December 13, 2025 at 6:35 pm

A Teenager Was Babysitting And Kept Getting Short-Changed By The Kid’s Mom. So They Rearranged Everything In Her Pantry Because They Knew She Was A Neat Freak.

by Matthew Gilligan

woman with a smirk

Shutterstock/Reddit

Now, this is some PETTY revenge!

The story you’re about to read comes from Reddit and we think you’re gonna get a big kick out of it.

Read on and find out when this babysitter finally had ENOUGH.

Teenage Babysitter’s Revenge.

“I was young, maybe 15 years old or so, and would pick up the odd babysitting gig for extra money.

I took a night for a household that was on my paper route. They asked me to be there on a Saturday at 8:30, and I arrived a few minutes early. The parents were still getting ready, and they asked me to watch the kids while they prepared to head out. They left the house at about 9:15.

Before they headed out, the wife gave me some very specific instructions. I could have a snack…2 Oreos on the counter. Nothing else.

These people sound weird…

She said she poured a glass of milk for me and left it in the fridge…it was right next to the plastic milk jug, with a piece of tape on it showing the level. She told me she’d check it when she got back, and if I took any extra milk I would have to answer for it.

The kids were okay, went to bed without any fuss, and the parents returned home at 12:20. Mommy paid me for 3 hours about 10 minutes after they arrived.

“Excuse me, but this isn’t right, I got here before 8:30, and it’s now almost 12:30, that’s 4 hours, not 3.”

Here we go…

“We didn’t leave until 9:15, and we got home at 12:15. I’m only paying you for 3 hours.”

“But I was watching the kids from 8:30…”

“That doesn’t matter, we were home, and you weren’t in charge, we were.”

I took the money, and rode my bike home.

A couple of weeks later, they did pretty much the same thing.

Two things are important, first, the wife was a neat freak. I’m guessing now she had OCD.

Everything was lined up perfectly.

One of the kids spilled his drink, and I was looking for some paper towels.

The cleaning supplies under the sink were perfectly lined up. Same with the pantry…every jar and can was in a row with the label facing directly to the front.

Second, this was in the mid-1970’s, and all canned food had paper labels.

So, the third time they called me in to babysit, they were late leaving again, and I knew that I was going to get shortchanged for the time I was there. I was steaming.

They were gonna drive her nuts!

So I went into the pantry, and tore the labels off each and every can. All of them. She had a shelf for Campbell’s soups, another for canned veggies, another for canned fruits…and I scrambled the unlabeled cans.

When they got home, sure enough, the wife tried to short me.

“You know what? Keep your money. I don’t want it, and I am never babysitting for you again. And as of today, I’m stopping delivering your newspapers as well. So if you want to read the paper, you’re going to have to go buy it at a corner store.”

I stormed out.

I wish I could have seen the expression on her face when she opened the pantry door…and saw shelf after shelf of bare metal cans.”

Reddit users shared their thoughts.

This person had a lot to say.

Screenshot 2025 12 09 at 12.36.07 PM A Teenager Was Babysitting And Kept Getting Short Changed By The Kids Mom. So They Rearranged Everything In Her Pantry Because They Knew She Was A Neat Freak.

Another individual chimed in.

Screenshot 2025 12 09 at 12.36.18 PM A Teenager Was Babysitting And Kept Getting Short Changed By The Kids Mom. So They Rearranged Everything In Her Pantry Because They Knew She Was A Neat Freak.

This reader shared their thoughts.

Screenshot 2025 12 09 at 12.36.27 PM A Teenager Was Babysitting And Kept Getting Short Changed By The Kids Mom. So They Rearranged Everything In Her Pantry Because They Knew She Was A Neat Freak.

Another Reddit user spoke up.

Screenshot 2025 12 09 at 12.37.01 PM A Teenager Was Babysitting And Kept Getting Short Changed By The Kids Mom. So They Rearranged Everything In Her Pantry Because They Knew She Was A Neat Freak.

And this person was impressed.

Screenshot 2025 12 09 at 12.35.50 PM A Teenager Was Babysitting And Kept Getting Short Changed By The Kids Mom. So They Rearranged Everything In Her Pantry Because They Knew She Was A Neat Freak.

This revenge most definitely drove that mom NUTS.

If you liked that post, check out this one about an employee that got revenge on HR when they refused to reimburse his travel.