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My son has a large trampoline in our back garden and the neighbours are getting increasingly annoyed at the noise and the heads bobbing over the garden fence. The other day one neighbour complained that while we were out our son and a bunch of friends were behaving dangerously and that we should ban them. I suspect she's just fed up with the noise.
I'm torn between thinking "stuff the neighbours" and trying to limit the trampoline. But I'd rather he was doing that than zapping people on the Playstation. What should I do?
Does your son understand the annoyance coming from over the fence or does he not think it's an issue?
Does your son understand the annoyance coming from over the fence or does he not think it's an issue?
Understand? He's a teenager - he knows everything and understands no one!
Absolutely - teenagers have a self-centred world view! Anything that contradicts that is totally unreasonable.
Dangerous behaviour as in jumping out of the bathroom window onto the trampoline, because it would be fun, and climbing on the bit of pitched roof outside the fron tbedroom windows, to see who was knocking on the front door!
I think the neighbour was genuinely worried about having to rush someone to hospital, though I don't think it was actually as dangerous as she thought.
Understand? He's a teenager - he knows everything and understands no one!
I see, something to look forward to when mine grow up 🙄
I have to admit jumping out of the window would be at the "no more trampoline" ever level...
"no more trampoline" ever
Interestingly, another neighbour who is a nurse laughed and said "I could imagine doing that myself"!
Because of the sort of person he is, if I come down hard he'll probably go into himself and stop communicating.
Perhaps you should invite the neighbours over one evening for a trampoline party 😈
Great idea - a barbie and a trampoline!
Hmmm ... the teenager doing the barbecue, and the neighbour on the trampoline - not sure which would concern me most 😉
I share your concerns - maybe the neighbour should do the 'BBQ' and the teenager should provide the entertainment with flips on the trampoline.
Interesting views but nobody wants to compromise I wonder why?
Have you thought of limiting your son using the trampoline to those periods when an adult can supervise. One of the responsibilty of a father is sometimes to limit the fun even though you will not be in good books
.....the choice and decision is up to you whichever way you look at it
What we have done is make it clear that inviting his mates round when we're all out is not on (whether they trampoline or not). And limited the use of the machine to daylight hours. [I've just become an 👿 evil and unreasonable parent.]
For now, that's fixed the problem, though it may be different when the school hols arrive.
What I'm reluctant to do is treat the 16 year old like he's a 6 year old with over-zealous supervision.
Holiday has come and gone We are in midterm and your boy is now a young man.. so here come adulthood . Perhaps he is not that keen with the trampoline anymore and has moved on to more manly things
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