One theory that I have. As odd as it sounds, I tend to agree with a couple OPs, and think it may have been hoarding. I was thinking about the animal hoarding cases. A good majority of the time, the whole animal hoarding thing starts innocently enough. They love animals, they want to take care of them, and give them a safe home, Then they just keep taking on more critters, until the critters' food, vet needs, and supplies begin to mount up and become difficult to afford, and to properly care for all of them. It goes on until it starts to get out of control and the animals that they claim to love, are sitting in squalor, the hoarder's home is in shambles, their bank account is drained, and some have even chosen the animals over their spouse and/or families. Then someone finally makes that call and they the animals they claimed to love, along with everything else. We've all seen at least one of those shows. Replace the animals in crates, with kids chained to beds. Only I think that after the children reached a certain age, she lost interest, and wanted another infant.