I actually said she was robbing my babies when I told my mom about it.
And guess who I finally heard from! But not because of the money. She asked me to babysit tomorrow. Yup. I need a good meme for this...
Are you going to? It's a chance to pin her down for not just babysitting but your missing $20.
I agreed to. One, because I'm a big pushover. Two, because I thought maybe if I tell her in person that it's important that she pay me in full it will be more effective and more proffessional. Yeah. I think I'm delusional.
LOVE the meme, @costumeczar ! It definitely made me laugh. How'd you know I like Wonder Woman?! ;)
I think she'll pay you. Bakers are easy to come by, but good babysitters? Not so much... but make sure you leave with ALL your money!
Also...Call her before you babysit to tell her that you need to also get the $20 she owes you so she can't pull the "oops you surprised me and I don't have any extra $$$ on me" move. Remind her when she drops the kid off so she has no excuse. If she still stiffs you after all that she's doing it on purpose.
try not to stress out your mom while shes healing -- like jinkies said come on here & we'll cheer you on and hand you kleenex and listen
Oh, my mom isn't worried about it. She just said, "Well, we won't be doing business with her again!" But I'm definitely glad I can get on here and vent!
So I asked her about the money when she dropped off her daughter this morning and either she didn't hear me, which is likely with 3 kids in the room, or she ignored me. I'm hoping the didn't hear me part. But she did further irritate me because I got up at 5:30 this morning because she'd be here at 6 and then would be back by noon to pick her up. She knows I'm working on a wedding cake today. And guess what time she showed up! 6:45. It is now 1:15 and she is not here. It just proves to me that she has no respect for others' time. I could have slept a little later. Grrrrr.....
Seriously? Be done with this selfish inconsiderate woman as soon as possible! The more chances you give her the more you reinforce the idea she doesn't need to respect your time. $20 is not worth losing sleep or being aggravated about continuously. Cut her off - no babysitting and no cakes for you!
Um, on another note, I just found a cricut cake for $40! :)
It's worth it if you do a lot of lettering on your cakes! I love mine now that I have it figured out!
I'm just taking a break from wedding cake world to update you guys. She didn't have the payment when she came back. I even offered to take it via Paypal since I have a card machine. Nope. She conveniently didn't have her debit card, either. She said she'd be back "in a little while" to drop off the money and it didn't happen. So, I'm done. We had a discussion about how I spent 9 hours on that cake getting it perfectly baked, filled, (almost perfectly) covered and decorated. That didn't include clean-up. It doesn't look like it should have taken that long, but I did have to make some dark ass green and make the perfect tan to match his uniform. I told her I had already given her a discount and her eyes got wide. I told her the price on her next cake and she had nothing to say. Well, she's not getting the next cake from me! And if she asks me to babysit the answer is no. I am over it. I'd have even accepted a trade. Watch my kids for the evening so I can focus on just the cake I am working on and I won't have to pay my niece to watch them. But, no. Oh--and my mom corrected me on what time she got here this morning. It wasn't until 7:20. And she showed up at 2 when I had just left to pick my (almost) two-year-old up from daycare. Whatever. That frees up the weekend of Darien's birthday so I can focus on HIS cake.
i have to say that the cake looks amazing 
hopefully you get paid! you deserve it, your work is flawless
careful she might be expecting a similar price for the upcoming cake (cheaper)! how many people was this cake for ??
i have to say that the cake looks amazing hopefully you get paid! you deserve it, your work is flawless
careful she might be expecting a similar price for the upcoming cake (cheaper)! how many people was this cake for ??
Well done hunny.
Congratulations on getting some cake balls.
Yeah...And if she calls for babysitting OR cakes and whines when you say no, tell her it's because she won't pay you what you earned so she can go rip someone else off!
or when she calls be upbeat and let her ask/say whatever the call is about and reply with 'hey -- let's take care of that $20 past due balance first" of course like you say nothing more for her until she pays that and then pays you in full in advance --
if you want a business or a paying hobby you have to learn to deal with everybody -- i mean if she's got cash why not -- monteagle can't be that big to burn her as a client -- just be more careful going forward -- there's TONS of users/people like this -- they eat cake too --
but I mean your mantra when you see her at the store "hey let's take care of your past due balance now" or mouth 'past due balance' to her across the way in a restaurant in an upbeat way
she's not worth the energy to be rude to
SimplyCakesNMore
Been reading through this thread. I'm a firm believer that you "Teach people how to treat you". Obviously, this so called friend has learned how, and not in a good way. As long as you allow yourself to be treated so disrespectfully, her behaviour towards you won't change. Not just cakes, but in your babysitting too. I mean showing up in the wee hours, no phone call!! Trust me, it's 99.99% that she deliberately underpaid you. At this point, I don't have any hope you'll receive the money. She sounds self absorbed. As far as making a second cake and tacking on the $20, I say absolutely not. I'm pretty sure she'll ignore/conveniently forget. The only way to solve this situation is for you to confront her, but in a pleasant non-aggressive way. I DON'T like confrontation, who does?? But it's sometimes necessary for your emotional state of mind. May I suggest you either invite her over for coffee, or meet her for coffee, without the children, don't need the distraction. Your going to feel uncomfortable, your hearts gonna pound, and you may sweat a little, that's a natural reaction, but do it anyway. Tell her honestly, in your own words you can't make her the next cake, explaining how she shortchanged you $20, and that's food and clothing for your child. Explain how you were hurt, and that you provided a service for an agreed price, which she didn't honour. Point out that you don't shortchange the grocery store, Sears, the auto body shop, the bill is the bill.....you pay it. You don't "haggle" and decide your going to pay only what you want from the bill. When you explain it like this, she will hopefully grasp the situation, and offer to recoup what she owes you. Then say you've started a new policy with everyone, a $$ deposit for cake orders and full payment upon delivery. Your discretion whether you do this for everybody, like close family members, but I highly recommend because I've found out the hard way, so called close friends and neighbours take advantage of you.....cause you know.....it's just a cake!! Making a cake to sell is supposed to be an enjoyable experience, but not if we allow these type of circumstances.
As a side note, #1. I've been around the block and I'm old enough to be your Mother.
#2. Made a small batch of cupcakes and a fondant Dino topper for a neighbours son's 6th b-day in April. I know I charged her an appropriate amount. Was also invited to the party. Just found out she had a b-day party for her 1 yr old a few weeks ago. Wasn't invited, nor asked to make the cake/cupcakes. I'm pretty sure she though I charged her too much for her son's cupcakes. And inviting me to the party, I'd see someone else's cake/cupcakes. Awkward. She'd have to explain why she didn't ask me to make it. Truthfully, I don't care, and I wouldn't be the slightest bit bothered or upset. If she wants to use another decorator, or have a Costco cake, I don't care. I'm not changing my price for anyone. Won't shortchange the effort and hours I put into making it.
Sorry for the long winded post. Hopefully, I've given you food for thought.
❤️ ❤️
Sorry to have disappeared. Wedding and groom's cake Saturday then family pictures and The Walking Dead today.
@kandyslife this cake served 20, but there were only about 5 people at the party.
It's not likely I'll be seeing or hearing from her again until she wants something from me. And when that happens I'll tell her no. I don't need poisonous people in my life. I'm a giver until you screw me over, and then I just turn bitch. Pardon the language, but, yeah. I refuse to associate with that kind of person. So I guess this is the end of the story. I've learned a valuable lesson in not trusting anyone and not combining business with friends and family. Always follow the rules of the contract. I usually do a 50% deposit with balance on pickup/delivery. And usually I'm the one who sees the cake out the door. The only time I require full payment before delivery is weddings because who wants to chase down a bride for payment? Not me!
Thank you all for the awesome encouragement and great laughs. It really made me feel better. And then getting a $50 tip from the bride on Saturday was pretty helpful, too.
Good on you :-)
I always say that friends and family make the WORST customers. With a total stranger, you feel more comfortable talking money. When it's a friend, it can be difficult, especially if they are good friends ironically. I always insist on payment in advance for all cakes, birthday or wedding purely because I don't know if i would have the will to take a cake away if I delivered it and they didn't have the money there to pay me. (I'm weak, I know!!) Lol. I personally think that a mom with 15 kids running around is going to be nearly as stressed as a bride so they will often (even not on purpose) forget about the £40 for the birthday cake.
Good luck!!
x
Quote by @%username% on %date%
%body%