Moms Share the Story Behind Viral Parenting Moment Caught While Both of the Moms Were Using Their Local Hobby Lobby’s Bathroom

There is nothing more powerful than when moms come together to support one another. Two incredible mamas are sharing the story behind their viral Hobby Lobby bathroom moment. 

It all began when Molly Wooden of Fort Hood, Texas took her 4-year-old to the bathroom while shopping at the local Hobby Lobby store. When the pair walked in, they witnessed another mother having a serious chat with her son. 

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Shawn Johnson East and Husband Andrew East Share the Pro Parenting Tip a Doctor Taught Them to Help Calm a Crying Infant

“I walked in, and originally the mother had been standing there with her arms crossed. Her son was sitting in the opposite corner, sitting on the floor kind of giving her attitude,” Wooden shared with TODAY Parents. “I was kind of minding my own business and then she was like, ‘OK, I gave you a warning, you’re at so-and-so many push-ups, you’re about to get 10 more …’ She was like, ‘Let’s go, right here.'”

Moms Explain the Story Behind Viral Parenting Moment in Hobby Lobby Bathroom

The woman having the talk was Nicki Quinn, whose son has been diagnosed with ADHD and oppositional defiance disorder (ODD). She later shared that, while her son is on medication, she is constantly challenging herself to come up with new ways to cope with his behavior. 

During this particular trip to the craft store, Nicki’s son began to act out. “He’s bothering his 3-year-old brother, taking stuff off the shelves, bouncing balls around,” Nicki explained. “I’m like, ‘Stop, don’t do that, quit, stop’ … He gave me an attitude, started talking back and being ugly, and I was like, ‘We are not doing this.'”

That’s when the strong mama escorted her son to the bathroom and told him to “drop and give me 10.” “We’ve already implemented the push-up system at my house, so it wasn’t anything new,” she explained. “So he knew that that’s what was going to go down.”

“I gotta do what I have to do to make sure my son is respectful to me because when he’s respectful to me, he’s going to respect everyone else, like his teachers and his fellow students,” Nicki continued. Molly thought the mother’s approach was “amazing” and she captured a photo of the “strong parenting” moment and later shared it on Facebook. The post eventually went viral. 

The two moms eventually connected over Facebook. Nicki was initially surprised to see the moment captured and shared on social media, but appreciated another mother’s support. 

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Katie Holmes Opens Up About Parenting Suri and How She Turned to Others for Help as a Single Parent

“I was like, ‘Kind of strange, OK.’ But when I read the post and saw why [Molly] had done it, all that feeling kind of went away,” Nicki said. “I was like, ‘Well, thank God she didn’t shame me. Thank God there was another mother with sense.’”

Molly said she does feel a little bit bad about putting Quinn in the spotlight because she didn’t ask for it but believes that people needed to see what respectable and effective parenting looks like.