Woman asks her mother to take care of her grandson, but she expects to be paid $20 per hour, plus expenses
Have you ever wondered how so many new parents manage to take care of their children without the indispensable help of their grandparents? Often and happily it is on the shoulders of grandparents that the responsibility falls for getting the kids to school and generally taking care of them. Grandparents find themselves looking after the kids them until mum and dad come home from work - often for every day of the working week. For most grandparents, this routine is certainly not a chore, but is a pleasure - although it can be physically exhausting after a certain age. The woman who is the subject of this story, however, asked Reddit users if it is reasonable for her mother to ask her to pay $ 20 dollars an hour to take care of her grandson. The responses from her Reddit followers were somewhat mixed.
via Reddit
Some will say that there is nothing wrong with asking your parents for a hand when it comes to looking after your children. Still, the woman in this story has been harshly criticized for expecting that her mother, a 64-year-old housewife, take care of her grandson. The 29-year-old mother explained her mother's response was as follows: "She refused, saying she is too old and has already raised her children. She also added that if I really wanted this baby, maybe I should stay at home like she did and take care of of the child while my partner goes to work and takes care of us like a "traditional" family - and if she was able to do it, I should be able to do as well."
The woman explained her current financial situation, after two years of pandemic: she claims to earn $ 55,000 a year, but has to set aside at least $ 39,000 for her son's college, as well as another $ 20,000 that ends up paying off a credit card for medical expenses and for the car. Also, between her and her partner's salaries, she is certainly not earning a lot of money during the year - which is why she definitely can't give up her job to become a fulltime housewife.
"We are currently in a small 1-bedroom apartment in a metropolitan area," explained the woman, "and we would need to save a lot of money to move into a two-bedroom apartment once the baby grows up in a couple of years because, obviously, we will need more space".
But despite all these rationalizations, her mother asked her for $ 20 dollars an hour to babysit her grandson, in addition to the fact that the mother would have to provide everything necessary for the baby, which would be kept at the grandmother's house. In short, she would need to buy double of everything for her little son, since her mother would not go around to her daughter's house to do the babysitting.
"I would like to save money to reduce our debts" explained the woman, "and I don't want to pay her that much or invest in buying double of everything because it will increase my debts and those of my partner. I am on the verge of enrolling my child in a daycare center, as the cost will be lower overall and the place is a little closer to our home. Due to the nature of our work, we cannot work from home, so we are in dire need of childcare. Everyone else in our family works full time, so they can't help us as they have similar work hours to ours. "
In light of all this, the woman's question seems legitimate: "So, is it me who is taking advantage and wanting my mom - who is at home all day (believe me, she does nothing but watch TV and cook) - to take care of my baby for free, while my partner and I try to protect our savings? ". The response from Reddit users was decidedly negative, as most of them blamed the mother: if she didn't know how to take care of her son why did she go ahead and have a child?
What do you think about this situation?
