It's Too Early for Temper Tantrums!

United States
May 27, 2017 9:30am CST
The family who lives in the apartment next to ours has two toddler aged boys. I swear all they do all day, every day is throw temper tantrums which involves loud screaming and crying, which I am forced to hear through my wall. Their hissy fits are usually followed by some adult yelling at them to "knock it off." Both of the other families living in this fourplex also have young children, but they aren't as badly behaved as the two boys next door. Now I understand temper tantrums are part of toddler life -- heck, I can even remember throwing my own when I was that age. But when that's all a kid ever does, nonstop, it becomes problematic. I believe that their bad behavior is due to bad parenting, as the adults over there seem to mostly ignore them other than to scream at them. You know the old adage: Bad attention is still attention. Kids will get attention any way they can. It's frustrating when you can hear little kids screaming from inside the neighbors' apartment, but their guardian is too busy romancing her girlfriend out on the balcony or yapping loudly on her cellphone to pay them any mind other than to holler at them to shut up. I don't think they're being abused or even necessarily neglected, aside from the fact that the adults over there always seem to have their noses stuck to their phones or are too caught up in their own activities to be bothered with the kids. This morning the boys were at it before it was even 7:00, which is way too early to be forced to listen to that crap. Sometimes I wish I could move to a community where children are not allowed. I have spent a good deal of time working with kids and even have a degree in Early Childhood Education, but I don't enjoy hearing my neighbors' kids throwing temper tantrums nonstop, especially so early on a Saturday morning. I wish modern parents would actually parent, instead of just lazily hollering at the kids to "knock it off" while they continue ignoring them.
5 people like this
5 responses
• United States
27 May 17
It seems this is the new normal now unfortunately especially when you live in close quarters with people as I do in apartments. The noise is inhumane.
2 people like this
• United States
27 May 17
@Srbageldog I am fortunate in the way that I live in the top apartment, so at least I no longer endure 'elephants and rhinos' stomping above my head, but the noise is insane here. They are literally acting like total jungle animals. Adults and children both, slamming the doors as hard as possible and shouting like chimps and any number of other issues. The most inhumane thing I experience here though is the smokers below me..their smoke billows like clouds of infernal poison and I mean to the excess up to my balcony and windows as they are directly below me. No respite here. Only the wicked are able to thrive.
2 people like this
• United States
27 May 17
It really is inhumane. Nobody has any consideration for their neighbors. The people directly below us blare music all day long, then next door there's the toddlers screaming and having their fits. Makes it hard to ever enjoy any peace and quiet.
2 people like this
@jstory07 (134433)
• Roseburg, Oregon
28 May 17
I raise six and it was rare for them to have a temper temper tantrum.
2 people like this
• United States
28 May 17
My parents never tolerated our temper tantrums. I have met kids who are completely out of control and the parents just don't want to deal with it so they cave into their whims rather than discipline them and teach them it's not acceptable to behave that way.
• Valdosta, Georgia
27 May 17
I have 5 children and I feel bad for my neighbor because they don't have young children so our home probably seems like a zoo to them! Lol. However we are respectful at night and my kids sleep until at least 9am every day and they know it's quiet until around 11am. Parents that always ignore their kids shouldn't have had them. I can still spend time here through the day, take care of my kids and my home plus home school and babysit! I don't understand how or why some parents can't handle 1 or 2 kids...
1 person likes this
• United States
27 May 17
There are lots of large families in my neighborhood and there are always kids running around playing (and being loud) in the streets... But they are just having fun and being kids. Hearing their conversations and interactions with each other amuses me. But these two next door just sound like brats, and I've overheard the parents telling them not to talk to the other neighborhood kids because they're "lowlifes." What a thing to say about children! And I agree, parents who can't handle one or two kids shouldn't have had them. It seems to increasingly be the trend where people don't set boundaries for their kids and pretty much let them run wild.
1 person likes this
• Valdosta, Georgia
28 May 17
@Srbageldog Yeah it's a sad world now with the parenting styles. I'm strict with my kids but not many people are anymore. Then they wonder why they don't like having their children around...well They should have raised them better!
1 person likes this
@Courtlynn (66921)
• United States
27 May 17
Oh I've lived that. My "old" neighbors kids were always screaming or being screamed at. Its definitely from bad parenting.
1 person likes this
• United States
28 May 17
It's so annoying.
1 person likes this
• United States
28 May 17
@Courtlynn I bet you're glad about that! It's always a relief when bad neighbors move away. I celebrated when some of my old neighbors finally moved.
1 person likes this
@Courtlynn (66921)
• United States
28 May 17
@Srbageldog yes it sure is. Thankfully my neighbors moved out last week or so.
1 person likes this
@atoz1to10 (6781)
• Australia
27 May 17
I'm sorry that you have to go through this kind of problem everyday... I think throwing a temper tantrums can be seen in toddlers but if the parents do something about it then it can be stopped... Maybe the parents need to be educated in how to discipline their children.
1 person likes this
• United States
27 May 17
I agree, the parents could probably benefit from learning how to discipline their kids... But so many parents nowadays just want to take the easier road of placating their kids whenever they behave badly, or they ignore them while continuing to allow the bad behavior to continue. If they lived in a house, I'd say it's up to them how to parent, but they live in an apartment that shares walls... And those walls are thin!
1 person likes this
@atoz1to10 (6781)
• Australia
27 May 17
@Srbageldog so how long have you lived close to these neighbours? I love children but I don't like children like this... a minute with them is enough...
1 person likes this
• United States
28 May 17
@atoz1to10 I have lived in my apartment for nine years... They just moved in a year ago. They have been inconsiderate right from the start... For instance our parking lot is very small, and they own three large vehicles... They claimed all the parking spots, making it so my boyfriend has nowhere to park his one (small) car. Then when he dared to claim his spot back, the man next door came pounding on our door screaming about how he had nowhere to park his huge truck... Why he thought he was entitled to all the parking spots when he just moved in is beyond me! After nearly a decade of living here I think we deserve a place to park!
1 person likes this