It's no secret that many parents need help with their kids. After all, you know, as the saying goes, it takes a village to raise a kid. Sadly, not all folks have their own family to rely on for this thing, so they have to find others for such a task. Usually, they find them in the communities they live or participate in.
In today's story, a woman tried finding people to help her with her kids in a community she recently moved into. She turned to the original post's author, but the way she approached it quickly turned the situation pretty sour.
More info: Reddit
All parents need at least some help with their kids, so it matters where and how they get this help
Image credits: massonstock / Freepik (not the actual photo)
In this story, a woman moved into a small apartment complex with two of her kids and met the post's author
Image credits: shurkin_son / Freepik (not the actual photo)
After learning the author was child-free, this woman decided that she could be her babysitter without ever discussing it with her
Image credits: Getty Images / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
One day, she brought over her kids to be babysat for 4 hours while she was out, but didn't bring any instructions or things along with them
Image credits: PearlPutch_
When she picked them up, the author informed her that she'd babysit next time only if she were paid $3o for 4 hours, which sent the woman into a frenzy
The OP lives in a small apartment complex. So, when a new person moves in, most of the people notice it. That’s what happened recently—a woman in her early 40s with two kids moved in.
At first, she seemed completely nice, the women chatted a few times and the newcomer learned that the original poster didn’t go to work every day and didn’t have any kids yet. You know, stuff you can learn while small talking with people.
Then, one day, out of the blue, the post’s author heard a knock on the door. It was a new neighbor. She came with a request for the OP to babysit her kids from 11 am to 3 pm, while she had an interview.
Since the request came basically out of nowhere, and they had never discussed the author as a possible babysitter or anything, this stumped her a little. She was hesitant to agree, as watching kids is a pretty big responsibility—you have to be equipped for that, and the woman wasn’t sure she was.
Yet, thinking it was a one-time favor, she agreed to become a temporary babysitter. So, the neighbor dropped off her boys, aged 6 and 9. And that’s it, nothing else—no water bottles, snacks, or even instructions aside from the fact that they liked cartoons.
Providing detailed instructions to the babysitter is a rather important step parents should take. It not only ensures that a kid's needs and routines will be properly taken care of, but it also makes sure that the responsible person feels confident in what they’re doing. Especially in this case, as the woman was already hesitant was now stuck with two stranger kids without any directions on how to take care of them.
Then, all those hours later, the boys’ mom showed up to pick them up and didn’t even say a small thank you to the woman watching them. Instead, she arrogantly informed her that the kids would be dropped off at the same time the following week.
Image credits: shurkin_son / Freepik (not the actual photo)
This flabbergasted the OP. What did she mean by spitting such information so casually? They never discussed any babysitting arrangement, but the newcomer feels so comfortable making plans ahead.
So, the original poster told her that the only way she would sit these kids was if she would be paid $30 for 4 hours. That kind of price seemed reasonable for her. In fact, such a price would be considered pretty cheap if we were talking about the prices of actual babysitters. For instance, some babysitters get between $17 to $20 an hour, depending on the number of kids.
Granted, the number of youngsters isn’t the only dependable here—things like experience, location, activities, and other things matter, too, and can affect the price. Still, $30 for 4 hours was a rather reasonable price in a case like this.
Yet, the neighbor refused to pay any of the money and started lecturing the woman about the responsibilities of helping her community and stuff like that.
Well, people online were just as enraged about the situation as the OP. They pointed out that the price she asked wasn’t that high, just as we did. They also started poking holes in the mom’s story, because, what interview takes 4 hours each week at the same time? Suspicious, isn’t it?
Basically, in their eyes, this woman was clearly shamelessly trying to use her neighbor for free labor and got enraged when she was called out on it.
What do you think? Was the mom’s rage justified or not? What would you have done in the OP’s place? Share these and all the other opinions in the comments!
Netizens raised concerns about this woman's cheap, entitled, and even suspicious behavior and supported the author for placing boundaries
