Inner city living with noisy children

Weren't the outer burbs built for the defactos and marrieds once baby made three? Not in my world.

I've been working from home for almost three years now and while I'm used to my opera loving (retired) neighbour blasting arias more often than Opera Australia can perform La Boheme, I don't think I'll ever get used to inner city brats using my street as a playground.

In my uber chic suburb there are several young families who have toddlers and primary school children. The kids delight in using the narrow, one-way streets as their own backyards. One can hardly blame them, in the packed like sardines world of inner city dwellings, there is hardly room for lawn.

Among us, particularly precocious parents block streets to set up cricket games as well as hog the local patch of park to kick a footy with their budding next generation Chris Judd. Unless passer bys are watching their own game, we are guaranteed to be road kill - of the 'hit by a football slash cricketball' kind.

While I hate to think that having children would boot me out of my choice of suburb, and know it is wry of me to begrudge the parents who choose to stay put after Baby Goo Gaa beds in...there is a part of me that resents them for sticking around.

Not to mention most of these people are loaded with high income cash, and thus have the luxury of inner city living while occupying a mansion. But more often than not, lack of inner city space does translate to compromise.

I guess it will remain a love hate relationship.

There are some neighbourhood children I would happily swap for a well-behaved pet, but others who are sweet and endearing. They wave and call hi as they zoom past on skateboards.

So perhaps ma and pa, it comes down to you. Live where you will and grow your family as you please, but next time the house youngster is screaming up a storm; can you do me one neighbourly favour? Send little Sammi Jo to the naughty corner and not onto my street.