library book I chose!  It's my OB/GYN book!"  {must have been listening to dad talk about one of his classes at school.}

Wow.  Immediately I said, "You didn't tell your teacher that, right?"  Pey: "No. Why?"  Phew.  

Me: "Oh just because."

And we moved right along. 

Preschool.

 Peyton started his second year of preschool.  He was so excited because he gets to go to the "big school" {aka the elementary school}.  I, however, am not excited about the start time...he has to be at school at 7:15 a.m. You read that right.  I didn't even know that time existed...let alone have it be the start time for elementary school.  I am so glad I don't teach here. Yikes.

He loves it.  He always sings for me the songs they sing at school.  He has learned what the author and illustrator of books are.  When he talks he will tell me at the end of his sentence, "and then a period goes at the end" or "that was a question so it has a question mark at the end".   {his teacher loves books...naturally.}  He also has a smart-board in his classroom instead of a chalkboard.  {i have used them. they are cool} He asked me the other day, "Mom? Do you know what calibrate means? I do." {ugh....don't really know what to say here}  Me: "What does it mean?"  Pey: "When I get to go up to the board and use the magic pen, I have to wait for it to calibrate."  Well alright....I guess they're learning really good stuff. :)

He makes me laugh.  And we're still not used to waking up at 6:30 to get ready for school. 

{taking me back to my high school days}

I suppose I should get used to it.  Next year it's all day kindergarten as well as an early start time.  Don't really want to be around when my 5 year old has to wake up at 6:30 and got to school all.day.long.  

{i would most definitely not want to be a kindergarten teacher here. yuck.}

Luckily we'll only be here for a little over half of the school year.  Then we will head back to Utah and he'll go back to half-day kindergarten.  He will think every day is short day. :)

And so it begins.  My school journey as a mother.

Mold Nightmare-Part 3...the final post...I think.

Here are some pictures of the registers from our second apartment.

 Makes you want to live at these apartments, right?

 So once again we were homeless and staying at a hotel. {i should have booked the Great Wolf Lodge} This time we stayed at the airport Hyatt in between two of the terminals.  We could sit and watch all of the airplanes taking off and landing. It was pretty cool.

The apartment complex insisted on taking another mold test even though we were getting out of our lease.  {whatever floats your boat, i suppose}  It didn't matter either way to me, I was getting out of that hell-hole.  Bryan really wanted to be at the mold sampling but the doctor had called and told us that Kael's lung x-ray had some "virus-like" qualities about it.  We were confused as to why he has had a virus for 15 weeks...hmmm I think it's the mold.  I wasn't sure what questions to ask with all of the right vocabulary so he decided to come.  The night before Kael had woken up claiming that he was having trouble breathing and coughing horribly.  So I was anxious to hear what the doctor had to say.  This was the fourth time that Kael was being seen for this problem.  We told her all about our mold problem and how he had gotten better when we were at the hotel.  She said he most definitely was having a reaction to the mold.  

We ended up finding a place to live that day and it was actually available the next day.  We had looked at these apartments several times before and I loved them but they were always out of our price range.  But, prayers were answered and they were running a special on the floor-plan we wanted and they actually had one available.  We were so happy and relieved.  

 On Saturday we got energized with some donuts from our favorite shop and went to work.  We were moving again...for the second time in a week.  

I was ticked....naturally.  I just started throwing things in boxes.  Not very organized, I know...but I had to work fast.  Our home teacher sent out an email at 10:00 p.m. to our ward explaining that we needed help early the next morning.  We were very surprised and humbled to see five ward members ready and willing to help.  We belong to such a wonderful ward and I am so grateful for that.  We were able to move out pretty quick with all of the help.  I still was in shock that we were moving...again the second time in a week.

After we moved out they told us that we would not be getting our previous months rent back until the mold test came back.  We didn't really care about the mold test in the new apartment it had nothing to do with our previous months rent.  They insured us that our first apartment had been cleared for mold when actually it hadn't.  Their maintenance team then missed it two more times plus the air duct cleaning guy and not to mention our mold guy we hired.  They failed us several times and made my family sick.  I believe it is the least that they can do...and especially after making us move twice in one week.  So we waited for the test results to come back over the weekend.  We were supposed to hear from them on Monday.  She called us at 5:30 that night and said that they hadn't received the report yet and said she would call us first thing Tuesday morning.  Well the morning came and went and so did the afternoon.  So Bryan called the site manager and asked her what the results were.  She claimed that there was more mold spores outdoors than indoors {which is how they determine if it is positive or negative.  there should always be more outdoors.} She said that there were a few that were high and they were looking into them.  We were confused and asked for a copy of the report.  She said that she couldn't give us a copy of the report.  We both thought that this sounded shady.  Bryan demanded that he see the mold report because we had a lease in that apartment, our stuff was in that apartment, and we were exposed to the mold in that apartment....we deserve to see what's on that report. She told Bryan that the he would have to speak with the management company's  manager.  Anyways, the next day the lady from the management company called Bryan and spoke with him and tried everything she could to try and convince him that they made no mistakes and that they were liable for nothing. The conversation was nothing short of a comedic routine and she proved to Bryan that she wasn't even qualified to run a lemonade stand.

Here are some of the "classic" things that she said:

• "Bryan, you can't expect my maintenance department to find mold during a mold inspection.  They are not mold specialists or trained professionals."  {yep, sounds a bout right. judging by how the complex looks and how things are fixed. this is concerning on many levels.  my first thought is...why are these maintenance-goons, who are not "trained professionals" and/or "mold specialists" suddenly becoming a mold removal team and sent to "clean" up the mold.}

• "You can't have access to this mold report because it doesn't concern you and it's our property." {that doesn't sound like they are hiding anything at all, right? and how doesn't it concern me? i was the one who found it.  i was the one who lived there.  she really should say things in her head before she says them out loud.}

• "We've never dealt with a problem like this before, Bryan" {which we know is a lie. a girl in my ward made them terminate her lease because her family was sick from a wall covered with black mold behind the refrigerator...in which the "maintenance man" nailed a board and caulked over the black mold for a quick fix. real legit, my friends}

•  "I hypothesize that your moldy furniture infected my apartment's ventilation system." {this is the craziest thing i have ever heard. once again, i can't believe that when she said this in her mind she thought it sounded smart...and then said it out loud.}

 

And this is where it gets good people.  All you "mama bears" out there...get your claws out.  You're about to climb through the computer screen.

 

" What your number one priority should be right now, Bryan is taking care of your moldy furniture so your sick kiddos can get better."  

 

Oh yes, she went there.  Right now you're probably clawing at your screen...so lets break this down.  First of all, my furniture is brand new.  Second of all, it is nice and leather. Third, how would my furniture cause that much mold build-up...let alone cause mold in my neighbors apartment and cause mold build-up in just 4 days in the new apartment? Fourth, that is impossible.  Sixth, you're really digging now. And finally seventh, as a good friend pointed out....if their air ventilation system was good enough to suck spores off of your couch and redistribute them through the vents...I should sue because it could have sucked up my children.

The nerve of this woman...so manipulative, so deceitful, such a liar.  My children have been healthy and happy up until we moved into her "well-kept" apartment complex.  You have a mold problem my friend and it made my children and family sick.  This is no one's fault but your companies. Due to their negligence and poorly managed and operated company they are not only making my family ill but are affecting the lives of others who live at their complex.  What they're doing is criminal.  

We are talking to a couple different lawyers about the situation and have also contacted the media.  We haven't heard anything back yet.  If anyone out there has some contacts or can get our story heard, that would be so helpful.  I feel as if it is my duty to alert people of this monstrous activity. 

I am so glad that we demanded what we did.  We demanded that they put us in a hotel while they tested the mold.  Our upstairs neighbor wasn't as forceful.  They came and "cleaned" up the mold while his family still lived in the apartment.  When he asked if they would be testing it for mold that manager told him that "we're not testing mold at this time".  As if he is at McDonalds and they have stopped serving Big Macs or something.  This is mold people.  How do you know that this mold that you "cleaned" up wasn't toxic?  We had levels of mold that Bryan's mold inspector friend from Utah had never seen so high.  

I cannot believe how negligent these people are.  They are in the business of providing homes for people...safe homes....and they are failing horribly.

I am grateful we got out...and magically my children are better.  I haven't heard Kael cough in days.  I feel like I can breathe again. Bryan doesn't sound like he is going to cough up a lung. Peyton isn't throwing up or having bloody noses.  We are healthy.  Even with my "moldy furniture" {she is so stupid}

It has however, taken a toll on my children.  Living in three different houses in three weeks can be a problem for little children.  They are not sleeping through the night and scared of everything.  It has made Peyton very anxious and brought out OCD behaviors.  {which might make me crazy...wait..they have made me crazy}  The last four weeks of my life have been the hardest weeks of my life.  I have never felt so stressed.  Hopefully now things will quiet back down.

The fight is not over.  I WILL see that mold inspection report.  But at least I have somewhere safe for my family to live.

 

Mold Nightmare-Part 2....the story continues.

Where did we leave off?  Oh yeah, that's right.....no one cares. 
So the apartment complex conducted their own mold test. It was obvious that along with the mold there was rust spots on the metal heat registers.  The mold inspector suspected that moisture was getting into the ducts because they didn't keep up on the maintenance of their central air units. {shocker}.

  So they swabbed the air vent as well as took air samples.  The test was going to take three days for the results to come back.  Of course I was not going to stay there.  The manager told us that our renter's insurance should take care of the hotel costs.  Really?  Do you think I am a moron....or better yet, do you think that my Insurance Agent is a moron?  He is not going to pay for something that happened due to your negligence....and he didn't.  So the apartment complex said they would pay for two nights of a hotel.

 Peyton still had to be to preschool at 7:15 in the morning...and since we didn't have a kitchen we ate donuts for breakfast...more than once. {their donuts here are the best}

Trying to entertain two kids in a hotel room with no toys or anything from home was fun...especially when it was misting and foggy outside.

 We became homeless park-people.  We had to stay at the park so we didn't go crazy.

 Bryan needed a place to study so we found ourselves on the rooftop quite often swimming in the hot tub.

It was nice to have someone make our beds and change our sheets for us, though.  Especially when Peyton wet the bed {first time ever}in the middle of the night and then threw up in the morning because he smelled his dirty clothes that were in the bathroom. 

McDonalds was also one of our hangout spots for lunch.  We had to promptly leave one day when Peyton informed me that there was poop smeared all over one of the tunnels in the play place.
 Being homeless is fun.

By Friday afternoon they called us with the mold results....they were indeed positive {duh} and that another apartment was being inspected and that we could move into tonight.  They made us sign a 6 month lease and charged us $25.00 dollars a month more for a golf course view.  No one ever said we're sorry you have to move, we're sorry about the mold...nothing.  They did however, tell us that we had to have our old apartment cleaned and have the keys returned to them in less than 48 hours.  Thank goodness for great friends in our life! We worked so hard to get moved and to try and get our lives back to normal.  We complied and had the keys turned back into them by Monday morning.  When we started moving out some of our neighbors saw that we were moving and asked where we were going.  I wasn't going to lie or keep secret what we had found.  I had nothing to defend.  We told them what we had found and the neighbors realized that they were having the same symptoms as we were.  We got talking with the neighbor that lived directly above us and he said that his little boy had woken up in the middle of the night with bloody noses as well.  He went and checked his vents....and there was black mold all over his vents.
  It was midterm week for Bryan and he was so busy.  We got all situated in our new apartment...and then the children started getting sick again.  We all started getting sick again.  On Thursday night Bryan finally had a night off where he could check the vents since our symptoms were returning.  The first vent he checked was the living room vent....and guess what he found...yep, you guessed it...more black mold.  I felt like I was reliving a nightmare...oh wait, I was.  These idiots had the audacity to move me into another apartment with mold?  First thing the next morning Bryan waltzed into the managers office and threw down the register.  She looked as though she might burst into tears...which she should have because Bryan handed her a nasty note pointing out all of their different cases of negligence. She immediately said that we could get out of our lease.  Bryan also asked for all of our paid rent back because they had ensured us when we moved in that the place had been cleared for mold...and it clearly hadn't.  They also missed the mold 3 times...further infecting my family....and then moved me into another moldy apartment.

To be continued......the story gets a little more crazy.

Mold Nightmare-Part 1....yes, there are mulitple parts...the story is that good.

 For about 8 weeks Kael had been coughing.  He never really had a fever, a little bit of a runny nose but nothing that I was "overly" concerned about.  Bryan was out on our balcony one night barbecuing and a lady who was at the pool started talking to him.  She told him that she had been in that apartment previously and her child would not stop coughing.  She took him to several doctors for the persistent cough and no one had any answers.  Finally, she decided to move and her child got better.  Bryan didn't really think anything of it until I brought up my concern over Kael's cough.  He then told me what the lady had said to him...and naturally I started to panic.  I took him to the doctor and she wrote it off as allergies.  I started him on some allergy medicine and nothing worked.  The cough continued and was actually getting a little worse.  I took him back to the doctor once again.

 Two weeks later his cough had gotten worse and the doctor was very concerned about his wheezing.  We had to have a nebulizer treatment in the office.  The doctor came back in and he still didn't like how much he was wheezing....so we had to do a second round of treatment at the doctor's office.  He was a pretty good sport. The doctor sent us home with a nebulizer machine and we had to do treatments every 4 hours for a week. 

At first he was not such a fan of the treatment and we had to hold it on his face while he was screaming....at least it was getting into his lungs.  

 I was able to calm him down when I sang his favorite song from his favorite Disney show, Doc McStuffins.  What would we do without Disney?

 Eventually he got good enough that he would hold it himself and didn't mind too much when it was time for his treatment.  

Meanwhile, Bryan and I were both trying to overcome scratches in our throats.  I chalked it off to the cold weather??  Okay, it was like 104 degrees so I knew it couldn't be the weather.  I was sick for two weeks.  Having trouble breathing, wheezing, and my sinus headaches were getting worse and worse.  Meanwhile Peyton was waking up some mornings with dried blood in his nose and on his pillow.  His poor little nose would be so stuffy and he would say, "Mom, why would Heavenly Father give me a broken nose?  Is it stuffy because I ate too much last night?"  Bryan was having the same symptoms as I was, but his cough was so much worse.  Finally, he went to the doctor and got lung X-Rays showing very inflamed lungs and was diagnosed with full-blown asthma.  I also got a chest X-Ray which showed inflamation in my right lung.  

We were very concerned with our health problems and our first thoughts turned to mold.  We approached our apartment management with our concerns and they basically told us we were lying but they would send their maintnenance man out to check the property for us.  They came out and checked some of the heat registers and gave it an all clear.  They then had a company come in and clean our ducts.  We were even more sick after this.  We called a mold inspection company (Mold Inspection Sciences-Dallas) to come out and check our apartment.   And $550 dollars later they came back with nothing.  I was sick to my stomach.  We had just spent all of this money to come back with nothing...and my family was still sick.  Bryan knew that there had to be something going on.  So he decided to take the heat register off in our living room and found mold.

 I was furious.   I was furious that our apartment complex came out three times to do an inspection because of our concerns and didn't find this.  I was furious that we had spent $550 dollars on a mold inspector who didn't do his job....we did it for him.  I also had a feeling of vindication because I knew that it had to be mold!  We called the mold inspection company and spoke with the owner about our problem and that we wanted a refund because he had failed us, further putting our family in danger of mold exposure.  He said that we were being "unreasonable" and that he had performed a service and expected payment.  Hmmmm....okay, I get that....but you didn't do the service right....you missed something MAJOR!  He then told us that if we had taken our car into the shop to get our brakes fixed and if they had forgot something they would not do the job for free, we would just have to bring the car back in so they could fix the mistake and send us on our way.  He was insulting my intelligence...I almost reached through the phone to choke him on multiple occasions.  No sir, if you would have missed something on my brakes I probably would have gotten in a car crash and sued your butt.  You like that analogy?  He was a creep. All I have to say is one word...KARMA! {and don't ever use Mold Inspection Sciences-Dallas...he's a real creep...and doesn't do his job} 

Before we found the mold in our air ducts we had asked our apartment complex if we could move to another apartment unit.  Our manager said that she would have to call and talk to her corporate management and took several days doing so.  The morning after we found the mold, Bryan went into the office and asked her if she had heard back from corporate on whether we could move units or not...just to see what she would say.  She told him no, that the apartment complex wouldn't allow us to move units {even though they have 5 available and we are sick in our apartment}.  He then told her that he had found mold.  She first thought he was lying until he pulled out the pictures.  Her response, "Why didn't Pancho (the maintenance man) catch this?"  {i can't make this stuff up, people}  Or better yet why didn't you catch this on the 2 walk-throughs YOU did.  Or why didn't your duct guy find it?  

What is so frustrating about this situation is that no one is willing to say, "I am sorry.  We messed up.  I realize that you have a sick family and a child that coughs so hard he throws up and has to be tethered to a nebulizer machine every 4 hours. Or a child that has bloody noses and also throws up.  Let me help you out. "  Nope.  It's always, "Who can I blame this on?"

Two lessons learned from this post...

1) Never, ever, ever live at Riverchase Apartments...they have mold...and they lie.
2) Never, ever, ever, use Mold Inspection Sciences-Dallas....they're dumber than rocks.

To Be Continued............

And TRUST me....this story gets better.