16-year-old constantly steals her 19-year-old sister's possessions, parents buy her whatever she wants to stop her from stealing: 'My parents fund her Starbucks, skincare, clothes, and everything else'

Author image for Emmy Pratt
Emmy Pratt • Senior Editor
Aug 30, 2025 8:00 PM EDT

Some parents treat their kids differently for easily decipherable reasons. If a mom had her first child at 18 and her second child at 34, she will almost certainly be a more mature parent the second time around. She also might be more lenient with her younger child than she was with her eldest, which could breed resentment. 

In families where one kid has a lot of medical issues, it's common for the healthy children and their problems to slip through the cracks because the parents are so hung up on keeping their sick kid alive. I'm not saying that these kinds of differences in parenting are good and healthy, but they are easy to understand, even if the realities of them are painful. 

There are, however, instances where parents favor one child for seemingly no reason. The child they favor is not more talented, hardworking, or smart than their sibling, and yet they are the one who receives all of the love and support that their sibling never seems to get. An unfavored kid could spend their whole childhood trying to figure out why they're treated differently and doing their best to win their parents' love and affection, but it's fruitless. If a parent decides to favor one child over another and sees nothing wrong with this imbalance, they are unlikely to change their behavior.

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  • Teenage girl sitting on ladder chair behind table
    via Allef Vinicius

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • The parents in this story are not going to stop enabling their spoiled 16-year-old daughter, no matter how much her older sister wishes they would. 

  • My (19f) little sister (16f) is becoming an entitled nightmare.

    My little sister is my parents pride and joy. She was a surprise and a miracle baby because they didn't think they could have more kids. Because of this, my sister is really used to getting what she wants, when she wants it. This started really becoming a problem when she turned 10 and got her very own iPad. My parents bought it
    via u/throw-away762234
  • second hand but it was in very good shape. She said (paraphrasing) "it's embarrassing and I want the new one." To make a long story short, my parents said that one was fine, and she smashed it with a rock a week
    via u/throw-away762234
  • later. They scolded her but then bought her the new one anyway. The same thing happened when she was 13 and got a phone. except she put it through the washing machine.
    via u/throw-away762234
  • A person holding a cracked iPhone in their hand
    via Rahul Himkar

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • When she was 12-13, she started stealing from me. I have been working since 14, and have been buying all my own stuff with the exception of the family groceries ever since. Perfume, makeup, skincare, snacks, etc. She would take it and when I brought up it was missing, she would lie and
    via u/throw-away762234
  • say she didn't take it. I would find my missing items under my bed or in her drawer in the bathroom and she would continue to lie and say she didn't put it there. Even brand new things that I was saving, she would take, open, and use it. I eventually put a lock on
    via u/throw-away762234
  • my cabinet. When I complained to my parents, they had a talk with my sister that ended in "we will buy you whatever you want for yourself so you don't use your sisters. Just take a picture or tell us."
    via u/throw-away762234
  • Now my sister is 16. She had her first job and quit because they wanted her to get up early for her 3 hour shift and she wanted to sleep in. She's been looking for a job for MONTHS (kind of - applying online at my mother's request) while my parents fund her starbucks, skincare, clothes and everything else. She got a
    via u/throw-away762234
  • White and brown Starbucks cup
    via Gema Saputera

    Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

  • new job two days ago, and everyone was really excited for her, including me. She went to her first training shift yesterday, 6 hours and then decided she was going to quit tonight. She's been whining and crying to my mother that she doesn't want to work there and will get a different job but realistically, the next job she gets will be the same thing.
    via u/throw-away762234
  • I don't know what to do here. She gets everything she wants and maybe i'm just being bitter? But id appreciate any advice on how to constructively help her. It's not all her fault really, she was raised like that. Thank you for any advice :)
    via u/throw-away762234
  • TicoSoon This is not your job. Your parents have created this sh show, it's theirs to clean up. Keep all of your stuff locked up, keep your important documents OUT of the house (get a safety deposit box if you need to), and GTFO as soon as you can.
    via u/TicoSoon
  • throw-away762234 OP thank you for the advice, i really appreciate it. One question: How do i get a safety deposit box?
    via u/throw-away762234
  • Excellent_Ad1132 Go to a bank and ask for one. They are usually pretty cheap. Get your birth certificate and any other documentation that you might need when you get out. Let your parents deal with the monster they created. When they complain, let them know that if they had spent any time on reddit, they would have seen this coming. However, even then, it might not have made it thru their thick skulls.
    via u/Excellent_Ad1132
  • Don't expect anything from them when they di, because they will need to take care of their little angel. Let them know that as long as this keeps up, you won't be the one taking care of them when they are old and feeble and if you are stuck with it, Shady Pines will be a luxury resort compared to where you will dump them.
    via u/Excellent_Ad1132
  • Aladdinstrees Yes, it sounds like you need to prepare for that possibility, sadly. Keep locking your stuff up, and move out when you can. Its possible that your parent's money may begin to run dry as sister gets older, and are unable to spend as much as they want (and as.much as sister wants) on her graduation, college, wedding, birthdays, babies,
    via u/Aladdinstrees
  • business ideas, houses, etc. So it might be a good idea to let them know that they better start saving for those things NOW, which means spending less on sister NOW. You will be leaving all that to them, so they need to know not to assume they can ask you to contribute 50K for her wedding or whatever, when that happens.
    via u/Aladdinstrees
  • MaliciousTent Her time will come. She is living in a fantasyland created by your parents. Watch out for her leeching when older. Make sure anything that is connected to you, sis or your parents cannot access or use.
    via u/MaliciousTent
  • Car Ins: make sure sis does not drive your car Bank Acct: keep parents and sis off of it, or use a different bank to really be sure. Can you put a lock on your door (if have own room?) You get the idea.
    via u/MaliciousTent
  • Accomplished_Cod7613 Deposit the money you make into a bank account that only you have access to, save your money towards moving out whether that's to a university or an apartment, don't buy anything you can't either carry with you or keep locked up, and stay away from home as much as you can by working more hours or visiting friends. Other than that, just keep your eyes on the prize, the prize being that you'll be an independent adult with a good work ethic soon enough. Nothing you can do will
    via u/Accomplished_Cod7613
  • yourtieiscrooked I am so sorry that your sister is behaving this way. You can thank your parents for that. Parents have to stop telling their children how special they are. Miracle child....... I am sorry, but come on. I'm sorry that your parents aren't self-aware enough to realize that behavior influences behavior. You sound like you'll be just fine. You come across as very smart and confident. You'll go far, just hang in there.
    via u/yourtieiscrooked
  • throw-away762234 OP thank you so much, you have no idea what it means to me to hear you say that. I appreciate it greatly :)
    via u/throw-away762234
  • Boring_Emotion7813 Let the monster stay with your parents. They created it. When she's 40 still living at home and being a loser look back on this and go you built a life home and everything by yourself. Worry about yourself move forward and keep yourself safe. She will be a loser with three ex-husbands.
    via u/Boring_Emotion7813
  • hawken54321 Not your cow, not your dairy.
    via u/hawken54321

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Tags

family drama teenager stealing teenage sisters teenagers siblings bad parenting bad parents parenting family sister theft Parenting Fail Parenting FAILS entitled people
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