Ever wonder if you are responsible for the property your children destroy? When a woman wants to know your thoughts on that on a popular Reddit thread in the Am I The A**hole Subreddit.
AITA for refusing to pay to fix the babysitter's laptop?
I (a single mom of 2) hired a babysitter after I started working a new job (I used to work from home for two years).
My kids are 8 & 6. The babysitter is 17. she brings her laptop with her to study, which is perfectly ok with me as long as she keeps an eye on the kids.
Yesterday, I came home, and the babysitter showed me her laptop that got broken by my youngest. I was shocked. I asked how this happened, and she said that she left the laptop in the living room and went to make the kids lunch, but my youngest grabbed it and ran with it til he dropped it and broke the screen.
I said that was horrible and apologized to her but stated it was her fault for leaving the laptop within reach of the children. She said she thought my kids were old enough to know not to touch others' stuff. I explained how they might have thought it belonged to us since it was in our house.
She asked if I could pay for it to get fixed, but I refused and insisted it was her problem, not mine. She ranted about having exams soon and not having enough money to fix it. We argued, and I had to tell her to go home after she persisted.
Later, I got a call from her dad, basically blaming the whole thing on me and demanding I pay to get the laptop fixed, but I still refused. Now she's refusing to come again unless I pay her for the laptop repair, even though I paid her in advance to watch the kids.
YTA (You're the A**hole). A 6 and 8-year-old are absolutely old enough to know not to touch/run around with other people's electronics. Signed, Mother of a 6-year-old.
YTA. You pay for what your kids destroy. That’s part of being a parent. End of story.
At what age do you think kids should learn not to touch things that don't belong to them?
It's super concerning to me that you think, as a parent of two children, this shouldn't have been taught to your kids years ago.
Like hello?
YTA