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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

WIBU? - Child waking the street

411 replies

Iltavilli · 21/05/2019 17:24

We live on a cul de sac with a ginnel (alley for non-northerners) at the bottom, so it is often used as a cut through for people walking children to the local schools about half a mile away. Leaving the house this morning around 8am (huge lie in as I normally leave at 6am), a girl of around 7 or 8 was being walked to school by her mum.

The girl was banging what looked like two plastic sticks together, quite loudly, and was shouting “get up, get up, it’s time for school and work” all the way along the street. She was about 100 metres ahead of her mum, but mum was laughing along and not trying to stop her. I said to the girl that some people, like nurses, work at night and need to sleep in the morning so they can take care of people the next night. The girl burst into tears, and as mum got to where we were (outside my house) shouted at me for making her daughter cry.

Given the weather is so warm, and people have windows open to sleep, was I wrong to ask the girl to stop - but also to explain why she should stop?

OP posts:

IWannaSeeHowItEnds · 22/05/2019 14:39

There was a poster up thread who made a really good point about how, if your child ended up at A&E in the middle of the night, you'd hope the medical staff had had enough sleep.
It's in all our best interests to be considerate of others. I don't want to have sleep deprived people looking after kids, driving, operating machinery etc. Obviously the world can't be expected to exist in silence, but we shouldn't be making unnecessary noise and deliberately disturbing people, just because we can.

BasilFaulty · 22/05/2019 15:56

@cheeseypuff I do hope your husband wouldn't do that ffs. We coppers need to get away from shit scaring kids just cos we can. Kids will never come to us otherwise. Police badge in hand. Honestly

BasilFaulty · 22/05/2019 16:01

Sorry @cheeseypuff just seen you were quoting the PP, not saying it yourself!

BasilFaulty · 22/05/2019 16:16

My last post was aimed at @Isitweekendyet
Tell your DH to stop badge flashing

NoSauce · 22/05/2019 16:19

No one knows if this thread is real

Bizarre comment. Is that a general - is anything real or a specific - this thread might be a troll thread?

somecakefather · 22/05/2019 16:34

The girl was banging what looked like two plastic sticks together, quite loudly, and was shouting “get up, get up, it’s time for school and work” all the way along the street

I must live on another planet. When I read the OP I was sure it would be a unanimous YABU. I seriously don't see the problem with this. OK yes, it may be a bit annoying for 3 seconds but that's about it.

Seriously, how much noise does two plastic sticks make? She was passing through the street with 2 sticks, not standing outside someone's window with a brass band.

somecakefather · 22/05/2019 16:40

Our street of 40 or so houses has only one toddler on it

Aahh that explains it OP. I knew it was odd. It's a street not used to childrens normal behaviour. I think you've hugely exaggerated your OP.

teyem · 22/05/2019 16:43

Seriously, how much noise does two plastic sticks make?

😂

WaxOnFeckOff · 22/05/2019 16:43

I'm actually heartened by the majority being that OP was not unreasonable. There are less deluded ineffectual parents than I thought.

DHhasahobbyanditsnotcycling · 22/05/2019 16:52

Seriously, how much noise does two plastic sticks make?
enough to be heard all the way along the street

somecakefather · 22/05/2019 17:03

I'm actually heartened by the majority being that OP was not unreasonable. There are less deluded ineffectual parents than I thought

Well in my opinion, she was totally unreasonable. My DH works nights. At weekends or school holidays, when he's sleeping, there can be multiple kids out on the street playing or at my door looking for the kids to come out. Should I go out and tell them all to be quiet? Of course not, he just has to wear ear-plugs and get on with it because not everything revolves around him and his night shifts.

somecakefather · 22/05/2019 17:06

Seriously, how much noise does two plastic sticks make?

enough to be heard all the way along the street

But so what? The girl was walking along the street, It's passing noise not a Carnival float.

WaxOnFeckOff · 22/05/2019 17:15

Are some people hard of thinking or just not reading properly? This wasn't normal passing noise, this was deliberate, loud noise specifically to try to wake people. Since when has it been up to some random 7/8 year old to decide when the rest of society should wake up? And her DM thought it was funny as clearly her child is the most cute thing ever and we should all appreciate her.

SoupDragon · 22/05/2019 17:21

childrens normal behaviour.

This wasn't children's normal behaviour. At least not from children who have been taught good behaviour.

teyem · 22/05/2019 17:21

Neither. I've worked nights and just can't get that worked up about it. I think it's a lot of fuss over nothing.

clairemcnam · 22/05/2019 17:23

Its because some adults think no adult should ever tell a child something they are doing is wrong, unless they are that child's parents or in loco parentis.
But most of us know that some parents think anything their kid does is cute, and if no one puts them right, it is the child who suffers the most. There is no point speaking to this type of parent.

teyem · 22/05/2019 17:25

No. I have no problems with her telling off the kid if the op felt particularly aggrieved by it but, given that she made the kid cry, she should have had the good grace to tell the Mum what she was doing instead of scurrying off.

somecakefather · 22/05/2019 17:26

This wasn't normal passing noise, this was deliberate, loud noise specifically to try to wake people

OP has stated that they only have one toddler living in the street. I think it's more likely that OP is not used to kids normal noise levels. I also think OP has exaggerated her OP. The child was passing through the street, it wasn't prolonged noise. It was a child walking to school, that's it.

NunoGoncalves · 22/05/2019 17:28

I don't necessarily think OP was wrong, but I do think a lot of people on this thread have overreacted to a kid shouting a bit and banging some sticks as she walks down the street. Bit annoying maybe, but she would be directly outside each house for about 5 seconds at most. Not something I could get worked up about.

Femalebornandbreed · 22/05/2019 17:28

This wasn't normal passing noise, this was deliberate, loud noise specifically to try to wake people

That’s if you believe it was as purposeful and as bad as that. I don’t.

somecakefather · 22/05/2019 17:30

This wasn't children's normal behaviour. At least not from children who have been taught good behaviour

You are being very dramatic. It was 2 plastic sticks and a bit of singing.

SoupDragon · 22/05/2019 17:31

I think it's more likely that OP is not used to kids normal noise levels.

The kid was shouting "get up, get up, it’s time for school and work” Do you think she was whispering this particular sentence...?

SoupDragon · 22/05/2019 17:31

You are being very dramatic.

I don't think you're know what that word means.

clairemcnam · 22/05/2019 17:32

I believe a child shouting wake up wake up and banging two sticks together is loud.
And if kids are not used to being told they should not do something, IME they either cry or tell you to fuck off when someone does tell them.

SoupDragon · 22/05/2019 17:32

That’s if you believe it was as purposeful and as bad as that

Really? Do the actual words not give you a clue?

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