Dad Is Furious When His Daughter’s Babysitter Demands He Pay For The Personal Things She’s Ruined
No good deed goes unpunished. Babysitting can either end up being the most fun job you’ve ever had or a complete disaster. And a lot of that depends on the kid that you’re looking after’s behavior. If you’re not a professional nanny and simply helping out your neighbors, then your kind act can end up creating a lot of unintentional drama. And that’s exactly what happened to redditor Jointfamily.
Jointfamily, a lawyer, agreed to babysit her neighbors’ 11-year-old daughter, Rhea, while they went and got vaccinated. She also made it very clear that she’d have to be in a virtual courtroom for a hearing at 1:30 pm. However, things went wrong as the parents ran late. The girl ruined Jointfamily’s clothes. But instead of getting an apology from the parents, the redditor was instead threatened with a lawsuit. Though things took an unexpected twist later on in the story. Check out the full tale below and let us know who you think was in the wrong here: the redditor or the parents?
A redditor had her clothes ruined by a child that she was babysitting, all because her parents were running late to get back home
Image credits: Jake Guild (not the actual photo)
Image credits: jointfamily
Though things seemed very tense at one point (hey, even the resident’s association got involved!) everything eventually worked out. Maybe not in the fairytale way that we might have wanted with everyone living happily ever after, but it’s enough of a win to remind us that not everyone’s a jerk.
Rhea’s mom apologized to the lawyer who agreed to babysit for them later on and even treated her to some food as a way to apologize. Meanwhile, redditor Jointfamily promised not to take any legal action against the family for her ruined clothes. Though, to be fair, she also said that she wouldn’t help her neighbors out with any babysitting anymore either.
In a way, the story teaches us two things that we should keep in mind no matter the situation. First, punctuality is everything. Nothing would have happened to the redditor’s clothes, had her parents got back home on time. And second—food _always_ works as an apology. There’s nothing like a good meal or a snack to sway your mind and your heart (through your stomach) toward forgiveness.
Here’s how some redditors reacted when they read the story. Many believe that the fact that the kid was 11 years old means that she should have known better
"Alone.. anything can happen" Here in Finland most of the 11 old children walks alone from school to back home and stays alone doing homeworks etc while parents are at work .
It's the same pretty much anywhere. I stayed alone in the house when I was about that age.
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Actually I find the idea of having a babysitter for an 11 year old pretty strange. At that age, my son was home alone for that amount of time occasionally and it was certainly no problem. An 11 year old should definitely know better than to try on stuff like that (and ruin it, FFS, this sounds like they're talking about my 5 yr old).
The daughter was spoiled by the father so I suppose the child felt like she could do what ever she wanted just like being at home. It is the father to blame on this one.
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First of all, 11 years old absolutely can stay at home without any babysitter, and secondly, even if she is nervous to stay completely alone, she is definitely old enough to understand that you can't take other people's things without their permission. She's not 3.
Being a Lawyer your client relies on you to be there for defense. You cannot decide not to attend because people let you down. What you did was the right thing and i hope the father is seeing this post.
1. The girl was in the same place, merely left *unwatched*, which at 11 years old shouldn't be an issue. 2. At that age, I was working 8 hours a day on the family farm, and I don't mean light stuff like dusting, so.... someone needs some reality checks. IMHO. 3. If she can't be trusted at 11, she'll be all he** at 13, and I wish those parents luck.
Yep. Especially if all she has to do is look at daddy and everything and everyone is wrong but her!
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What, do the parents never leave her alone in another room for an hour? Do they never sleep? I wouldn't necessarially leave an 11 year old alone all day, but they should be able to be left in another room. NTA. Parents are assholes, and should definately be paying for cleaning, and replacing what is ruined.
I was babysitting the neighbour's kids when I was 11, for short periods of time with my mom next door on call if I needed her. There is something developmentally wrong with an 11 year old who behaves like a toddler. The father is a jerk who is doing his daughter no favours. The kid must be a nightmare at school.
A**hole daddy has created a monster. I'm sad for the mom, she sems nice.
The lawyer was nicer than I would have been. But she handled it correctly for the wife's sake. The husband seems to be the one who has allowed the daughter to have her way either directly or indirectly. He does not seem to apply any consequences for his child's actions. But he sometime in the future is going to have a situation where he might need this lawyer again. Before she accepts I hope she reminds him of the past incident and she will accept because she is a better human being than he will ever be.
First time I left my son home alone, I dashed to store and back. He was 12. I called, he asked if I knew how to turn the chain saw on. Next call, did we have any nuclear waste or something similar. Last call, quick hello/good bye. I knew he never got out of the chair in front of the computer. I was gone 20 minutes, called three times. His point - mother, you are making a fuss over nothing. He earned responsibility more quickly then his cousins. On our yearly family vacation the other kids were permitted to do things they were not ready to do. He had two weeks to explain and train them. The first walk without parents at the beach alone, he walked confidenly with 4 boys hiding behind him. Tossing your child into a situation they are not ready for isn't fair to them. An 11 year old should know better -- sounds like a cry for help. Kids want boundaries.
I was gonna say all parties involved were the ass until I read the update. Coz if the babysitter had actually left the house then mayyyybbbbbeeeeee it would have been her fault but she didn't even leave the house so def NTA
Poor behaviour for an 11 year old, surely they should know better at that age, I certainly did.
It sounds like she doesn't hear the word no very often and gets to do what she wants.
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I find finding a babysitter for an 11 year old strange. When I was 11 I was pretty independent. An 11 year old should know better than to ruin other people’s stuff. 1000% NTA
When Is aw the headline, I was thought it was ludicrous for the babysitter to sue for damages for a child in their care, but an 11 year old should be able to be left unsupervised without destroying property. When I was that age, my parents left me and my younger sister at home alone when they went out. But that was a different time.
Incidentally: the wife should get a divorce. This does not sound like a healthy, happy marriage. But I do know it's more complicated in India.
Right? Inam surprised that nobody else mentioned. She does not seem to be in a healthy relation. But again most women in sexist cultures arent.
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She quoted the cost of the ruined clothes in rupees. If that means they're in India, and given the horror stories we hear of how grown women are treated, I'm not surprised that parents might be reluctant to leave an 11-year-old girl alone. Regardless of where they are in the world, however, I'm not surprised to hear of a dad spoiling his daughter rotten and just expecting everybody else to knuckle under.
I was watching myself at 10 years old constantly. This child is spoiled and it sounds like the wife is being abused at least mentally. This is not good at all.
At that age my son used to stay home without a babysitter while I went to work. Those parents should be ashamed of themselves for being so unreasonable and giving their daughter such low expectations. They aren't doing her any favours.
at 11 i was taking care of my 9 yr old brother and 4 yr old sister while my mum worked. unless this child has special needs, there is no excuse for her behavior.
Just saying, some states have age restrictions as to how old a child has to be before they can be left alone. Illinois is 14 years. Mississippi, Delaware, and Colorado it's 12 years. And an 11 year old without the sense God gave a normal 8 year old shouldn't be left alone in any state.
11 year olds should be able to be left alone unless there is a special need. Like others have said, I was baby sitting at that time,
Ok, you are absolutely NTA. I thought Rhea was around 3-5, and it's to be expected that she'd try on adult clothes and makeup for dress-up games. But she's 11?! What in the name of mealworms?!?! She ruined over $10,000 worth of your stuff?! I'm absolutely flabbergasted.
My parents taught me anything I do good or bad have consequences and I must face it. If his dad continues to spoil her her future would be harder that anyone
im concerned for the wife tbh, shes not allowed a say in how her own daughter gets raised and gets no source of income from her husband
omg at that age I was going to afternoon art school at a neighbouring town by bus by myself. I was babysitting my younger brother. I played outside all afternoon alone or with friends. I definitely didnt need an adult watching me 24/7
In the US it is illegal to leave a child under the age of 12 unattended. Everyone does it, but it's still illegal.
Take them to court for lax parenting. If they loved their child, they would not have left her one minute longer than necessary. Slovenly parenting is unacceptable in my book!
Daddy really is spoiling his daughter by teaching her that she is not accountable for damage that she does. Ideally she should have been required to pay a small part of the cost--along with an apology--just to demonstrate accountability. And the parents should have paid the rest.
I am surprised that as a lawyer you wrote him and his wife. Do yourself a favor & memorize, He and his wife. Good luck
In New Zealand you can't legally leave a child alone until they are 14.
I just had to google it. You made me curious. Seams that Germany has no law for this. It just states that parents are the best judges for their own children and should act according to their state of development.
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Whart kind of normal 11 year old makes this kind of damage? Anyway, the moral of the sotry: Women, earn your own money!!
This is just a series of unfortunate events. While I think the parents should do something, I just can't imagine being the person brining a lawsuit over some scuffed heels.
"Lawyer clothes" are a uniform that indicates their professionalism, and are expensive. The ruined shoes probably cost about $300.
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I'd love to see your reaction if expensive items were ruined, items you needed to do your job. The parents were told the restrictions to the babysitting, the parents left the sitter no option but to leave her alone in a room but She wasn't left unoccupied, she had the tv. The parents should have taught her to respect the belongings of others; her wilful destruction should have been paid for without question. It sounds like the father thinks he can do as he pleases and the daughter is following suit. Shitty behaviour for an 11 year old, disgusting attitude from the father.
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"Alone.. anything can happen" Here in Finland most of the 11 old children walks alone from school to back home and stays alone doing homeworks etc while parents are at work .
It's the same pretty much anywhere. I stayed alone in the house when I was about that age.
Load More Replies... Actually I find the idea of having a babysitter for an 11 year old pretty strange. At that age, my son was home alone for that amount of time occasionally and it was certainly no problem. An 11 year old should definitely know better than to try on stuff like that (and ruin it, FFS, this sounds like they're talking about my 5 yr old).
The daughter was spoiled by the father so I suppose the child felt like she could do what ever she wanted just like being at home. It is the father to blame on this one.
Load More Replies... First of all, 11 years old absolutely can stay at home without any babysitter, and secondly, even if she is nervous to stay completely alone, she is definitely old enough to understand that you can't take other people's things without their permission. She's not 3.
Being a Lawyer your client relies on you to be there for defense. You cannot decide not to attend because people let you down. What you did was the right thing and i hope the father is seeing this post.
1. The girl was in the same place, merely left *unwatched*, which at 11 years old shouldn't be an issue. 2. At that age, I was working 8 hours a day on the family farm, and I don't mean light stuff like dusting, so.... someone needs some reality checks. IMHO. 3. If she can't be trusted at 11, she'll be all he** at 13, and I wish those parents luck.
Yep. Especially if all she has to do is look at daddy and everything and everyone is wrong but her!
Load More Replies... What, do the parents never leave her alone in another room for an hour? Do they never sleep? I wouldn't necessarially leave an 11 year old alone all day, but they should be able to be left in another room. NTA. Parents are assholes, and should definately be paying for cleaning, and replacing what is ruined.
I was babysitting the neighbour's kids when I was 11, for short periods of time with my mom next door on call if I needed her. There is something developmentally wrong with an 11 year old who behaves like a toddler. The father is a jerk who is doing his daughter no favours. The kid must be a nightmare at school.
A**hole daddy has created a monster. I'm sad for the mom, she sems nice.
The lawyer was nicer than I would have been. But she handled it correctly for the wife's sake. The husband seems to be the one who has allowed the daughter to have her way either directly or indirectly. He does not seem to apply any consequences for his child's actions. But he sometime in the future is going to have a situation where he might need this lawyer again. Before she accepts I hope she reminds him of the past incident and she will accept because she is a better human being than he will ever be.
First time I left my son home alone, I dashed to store and back. He was 12. I called, he asked if I knew how to turn the chain saw on. Next call, did we have any nuclear waste or something similar. Last call, quick hello/good bye. I knew he never got out of the chair in front of the computer. I was gone 20 minutes, called three times. His point - mother, you are making a fuss over nothing. He earned responsibility more quickly then his cousins. On our yearly family vacation the other kids were permitted to do things they were not ready to do. He had two weeks to explain and train them. The first walk without parents at the beach alone, he walked confidenly with 4 boys hiding behind him. Tossing your child into a situation they are not ready for isn't fair to them. An 11 year old should know better -- sounds like a cry for help. Kids want boundaries.
I was gonna say all parties involved were the ass until I read the update. Coz if the babysitter had actually left the house then mayyyybbbbbeeeeee it would have been her fault but she didn't even leave the house so def NTA
Poor behaviour for an 11 year old, surely they should know better at that age, I certainly did.
It sounds like she doesn't hear the word no very often and gets to do what she wants.
Load More Replies... I find finding a babysitter for an 11 year old strange. When I was 11 I was pretty independent. An 11 year old should know better than to ruin other people’s stuff. 1000% NTA
When Is aw the headline, I was thought it was ludicrous for the babysitter to sue for damages for a child in their care, but an 11 year old should be able to be left unsupervised without destroying property. When I was that age, my parents left me and my younger sister at home alone when they went out. But that was a different time.
Incidentally: the wife should get a divorce. This does not sound like a healthy, happy marriage. But I do know it's more complicated in India.
Right? Inam surprised that nobody else mentioned. She does not seem to be in a healthy relation. But again most women in sexist cultures arent.
Load More Replies... She quoted the cost of the ruined clothes in rupees. If that means they're in India, and given the horror stories we hear of how grown women are treated, I'm not surprised that parents might be reluctant to leave an 11-year-old girl alone. Regardless of where they are in the world, however, I'm not surprised to hear of a dad spoiling his daughter rotten and just expecting everybody else to knuckle under.
I was watching myself at 10 years old constantly. This child is spoiled and it sounds like the wife is being abused at least mentally. This is not good at all.
At that age my son used to stay home without a babysitter while I went to work. Those parents should be ashamed of themselves for being so unreasonable and giving their daughter such low expectations. They aren't doing her any favours.
at 11 i was taking care of my 9 yr old brother and 4 yr old sister while my mum worked. unless this child has special needs, there is no excuse for her behavior.
Just saying, some states have age restrictions as to how old a child has to be before they can be left alone. Illinois is 14 years. Mississippi, Delaware, and Colorado it's 12 years. And an 11 year old without the sense God gave a normal 8 year old shouldn't be left alone in any state.
11 year olds should be able to be left alone unless there is a special need. Like others have said, I was baby sitting at that time,
Ok, you are absolutely NTA. I thought Rhea was around 3-5, and it's to be expected that she'd try on adult clothes and makeup for dress-up games. But she's 11?! What in the name of mealworms?!?! She ruined over $10,000 worth of your stuff?! I'm absolutely flabbergasted.
My parents taught me anything I do good or bad have consequences and I must face it. If his dad continues to spoil her her future would be harder that anyone
im concerned for the wife tbh, shes not allowed a say in how her own daughter gets raised and gets no source of income from her husband
omg at that age I was going to afternoon art school at a neighbouring town by bus by myself. I was babysitting my younger brother. I played outside all afternoon alone or with friends. I definitely didnt need an adult watching me 24/7
In the US it is illegal to leave a child under the age of 12 unattended. Everyone does it, but it's still illegal.
Take them to court for lax parenting. If they loved their child, they would not have left her one minute longer than necessary. Slovenly parenting is unacceptable in my book!
Daddy really is spoiling his daughter by teaching her that she is not accountable for damage that she does. Ideally she should have been required to pay a small part of the cost--along with an apology--just to demonstrate accountability. And the parents should have paid the rest.
I am surprised that as a lawyer you wrote him and his wife. Do yourself a favor & memorize, He and his wife. Good luck
In New Zealand you can't legally leave a child alone until they are 14.
I just had to google it. You made me curious. Seams that Germany has no law for this. It just states that parents are the best judges for their own children and should act according to their state of development.
Load More Replies... Whart kind of normal 11 year old makes this kind of damage? Anyway, the moral of the sotry: Women, earn your own money!!
This is just a series of unfortunate events. While I think the parents should do something, I just can't imagine being the person brining a lawsuit over some scuffed heels.
"Lawyer clothes" are a uniform that indicates their professionalism, and are expensive. The ruined shoes probably cost about $300.
Load More Replies... I'd love to see your reaction if expensive items were ruined, items you needed to do your job. The parents were told the restrictions to the babysitting, the parents left the sitter no option but to leave her alone in a room but She wasn't left unoccupied, she had the tv. The parents should have taught her to respect the belongings of others; her wilful destruction should have been paid for without question. It sounds like the father thinks he can do as he pleases and the daughter is following suit. Shitty behaviour for an 11 year old, disgusting attitude from the father.
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