When both parents need to work, it can be hard to care for children during the summer.

When one sibling is old enough, they can help out by babysitting the little ones, but parents still need to step in to make sure things go smoothly.

When the older brother in this story said he would watch the kids but wouldn’t make separate meals for each one, the parents got upset and now they are fighting.

Check it out.

AITA for refusing to cook for my siblings this summer and saying my parents need to pre-make food or leave takeout money?

Last year my parents left me (17m) in charge of my siblings (11, 9) Monday to Friday all summer while they worked.

They can’t afford summer camp so we stayed home and I babysat.

Mostly that was fine except for lunch and some days dinner time.

Picky eaters can be very difficult to deal with.

My siblings are used to being catered to.

They can change their minds and my parents don’t mind and will make them something else.

I told my parents upfront I wasn’t doing that.

That I wasn’t going to make seven different things each day because my siblings couldn’t decide.

My parents said they were okay with that but my siblings wouldn’t eat most days.

They expected me to remake things until they were happy and I had food thrown at me, they broke bowls and plates by throwing them and most of our small glasses were broken last summer by them.

They should be mad at the younger siblings.

My parents were mad that I didn’t make sure my siblings ate and I told them what happened.

It turned into a fight several times between me and my parents.

But if my siblings changed their mind mid way through preparing our lunch or dinner then I wasn’t starting over.

Most of the time they wanted different things anyway.

My parents told me a month ago that they need me to do it again this summer.

I told them I would as long as they pre-cook stuff and fill our freezer or leave takeout money.

They told me I could cook and I said I won’t.

And I told them my siblings can not eat all day as far as I’m concerned.

It’s been a month of fighting about this.

Parenting is hard, but they shouldn’t pawn it off on this young man.

My parents think I should give in and try.

I say they know exactly what will happen and they have options.

They’re running out of time to decide. Which makes them more angry toward me.

AITA?

This sounds like a difficult situation.

I think the thing that really needs to happen is the parents need to crack down on the younger siblings, telling them they need to eat what is made.

Let’s see if the people in the comments have anything to add.

This person says the parents are neglecting the kids.

Good point.

This commenter has a great idea.

Yup, the parents aren’t doing their job while they are there.

Lunches at that age should be pretty simple.

Childcare is the responsibility of parents, not other kids.

Mom and dad need to step up here and make sure everything is ready for their kids.

If you thought that was an interesting story, check out what happened when a family gave their in-laws a free place to stay in exchange for babysitting, but things changed when they don’t hold up their end of the bargain.