‘You just want a free babysitter’: Man and His Wife and Children Plan Vacation to Family Cabin, He Invites His Brother and Sister-in-law, Only to Leave them Alone With the Kids For Date Night

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    r/AITAH 18 hr. ago Wooden-Intern-6316 AITAH for leaving the vacation after my brother expected us to be free babysitters?
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    My brother and SIL invited my wife and I to go on vacation this week with them and their three children (3,7, and 10). When I say invited I mean that they asked us to go to the cabin our parent's own, they weren't paying for anything for us, which is relevant. Also relevant is that my wife takes
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    their three year old for the day three-five days out of the week (it's supposed to be three but they often drop him off more).
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    So anyway we all head up to the cabin together and the first night they ask if we can stay in so they can have a date night, which we were fine with. But then the next day ten year old wanted to do something that the younger two couldn't participate in and they expected us to just take the other
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    two. We were upstairs getting ready for the day and SIL came to our room and said "we're going to go do [activity]" and didn't tell us she left the younger two downstairs. So we were extremely annoyed. Then that afternoon my wife and I decided to go bar hopping and SIL got upset and
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    said "I thought this was a family vacation," which felt rich considering she'd left her two kids for four hours that morning.
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    So my wife and I went anyway and when we got back we were pretty drunk, and brother said something snarky about us being hungover the next day (we weren't). The next day we go to the lake and my wife and I go get drinks. And SIL pulled my wife aside and said she didn't think we
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    should be drinking while watching the kids. At that point I was really done and it turned into an arguement where my brother said they "brought us" on a family vacation and I pointed out we were all there for free. And he said that he thought we were going to "help out".
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    So my wife and I left to go get our own place to stay. And now SIL is texting pictures to us saying the kids are hurt that we left and that her and my brother are so confused, etc, acting like we are being unreasonable. And from my perspective this is a vacation for us as well, not an extension of
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    what my wife does for them all the time (for free). AITAH
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    • Amazing_Main_9... 18h ago. NTA: . They seriously are delusional if they think that you and your wife aren't allowed to drink or do anything but watch their kids while they have fun. You were right to leave when it
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    became obvious that it wasn't a vacation for you but rather a babysitting trip.
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    After that ridiculousness i wouldn't even be watching their kids 3x a week anymore since it's obvious they don't respect you or your time. But that's just me being petty.
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    Salt-Lavishness-7... • 17h ago They are taking advantage of you. I think you need to wean them off the expectation that you and your wife are their unpaid nannies.
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    Wife needs to be unavailable to sit. When your SIL drops by with the kids - don't answer. Or grab your purse and be “just heading out." Or better yet - "no". You don't owe them an answer or an explanation of why you don't want to be
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    constantly roped into parenting their kids. Or just start taking shots anytime you're around them. This works because you're not fit to babysit AND it numbs the entitled assholery of your brother and SIL.
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    Agreeable-Hold2... • 18h ago NTA they are taking you and your wife for granted
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    Chewie-327 17h ago NTA I'm honestly surprised you were putting up with the fact that they just left their kids at your house without checking first. Might want to set some boundaries
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    Tessanotaltaccount • 16h ago NTA. They are 100% leeches. Props to you for putting a stop to it. Enjoy ur vacation OP!
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    Snackinpenguin • 17h ago NTA. It's not a vacation if there's unspoken expectations that you and your wife are defacto babysitters.
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    It's extremely relevant that you were sharing use of a family property, one they didn't pay for and neither did you. They weren't doing you a huge favor.
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    Set your boundaries and hold them. I agree with other comments that you'll need to pull back from set babysitting after these unreasonable unspoken expectations and that you'll only babysit when this has been asked in advance, and
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    been asked in advance, and you have clearly agreed to.

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