Anyone Else Get Upset When Kids Run All Over Their Yard?

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^ I was walking through some local woods once, and came across a place where some people (I think teenagers) had been playing at satanism. There were some spray-painted images and such around a firepit, along with plenty of empty beer bottles. I really wanted to screw with them, to do something that would scare the poop out of them when they saw it, but unfortunately I couldn't think of anything good on the spur of the moment.

I spent a couple of days removing tall grass in my yard by means of a large machete. Haven't had any trespassers since.

Out of earshot I have always called my kids "spawn" as well....to their faces I call them the cutesy names like "sweet pea". Sometimes I call my older kid my spawn but they are adults and they know Im joking....I also still call them by their cutesy nicknames that I called them when they were little and I think they prefer Spawn .

I also would not like strange kids running around in my yard...to me kids that I dont know are just as frightening, if not more, than adults that I dont know. Kids seem to feel the need to touch you and want to talk to you...I only understand and feel comfortable with my own kids.
I would put up a fence or put up signs. I have a friend who has a lot of problems with this. She lives in a "not so nice" neighborhood where a little five year old broke a beer bottle in the middle of her driveway. Makes you ask "why does a five year old have a beer bottle?" and "where are the parents?"
She is also worried that she is going to run one of them over as they are always playing in her driveway and some are toddlers. I would never let my kids run around and through other peoples yards, this is how kids get abducted, sexually abused and hurt. This is not the 1970's when I grew up and even if it was my Mom should not have let me run loose because that is how I got molested by a neighbor.

Kids don't run loose all over my yard, because a picket fence borders it off, otherwise I would definitely say something. Now and then they do run loose all over the back garden because it is communal (not anyone's property in particular) and not fenced off, but then again I have to say it remains to this day a much more threatening situation than just the scenario of one or two neighbourhood kids...

I used to feel exactly how you did, until I had kids. Kids are pretty chaotic, get into everything and need to be taught acceptable social boundaries.

I would definitely bring it up with the parents if you can, or barring that, if the boundary violation makes you too uncomfortable, try putting up a fence or similar barrier. I can relate to the discomfort of having strangers run all over your property, when your home is supposed to be your "safe place." But, kids don't understand this. It kind of comes with the territory of living with or near children.

IMO, as a parent, it is easier to make it difficult for the child to cross the boundary than to expect the child (or parent) to self-police the boundaries of your yard. If the main access point to your yard is the driveway, maybe you can park a large object, like you car, there to discourage foot traffic. A fence is ideal, but if that is not feasible, try starting with a sign or build up visual barriers like a planting area, a hedge or stone edging, etc.

I was terrified of children for years and "knew" I never wanted to have kids. Ever. I called them little monsters, spawn, evil, the whole nine yards. Until my biological time bomb went off in my early 30s. Suddenly, everything changed, although I still was freaked out about actually raising a kid!! (Hey! I might break it! Someone help me please!) If you ever have kids (if that is part of what you want in life) you may find yourself suddenly having less problems with "barrier violation". Kids bring all that down.

In the meantime, taking steps that utilize an understanding of basic human nature will most likely give you optimal results.

The kids don't really understand. For me, when I owned houses, they had to have a fence in the front yard. Many parents are inured to the sound of screaming brats and don't understand that some of us are not. We used to have a neighbour kid that would throw his basketball on the wall of our house (!) I had a reasonable chat with him and he responded reasonably. No guarantees that always works, though. I've had much louder and stupider neighbours in other locations, where one cannot communicate reasonably with the parents, never mind the kids.

the really good news is that if someone tripped over something in your yard and was hurt, they could sue you! So there are practical reasons for insisting others stay out of your yard. Mention it to the parents in a "concerned for their children" way, that the yard is not really "child safe" or that your are concerned for your sprinkler system, or worry about what might happen if you left a rake or spade in the grass, or the fact you just put down fertilizer or bug killer etc. If it continues after that, the police are an option. Fact is, it is exactly the people that don't stop their children from disrespecting other's space are the first to expect someone else to pay the doctor's bills if something happens.

Seeing as you are as upset as you are, action is needed. there was that one guy who did shoot a kid for walking on his grass, and that was just a tragedy.

The only intruders we have are cats. Even door-to-door people have dropped off lately, because if the dogs hear you (they're big boys, and not nice) they're liable to start growling and barking and jumping up and down to try to get at you. No more meat salesmen!

I get mad that parents think it's okay to let their kids make noise on my property.

Kids are annoying in general. And what gets to me even more is the parents who let them misbehave and be disrespectful lil maniacs.