He’s Tired Of A Neighborhood Kid Constantly Hanging Out At Their House, But His Wife Doesn’t Think It’s A Problem
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Imagine being a young couple without kids who just bought your first home. Would you happily open your home up to any neighborhood kid who wants to hang out, or would you rather lock your doors and savor your privacy?
In this story, one couple is in this situation, and they completely disagree about the answer to this question. The husband likes his privacy. The wife has become good friends with a neighborhood kid who drops by unexpectedly quite often.
Now, the husband is wondering if he’s the bad guy for not wanting the kid around so much. Is he, or is he being perfectly reasonable?
Let’s read the whole story to decide.
AITA For not wanting the neighborhood kid around
My partner and I (late 20s) recently moved into our first house and we were happy to find our neighbors very friendly.
One person in particular, the 9-year-old across the street, is a bit too friendly.
He and my partner are “buddies” and he comes over looking for her all the time.
He wishes the kid weren’t around so much.
I’m not thrilled about this because 1) I’m a private, not super social person, and 2) I am not good with kids and feel awkward around them.
My partner feels that when we moved to this neighborhood, we said that we would be open and willing to be part of the community. And also that I’m being selfish, since this kid is stuck at home and bored out of his mind.
I hear that, but I just don’t like this kid being around!
The kid isn’t the most well behaved kid in the world.
This is kind of a separate problem, but the kid also has some behavior issues that we’ve talked to his mother about.
He doesn’t seem to understand boundaries – for example, we generally don’t keep the door locked during the day, and today he just snuck into the house and scared the heck out of me.
He has also broken one our windows when he tried throwing palm tree nuts at the window to get my partner’s attention…
Talking to the mom didn’t help too much.
We’ve talked to his mom about this, who gave him a stern talking to that I thought was really good.
But he still did the whole sneaking into our house thing today…so another talking to is clearly in order.
But assuming this kid can clean up his act and be a respectful guest in our house, AITA for STILL not wanting him around?
I feel super guilty and curmudgeonly.
The first thing they need to do is start locking their doors. Anyone could sneak into their house. Next, they need to set boundaries, like setting up certain times it’s okay to come over. He’s not their kid, and they aren’t free babysitters.
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Let’s see how Reddit responded.
This person has some advice.
Another person thinks it’s time for boundaries.
If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about a person who changed their minds about donated items, only to return to the shop to find them all sold.
This does seem odd.
Nobody thinks he’s wrong for wanting the kid to stop coming around so much.
It sounds like the mom is happily letting them become her free neighborhood babysitters. That’s a little too trusting of her, and it’s a little too annoying for him. If his partner likes having the kid around, then it’s time for a compromise and establishing boundaries. They need to start by locking the door and then set up certain days or times it’s okay for the boy to drop by.
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