Like all new parents, Jessica and Karl Ronnevik from Greensbor, North Carolina became fast familiar with the sound of their one-year-old son’s cries. Unfortunately, so does their next door neighbour.
Unlike the couple, however, their neighbour doesn’t have any affection for the toddler.
In a Fox 8 News report, the couple said that their condominium neighbour, whose bedroom wall is adjacent to the boy’s nursery room, has always been vocal with his concerns.
He described the noise as “loud” and “disruptive.” In fact he’s become so fed up of the crying that he left a note on the Ronnevik’s apartment to criticise their parenting abilities.
The note reads:
“Please consider buying a parenting book or consult with a child care expert. Your baby should not be crying that loudly and for that long. Try more calming techniques, music, turn on a vacuum, rocking chair, go for a walk . . . anything! Also, you might consider switching bedrooms. I have lived in The Mill for 15 years and never had neighbours as loud or disruptive. If you don’t makes changes immediately, you risk being fined by the association.”
In fact, because of the neighbour’s incessant complaints, the Ronneviks received a warning from their homeowner’s association for a potential noise violation.
But the couple refused to be bullied by their neighbour, especially since they’re expecting another child in a few months.
“I don’t feel comfortable living here, knowing that our neighbour is so intolerant,” Jessica said. “It makes me feel like we have been bullied in our own home. And I don’t like to have to be the mother who is constantly shushing my baby from his happy toddler noises.”
Thanks to the combined effort of the people in the couple’s church community, the family was able to move to a new home, where the neighbourhood is more accommodating to children.
But not without their neighbour’s coup de grace, which came in a form of a statement given to Fox 8 News:
“It is unfortunate when parents are unable to calm their children. The impact of a baby who continually cries or a toddler who continually screams can be stressful not just for the parents, but also for the community near them. This is true in restaurants, in churches, and even in neighbouring homes with adjacent bedrooms.
“After being awakened each morning and each night for the last several months (despite wearing earplugs), I was simply reminding the young couple of this and encouraging them to take the matter more seriously.
“There are many different strategies that parents can use to minimise the negative effects of a child’s meltdown.
“The note was also a reminder that any excessively loud noise that interferes with the rights of neighbours is subject to possible fines, as indicated in section 4 of the HOA Rules & Regulations.
“I stand by the note and it’s contents. I rang the doorbell several times before leaving it. Since no one came to the door, I signed it in case the young couple wanted to discuss the matter in person.
“They obviously made a different and less mature choice, as they have been doing for months now with their young child.”
The place from which the neighbour comes is understandable; babies do make noises, and sometimes it disrupts the peace of those around them. But do you think their neighbour’s complaints is enough reason for the couple to move?
If you were in their shoes, what would you have done?