14-06-2025
Neighbor Calls Stay-at-Home Mom ‘Selfish' for Refusing to Watch Her Kids for Free
A woman is defending herself after being called 'selfish' for not wanting to babysit her neighbor's kids for free
The other mom assumed she would watch her kids because she's a 'stay-at-home mom'
The woman stood up for herself and declined to babysit the other mom's kids because she wanted to spend time with her own childA new mom took to the internet looking for advice after a neighbor asked if she would watch their kids every day without compensation.
In a Reddit post, the woman explained that she's new to her area and has made friends through her local Mommy-and-Me group. The stay-at-home mom noted that she has only been in the group for "a little over a month," as her baby is only 9 weeks old.
Recently, one of her neighbors asked if she could watch their 3-year-old and 5-year-old due to an "emergency."
"She looked desperate so I agreed. I was like well its just once," the poster explained, noting that she enjoys having one-on-one time with her newborn.
"That day I watched her children was hectic as hell, my daughter was fussy and they children were very rambunctious to say the least," she added. "I was happy when she came and got them 6 hours later."
However, the neighbor then asked if she could watch both her kids "in the afternoons," to which she politely declined.
"I told her no. I'm not a full-time babysitter and have no desire to take that much time away from my own child and navigating life with my child and husband," the poster explained.
The neighbor responded by saying, 'Well, it's not like I'm asking a lot, it's just the afternoons.' When the new mom tried to explain that her husband works from home and that she is "not interested in taking on any other responsibilities," the neighbor told her she was being 'selfish.'
"I told her she was entitled to think that I SHOULD help her just because I'm at home with my little one," the new mom replied.
In an update to the post, she revealed the neighbor later went onto the Mommy-and-Me group "to disparage" her, once again saying she was "selfish."
Thankfully, other moms came to the poster's rescue, asking the neighbor why she thought it was okay to force childcare onto another mom.
"Then another mom confessed and reminded her in the group chat that she tried that with her and was told that the SAHM moms in the group are not her babysitters and she needs to make arrangements for childcare independent of the group," the poster wrote.
"She attempted to double down, then the moderator/ creator of the group told her it would [sic] might be best if she found another mom group to socialize with. Then she back-tracked and apologized."
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Like the moms in the group, most Reddit users also defended the stay-at-home mom, citing the cost of childcare.
'Everyone knows how expensive childcare is,' one commenter wrote. 'She's just trying to take advantage of you and guilt-trip you into babysitting.'
Other commenters were in agreement, adding, 'It really gets me anymore how many of these selfish people in the world make a mark on someone just because they see something they could get from them and just expect it. When they don't get what they want, they always throw out the selfish label and throw a tantrum. What is wrong with people like this?'
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