As friends’ kids grow up, some form a village, supporting one another, and showing up in sweatpants with a bottle of wine whenever they need to vent about the tantrums they've endured that day.
Recently, Reddit user Kyii94 was asked to watch the daughter of a fellow mom from her closest circle, and she quickly agreed.
However, what was meant to be just a short visit unexpectedly turned into a sleepover, leading to financial damage to the host's home.
Watching over your friends' kids is a favor that deserves some sort of payback
Image credits: choreograph / Envato (not the actual photo)
But this woman sustained damage instead
Image credits: mstandret / Envato (not the actual photo)
Image credits: kyii94
Family, friends, and neighbors are the preferred caregivers for many parents
Image credits: Brooke Cagle / unsplash (not the actual photo)
According to some estimates, 26 percent of parents with children under the age of three rely on a family member, friend, or neighbor (FFN) for care, along with 29 percent of parents with children aged three to five.
Nanny, nanny share, or au pair care is less common: around 12 percent of parents with children under age three hire nannies, along with 9 percent of parents with children aged three to five.
While nannies are paid by default, parents who use FFNs pay them a median of $160 per week (if payment is provided at all).
Only 28 percent of FFN caregivers do not receive anything in return for the care they provide. So, the fact that the author of the post didn't ask her friend for any compensation for the impromptu sleepover is pretty generous on its own. This makes her request regarding the TV stand even more reasonable.
Plus, it's usually only a matter of time before kids wreck something. For example, figures from 2017 suggest that the average amount British parents spend on fixing damage inflicted by their child over the course of their upbringing is £3,466, or $4,677.
The most common incidents include wall damage, carpet stains, damage to sofas, chairs, and beds (72 per cent), broken mirrors, ornaments, and pictures (61 per cent), as well as TVs, phones, tablets, and digital boxes (56 per cent).
Most likely, the girl would have eventually caused some harm either way—it just so happens that this time, it was at someone else's place.
As her story went viral, the woman joined the discussion in the comments and provided a little bit more information
Most people said she did nothing wrong and is entitled to compensation for the damages
But others had different opinions
