30 of the Strangest Rules Babysitters Had to Follow

Talk about positive reinforcement
30 of the Strangest Rules Babysitters Had to Follow

Babysitting might seem like a straightforward job — I mean, it’s all right there in the name. But these parents made sure to go out of their way to make the gig as twisted as possible. Instead of simply tucking their little tyke into bed, one babysitting Redditor was instructed to drive around in circles for almost three hours as it was allegedly the only way to get the kid to sleep. Another was told that whatever they did, they absolutely had to keep their charge from consuming hot sauce after 9 p.m.

Turns out babysitting can be pretty convoluted after all, and these Redditors have the tales to prove it.

makingcookies1 . 6y ago When the kids proved to me they finished their homework, their treat was 15 minutes of TV and a stick of gum. They were not to watch any more TV. + 837 ...
groceryenthusiast 6y ago Oh god this is my time to shine. I babysat for this family for the first time ever and the mother was walking me around the house, giving me instructions and showing me around and then stopped at the fridge. She explained to me that when I sent her son to bed, I was to give him 1 hotdog out of the fridge. No heating it, no bun, just a cold soggy hotdog for her son to munch on in bed. Apparently he ate one every night. This was like 7 years ago and I seriously haven't
 e 6y ago When my brother did babysitting for our neighbors' kids, their rule was: No locking the bathroom door. Allow one minute for the kid to do #1, three minutes for #2, and go inside to check if they take longer. + 1.2K ...
spookycasserole 6y ago . Edited 6y ago Not allowed to serve her kid food that was heated in the microwave. Also she NEVER told me this until after I babysat her and berated me for it. How was I supposed to know? Guess I ruined that child. That same lady would give me a list of chores to complete too. How am I supposed to watch your kid AND vacuum your house?
MarsxAres e 6y ago Edited 6y ago One parent said I had to read a Bible passage during dinner and for a bedtime story. I also had to use christen discipline methods. To this day I have no idea what she meant, but if the kids acted out I would just say would the Lord like you doing that? Had to make the kids pray every 15 minutes. I thought it was a bit much, but y'know gotta respect it. Another one said I had to do this really complicated skin care routine. Maybe the kid's skin is sensitive. No
FnkyTown 6y ago When I was a kid I got paid $75 a week to watch two boys over a summer. It was amazing money, but the dad was a big bowhunter, and he made loads of deer chili, and he insisted that his 10 year old and 2 year old eat tons of it. They loved it, but the 2 year old would take these massive awful horrible nasty chili shits constantly. The dad explained all this to me, and my instructions were to just put him in the shower and hose him down. I was offered plenty of
imapuppycat . 6y ago If Brady stands by the door it just means he needs to go out. Open the door, and let him back inside in a few minutes. Brady was a four year old boy. 1.8K ...
 6y ago Refused to let their kids eat raw veggies for absolutely no reason. They never told me this, so I gave the kids ages 5-7 raw, washed and cut broccoli with some ranch for a snack. They were happily eating as the mom was getting ready for a party. She walked by, saw the kids eating the broccoli, took it from them, microwaved it and said they like it much better this way. The kids did not like it better and even they thought it was weird. I was then instructed to never give them raw veggies. I
KickAstley 6y ago Mom was a-okay with girls aged 7 and 9 watching Grease every day, leading the girls to ask over lunch one day what a hooker was. Mom was NOT okay with them watching Disney's Hercules, as it centered around gods other than the One True. 2K ...
2cupsofsalt 6y ago Mother: our children (6, 4, 1) are vegetarian, please respect that! Father, once the mother has gone upstairs: sorry, but they are my kids, too! If they want meat, it's because they probably need it. There is a fridge in my workshop... 2.1K ...
chickaboomba 6y ago Ok. So I thought it was weird, but after reading through these posts ... yikes. Anyway, when I was a kid, there was a mom who would only allow her kids to do art on Tuesdays. I never learned why it was only one day or why it was Tuesday. But she totally flipped out one day when we did it on the wrong day. 2.2K ...
scarmbledeggs . 6y ago Only let the kids have one piece of Halloween candy. It was April. 2.5K ...
-One_ 3y ago Don't let Danny into the chinchilla room, he'll put it in his mouth. Not a joke. 23 ...
Jessalopod 3y ago I know you have to take it at a specific time, but don't let the children (both over 5) see you taking your medicine. They didn't want their kids seeing people take pills because they thought it would lead to drug addiction. This was in the '90s. + 35 ...
concat-e-nate 6y ago E Edited 6y ago Only 2 hours of reading time. To be fair, the mom was a librarian and her two kids were adorably nerdy. They had an entire room filled with books and even then we'd make trips to the library from time to time. The rest of the time was supposed to be outside or doing some activity. It was a super sweet deal too because she paid for not only her kids to have a pool pass but me as well, so we basically went everyday all summer and we would play in the
GooberMcNutly 6y ago One had me feed her 1 year old ONLY from a freshly opened baby food container. If she only ate two or three spoonfulls, I was to throw it away and when she wanted more in 15 minutes I was to open a new one. I thought it was so she would finish her meal and be full for a while, but she said it was OK to feed her every time she wanted it. I would probably throw away 5 or 6 jars in a 2 hour sitting. They cost more than I usually made for
 6y ago Edited 6y ago No hot sauce after 9pm. Edit: To give some context, the kid LOVED hot sauce...but his folks were super over protective...maybe they had heard of ppl eating too much hot sauce an throwing it up as it would not settle? Honestly the kid was made of solid steel...we went to Taco Bell pretty much every time I babysat. + 7.4K ...
 6y ago If the kids misbehaved I was encouraged to spank them with a paddle they had, then make them write their names on it. Another family was perfectly normal until bedtime. Then I had to give the 5 year old girl a bottle, put her in a diaper, then cuddle with her until she fell asleep. Like I said everything else about her and the family was normal. But at bedtime I basically had to treat her like an infant. + 7.9K ...
CannedTornado 6y ago Edited 6y ago Hippy family. The two year old had no bedtime and no rules. She can eat what she wants, no bedtime, and if she falls asleep, leave her wherever she crashed. The parents came home at 2:30 to a toddler eating chocolate cake on the couch with her preferred American Pickers on tv. That's fine apparently. 6 months later the mom is very pregnant and asks that when the baby is born, if I could wrangle the toddler while the mom gives birth in a bathtub at home. The two year old was to be
 6y ago . Edited 6y ago To give him warm milk in a baby bottle right after every dinner - he was a fully functional 10 year old boy.
dezz-the-artist 6y ago I used to regularly babysit one of my younger cousins. At nap time I had to put her in a zip up pajama with feet. I then had to duct tape the zipper down and duct tape the wrists in a way that wasn't restricting but she couldn't pull her hands into her onesie. If I didn't do this she would pull her hands in and dig in her diaper...always. My aunt got tired of cleaning poop covered walls regularly. + 12K ...
ZweitenMal 6y ago I used to babysit for this family when I was in high school (in the 80s) and they had no books or reading material of any kind, except that there would usually be like two sections of the WSJ and a running magazine lying around. No. Books. Anyway, once I went over there and the mom told me like nine times, BEGGED ME, not to eat the box of Nilla Wafers that was in the cupboard because she needed them for a recipe the next day. BEGGED. I was like, Ok, got it. They're totally safe because
heckinghell 6y ago Edited 6y ago The mom had me put her kids in their car seats and sit in the driveway with all the car doors open while she just hung out inside the house. 5 hours of me standing in the driveway watching them sit inside their car. Never returned. Edit: I meant I never returned to babysit for her again, not that the mother mysteriously disappeared.
Krindus 6y ago On the opposite end of the spectrum, The family gave me instructions to let their kids drink chocolate milk, which they were otherwise not allowed to have. I think they wanted their kids to associate baby sitter time with fun time, so the parents could go out more often. Seemed to work out well for them, the kids both grew up to be successful people. + 15K ...
 6y ago Asked me to drive their three year old twins around in my personal vehicle for 2.5 hours because that's the only way they can nap. No. I simply put the kids in their beds, closed the door, and they were asleep in 15 minutes. + 19K ...
berniemac85 6y ago Not a rule but a single mom once told me to use the bat by the door in the event the kids father comes by and tries to take them. That was pretty weird and uncomfortable. + 25K ...
Lord-AG 6y ago When they heard me sing asked me not to sing to the kids. + 30K ...
naomi_is_watching 6y ago I was told that the only thing she specifically wasn't allowed to do was eat a bowl of sugar + 752 ...
Drsweetcum 6y ago I had to change the kids cloth diaper every 2 hours on the dot. The kid was 6. I assumed it was for some sort of disability or something, but no. His parents just didn't want to potty train him, and the kid was content with being babied. I remember just making the kid put his own diaper on and encouraged him to use the bathroom if he had to go. I never went back. + 895 ...
optimuspaige91 6y ago I had to put the kids to sleep with the CD player going. That wasn't the weird part. It was a recording of their parents basically going Molly, you are wonderful. You are a star. You're going to shine bright. That isn't super weird...But it was like several hours long, and apparently they listened to it every night. + 22K ...

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