TOTALLY GEEKED!

lilyofcourse · My spirit animal is a pink flamingo.

RE: MICHIGAN POLICE SEIZE KIDS FROM FAMILY FOR ”CAMPING”

Ohfour · Hooker

Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
Lexxy wrote:
“When we arrived back, the Otsego County Sheriff’s Department was at the property claiming to have received a report of squatters on the land,” Antonia said. “We provided documentation of our right to be on the land, which was verified the next day by the land owner.”
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The article is confusing. In one place it says they bought the land. Later she is quoted as saying they had permission & it was verified the next day by the land owner. So I am also of the impression thy might be homeless. Also they are filling their 5 gallon bottle at Walmart. What exactly does that mean? They are taking into the bathroom & stealing tap water??
This is what I TRIED to say when I got attacked. This does not sound like typical "camping" to me. They have a wonderful house that they live in but they had to go to a laundry mat to do their clothing? Too many inconsistencies in this story. I didn't say they were bad people but something doesn't sound right here. I need more information.

When ex and I took the kids to Yellowstone FOR 3 WEEKS, we camped. FOR 3 WEEKS!!!! The horror! We did out laundry at the laundry mat. We took showers in public bathrooms. I guess my kids should have been taken away too...

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
Lexxy wrote:
I just think there is more to it than a family camping trip. I don't think CPS needed to be involved but someone called so they had to respond & follow procedure. I don't know if they did the right thing or not based on this article.
I agree Lexxy. I never said the family was WRONG. I simply said there was more to this than meets the eye.

I'm going to agree with you, NJN.

You have made several valid points on this thread.

flan

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

huskerbb wrote:
Christ, when I was 7 I'd take our three wheeler and go fishing with the neighbor kid and he was only 5.

And WHAT would have happened if there had been a serious accident?

flan

Nobody Just Nobody · Rib-it! Rrrib-it!

flan327 wrote:
huskerbb wrote:
Christ, when I was 7 I'd take our three wheeler and go fishing with the neighbor kid and he was only 5.
And WHAT would have happened if there had been a serious accident?
flan

Nothing like that ever happens in Nebraska.

Ohfour · Hooker

What would have happened if my kids and I had been in an accident in Yellowstone?

huskerbb · Guru

flan327 wrote:
huskerbb wrote:
Christ, when I was 7 I'd take our three wheeler and go fishing with the neighbor kid and he was only 5.
And WHAT would have happened if there had been a serious accident?
flan

something bad--but likely no worse than if a parent had been there. More kids get killed riding in cars with their parents or other adults than by any other type of accident.

Nobody Just Nobody · Rib-it! Rrrib-it!

Ohfour wrote:
Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
Lexxy wrote:
“When we arrived back, the Otsego County Sheriff’s Department was at the property claiming to have received a report of squatters on the land,” Antonia said. “We provided documentation of our right to be on the land, which was verified the next day by the land owner.”
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The article is confusing. In one place it says they bought the land. Later she is quoted as saying they had permission & it was verified the next day by the land owner. So I am also of the impression thy might be homeless. Also they are filling their 5 gallon bottle at Walmart. What exactly does that mean? They are taking into the bathroom & stealing tap water??
This is what I TRIED to say when I got attacked. This does not sound like typical "camping" to me. They have a wonderful house that they live in but they had to go to a laundry mat to do their clothing? Too many inconsistencies in this story. I didn't say they were bad people but something doesn't sound right here. I need more information.
When ex and I took the kids to Yellowstone FOR 3 WEEKS, we camped. FOR 3 WEEKS!!!! The horror! We did out laundry at the laundry mat. We took showers in public bathrooms. I guess my kids should have been taken away too...

That is NOT what I am saying and you KNOW it. I am saying the article has several inconsistencies and that makes me wonder what really went on.

DemoniaD · Senior Member

This story gives a lot more info:

A Michigan family which had dreams of camping during the summer in the great outdoors was horrified when state officials seized their six children simply because they were temporarily living in tents, Off The Grid News has learned.

The nightmare experience for Christopher and Antonia Hernandez began May 19 when Otsego County sheriff deputies and a CPS official took their children, and ended June 10 when their children were returned after the parents won a court ruling based on the fact the mother and children are eligible for enrollment in the Tlingit Native American tribe. The federal Indian Child Welfare Act makes it more difficult for state officials to separate Native American families. Michigan has a similar state law.

If the family had not had the Tlingit link, the case still would be ongoing, with the children still in foster care.

But the removal never should have taken place, Christopher and Antonia told Off The Grid News, which has read the court documents – one of which criticizes the family for not having electricity or a water source. The family was near a state park and had purchased a pass to shower and bathe there. The parents also had a generator.

They had been living in the tents for nine days when police arrived.

“The government has tried to standardize what a home is and what a home must have, without consideration for if the children’s needs are being met or not,” Christopher and Antonia said in a joint statement. “This was not a case of neglect, but a case of the government telling us how we have to raise our children — that we must have running water, we must have electricity and we can’t stay in a tent for the summer. To the government it makes no difference if the children are happy and healthy. We need to conform to their idea of normal or they can take your children away.

They added, “Taking children from families needs to be limited to clear cases of neglect and abuse. It should be every parent’s right to raise their children as they see fit, unless the government can prove that what the parent is doing is actually harming the child.”

The children, ages seven months, 2, 4, 6, 15 and 17, had been living in the three tents – two of which were large nine-person tents – when the controversy began.

“Our family decided to go camping for the summer to a 10-acre property we are buying,” Antonia said, noting they do own a house. “We had intended to stay the summer while we finalized plans on what we were going to do with our lives. We cannot say we would have stayed the whole summer due to the fact Christopher is donating a kidney to his mother and we may have been called home to do the surgery at any point. If this were to happen we planned to return home for the duration of the surgery and the recovery period however long that was.”

The parents simply “wanted our children to experience the outdoors” – and perhaps see if they wanted to live off-grid permanently.

The Hernandez family

“We purchased several chickens, a couple of turkey and a couple of ducks so we could try and provide a portion of our food needs,” Antonia said. “… We set up one tent as storage for our tools, as I do a lot of woodworking. Another tent was set up as a closet to house our clothes and diapers, etc. As you can imagine, with six children we have a lot of clothes and other miscellaneous items. Our third tent was set up as a kitchen.”

The family also had:

A natural gas stove the parents converted to propane for cooking food and heating water.
Six five-gallon containers of water they refilled at the local Walmart. They also were collecting rainwater.
Several solar lights.
A generator.

On May 19, the parents left the property to do laundry at a laundromat, as well as to buy food and some fencing for the animals. The younger children were left in the care of their 15-year-old son, who is nearly 16.

“When we arrived back, the Otsego County Sheriff’s Department was at the property claiming to have received a report of squatters on the land,” Antonia said. “We provided documentation of our right to be on the land, which was verified the next day by the land owner.”

A CPS representative also was on the property, and had concerns about the living conditions. CPS made four allegations, according to the official court document:

The family was not in a “stable living environment.”
The family had no electricity or water source, and was using kerosene as a means of heat.
The children were playing in the woods, cared for by a 15 year old.
The youngest child had a diaper rash.
The 17-year-old girl, who has Cerebral Palsy, was cold.

Antonia told Off The Grid News she knew of the diaper rash and it had been healing. The 17-year-old girl had a temperature of 96, but Antonia said this was after sheriff deputies and CPS “had the tent flap completely open for at least an hour and a half.” When she was admitted to the hospital it was 97.7.

“I witnessed her without covers for at least part of that time,” Antonia said. “I was told by her case worker that the doctor who examined her said she was very well taken care of.”

As for the children playing outside in the cold, “none of the children were displaying any signs of being cold — shivering or teeth chattering. As a matter of fact, they kept taking off their coats, which to me indicates that they were not cold.”

None of the allegations, he said, warranted removal of the children.

“We were given no other option to either return to the house we own or to obtain a hotel room until we could go to court,” she said. “By law, they are required to a reasonable effort to prevent or eliminate the need for removal as required by law.”

The case is now closed, and with their children back in their care, the parents have decided not to return to the property.

“It is a sad that they were out of our care for 21 days because we were camping,” she said.

huskerbb · Guru

Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
flan327 wrote:
huskerbb wrote:
Christ, when I was 7 I'd take our three wheeler and go fishing with the neighbor kid and he was only 5.
And WHAT would have happened if there had been a serious accident?
flan
Nothing like that ever happens in Nebraska.

More kids get killed riding in cars with their parents or other adults than any other type of accident. Unless you are going to quit driving your kids around, you are putting them in FAR more danger than I ever was.

huskerbb · Guru

Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
Ohfour wrote:
Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
Lexxy wrote:
“When we arrived back, the Otsego County Sheriff’s Department was at the property claiming to have received a report of squatters on the land,” Antonia said. “We provided documentation of our right to be on the land, which was verified the next day by the land owner.”
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The article is confusing. In one place it says they bought the land. Later she is quoted as saying they had permission & it was verified the next day by the land owner. So I am also of the impression thy might be homeless. Also they are filling their 5 gallon bottle at Walmart. What exactly does that mean? They are taking into the bathroom & stealing tap water??
This is what I TRIED to say when I got attacked. This does not sound like typical "camping" to me. They have a wonderful house that they live in but they had to go to a laundry mat to do their clothing? Too many inconsistencies in this story. I didn't say they were bad people but something doesn't sound right here. I need more information.
When ex and I took the kids to Yellowstone FOR 3 WEEKS, we camped. FOR 3 WEEKS!!!! The horror! We did out laundry at the laundry mat. We took showers in public bathrooms. I guess my kids should have been taken away too...
That is NOT what I am saying and you KNOW it. I am saying the article has several inconsistencies and that makes me wonder what really went on.

Yeah, it pretty much sums up what you've been saying.

huskerbb · Guru

Good update Demonia. Hopefully it will put some of the nonsensical conjecture get put to bed.

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

huskerbb wrote:
Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
flan327 wrote:
huskerbb wrote:
Christ, when I was 7 I'd take our three wheeler and go fishing with the neighbor kid and he was only 5.
And WHAT would have happened if there had been a serious accident?
flan
Nothing like that ever happens in Nebraska.
More kids get killed riding in cars with their parents or other adults than any other type of accident. Unless you are going to quit driving your kids around, you are putting them in FAR more danger than I ever was.

A 7-year-old on a three wheeler? No common sense, imo.

flan

msrock · Guru

I would love to do what they did for a summer, or at least a month. Seems like a great learning experience all around.

lilyofcourse · My spirit animal is a pink flamingo.

So they were doing everything right and some government agency stepped in a traumatized the kids because of some busy body.

Lexxy · My dog name is Sasha, too!

lilyofcourse wrote:
You buy a 5 gallon bottle, and refill it at the store. Have you never seen that?

It's bottled water.

And you know, if they were homeless, so what? They have shelter, food, water, clean clothes, a place to shower and heat. And they are together.

A kid can live in a mcmansion and not have it so good.

I've seen 5 gallon bottles of water we have them in our kitchen now but I have never heard of refilling them yourself. They just pick up the empties & give us full ones.

But according to the second article it sounds like they really did nothing wrong.

lilyofcourse · My spirit animal is a pink flamingo.

flan327 wrote:
huskerbb wrote:
Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
flan327 wrote:
huskerbb wrote:
Christ, when I was 7 I'd take our three wheeler and go fishing with the neighbor kid and he was only 5.
And WHAT would have happened if there had been a serious accident?
flan
Nothing like that ever happens in Nebraska.
More kids get killed riding in cars with their parents or other adults than any other type of accident. Unless you are going to quit driving your kids around, you are putting them in FAR more danger than I ever was.
A 7-year-old on a three wheeler? No common sense, imo.
flan

Plenty of common sense. It's called living.

He was also fishing. Hooks and water and oh my god out side.

Lindley · Guru

DemoniaD wrote:
This story gives a lot more info:

A Michigan family which had dreams of camping during the summer in the great outdoors was horrified when state officials seized their six children simply because they were temporarily living in tents, Off The Grid News has learned.
The nightmare experience for Christopher and Antonia Hernandez began May 19 when Otsego County sheriff deputies and a CPS official took their children, and ended June 10 when their children were returned after the parents won a court ruling based on the fact the mother and children are eligible for enrollment in the Tlingit Native American tribe. The federal Indian Child Welfare Act makes it more difficult for state officials to separate Native American families. Michigan has a similar state law.
If the family had not had the Tlingit link, the case still would be ongoing, with the children still in foster care.
But the removal never should have taken place, Christopher and Antonia told Off The Grid News, which has read the court documents – one of which criticizes the family for not having electricity or a water source. The family was near a state park and had purchased a pass to shower and bathe there. The parents also had a generator.
They had been living in the tents for nine days when police arrived.
“The government has tried to standardize what a home is and what a home must have, without consideration for if the children’s needs are being met or not,” Christopher and Antonia said in a joint statement. “This was not a case of neglect, but a case of the government telling us how we have to raise our children — that we must have running water, we must have electricity and we can’t stay in a tent for the summer. To the government it makes no difference if the children are happy and healthy. We need to conform to their idea of normal or they can take your children away.

They added, “Taking children from families needs to be limited to clear cases of neglect and abuse. It should be every parent’s right to raise their children as they see fit, unless the government can prove that what the parent is doing is actually harming the child.”
The children, ages seven months, 2, 4, 6, 15 and 17, had been living in the three tents – two of which were large nine-person tents – when the controversy began.
“Our family decided to go camping for the summer to a 10-acre property we are buying,” Antonia said, noting they do own a house. “We had intended to stay the summer while we finalized plans on what we were going to do with our lives. We cannot say we would have stayed the whole summer due to the fact Christopher is donating a kidney to his mother and we may have been called home to do the surgery at any point. If this were to happen we planned to return home for the duration of the surgery and the recovery period however long that was.”
The parents simply “wanted our children to experience the outdoors” – and perhaps see if they wanted to live off-grid permanently.
The Hernandez family
“We purchased several chickens, a couple of turkey and a couple of ducks so we could try and provide a portion of our food needs,” Antonia said. “… We set up one tent as storage for our tools, as I do a lot of woodworking. Another tent was set up as a closet to house our clothes and diapers, etc. As you can imagine, with six children we have a lot of clothes and other miscellaneous items. Our third tent was set up as a kitchen.”
The family also had:
A natural gas stove the parents converted to propane for cooking food and heating water.
Six five-gallon containers of water they refilled at the local Walmart. They also were collecting rainwater.
Several solar lights.
A generator.
On May 19, the parents left the property to do laundry at a laundromat, as well as to buy food and some fencing for the animals. The younger children were left in the care of their 15-year-old son, who is nearly 16.

“When we arrived back, the Otsego County Sheriff’s Department was at the property claiming to have received a report of squatters on the land,” Antonia said. “We provided documentation of our right to be on the land, which was verified the next day by the land owner.”
A CPS representative also was on the property, and had concerns about the living conditions. CPS made four allegations, according to the official court document:
The family was not in a “stable living environment.”
The family had no electricity or water source, and was using kerosene as a means of heat.
The children were playing in the woods, cared for by a 15 year old.
The youngest child had a diaper rash.
The 17-year-old girl, who has Cerebral Palsy, was cold.
Antonia told Off The Grid News she knew of the diaper rash and it had been healing. The 17-year-old girl had a temperature of 96, but Antonia said this was after sheriff deputies and CPS “had the tent flap completely open for at least an hour and a half.” When she was admitted to the hospital it was 97.7.
“I witnessed her without covers for at least part of that time,” Antonia said. “I was told by her case worker that the doctor who examined her said she was very well taken care of.”
As for the children playing outside in the cold, “none of the children were displaying any signs of being cold — shivering or teeth chattering. As a matter of fact, they kept taking off their coats, which to me indicates that they were not cold.”
None of the allegations, he said, warranted removal of the children.
“We were given no other option to either return to the house we own or to obtain a hotel room until we could go to court,” she said. “By law, they are required to a reasonable effort to prevent or eliminate the need for removal as required by law.”
The case is now closed, and with their children back in their care, the parents have decided not to return to the property.
“It is a sad that they were out of our care for 21 days because we were camping,” she said.

Thank you for posting this. This article gives out a lot more information then the first one. I'm glad they got their kids back and hope cps will learn from this and put their resources out to better use like protecting children who are really being abused and neglected.

Lexxy · My dog name is Sasha, too!

msrock wrote:
I would love to do what they did for a summer, or at least a month. Seems like a great learning experience all around.

Not me. I can't think of anything I'd hate more. Bugs & no A/C. I'd be miserable.

lilyofcourse · My spirit animal is a pink flamingo.

I use to love camping.

Can any one tell me why camping makes food taste better?

Lindley · Guru

huskerbb wrote:
Good update Demonia. Hopefully it will put some of the nonsensical conjecture get put to bed.

the first article was flakey. This new article was better written and more informative.

Ohfour · Hooker

flan327 wrote:
huskerbb wrote:
Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
flan327 wrote:
huskerbb wrote:
Christ, when I was 7 I'd take our three wheeler and go fishing with the neighbor kid and he was only 5.
And WHAT would have happened if there had been a serious accident?
flan
Nothing like that ever happens in Nebraska.
More kids get killed riding in cars with their parents or other adults than any other type of accident. Unless you are going to quit driving your kids around, you are putting them in FAR more danger than I ever was.
A 7-year-old on a three wheeler? No common sense, imo.
flan

We took Sweetness out on the ATV just this past weekend. She had a ball...

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

lilyofcourse wrote:
flan327 wrote:
huskerbb wrote:
Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
flan327 wrote:
huskerbb wrote:
Christ, when I was 7 I'd take our three wheeler and go fishing with the neighbor kid and he was only 5.
And WHAT would have happened if there had been a serious accident?
flan
Nothing like that ever happens in Nebraska.
More kids get killed riding in cars with their parents or other adults than any other type of accident. Unless you are going to quit driving your kids around, you are putting them in FAR more danger than I ever was.
A 7-year-old on a three wheeler? No common sense, imo.
flan
Plenty of common sense. It's called living.
He was also fishing. Hooks and water and oh my god out side.

Because YOUR definition of "living" is the only one that counts...

flan

Ohfour · Hooker

lilyofcourse wrote:
I use to love camping.

Can any one tell me why camping makes food taste better?

Food outside always tastes better. G and I have tested this, especially at the lake. Breakfast tastes TOTALLY different when eaten on the desk.

DemoniaD · Senior Member

We plan on taking the boys camping for the first time this weekend. They will likely be sleeping in their own tent too, not to mention running, climbing, playing in the water, even taking a raft down the river. Hopefully no one calls CPS on us for our "neglectful" parenting.

lilyofcourse · My spirit animal is a pink flamingo.

No. But a kid not allowed to play outside in their own yard without supervision isn't living.

It's the prison yard.

Nobody Just Nobody · Rib-it! Rrrib-it!

The second article is much better. Like Lindley says the first one was very flaky. They should have kept their mouths shut about what they were doing though.

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

DemoniaD wrote:
We plan on taking the boys camping for the first time this weekend. They will likely be sleeping in their own tent too, not to mention running, climbing, playing in the water, even taking a raft down the river. Hopefully no one calls CPS on us for our "neglectful" parenting.

I'm calling for sure... evileye

flan

DemoniaD · Senior Member

Ohfour wrote:
flan327 wrote:
huskerbb wrote:
Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
flan327 wrote:
huskerbb wrote:
Christ, when I was 7 I'd take our three wheeler and go fishing with the neighbor kid and he was only 5.
And WHAT would have happened if there had been a serious accident?
flan
Nothing like that ever happens in Nebraska.
More kids get killed riding in cars with their parents or other adults than any other type of accident. Unless you are going to quit driving your kids around, you are putting them in FAR more danger than I ever was.
A 7-year-old on a three wheeler? No common sense, imo.
flan
We took Sweetness out on the ATV just this past weekend. She had a ball...

The boys are always so happy when we take our 4-wheeler out, so my dad got them their own. The expressions of pure joy are priceless. As adorable as Sweetness is, I bet hers were too!

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

lilyofcourse wrote:
No. But a kid not allowed to play outside in their own yard without supervision isn't living.

It's the prison yard.

And my kids did that, plus riding bikes and skateboards. They even had a BB gun (I caved when DH said they could handle it...)

flan

lilyofcourse · My spirit animal is a pink flamingo.

Ohfour wrote:
lilyofcourse wrote:
I use to love camping.

Can any one tell me why camping makes food taste better?

Food outside always tastes better. G and I have tested this, especially at the lake. Breakfast tastes TOTALLY different when eaten on the desk.

True. Cooking and eating outside is the best.

LOL, can't tell you how many "naturally seasoned" meals I've had. That's what we call the one hot dog or steak or whatever that got dropped, washed of and cooked any way.

flan327 · Itty bitty's Grammy

DemoniaD wrote:
Ohfour wrote:
flan327 wrote:
huskerbb wrote:
Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
flan327 wrote:
huskerbb wrote:
Christ, when I was 7 I'd take our three wheeler and go fishing with the neighbor kid and he was only 5.
And WHAT would have happened if there had been a serious accident?
flan
Nothing like that ever happens in Nebraska.
More kids get killed riding in cars with their parents or other adults than any other type of accident. Unless you are going to quit driving your kids around, you are putting them in FAR more danger than I ever was.
A 7-year-old on a three wheeler? No common sense, imo.
flan
We took Sweetness out on the ATV just this past weekend. She had a ball...
The boys are always so happy when we take our 4-wheeler out, so my dad got them their own. The expressions of pure joy are priceless. As adorable as Sweetness is, I bet hers were too!

How fast can they go?

flan

Lindley · Guru

The first and last time I went camping my son was 2 years old. He is 29 years old now. The food was good if I remember right. I like room service. food taste good to on pretty table cloths, on a lanai overlooking the ocean.

Ohfour · Hooker

Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
The second article is much better. Like Lindley says the first one was very flaky. They should have kept their mouths shut about what they were doing though.

Why? They didn't do anything wrong! Should I not have said we were going camping for 3 weeks? I was excited. Seems like they were too...

DemoniaD · Senior Member

flan327 wrote:
DemoniaD wrote:
We plan on taking the boys camping for the first time this weekend. They will likely be sleeping in their own tent too, not to mention running, climbing, playing in the water, even taking a raft down the river. Hopefully no one calls CPS on us for our "neglectful" parenting.
I'm calling for sure...
flan

I'll be sure to send you pictures of all their dangerous activities. wink But I will never disclose our location! Mwahaha! biggrin

lilyofcourse · My spirit animal is a pink flamingo.

I don't get keeping their mouths shut either.

Nobody Just Nobody · Rib-it! Rrrib-it!

Ohfour wrote:
Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
The second article is much better. Like Lindley says the first one was very flaky. They should have kept their mouths shut about what they were doing though.
Why? They didn't do anything wrong! Should I not have said we were going camping for 3 weeks? I was excited. Seems like they were too...

My point is that they were apparently talking to the wrong person. I would have no problem telling people I trust. I don't announce my business to the whole damn world. And if I go run an errand and leave my kids alone I don't make sure I tell the person at the store and everyone else. Sharing exciting news with your friends is one thing. I think that's why society has a problem these days. People feel like they need to share every detail of their life with every stranger along the way.

just Czech · Give Me Grand's!

Like I said, a bunch of over reactive nuts out there.

Thanks for the article, Demonia. Have fun camping and don't let CPS catch you all out there in the wild with those endangered kids. wink

Lindley · Guru

Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
Ohfour wrote:
Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
The second article is much better. Like Lindley says the first one was very flaky. They should have kept their mouths shut about what they were doing though.
Why? They didn't do anything wrong! Should I not have said we were going camping for 3 weeks? I was excited. Seems like they were too...
My point is that they were apparently talking to the wrong person. I would have no problem telling people I trust. I don't announce my business to the whole damn world. And if I go run an errand and leave my kids alone I don't make sure I tell the person at the store and everyone else. Sharing exciting news with your friends is one thing. I think that's why society has a problem these days. People feel like they need to share every detail of their life with every stranger along the way.

I never post anything on facebook about where we are going and when. I do tell close friends and family but that is it.

DemoniaD · Senior Member

flan327 wrote:
DemoniaD wrote:
Ohfour wrote:
flan327 wrote:
huskerbb wrote:
Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
flan327 wrote:
huskerbb wrote:
Christ, when I was 7 I'd take our three wheeler and go fishing with the neighbor kid and he was only 5.
And WHAT would have happened if there had been a serious accident?
flan
Nothing like that ever happens in Nebraska.
More kids get killed riding in cars with their parents or other adults than any other type of accident. Unless you are going to quit driving your kids around, you are putting them in FAR more danger than I ever was.
A 7-year-old on a three wheeler? No common sense, imo.
flan
We took Sweetness out on the ATV just this past weekend. She had a ball...
The boys are always so happy when we take our 4-wheeler out, so my dad got them their own. The expressions of pure joy are priceless. As adorable as Sweetness is, I bet hers were too!
How fast can they go?
flan

I'll be honest, I have no idea. I'm sure Dad told me, but I don't remember. It doesn't go anywhere near as fast as our big one gets, but it is faster than the power wheels one they before that. I do know that he tinkered with it so it won't go as fast as it actually can, mainly because the little one is a speed demon, and doesn't have the weight or maneuvers down just yet to control it at max speed.

Nobody Just Nobody · Rib-it! Rrrib-it!

Lindley wrote:
Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
Ohfour wrote:
Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
The second article is much better. Like Lindley says the first one was very flaky. They should have kept their mouths shut about what they were doing though.
Why? They didn't do anything wrong! Should I not have said we were going camping for 3 weeks? I was excited. Seems like they were too...
My point is that they were apparently talking to the wrong person. I would have no problem telling people I trust. I don't announce my business to the whole damn world. And if I go run an errand and leave my kids alone I don't make sure I tell the person at the store and everyone else. Sharing exciting news with your friends is one thing. I think that's why society has a problem these days. People feel like they need to share every detail of their life with every stranger along the way.
I never post anything on facebook about where we are going and when. I do tell close friends and family but that is it.

We have started leaving SS alone for small amounts of time at the house. I have no problem with this. He's ten. He's safe. But if DH and I run to the grocery store we don't tell the cashier we left our child alone, unattended in the house and where we live. I think we have become a society where we feel like it's okay to tell everyone everything. Sometimes you just need to keep your big mouth shut.

DemoniaD · Senior Member

Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
Ohfour wrote:
Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
The second article is much better. Like Lindley says the first one was very flaky. They should have kept their mouths shut about what they were doing though.
Why? They didn't do anything wrong! Should I not have said we were going camping for 3 weeks? I was excited. Seems like they were too...
My point is that they were apparently talking to the wrong person. I would have no problem telling people I trust. I don't announce my business to the whole damn world. And if I go run an errand and leave my kids alone I don't make sure I tell the person at the store and everyone else. Sharing exciting news with your friends is one thing. I think that's why society has a problem these days. People feel like they need to share every detail of their life with every stranger along the way.

They were near a state park and at least relatively near a town. Someone from that area could have noticed the tents/car on the property and called it in. Since they said they received a report of squatters, I'm guess that is what happened.

TrudyML · Guru

I was allowed to run with scissors. Just saying.

Nobody Just Nobody · Rib-it! Rrrib-it!

And insurance companies are saying break ins are on the rise because people are posting where they are and how long they'll be there on FB. Things like, Took the family for pizza at such and such and then going to see a movie at this theater over here. Gives the criminals an exact time frame to know when to rob you.

msrock · Guru

Yeah. I'm not so sure it was because they opened up their big mouths.

Lexxy · My dog name is Sasha, too!

Lindley wrote:
The first and last time I went camping my son was 2 years old. He is 29 years old now. The food was good if I remember right. I like room service. food taste good to on pretty table cloths, on a lanai overlooking the ocean.

We can "go camping" together at a nice resort!

Ohfour · Hooker

DemoniaD wrote:
Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
Ohfour wrote:
Nobody Just Nobody wrote:
The second article is much better. Like Lindley says the first one was very flaky. They should have kept their mouths shut about what they were doing though.
Why? They didn't do anything wrong! Should I not have said we were going camping for 3 weeks? I was excited. Seems like they were too...
My point is that they were apparently talking to the wrong person. I would have no problem telling people I trust. I don't announce my business to the whole damn world. And if I go run an errand and leave my kids alone I don't make sure I tell the person at the store and everyone else. Sharing exciting news with your friends is one thing. I think that's why society has a problem these days. People feel like they need to share every detail of their life with every stranger along the way.
They were near a state park and at least relatively near a town. Someone from that area could have noticed the tents/car on the property and called it in. Since they said they received a report of squatters, I'm guess that is what happened.

This. Some busybody that didn't even know the situation called the cops. When the cops got there, THEY called CPS. No one ran their mouths...

“When we arrived back, the Otsego County Sheriff’s Department was at the property claiming to have received a report of squatters on the land,” Antonia said. “We provided documentation of our right to be on the land, which was verified the next day by the land owner.”

A CPS representative also was on the property, and had concerns about the living conditions. CPS made four allegations, according to the official court document:

The family was not in a “stable living environment.”

msrock · Guru

Lexxy wrote:
msrock wrote:
I would love to do what they did for a summer, or at least a month. Seems like a great learning experience all around.
Not me. I can't think of anything I'd hate more. Bugs & no A/C. I'd be miserable.

I get miserable going to work everyday and being such a slave to my life. I love cutting myself off from the world when I can. Sure, there's some downsides, but I really need to get out of the daily rut. It just becomes so damn monotonous. I'm feeling it right now. ugh.

TrudyML · Guru

I agree. Blah.

msrock · Guru

TrudyML wrote:
I agree. Blah.

I feel better that I'm not alone. cry

There is nothing to be passionate about! darn it! Seems the older you get, the longer the work week... the shorter the weekend.