our attempted break-in :: leaving kids home alone :: ring doorbell

Someone tried to break into our house on Thursday. It was TERRIFYING to watch the video footage. They tried 3 separate times over the course of an hour. We were not home when the incident happened, but I almost left the kids home alone that night. I’m so thankful that I dismissed the idea as quickly as it came to me. Here is the footage. I’ll get back to that story at the end of the post if you’re interested to find out what happened. My heart thunders and my body shakes when I think that our kids could have been home. I’m so thankful for our RING* doorbell doing such a great job of capturing this.

Every family needs to come to their own decision on when it’s okay to leave kids home alone. We just started letting our 12 year old stay home alone while we go to the gym. Our RING* doorbell as well as SimpliSafe security gives me the ability to keep eyes on things if needed. We don’t live in a bad neighborhood, but we live in changing times. We let Annabelle (10 years old) stay with Jack on some occasions, but we always take our 6 year old with us because he’s the trouble maker. We consider these factors as well:

• How far away will I be?
• Are the neighbors home and aware I’m gone if needed in an emergency?
• What time of day will they be home alone?
• How long will they be home alone?
• Are they trustworthy?
• Who are they responsible for besides themselves?
• Will they be at risk of being scared and put into a situation that will upset them?

Each state has different laws and suggestions for appropriate ages to be left alone. Latchkey Kids gives a suggested age of 12. I also found this guideline on Scary Mommy from ThirtyHandMadeDays.com.

It’s bad enough to leave a child that’s not old enough home alone, but I cringe when I hear about 8 year old’s watching their 2 year old siblings. No matter how responsible that child may be, I’ve got a big opinion that it’s not an appropriate responsibility to give them. If something bad happened, that is not a burden they should have to carry for the rest of their life. I’ll get off my soapbox, but it’s good to really think about how our actions will affect us or others. I also want to protect the kids from a situation that could really scare them. Such as someone trying to get in the house while I’m gone! The first time my youngest brother stayed home alone he was 1 day shy of his 12th birthday. He got spooked and called the police. He was correct, someone was in the house, but it was his own brother who stopped home unexpectedly. We still get a laugh about that. Factors vary widely on the right age, but listen to your gut. I am glad I didn’t feel comfortable leaving our kiddos home on this occasion.

Here is the rest of our break-in story and how I got on the topic of letting kids stay home alone. I was considering leaving the kids home because they would be in bed sleeping. I play in an adult volleyball league at 9:15pm in a town 35 minutes away. My husband was out of town so I didn’t have my usual freedom to go play some late night volleyball. However, they didn’t have school the next day so I decided it was best we all go. I would be too far away if something happened and I didn’t want them to be scared since it was late. A few factors made the situation feel wrong.

We have a neighbor from a court near us who sits out front of our house in his car and watches us. He’s not mentally well and he’s made me uncomfortable since we moved in 11 years ago. If he approaches, we quickly duck inside. He’s been caught doing lewd and disgusting things through the years. Not a character you want anywhere near your family. When we left around 8:30 p.m. for my volleyball game, he was parked out front in his usual staring spot. I knew the house was secure so we left and I watched the garage door close behind us.

I’ve created some pretty crazy theories about my neighbors. My lowest moment was when I had the police come check out the marijuana plants my apartment neighbor was growing and it turned out they were tomatoes. In my defense, they were growing them inside too with black lights! I’ve wondered if my paranoia about this neighbor was over the top, but it turns out my gut has been right. For whatever reason after 11 years of staring, he decided to take things to a new level.

At 9:38 our RING doorbell captured him slowly trying to turn the doorknob to see if it was unlocked. Then he’s peeping in the window. At 10:03 he returns and tries again. As if he can somehow will the locked door to open this time. He gets more aggressive and really gives the storm door a shake. At 10:07 he comes back one more time and is searching for a key under our mat or another way in.

We returned home about 11:15 p.m. I saw we were still being watched, but I was unaware of what had been happening when we were gone. I had my notifications muted and missed the activity on my phone. Once the garage was down, I let the kids go into the house. It’s hard as a mom to be aware of your surroundings when you are likely barking out bedtime orders or a list of things to bring out of the car. But it’s our job to protect our precious people and be alert.

We fell into bed and I didn’t see the break-in attempt until the next day. I knew exactly who it was and we called the police. The police went over to speak to our attempted intruder, but before they could approach him he ran a stop sign right in front of the officer. Ironically, I had just told the officer that he’s a bad driver so look out for him. Then he proceeded to park in his staring spot in front of our house. Turns out we got a front row seat. I sipped my coffee from the front door and listened.

“Gawking Gil” we shall call him told the police he was trying to get into our house because he needed some pool chemicals. That’s odd, since we don’t have a pool. He’s not too clever to get caught on video, admit to trying to get in, pulled over in front of our house, and he left his insulin syringe in the yard. He was given a stern talking to and I sincerely hope it scared him away for a very long time. I’m glad we have safety measures in place if he tries to come back.

It’s sad that someone from our neighborhood would try to do this, but I’m glad we knew who it was so the police could handle it. Don’t doubt yourself if you don’t trust someone. Put your safety first and be careful. Consider RING* for your home for an added layer of protection. I was given our Ring doorbell a few years ago for a Mother’s Day gift. Best gift ever! Its protecting my precious family.

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