‘The REALEST part of parenting’: Parents forced to hide their laughter or risk creating a dinner-throwing demon

In a viral TikTok, a cheeky child has been taught a valuable lesson about dinner time etiquette, while leaving her parents in stitches. 

ParentTok is never short of hilarious videos and this little girl might just have taken the cake (but not before throwing it at her dad). In a recent video shared by @hopeandhouseplants, a three-year-old girl is seen enjoying a meal with her parents and her younger sibling.

At first, it looks like the picture of quaintness and calm, but it isn’t long before dinner time devolves into bedlam (which is often the case with youngsters). As if summoned by some higher, more mischievous force, the girl suddenly lobs a projectile squarely at her father’s face, forcing him to turn in the other direction. 

Given that the projectile was thrown so abruptly and with such precision, both the mom and dad’s initial instinct is to laugh. Since bursting out into hysterics might read like approval of their daughter’s projectile-throwing behavior, both parents are seen shielding their giggles, with the dad barely containing his grin as the mom masks her laughter with a stern tone.

The punishment for this dinner time fiasco is being ferried off by mom to another room for time-out, where the girl’s cries of disappointment can be heard from the kitchen. Now that she’s out of sight, the parents are free to unleash their smiles and laughter, with the mom seen telling the dad to quiet down in case their daughter hears.

This, of course, is a scenario that feels all too real, like when a toddler says a curse word and you’re supposed to reprimand instead of chuckle. It was clearly a highlight for the mom, too, since she wrote in the accompanying caption that she “love[s] parenting with my best friend, especially in these moments.” She went on to provide more details about the dinner time moment, clarifying that this “is abnormal behavior” for her daughter, who seemed to “really let those intrusive thoughts take over.”

The mother also explained that this was the daughter’s first projectile offense and that she was in time-out for three minutes before returning to “give a real apology to her dad.” This story ultimately has a happy ending even for the daughter, who was “met with love both physical and emotional” after the dust had settled on the drama. 

For many viewers, this scene felt familiar, with one user writing that the video “is the best representation of parenting that I’ve ever seen.” Others related to the parents cracking up despite the bad behavior, with one parent saying that “needing to turn so they don’t see you laugh is so real.” Sharing in the sentiment, another user said “disciplining [children] while trying to not laugh is the HARDEST part of parenthood.” 

I’m at the age now where my parents can’t send me to time-out (try as they might), but I’ve probably never made them laugh as much as this three-year-old has. So, even with the punishment in the equation, this little girl still comes out on top. With extra points for razor-like precision.