"I didn't agree to be your summer babysitter": 17-year-old expected to watch step siblings over summer break despite not even living with them, he fights with Stepmom about it

Author image for Briana Viser
Briana Viser • Writer and Editor
Jun 13, 2025 12:00 PM EDT

Welcome back people of the internet. Summer is a favorite season for many. Not only do you get summer break growing up, but it's a season full of rich and exciting energy. Springtime is a renewal, a renaissance of sorts where things start afresh. When summer comes around, people lose the winter sluggishness and start going out more. The energy just shifts, and people spend their time on vacation, at beaches, or simply enjoying themselves more and more. Summertime is sacred, and those who cherish it reap in the benefits of vitamin D. 
 

When you're a teenager, summer means a break from school, and potentially even responsibilities. It can be so freeing not to go to school everyday, but if you have young siblings, summer may mean something completely different. 
 

In the story below, the protagonist is a teenager who has a stepmother and stepsiblings. He's used to living with his dad alone, so when his stepsiblings and stepmom move in, he's in a displaced situation. His family still expects him to be there without being there. 

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  • 01

    AITA for telling my stepmother I didn't agree to be her summer babysitter?

    "Enjoy your summer”
    via Darren Baker / Canva

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 02
    I (17m) live with my grandparents because when my stepmother and stepsiblings moved in with my dad last year, there weren't
    via u/StuffySlocks

  • The family really can't do anything to force him. It's great that he's sticking up for himself in this situation. He doesn't even live at home, so it's not like they can make him stay home to watch the kids. They're powerless, and it's a good thing because he deserves to have his summer break.

  • 03
    enough bedrooms for me to still have my own room and her kids are way younger than me so I didn't want to share with her boys.
    via u/StuffySlocks
  • 04
    My decision to move out didn't make them happy but I really don't care. My dad and I argued over them moving in and dad made it clear he wanted her there
    via u/StuffySlocks
  • 05
    because he was ready to marry her and that I didn't get a say since I wasn't paying the mortgage or bills. He also said he'd been widowed for 6 years
    via u/StuffySlocks
  • 06
    and it was time for him to be happy again for real. Dad and I fought about my moving out but he gave in because I told him I would be miserable and did not
    via u/StuffySlocks
  • 07
    care if that made everyone else miserable too. I told him he should try to have his room invaded by little kids.
    via u/StuffySlocks
  • 08
    My relationship with dad suffered as a result but I can live with that This is better than sharing the room. My relationship with his wife and her kids doesn't exist
    via u/StuffySlocks
  • 09
    really and I know that her off but she was his choice, not mine. She can think what she likes.
    via u/StuffySlocks
  • 10
    Now we have a whole other issue because she wanted me to babysit her kids over summer break so she didn't need to pay for camps or summer care. The
    via u/StuffySlocks
  • 11
    kids don't have a dad in their lives so she's got to figure it out for the whole summer. When she told me to babysit this summer I said no. That was in April. She
    via u/StuffySlocks
  • 12
    Summer break
    via nito100 from Getty Images / Canva

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 13
    figured she could convince me but she didn't. Summer break came and she's had to pay for more than a week of childcare already.
    via u/StuffySlocks
  • 14
    My dad mostly stayed out of it but he told me he was upset that I wouldn't help some of the days. He said it would be a great time to bond with the kids and get to
    via u/StuffySlocks
  • 15
    know them and for them to get to know me. He offered to buy me a few things as a form of payment but I refused it. He told me he was disappointed in my
    via u/StuffySlocks
  • 16
    choices about blending our families and he felt like I was doing this because I can't let go of mom and don't want to embrace the new chapter of our
    via u/StuffySlocks
  • 17
    family. I told him that's nothing to do with it but I'm not wasting my summer babysitting. He brought up my refusal to live with them and I told him if we had more
    via u/StuffySlocks
  • 18
    space I'd still live there. Then I said maybe not since the babysitting expectation would be worse.
    via u/StuffySlocks
  • 19
    My stepmother called me again and she was going crazy about my stubbornness and claiming it was part of the deal. I told her I never agreed to be her summer
    via u/StuffySlocks
  • 20
    babysitter and I made no deals with her or her kids. It ped her off more. And it brought out dad saying I was being r de for no good reason. AITA?
    via u/StuffySlocks
  • 21
    Cheezburger Image 10516610304
    via Kat Gaskin / Canva

    This image is for illustration only, and the subjects are models; the image does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • 22
    xodevo⚫ 10h ago nta. stand your ground - not your kids, not your problem. & enjoy your summer :)
    via u/xodevo
  • 23
    No-Complaints3601 ⚫ 10h ago. NTA. They didn't take any steps to accommodate your needs for a room without little boys in it when you are
    via u/No-Complaints3601
  • 24
    17 years old, they can't expect you to accommodate their need for a babysitter. IDK why they are asking for favors from you when all they have done is take.
    via u/No-Complaints3601
  • 25
    chocolatechipwizard ⚫ 8h ago Dad's been drawing a survivor's benefit check to pay for your living expenses since you mom dad. Did that get transferred to the
    via u/chocolatechipwizard
  • 26
    grandparents when you moved in with them, or is he still being paid to keep you? Now he wants to double down by making you the babysitter. I don't think so.
    via u/chocolatechipwizard
  • 27
    dropshortreaver • 9h ago 'claiming it was part of the deal" Sounds like Father Dear has
    via u/dropshortreaver
  • 28
    been making promises that were'nt his to make. Sold her moving in and getting married as having you as an available baby sitter. Now he cant deliver on the promise, he's trying to guilt you. Tough sh for him. NTA
    via u/dropshortreaver

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family drama drama toxic summer family feud relationships babysitting lol love family reddit thread Reddit funny dating
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