When a mother decided to have a teaching moment with her toddler at the grocery store, she learned that some people can view a beautiful and patient interaction between a parent and child as rude and unnecessary. Unfortunately, the mom enraged shoppers who felt she was being “entitled.” Do you agree?
When Amy, a mom who shares the life of her son Texas on TikTok under the handle @lifeoftexas, posted a video showcasing how she used a trip to the supermarket as a teaching opportunity for her toddler, she likely never expected that it would go viral. However, as she sparked a debate on parenting etiquette, that’s exactly what happened, as the mom was accused of being inconsiderate of others.
In the controversial clip, Texas is seen helping his parents throughout the grocery store, including assisting in the self-checkout, where the toddler is allowed to contribute to the chore at his own pace. Sadly, it was Texas’s slow pace and the mom’s response that earned scorn from viewers. But, first, check out the video from Amy and Texas’s trip to the supermarket that started the great parenting debate:
https://www.tiktok.com/@lifeoftexas/video/7329232831006149920
The clip begins with the words, “What Sunday morning looks like when you include your child in everything,” as Amy is seen carrying Texas into the store. The pair is seen traveling down the aisles as Texas helps add items to his own little cart. All seemed well as the family headed to the checkout, but that’s where some viewers quickly found fault with the mother and her teaching moment.
Apparently, a version of the video made its way online, featuring Texas at the register. While the toddler slowly assisted, the screen displayed the words, “Pov: the line behind you is growing, and people are looking at you, but you don’t care because your child is learning, and rushing is what gives young children anxiety.” It appears to have since been taken down, but not before outlets like the NY Post and Bored Panda grabbed screenshots.
After the video was posted, Amy was allegedly asked if teaching her one-year-old how to navigate life should be done at the expense of others at the supermarket, who may be in a hurry. The flood of negative comments indicated that not everyone appreciated the mother’s efforts to use the world as her child’s classroom, especially finding fault in the fact that she allegedly acknowledged that she was holding up the line to teach her son the names of the fruits and vegetables at the register.
A cheerful Texas took each item of produce after it was scanned and attempted to say its name before passing it to his mother, who then bagged the item. But despite the toddler’s obvious joy as he was allowed to help his mom, many viewers became angry with Amy, saying she wasn’t being considerate of other shoppers. The comments were downright brutal.
- “And being courteous and considerate to other ppls time is also a great life skill,” a Tiktok user commented.
- Another person added: “I’d probably lose it if im in the queue lmao.”
- Someone else penned: “Sundays is not a slow day at all [at the] grocery store go when the store opens on a Tuesday if you want to do this, my kids like to do it too but if there’s a line I’m not being rude.”
- A separate individual chimed in: “Why not just wait until the store isn’t busy? there are times when multiple registers are open, that would be a better time to teach [him].”
- A viewer suggested a potentially better option: “Ummm. Perhaps a toy cash register?” [Source: Bored Panda]
Having received millions of views, the negative comments were plentiful, and many contained the same sentiment, suggesting that it was rude for Amy not to hurry through the task for the sake of others. However, I’m going to play devil’s advocate here and say that Amy’s responsibility is first and foremost to raising her son, not to any stranger in line behind her. And, let’s face it, there are usually plenty of registers available, especially if the store has self-checkouts. So, if someone has a problem waiting, maybe they should find another line.
What’s more, this was one glimpse into a brief moment of the mom’s life with her child. A scan of her TikTok account shows a woman who is concerned about the type of person she is raising. For example, when a commenter suggested that Amy should teach Texas to “leave your shopping cart in the middle of the aisle next,” she responded by posting a clip that showed she taught the youngster the right thing to do:
@lifeoftexas Replying to @$/bin/kitty store etiquette from my one year old ♥️
It’s also worth noting that those who complained that their time was entirely too valuable to tolerate a slow-moving toddler had plenty of time to watch TikTok videos, get upset by them, and take their precious time to comment. Meanwhile, there is no indication that anyone at the grocery store actually had a problem—except for the caption on the now-deleted clip, which was perhaps made in jest or in an attempt to encourage others to slow down for their children’s sake.
While one commenter made a great suggestion, saying Amy should choose “quiet times of the day” for her child to tag along and help, I’d suggest that those in a hurry might want to do their grocery shopping when the stores are known to be slower, rather than expecting a young mother with a young child to cater to the hurried schedule of others. Plus, I’ve seen much worse behavior at the grocery store.
I mean, who’s really being “entitled” here? The mom who is fostering responsibility by having her child help with chores or the stranger who thinks Amy should adjust her life to better suit those who are far too busy to make time for a child? You decide. As for me, I’d rather see a kid helping than one with their face glued to a screen, much like the teens I often see in the supermarket who are oblivious to what’s happening around them. And even the experts seem to agree.
“Experts often recommend assigning chores to your children—it fosters responsibility, boosts self-esteem, and helps them feel like an important part of the family,” Parents reported. “Daily or weekly chores also teach children skills they’ll use throughout their lives, such as setting priorities. The earlier kids learn to incorporate domestic duties into their everyday routine, the more likely they are to continue helping out when they hit their teen years.” In short, it seems this mom has things figured out, and those with a problem might just be the problem. As for the people who are actually entitled and feel otherwise, the world doesn’t have to speed up for you. Pick another line.
