My Neighbor Took Revenge When I Stopped Babysitting Her Kid for Free

Setting boundaries with neighbors can be surprisingly tricky. What starts as a simple favor can quickly spiral into an overwhelming burden, especially when kindness is mistaken for obligation. Many people struggle with the guilt of saying no, even when the situation becomes unfair.

One of our readers recently shared her story of how she found herself playing babysitter against her will, and how she found a gloriously hilarious way to take her power back.

Here’s her story.

I used to watch my neighbor’s kid once in a while. At first, it felt like a harmless favor just helping out someone who needed a little support and I genuinely didn’t mind.

But then, without warning, it started happening all the time. The casual asks turned into demands, and politeness flew straight out the window. I realized, with a sinking feeling, that I hadn’t agreed to help a neighbor — I had signed up, unknowingly, to run a free, full-time daycare.

The tipping point.

One day, when she dropped her kid off without even checking if I was available, I finally snapped: “No! This isn’t a daycare.” I thought that would be the end of it. I was wrong.

She turned the building against me!

Instead of respecting my boundary, my neighbor completely lost it. She acted like I had betrayed her, and before I knew it, she was badmouthing me to everyone in the building. Suddenly, group chats were full of cold messages, and people I’d once chatted with by the mailboxes were giving me the cold shoulder. It was passive-aggressive high school drama.

When I saw a particularly nasty “not-so-subtle” jab aimed at me in our group chat, I decided it was time to fight fire with fireworks.

The pettiest, most glorious revenge.

I went online and ordered one of those massive inflatable lawn decorations, the kind people use for over-the-top birthday parties. This one had a huge banner that said: “WELCOME TO NOT A DAYCARE!” I wasn’t done yet.

I surrounded it with creepy plastic baby dolls sitting around like they were attending a party. It was dramatic. It was petty. It was everything I needed it to be.

Some neighbours saw the humour in the situation.

Within hours of setting it up right outside my apartment door, neighbors were stopping to laugh and snap pictures. Someone even left a juice box as an ’offering’ next to the dolls. For once, I felt like the queen of passive-aggressive justice.

Not everyone was amused.

Of course, my neighbor was not one of the people laughing. She came pounding on my door, clutching her kid like a prop in a courtroom drama. She called me immature, unneighborly, and — my personal favorite — ’a menace to moms.’ Funny how none of that came up when I was providing her with free childcare.

Did I get my revenge?

Meanwhile, the group chat — which I had just been added back into — exploded with laughing emojis. A few neighbors even messaged me privately, saying they were sick of her freeloading too. So now, instead of the whole building being against me, it’s only about half and honestly, that feels like a huge win.

Did I have to go so far? I’m not sure, but she started it by turning my living room into an unpaid daycare.

Here’s what we think:

Setting boundaries isn’t always easy, but it’s necessary — and you don’t have to feel guilty for protecting your own time and energy. Here are a few tips anyone can use:

• Remember, kindness is a gift, not a contract: Helping someone once doesn’t mean you owe them unlimited favors forever.

• Saying no is self-respect, not selfishness: Protecting your time and energy is essential and you don’t need to apologise for it.

• Humor can be powerful: Sometimes a little light-hearted drama can get the message across when words fail.

• Trust that the right people will understand: You might lose a few people when you stand up for yourself, but you’ll also discover who truly respects you.

It’s always a nice thing when neighbors turn into friends, but for that to happen, you need to be a good neighbor first. Unfortunately, that’s not always the case. Have you ever experienced these 13 types of neighbors that need to be evacuated?

What’s your worst neighbor story? Let us know in the comments.