Plumb tired of plumbing issues

Right before we left for the holidays, the boys' potty started acting up. It was kind of flushing, but not quite. We didn't really have time to deal with it. When we got back, it seemed to progressively get worse. We pronounced it off-limits. Finally, facing a house full of house guests (some of which would need to use that bathroom), I called the home warranty company to have them send over a plumber. A man who exuded creepiness entered our home a few days later, pulled out his auger, and...failed to fix the problem. We did not know this until late in the day the next day. So, on the very day that company was due to arrive, another plumber from the same company came over to "make things right," and...he did! Thank goodness. What he found was a toothbrush wedged at an unnatural angle, and when Jeff suggested that it was almost certainly our little monkey who had placed it there, the plumber scoffed and asked where the toothbrushes were kept. When Jeff told him that they are kept on the second shelf of the cabinet above the toilet (in an attempt to keep little monkeys away from them), the plumber deemed it impossible. "No two-year-old could get all the way up there," he said with a laugh. Clearly, he doesn't know our little monkey!

Right after we arrived home from our wonderful beach vacation, the weather here deteriorated completely into freezing temps...and freezing pipes. The Saturday after we arrived home, just as Jeff was asking me if I had noticed any problems with the water pressure, there was a knock on the door. It was our neighbor telling us that there was a geyser shooting up at the front of our house. Apparently, the pipes froze and the sprinkler regulator or some such thing exploded. We were literally just about to walk out the door to go to Ruth's basketball game, so we got the water shut off to the sprinkler system and the water pressure restored to the house, and just left it. It hasn't been dealt with since, because, frankly, I don't want to think about it.

And finally, today, Ruth asked to wash the van to earn a little cash. I got her set up with her task and then came inside to visit with Jeff. He was leaned back in his recliner, and as we visited, I suddenly noticed a huge puddle on the floor all around his chair. I was just about to ask if someone had spilled something, when I realized it was not a pool but a stream, flowing to all parts of the living room. I ran outside and shut the water off and Jeff ran for some towels. There is apparently some kind of water leak associated with that faucet. Joy. I will be calling the home warranty company again tomorrow. In the meantime, I'm thinking seriously about ditching this house altogether.