Help Us Get Into a New (to us!) Home!

Home Sweet Home should be just that - unfortunately in this case, it just isn't.  The home I currently live in was built in 1898.  Up until 2 years ago, it still had an old "octopus furnace" - which hadn't even been working for four years before that.  Two years ago (when we got a "real" furnace put in, thanks to social agencies and scrimping and saving on my part) was when we finally got real circuit breakers put in, not the knob and tube fuses that we had been dealing with since we moved in. The roof is shot, leaks in places, the front porch is (quite literally) breaking off, their are animals living in the attic that are breaking holes in the outside of the house, we have absolutely no storage and no place to even have friends come over to visit, the kitchen has no room, we have 1 tiny bathroom (no joke, we can touch the bathroom sink that no longer has running water, while we're sitting on the toilet, and can shave our legs while sitting on the toilet as well), with a toilet that moves when you sit on it, a shower that is cobbled together because all we have is the old claw and foot cast iron tub, a floor beneath the tub - that like most of the floors in this house - makes us feel as though we are playing a waiting game on what's going to fall through the floor first, the kitchen sink faucet has just started leaking, the electrical is shot (some of the outlets have burned -again, quite literally- out, and no longer work - one got so hot the plug of a light was pushed through the plastic instead of the holes where it actually belongs, the heater (while nice to finally have one again after going without for 4 years) only manages to heat the downstairs, not the 3 rooms upstairs where my children and I are - and it's getting VERY cold up here once again.  The windows are old and leaky, and even with plastic over them, it just doesn't help in the winter. I'm sure I'm missing things - in fact, I know I am.  But it's so overwhelming to think about, let alone write about, I'll leave it at this - I think you probably get the general idea.  It is my mom's house; I moved in to help her with bills and such after my dad died of cancer, and have been here since. 

A little over a year ago, my mom had a series of small heart attacks and had to have heart surgery.  She had one artery completely blocked (she has low cholesterol, eats right, and there was no warning to this) and because we have a blood clotting disorder, surgery was a risky, but necessary thing.  She got the artery cleared, got a stent put in, and came back home.  I not only take care of her and the house, I have two children of my own I take care of with little to no help from my ex-husband, their father: my daughter, who is 16 and a source of amusement and laughter when she knows I'm feeling down, and my son, who is 15 and a special child and taught me a different way to think and to parent.  He is on the autism scale (Aspbergers), and has severe ADHD, ODD, anxiety, depression, sensory issues, and has been having a tough time the last few years both at home and at school as we work on a behavior plan and medication regime that helps, rather than hurts. 

He is very sensitive to changes in his routine, and he really would do better in a peaceful environment, with a room of his own that doesn't have plaster falling out of holes in his walls, with space of his own so he wasn't constantly unable to decompress and stop the sensory overload that happens in a tiny space with other people you can't get away from. It would also benefit him and us) if he had a room with a door, where we know he could be safe, and would allow us to put an alarm on the door so we can sleep soundly knowing he can't get out of his room to steal knifes, food, and various other things as he does now.  I know that gettting us into another house - a "new" house - will go a long way towards helping him and towards being good for my daughter, too. 

I am also a full time college student (majoring in Sociology and minoring in Criminal Justice, with an eventual goal of working with juveniles and minority populations that deal with substance abuse issues), and I work as a home health care aid -- and a photographer when I can get the work (and am able to do it).  Most days I get 4 hours of sleep, if I'm lucky, and sometimes I just break down in tears because it just gets overwhelming.  But I plug on and try to do the best I can, because my children are my life.  I have researched the options, and it would be cheaper to get a down payment together and move to another house, instead of trying to pour more money into this one.  Every tax return is spent playing catch up on bills I was just able to keep paid during the year.  It's frustrating to know what you need, and be stimied from trying to get it. 

I know this is a long shot, but I'm hopeful.  I'm doing my best to do what I can for my kids - to do EVERYTHING I can for my kids (and my mom) and I'm just asking for some help to get us into a healthy environment, where I can bring my mom with me (she and my dad took care of me, so it's my turn to do that for her) and we can have enough space to have some space!  There is also the fact that if I can us get into a large home with everything up to code, I can start a daycare business (I babysat from age 12 to, well, I still do!) which would enable me to stay at home more with my son, which I think would really do nothing but benefit him. 

So I'm asking for help.  Every single penny donated will go towards getting into a house. I have a house that we could move into this June, but I won't be able to do so without some help. I'm not asking for everything to be handed to me, just some help to get us into someplace that will be far healthier for us as a family.  I know it's a lot too ask, and perhaps it's too much, but I have faith that everything we've been dealing with has been FOR something, and that people really are good and kind and could make this happen for us.  Thank you for reading this long description and if you can help, or send this along to someone you know can, that would be so awesome!!