Health and Fire Inspection

Boy1 checkin' out the computer

On Monday, the health inspector came by and checked our home. It only lasted about five minutes! Here are the things she checked for:

• clean, safe environment
• free of odors
• hot running water
• outlet covers for all visible/reachable plugs
• medicines locked away
• lid on kitchen trash or placed inside a cabinet
• chemicals out of reach (our cleaners are in our laundry room top cabinets)
• no standing water in yard
• no boards with nails laying around yard

Some things depended on what ages of children we were taking in. If only toddlers, for instance, some things didn't have to be locked away but simply put up out of their reach. I don't remember her mentioning the knives being up high but we have ours in a top cabinet. We passed!

Today, the fire inspector stopped by and simply checked these things:

• Do we have an escape plan? 
• Do we have a 5 lb fire extinguisher? 
• Do we have working smoke alarms in each bedroom? NEW!

He liked our fire escape plan, which showed all exits (doors and windows) and the route out of each room. I put one in every bedroom and the kids' bathroom with a "you are here" dot and route out of the room, but I guess I didn't really need it! Oh well. 

I did have to go buy another fire extinguisher because ours was only 2.5 lb. He let me run to the store and get it and then he stopped back by the house to check. Then, he gave me the passed inspection form.

I don't know of anything else we need to do to get licensed. I haven't told you half of the things we've had to do or sign, but this should give you a glimpse. See the short checklist here. The agency told me they would audit our file on Friday, so we'll see where we are then!