My friends can't believe I don't charge my relatives for babysitting

“I feel like it's not that hard to show up for and support your family,” the woman said in her fresh take on babysitting her sister's kids.

A woman recently went viral on TikTok after saying her friends were stunned to find out that she watches her nephew for free.

Given the soaring costs of babysitters, they claimed that she should be charging her family for child-minding duties, a concept she finds “absoultely absurd.”

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Image: TikTok

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"They were shocked that I did it for free"

She took to her account, @kaitlynnnwils, to find out if she was in the minority. 

“I told somebody the other day that I watched my nephew for my sister once a week, and they were so shocked that I did it for free,” she explained. “Like, are other people's families out here charging them to watch their kids for a few hours? That's absolutely absurd if they are.”

She then explains how she views the time spent with her nephew, not as work, but as a privilege. 

“I get the opportunity to create a relationship with my nephew by babysitting him and being around him, and the fact that other people feel like they would need to be paid to hang out with their nieces, nephews, grandkids, whatever is so messed up,” she said.

She then claims that the types of people who would charge their family for babysitting, are the same ones who wonder why their young relatives barely recognise them at family gatherings. 

“And I swear it'll be those same adults at family parties being like, ‘My God, like, why doesn't so-and-so wanna hug me or talk to me?’ They don't f**king know you, dude. I feel like it's not that hard to show up for and support people in your family, especially if you live near them,” she said.

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"Is it really babysitting? Or is it just spending time with family?"

Hundreds of comments flowed in as other TikTokers weighed in with their thoughts. 

“Is it really babysitting? Or is it just spending time with family? It’s just spending time for me,” one person asked.

“For real. Time with my niece is my favourite, like I’d be willing to pay my sister to leave the house so I can get some aunty and niece time,” another wrote. 

The OP responded, “I also feel this like because if my sister is around, my nephew of course he only wants her, like sis please leave so I can have my time.” 

Another chimed in, making the point, “Babysitting is an investment because when you’re a lonely old person, your nephew will actually want to see you.”

“My mum, sisters, and MIL would throw themselves into oncoming traffic before accepting payment for watching my son,” another joked.

"I'm not doing a full-time job without pay"

However, some commenters noted that there are a few exceptions to this rule, such as age and time spent babysitting. 

“I feel if you're an adult, do it for free, but if it’s a teen relative, give them some money. My uncle used to pay me, now I do it for free because I have a job now,” someone said. 

And someone else replied, “Yep. If it’s consistent, I’m not doing a full-time job without pay. If it’s a date night, free. But Monday through Friday? That’s a job.”

Then someone else agreed, “I could see paying if it was a set schedule ing like Mon-Fri all day but otherwise it should be an ‘I help with this, you help with something I need.’”

Others had this sort of arrangement, with one writing, “We pay each other in treats and random errands.”

“I charge in Diet Cokes, jokes, I do it for free but they always bring me a Diet Cokes,” a user joked.

Originally published as My friends can't believe I don't charge my relatives for babysitting