and climbing…

Tomorrow is supposed to be 68. Heaven. Flip flops. Capris. Bikes. The whole works.

With the beautiful weather comes playing outside. Hallie played outside and was loving life.

However, I came to the realization I’m not a very good “neighborhood mom.” I don’t like all the kids in our yard, some of whom were three times her age and had much more color in her vocabulary than anything I want to hear . That just means I become the policeman, and I don’t like it. I don’t like overhearing the conversations taking place outside my windows, or the influence a lot of the older kids have on my young impressionable daughter.

I especially don’t like kids ringing the doorbell or running in the kitchen when I have a child sleeping in the other room who took way too long to fall asleep.

Maybe other neighborhoods have saint kids running around, but not here. They’re turning on our outside water to make mud holes, opening up the garage and taking things out, writing with marker on our door. (who does that? really? it wasn’t our marker that’s for sure!) All the while I hear Hallie telling them: My mom is not going to like that. That is a really bad thing to do. This will make her sad.

But her voice of caution does nothing to detract these older rambunctious kids.

Nope, I’m not a neighborhood mom. I’d rather entertain Hallie for hours on end than have all the kids in the area at our house. I keep telling Steve we need a fence. He doesn’t see the need. After today a fence is an absolute must, and today was just the first warm day of the year. Maybe when she gets older it won’t be such a big deal. The age gap right now is just too much, they manipulate her far too much for my liking. Looks like I’ll have to be more proactive.

First task: Install fence.
Second task: Invite Hallie’s friends (not every kid in the area) to come play in our fenced yard.
Third task: Install a great locking mechanism so no kids can come in or get out…

on second thought perhaps I should just lock her in her room. That might work better, besides it would save money by not installing the fence. All things to be considered….