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Should a grandparent be reimbursed for gas expenses?

gr8grandkids
13 years ago

Right after my granddaughter was born, I retired. My daughter said to me while she was pregnant that she didnÂt know what she was going to do for daycare and since I had planned on retiring, I offered to watch my granddaughter when my daughter went back to work. She is 16 months old now and I have watched her since she was 6 weeks old, Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.m. - 4:45 p.m. My daughter lives approximately 50 minutes from me. I get up every morning at 5:30 a.m. to drive to meet my daughter halfway so she doesnÂt have to get up even earlier for work. I drive approximately 80 miles a day. Gas is very expensive and I have been spending hundreds of dollars on gas which I cannot afford, not to mention I have already logged almost 10,000 miles on my van that I purchased used in February this year. I realize that I offered to watch my granddaughter but at the time, the cost of gas did not enter my mind. Today after once again listening to her talk about planning yet another vacation this year (theyÂve already gone on 2 this year), I tried asking her if she could at least fill my car with gas twice a month - she went ballistic and called me greedy! She said she was going to put my granddaughter in daycare and I wouldn't see her again. She brought up that she gave me some money when she got her income tax refund and that it was not her problem that I got myself in a financial bind and that I moved so far away. I responded that the money she did give me out of her income tax was almost what I spent on gas in one month. The financial responsibility for my granddaughter I feel is her parents, not mine. I am not asking to be paid to watch my granddaughter, I am only asking for assistance with the amount of money that I am paying for gas to watch her. If her parents were struggling financially, I would have never even brought it up  I would have suffered in silence. They have a brand new car and purchased a motorcycle when my granddaughter was about 1 year old  they spend money like there's no tomorrow! She says, she works hard for her money and she deserves to be able to buy things and go on vacations. I agree, but not at my expense. I also worked hard for over 30 years and deserve to have a nice retirement! I am not asking for full reimbursement on what IÂm spending on gas, only suggested if maybe twice a month they could fill my gas tank. I love my granddaughter very much and really enjoy her, but I simply feel used. Not only do I watch her while they work, I also watch her when they have other plans. This August, she informed me that they are going on vacation for one week so I will be watching my granddaughter. At this point, I am both hurt and disgusted at her response and donÂt even know if our relationship can be salvaged. Was I wrong to ask for help with the cost of gas? Thanks for any feedback.

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