Every year we encounter a few stories about parents who think it is perfectly OK to leave very young children home alone with some pizza money and a full sippy cup — if they’re lucky. It’s sad but true: Some parents are no better to their kids than they are would be to a stray dog — and put their own convenience and enjoyment ahead of their young children’s very real needs.

A few derelict parents around the U.S. kicked off the year of 2017 on a neglectful note. In a brutal “Home Alone” scenario come to life, Naiele Santa Ana Olivas, 29, left Seminole County, Florida, on Jan. 8 for a trip to sunny California — leaving her 11-year-old in charge of her two younger kids, ages nine and eight, according to WESH Channel 2 News.

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Three days after Olivas left, the oldest child called another family member — who then called child protection officials. By phone, Olivas said the kids were being cared for by their grandmother.

Florida resident Naiele Santa Ana Olivas, 29, is charged with leaving her three young children home alone while she took off for California (photo: WESH Channel 2 News).

There’s only one problem with that story: Grandma did not even know the children were in town, according to investigators. Olivas and the kids had recently moved to Central Florida from California without alerting her.

It gets worse, according to WESH — investigators say the kids are not currently enrolled in school. Olivas, 29, has been charged with child neglect and is out on bond.

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Other parents who wouldn’t come close to winning “Parent of the Year” awards are Kimberly Dawn Iglesias and Steven Roleince Abraham. The couple stand accused of leaving their infant son and three-year-old daughter home alone while they spent the night carousing at a pool hall in Killeen, Texas, last month, according to KWTX Channel 10 News.

An arrest affidavit reveals officers responded at around 1:40 a.m. on Jan. 4 to a report of a disturbance at the Games and Billiards pool hall. Security there detained Iglesias and Abraham when it looked as if they might drive home while intoxicated.

Officers agreed to take the couple home, but on the way Iglesias, 42, began to cry and said she and Abraham had left their six-week-old son and three-year-old daughter at home alone, the affidavit says. The couple were subsequently charged with child endangerment.

Iglesias’ bond was set at $100,000, while Abraham posted bond and was released.

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Another mother who valued alone time with her boyfriend over taking care of her young children is from Lawrenceville, Pennsylvania. An early-morning car accident triggered an investigation that ultimately led to the discovery of two young kids who were home by themselves.

Pittsburgh police said the mother, Candice Pisarski, was involved in an accident but fled the scene, according to WPIX Channel 11.

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Law enforcement officials said officers tracked her to her apartment in Gibsonia, where they found a 10-year-old girl and six-year-old boy home alone at 2:30 in the morning. The 10-year-old reportedly told police her mother regularly left her and her brother alone at night; Pisarski was likely with her boyfriend.

Police found Pisarski at her boyfriend’s home and charged her with two counts of endangering the welfare of children. Pittsburgh police said she’ll also be charged in connection with the hit-and-run, as the local station reported. Pisarski’s children are staying with relatives, authorities said.