Knives in the home

We didn't have to lock up our knives. Only meds and chemicals and cleaning products had to be locked up. All we did was put it all in a cabinet which we attached a lock to. And we placed a lock on our laundry room door also where we keep the cleaning supplies at. You can also put them up high if needed. The health inspection consisted of checking the temp in our freezer, running our hot water to feel it's temp, and flusing our toilet. She also needed our cats shot records showing rabies shots up to date. Also, she checked our fire extinguisher to make sure it was tagged...you did get the fire extinguisher checked and tagged, right? There is a limit to space in the bedrooms..each kid needs so much square footage and I don't remember how much that is. Measure your room and divide it by the number of kids in there and make sure it's large enough. The beds don't matter, it's the square footage in the room that matter per the number of kids.

My apt already has one ..it was tagged in Dec 2006 and it says it expires in 12 months...

Hi.. my wife and I put our knives up high in a kitchen cabinet and that was acceptable. As far as the beds it's tough to say not knowing how old the child/children are that are placed with you. From what I remember you just have to have a room 'ready' for children to be placed with you. If you have toddler beds in the room now you just have to show proof that if a baby is placed with you that you have a crib, or pack n play for them to sleep in. Also, don't forget car seats. You'll need to cover the ages you're willing to accept. My wife and I were in the same age range as you and had 4 car seats. Two baby and two toddler. You may want to ask your licensing specialist if they offer car seat classes. The FHP teaches the class and for a 10 dollar donation you get a new car seat. We donated 20 and got two... you can't beat that. Good luck! Oh.. one other thing I was thinking about.. as far as the health inspection don't sweat it. It may be different where you are, but ours was PAINLESS. The guy was here for all of 10 minutes... Checked for thermometers in the fridge and freezer and tested the water temperature. We were all worked up and there was nothing to it.

We also had to have a the exit routes to outside from all the rooms on our fridge...well, lets say the fire exits....but like they said, they check the water..120 degrees, you can get a toddler bed that also serves as a baby bed...and all meds and cleaners locked up...paint has to be locked up and we have a garage and we had to get a building to put outside just for the gas cans and stuff like that, that we usually have in our garage...We had to have alarms on all doors because we have a pool which also had to take a water safety class, and get a ring bouy....it seemed to never stop...anyhow, good luck...mom of 6

We posted our fire plan on the hallway wall. Our knives did not have to be put up or locked away. Only the meds, cleaning supplies, and chemicals. We got a white cabinet from Walmart and we bought a lock for it and locked everything in one place. As for the temperature on the hot water..they never checked it with a thermometer. She just put her finger under the running water and stuck her hand in my freezer. Is that normal? I heard there is 1 lady at the health office that actually has some kind of fetish with microwave ovens. She likes them clean clean clean! I didn't have a problem cause I keep ours clean but thought I'd mention that. The lady that we had didn't even look in the microwave oven. We also had to have a lead inspection done. It took about 2 hrs and the guy was really nice! I think it took so long cause we chatted half of that time! LOL Another thing---the kids rooms need to have knobs with no locks on them or knobs with locks that you have the key to. We had to replace all ours cause they weren't the keylock type so we just put regular non lock knobs on them. And each kids rooms needs a smoke detector in it. We got some small ones at Home Depot for like 5.00....which worked well. Let us know if you have any other questions.

Hi, I wanted to know about swords. I'm a collector (comes from my Martial Arts experience, limited as it is) of swords and daggers. What should I do about them before I have the home study done? David

Only thing I'm aware of that needs to be locked up is firearms...they will have you sign an agreement if you have them in your home (we don't). You may want to call and ask about the swords cause I'm not sure.

I'd put the swords away. Not only for the inspection but also for the kids. They are pretty, shiney, and a no-no , so you know for sure that you will have a time with children who've had no boundaries. I've never had a problem with the HD. Ours has a fetish about ceiling fans - she wants them turned off so she can see if they are "dusty" - because dust gets into food "ya know what I mean". She also checks the temps of the water, fridge, freezer. Opens a kitchen cabinet or two, asks where cleaners and meds are kept. We put a chain lock on our pantry door and keep cleaners and baby meds in there. Our own meds are locked in a cabinet in our room (above DH's dresser) . All that said - she wasn't here 10 minutes. And it is done annually along with everything else. You will get your first renewal packet about 6 months after your license :( Beds - I have beds that I put up and take down regularly. If you have infants - they won't be climbing to the top bunk. 2's & up - they'd be climbing like mountain goats. And they can't sleep on a top bunk until 6 or something like that. I'd stick with littles until you can get them taken down. A toddler bed will work clear up to 5 or 6 (for most kids) - the mattress comes off of a 6 year crib. I have a "convertable" crib that you take the sides off of to use as a toddler bed, 2 pak n plays, a bassinett, 2 other toddler beds, and a portable crib. Most sheriff's offices will outfit you with a carseat and most counties have a "clothing closet" that may also have carseats that others have outgrown. So you have a whole nickel's worth from me. Good luck.