It's a wonderful day in the neighborhood..

We live in a strange neighborhood. We chose this neighborhood for its diversity. We didn't want to have our kids grow up in an all white, all Asian, all anything neighborhood. When we drove through this neighborhood, we knew we had found what we wanted.

The houses that are immediately surrounding us are inhabited by a Pakistani family, a Somalian family, Jamaican and black and German. We get some really great food!!

Most of the people are fairly recently immigrated to the US. (Within the last 10-15 years.) Many of them do not even speak our language.

It is a plethora of sights and smells and customs. I love that part of it.

One thing we did not bargain for was the way other kids are raised. There is virtually no parental supervision. I'm all for letting kids have freedom. But you don't come into my yard without proper behavior.

A great many of these kids have very, very few toys. (Not because they can't be afforded, but because they are a waste of time.) Many of them don't celebrate the same holidays. So there are no Easter baskets or Christmas trees.

So, our house is like a magnet. Which is fine. Except when kids come into our yard with rude or bullying behavior.

There is one boy in particular. We'll call him W. When we first moved to the neighborhood he was less than a year and a half old. We saw him every day for hours and hours (seriously like four to six hours) outside riding a big wheel with a bottle. BY HIMSELF!!  We have lived here for seven years and I only found out that he had a mother that lived with him LAST WEEK!

I kind of have a love/ hate relationship with W. I feel very sorry for him and try to extend him some of the attention that he doesn't get at home. But the behavior. It kills me! When he was six years old he was in my yard talking about sex! He is very rude much of the time and he, just to be honest, can get on my nerves.

We offered to take him to the zoo with us this week. (I saw his mother for the first time in almost seven years of living here.) 

It started off well, but then turned into a huge sense of entitlement. "Get me this!" and "I want that!" Which I would understand, if he were spoiled. But he isn't. I kept trying to explain that this was rude behavior and not appreciated, but it continued. Finally I cut the trip a little short and we just left.

I had such high hopes that it would go well and we would be able to take him on other adventures and show him other experiences.

But I don't think I will be offering to take any of the kids anywhere after that.

I know this is kind of rambling, but it would take forever to give the whole story of the neighborhood. I hope my point came across.