We all know that having a baby can be incredibly hard and new parents have to make sacrifices to accommodate the addition to their family.
But it’s a natural part of life and something most people just get on with, perhaps with a little help from the in-laws here and there.
One couple who are expecting their first child however, aren’t willing to give up any of their normal day to day experiences and instead have decided to ask their neighbours for help completing tasks such as cooking dinner and vacuuming their house.
Jack Jokinen, revealed all in a Twitter post.
He claims he recently received a message asking him to sign up to a social network called Next Door, a platform which allows neighbours to alert each other to issues in the area such as crime.
Initially he thought it was a “great idea” but then he saw that one of his neighbours was already misusing the site, by posting “ridiculous” requests.
An unnamed man who lived nearby was asking people to form a “meal-train” and take it in turns to cook for him and his wife, following the arrival of their baby.
The week I got a thing in my mailbox to join a social network @Nextdoor. People in my neighborhood can alert each other about crime and stuff like that. Great idea! But today someone posted the most ridiculous thing ever (1/?)
— JJ (@JJFromTheBronx) April 18, 2019
Jack couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw the post, which he described as using the “most millennial phrasing” ever.
It read: “As the father-to-be, I’m teetering on a fence of emotions. On one side is joy and excitement, of course. But on the other side, is a great deal of fear!
“One of the things I’m most afraid of is not getting a great deal of sleep and as a result not being in the best frame of mind to offer my wife the support she needs to recover from the child-birthing process.
“That’s why I’m putting together this ‘meal-train’ or ‘mental-health check-in train’ or ‘Do you need any help today train’. A meal would be awesome. If you feel comfortable reaching out before you arrive to see if we might need anything else – that’d be even more awesome.”
Trying not to be negative, I figured maybe it's like "if you make a lasagna and make too much, we would accept it". That would be very reasonable inside a totally unreasonable ask. BUT THERE WERE 30+ SPECIFIC MEALS WITH RECIPES pic.twitter.com/BkE2kBuhyJ
— JJ (@JJFromTheBronx) April 18, 2019
Attempting to give the couple the benefit of the doubt, Jack kept reading, assuming the couple were just seeking some leftovers or scraps from neighbours, which would be pretty reasonable.
But then he stumbled across a meal plan featuring over 30 specific meals, recipes for said meals and lists of their favourite foods as well as ingredients to avoid.
And if you didn’t want to cook for the parents, they ask that you take on some of their housework, such as hoovering, washing dishes or walking their dog, as it will “nourish” them just as much as a meal would.
Jack adds: “This guy then tops it all of by telling us we can sign up for a day to text, and if they decide they would rather not see people, WE CAN COOK THEM A MEAL AND LEAVE IT FOR THEM IN A COOLER HE WILL PROVIDE IN THE YARD BECAUSE HE COULDN’T BE BOTHERED ANSWERING THE DOOR.
“If I don’t egg their house I deserve an award.”
A lot of people following the thread on Twitter were appalled by the couple’s demands.
One person replied: “If they spent less time writing up ridiculous requests and arrangements, they could have prepped a weeks’ worth of dinners themselves.”
Another commented: “They’re having a baby, not both dying of cancer. Reality is hopefully going to slap these two in the face one day.”
A third added: “Basically we had sex without protection, so strangers should act like our servants.”