I know many of you saw this story yesterday. If you didn't here is a quick recap. A four year old boy was found wandering the streets of Chattanooga in the middle of the night. He was wearing a little girl's dress and drinking a beer. He was taken to the hospital for alcohol consumption.
This story breaks my heart. The boy is being raised by his 21 year old mother. His father is in jail. The mom told the police the boy runs away so he will be arrested and sent to jail so he can be with his father. His dad I guess drinks beer so the boy copied that behavior. During his wandering he went into the unlocked home of a neighbor and took 5 Christmas presents including the dress and then put that on.
Child investigators visited the mother but told her she would be able to keep custody of her son. This has to be the worst nightmare of a parent. Your toddler wakes up in the middle of the night and just walks right out of the house. The mother said she was embarrassed about the theft, but is grateful that nothing bad happened to the boy. I can't even imagine what was going through her mind when she got the call from a neighbor that her son was at their house.
not buying it -- we have toddlers and none of this follows the patterns of 4-year-olds. They don't drink beer, much less open frideg and choose it of everything else and crack it open be it in a bottle or can. They don't open doors routinely by themselves unless those doors are already open and not childproofed. And they don't make such elaborate plans as "Hey police will arrest me if I'm out wandering in the dark by myself and drinking a beer and that's what I want them to do because Dad is in jail and that's how I can get there." Sorry.
ReplyDeleteWTF ??????? This world is F*cked.
ReplyDeletePut a chain on the fucking door along with an alarm if you know the boy is going to get out. WTF?
ReplyDeleteSmart Door Alarm - $9.13
Intermatic Wireless Window Alarm - $4.83
Door Chain - $3.99
Having your child alive at home instead of wandering the streets - Pricess
I can get the shit to her by Monday if I order in the next 5 hours and choose one day shipping. Someone get me the idiots address, and I'll mail her a kit.
It doens't matter, Lisa, she's lying. It's like parents who call the cable company and say their 4 year old ordered $800 worth of porn.
ReplyDeleteThat is a sad situation all around.
ReplyDeleteYears ago my parents had a little neighbor boy that liked to sneak in their house and take cookies. His mom did not allow cookies in their house so he would go over to Mom and Dad's to get his fix. My mom caught him red handed a few times. Cookies stuffed in all pockets. Not quite the same as this story but still brought back memories.
Really good thoughts Lisa (not original) and I applaud your effort. Unfortunately, the items will either stay in the box or she'll take them to the pawn shop and get $5 or $10 bucks, and the kid will continue to roam the streets at night. Pathetic. Parental rights above all else.
ReplyDeletePoor baby. That's all I can say.
ReplyDelete4-year-olds can't reach the bolt lock on front doors and they might be able to turn regular knob but hardly manipulate it if IT'S locked. 4-year-olds can't crack open a bottle of beer or even a can of beer -- heck they can't punch the straw in a juice box without help and crying. This just smells.
ReplyDeleteI really don't like all these speculations -_- what if it really was just something that happened at random.
ReplyDeleteLittle kids try to drink everything all the time. I know I tried to drink everything under the sun =/ I just hope he's ok.
I used to sneak out when I was two. Drag a chair to the door and undo the lock. My Mother was always a heavy sleeper. It can happen. Beer, I am a little skeptical.
ReplyDeleteDid anyone else have visions of Michael K as a child while reading this?
ReplyDeleteIn the town we used to live in our neighbors children were in our home several times. It was a small town we didn't lock our doors. I woke up twice to their 2 year old standing at the foot of my bed at 6 am and their daughter sitting in my living room eating a bowl of cereal and watching cartoons. She was almost 6.
ReplyDeleteThese kids managed to sneak out all the time, help themselves to whatever was in my fridge. Their parents locked the house and they still got out.Parents were deep sleepers!
I think when it comes to little kids if there is a will, there is a way.They liked playing with my little girl and didn't have any concept of time.lol
A four year old can be awfully advanced when a child knows his Daddy is in jail and has been talked to like a grown up about it.
Chances are this lady is stretching the truth somewhere but maybe not.
Lisa (original) My diet coke almost came out of my nose...Thanks!!!
ReplyDeleteI have nightmares about my son walking outside of my house without permission...he does it at his Dad's all the time (he is only 7) but he would not DARE to open an "adult" beverage.
I am very skeptical of the beer part, but sneaking out could happen
The kids four YEARS old, not four months old. Quite sure he's capable of both sneaking out of the house and cracking open a beer.
ReplyDeleteWhat I wonder is how a four year old even OPENS a beer - twist-off or not. I'm guessing it was already open. Regardless, I'm also surprised a 21 year old single mother is living in a huge house (from the pics I saw) all by herself. Something just ain't right with this story.
ReplyDeleteI hope it's just a funny story we can just laugh off, but the mother shouldn't have related that bit about the boy trying to emulate the father being in jail. Like Michael K said, that gave me a case of the sads.
sad story.
ReplyDeleteYes, I heard about it last night. The charge nurse prefaced it with, "oh, you're from TN..." as if we are all the same?
so what do you guys think is going on here, if this is not the full story? i dont know what to believe...
ReplyDeleteThe kid opened a beer, he didn't crack a safe. Opening a can isn't that hard, especially if he's opened cans of soda before.
ReplyDeleteI wonder where this kid will be in 15 years?
Tenley, do you have kids? I have seen small children who can dismantle a DOOR. Toddlers are very observant and can pretty much do anything a parent can. Some toddlers also have quirks. My son would put anything in his mouth. I would explain to him every time I caught him with something what would happen, but I still had to watch him like a hawk. My girlfriend's daughter would constantly try to get out the front door, and made it out many times despite all the precautions my girlfriend took.
ReplyDeleteThis mom and her son need counseling. NOW. Poor baby is seeing a warped view of the world, thanks to his mom. Any 4 year old who thinks beer is like any other beverage needs ot be in a different environment.
So, the kid is only 4. I'm thinking if he knows Daddy is in jail and drinks beer, then mama needs to shut her trap and quit talking about Daddy. The boy knows too much. If you can't say anything nice about Daddy, shut the f*** up.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, why was there beer in the house in the first place, with small children around? Do they routinely drink in front of their children? What a sad example they are setting. Why not just have a loaded gun there, too? Oops, sorry - they probably have one of those, too.
ReplyDeleteWhaa? So you can't have kids and drink beer, too? Sorry, but that's a bit ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteLisa (original) - this is totally Michael K's childhood!! Thanks for making me crack up.
ReplyDeleteshe can't have a beer because she has kids? Shut the eff up, that is ridiculous. Anyway, she said it was her dads, not that it matters.
ReplyDeleteAssuming all the rest is innocent... Beer is an acquired taste that is, for the most part, not attractive to children. If he drank enough to get him hospitalized, then it's not his first party. If your 4 year old is getting into your stash, MOVE IT.
ReplyDeleteP.S. Rock on, lyz! Perfectly stated on the dad situation. I was too pissed off to comment on that earlier.
1st. When did Luke Wilson get all bloaty and gross?
ReplyDelete2nd. What's with the HUGE pillow in her lap? 10 to 1 she's pregnant and neither child will turn out well.
So why break into someone's home and wear a dress? Is that what Daddy went to jail for too?
ReplyDeleteThis is bizarre. Maybe Daddy needs to phone SonnyBoy and tell him be good and not get drunk and break into homes.
To those that didn't listen to the video, she said the beer was in the back in a cooler that was her Dad's, which also answers the question of why she lives in that house.
ReplyDeleteAs for the rest of it, what are you people suggesting? That she opened the beer herself and gave it to the damn kid, then told him to go steal the family some Christmas presents next door?
When my daughter was 2 years old she snuck out of her crib, went downstairs, and made a peanutbutter and jelly sandwich sandwich all by herself in the middle of the night. At 4, she most definitely could have done what this boy did. This is such a sad story.
ReplyDeleteI drank beer and coffee when I was 3-4. The adults would set their coffee cups by their chairs and I'd drain it. I loved beer! And you would be surprised what a 4 year old is capable of. They are quite adept and can most definitely crack open a beer, not to mention many other things. When I was growing up, my friends 3-year old brother used to skateboard down the street smoking a cigarette.
ReplyDeleteI have lived in apartments for years. When my eldest daughter was 2 she was smart enough to get a chair and put it in front of the door to undo the bolt lock. She used to go have toast with a lady that lived down the hall while I slept like I was dead. I would have gladly woken up and made toast for her at home...but she liked to go on adventures. Those ended when her curiosity got the best of her and she pulled the fire alarm. I bought a chain and had it installed high enough that she couldn't get at it on a chair. I think she hated me for bringing those early morning adventures to an abrupt end.
ReplyDeleteMy nieces just completely broke their closet door and bent the metal on the track so a professional can only fix it. They are 4 and 2. My sister and I can't figure out how they did it. Little kids have the strength of the Hulk.
ReplyDeleteMy nieces just completely broke their closet door and bent the metal on the track so a professional can only fix it. They are 4 and 2. My sister and I can't figure out how they did it. Little kids have the strength of the Hulk.
ReplyDeleteMy nieces just completely broke their closet door and bent the metal on the track so a professional can only fix it. They are 4 and 2. My sister and I can't figure out how they did it. Little kids have the strength of the Hulk.
ReplyDeleteYou could tell that she was embarrassed, and hurting for her child who is suffering the loss of his father. I hope the little guys father saw the news clip and the effect his behavior is having on that little boy so he will change.
ReplyDeleteMother's can't stay awake 24 / 7 and she had all sorts of door knob devices and locks, the boy is truly determined and desperately in need of counseling, I hope he and mom get it and people reach out to her.
"First of all, why was there beer in the house in the first place, with small children around? Do they routinely drink in front of their children? What a sad example they are setting. Why not just have a loaded gun there, too? Oops, sorry - they probably have one of those, too."
ReplyDeleteBFD they had beer in the house, you're insane if you think having beer in the same house as children is setting a bad example. I'm not even sure most kids KNOW it's beer. They just see adults drinking things and want to try them to. It's how kids discover things, by putting shit in their mouths. As for the rest, he was just being a little kid and wandering off into the night. Cry me a bloody river.
My cousin's son got out of their apt when he was 3. He and his older brother (who was 4) got up and played quietly. The boy decided he wanted to play in the playground. My cousin woke up to pounding on the door at 3:30 in the morning. A man was standing with her son, who was buck naked except for a pair of red boots, asking why the hell he was outside at this hour.
ReplyDeleteShe asked her older son what happened. "He wanted to go out." So he unlocked the door for his brother, brother asked how he looked. Older brother said, "You look good" then sent him on his way.
She also woke up one morning to water everywhere in their apt. They blocked the drains in the kitchen and bathroom while they played with the running water.
They're reallly good teenagers now.
I want to quote your post in my blog. It can?
ReplyDeleteAnd you et an account on Twitter?