Am I just being petty? Snow Story

[BUTLER REDSFAN]

We live next door to a family with 3 boys(dont know exact ages but I would say maybe 5,8,11 years old). They are well behaved and cause us no issues at all during the year except for this issue. Every time we have any appreciable snow they come into my front yard to wrestle/play fight/throw snowballs etc...By the time they are done my front yard is a muddy,snowy eyesore. I know in 2-3 days it will all be melted anyway so what's the point in making a big stink about it. However somehow the way the sun hits our yard its always the last house on the street for the snow to melt so it ends up looking like an eyesore longer... Do you let it slide or do you say something to the parents?

[bthomasiscool]

First Option: Now this is just me but I would let it go. If it was tearing the grass up for instance I would say something for sure. Kids will be kids. And there is something about the snow that will bring out the kid in many. Just hope it warms up quicker.

Second Option: Grab a snowball and hit one of the kids in the face.

[TeamBoone]

I think I might nicely ask the boys why they prefer your yard to their own.

[919191]

I say screw it and just play with them. If you are that concerned about appearances, a guy who is great with kids is probably respected more than the guy who is fussy about a perfect lawn.

[cincyinco]

I can say that as a kid who grew up playing baseball/football/kickball/wiffleball/whathaveyou, on a friend's lawn that joined a neighbors lawn - just let the kids play. As long as its not doing damage to your property, the kids will be happy to have the memories. If you get out there and play with the kids, even better. I wish I could thank Mr. Cook these days, but I often think how cool it was that he let us use his yard - otherwise we had no place to play. His kindness in lending us his yard let me continue my youthful innoncence a lot longer and I'm grateful for that.

[SunDeck]

Join the snowball fight.

[Ltlabner]

However somehow the way the sun hits our yard its always the last house on the street for the snow to melt so it ends up looking like an eyesore longer... Do you let it slide or do you say something to the parents?

It's your yard. If it irks you then I'd say politley go talk to the parents. Especially if they are tearing up the yard, leaving big divots, etc.

Better yet, perhaps you could suggest they boys come play in your back-yard. They get to play and have fun, you are seen as the good guy and who gives a rip if the backyard gets all tussled.

[MaineRed]

Offer them some weed. They won't come back.

[Roy Tucker]

Depends. If it starts in their front yard and bleeds over into yours, then fine. Kids need to play. Our next-door neighbor always has wiffleball, tennis-baseball, kickball, etc games going on and we gladly let them use our yard as part of the field of play.

But if they pick your yard to tear up and leave theirs alone, I'd probably have a talk with the dad.

[bucksfan2]

We live next door to a family with 3 boys(dont know exact ages but I would say maybe 5,8,11 years old). They are well behaved and cause us no issues at all during the year except for this issue. Every time we have any appreciable snow they come into my front yard to wrestle/play fight/throw snowballs etc...By the time they are done my front yard is a muddy,snowy eyesore. I know in 2-3 days it will all be melted anyway so what's the point in making a big stink about it. However somehow the way the sun hits our yard its always the last house on the street for the snow to melt so it ends up looking like an eyesore longer... Do you let it slide or do you say something to the parents?

What did you do as a kid? I mean if their is no damange done no harm done unless you like your yard pristine untouched snow.

[Ltlabner]

What did you do as a kid? I mean if their is no damange done no harm done unless you like your yard pristine untouched snow.

Cool...can I come hang out in your living room and eat your food. I mean, no damage done no harm right?

[camisadelgolf]

I think the fair thing would be for you to go in their yard and make just as big of a mess (or possibly a slightly bigger mess since it takes slightly less time for their snow to melt).

As you know, that's ridiculous, so here's what I'd really do: I'd call the police. And later on, I'd play dumb and ask the neighbors why the police came and have a discussion about how crazy it was that the police felt it was necessary to step in.

[minus5]

Cool...can I come hang out in your living room and eat your food. I mean, no damage done no harm right?

No offense but how is that even close to being the same as 3 "well behaved" kids playing in the snow in your front yard? I don't follow the equation here. Myself, I wouldn't say anything to them especially since I knew them and knew that they were good kids. Now if they were kids I didnt know, it may be a different matter.

[SunDeck]

I think the fair thing would be for you to go in their yard and make just as big of a mess (or possibly a slightly bigger mess since it takes slightly less time for their snow to melt).

As you know, that's ridiculous, so here's what I'd really do: I'd call the police. And later on, I'd play dumb and ask the neighbors why the police came and have a discussion about how crazy it was that the police felt it was necessary to step in.

Yes, and the neighbors won't figure that out.

Officer: "Hi, a neighbor complained about your kids playing in the yard next door."

Neighbor: "Gee, for the life of me I can't figure out who would have called. Must have been someone passing by in their car."

Officer: "Something like that."

This is exactly what the police love doing- handling petty neighbor disputes because someone is afraid to do it face to face.

[Caseyfan21]

I think if they are playing in their yard and it sort of comes over into your yard then no harm as long as they aren't ruining your lawn. When I was younger my friends and I were all about playing sports in the yard as well as playing in the snow. We would use as much of our yard as possible but, especially for sports games, we would frequently have part of the outfield spill over into the neighbor's yard. The first neighbor was the type that paid for lawn service and had a perfect looking yard all year round (they did not have kids). It was known that we were not welcome in their yard and as a result my parents and them were never really very friendly because they even marked off property lines with stakes and such. They made a big stink about all the neighbor kids being in their yard so it sort of isolated them from the rest of the neighborhood. The next people to own the house were totally cool with us using part of their yard for anything we wanted and even told us so. The family was really welcomed in and became friends with everyone. I guess what I'm saying is from personal experience, if you make a big stink about the kids in your yard you might isolate yourself from the neighbors around you because that's exactly what happened in our neighborhood when I was growing up.

Now, if the kids are causing damage to your property or house, then I think it would be appropriate to say something nicely to their parents. Maybe say, "I don't mind if the games spill over a little but they are really tearing up my lawn." If the neighbors are good parents (like mine were) they will find a nice way to make sure their kids stay out of your yard and not tear it up.

It's really a tight rope to walk between being a friendly neighbor and really isolating yourself as the neighborhood grouch.