What would you do? Random kid showed up and set up a lemonade stand on our lawn

[Anonymous]

DH and I went to my in laws house to watch MIL after a hip replacement. Their home is a corner lot that gets a lot of traffic. Someone drop their probably 10 year old kid off with a lemonade stand at the corner of the property, did not ask for permission and left the child there unsupervised. Upon finding this set up we gave the kid $40 and asked them to call their mom to pick them up because we didn’t know this child and didn’t feel comfortable having them on the property alone and inviting strangers to stop by and have noise from the stand as MIL is in recovery. Their mother came and was screaming at us, called us names and claimed we were hurting this child by not letting them have their lemonade stand at the corner of our lawn and that we were ruining their childhood. We told them to go or we would call the police. Did we do the right thing? What would you have done?

[Anonymous]

You did the right thing. They would hate it if you set up right in front of their house and attracted a lot of noise. You gave the kid $40. Why couldn't the kid go to another place?

[Anonymous]

They should have asked and parent stayed if you said yes. Paying then was generous.

[Anonymous]

I would have given them nothing and called the police if she was screaming at you.

[Anonymous]

Wow kid made $40? You might attract more lemonade stands now.

[Anonymous]

What I would do would depend on the child. There are kids I would not confront ever for the fear of being filmed and shamed

[Anonymous]

10 year olds don’t need to be supervised.
It’s a busy corner but somehow a lemonade stand is loud enough to bother your mil?
You think people visiting a lemonade stand are strangers who could endanger your house?

I think they should have asked first but I think your reaction was harsh.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:10 year olds don’t need to be supervised.
It’s a busy corner but somehow a lemonade stand is loud enough to bother your mil?
You think people visiting a lemonade stand are strangers who could endanger your house?

I think they should have asked first but I think your reaction was harsh.

Do you mind if I take a nap in your yard? Or set up a picnic? May I drop off my fourth grader to just hang out?

[Anonymous]

I'd let them do it. God, some people are so insane nowadays.

[Anonymous]

I can relate. I live near a lot of beautiful cherry trees. During cherry blossom season people have driven to our neighborhood to have picnics *in people’s front yards* under the cherry trees like it’s a park. It’s really obvious it’s a private yard- these are compact city lots and SFHs, not vast rolling acreage with no clear property lines.

The first time it happened, I introduced myself to the family thinking they had just moved in, since I didn’t recognize them. They said “we’re just having a picnic before our haircuts, we don’t live here.” I couldn’t figure out how to respond because it was so shockingly presumptuous!

People are insane. Close the blinds and lock the doors.

[Anonymous]

Just because someone says you're wrong doesn't mean you are. Don't worry about it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DH and I went to my in laws house to watch MIL after a hip replacement. Their home is a corner lot that gets a lot of traffic. Someone drop their probably 10 year old kid off with a lemonade stand at the corner of the property, did not ask for permission and left the child there unsupervised. Upon finding this set up we gave the kid $40 and asked them to call their mom to pick them up because we didn’t know this child and didn’t feel comfortable having them on the property alone and inviting strangers to stop by and have noise from the stand as MIL is in recovery. Their mother came and was screaming at us, called us names and claimed we were hurting this child by not letting them have their lemonade stand at the corner of our lawn and that we were ruining their childhood. We told them to go or we would call the police. Did we do the right thing? What would you have done?

The mother sounds unhinged.

[Anonymous]

Nothing.

[Anonymous]

The 15 +\- feet from the road is part of the street right of way so in all likelihood the kid was really not on MIL’s property.

[Anonymous]

They might be using your MIL corner property more often than the one time that you caught them.