A well-meaning aunt’s attempt to record a sweet message for her niece’s parents has gone viral on TikTok.
Mary Lentz, who was babysitting her 21-month-old niece while her sister-in-law was in labor, decided to send a cute video to her brother and his wife as they awaited the arrival of their new baby.
“I stayed the night and decided to send my brother and sister-in-law this video,” Lentz explained. Her niece, however, had other ideas.
In the clip, the 33-year-old begins by encouraging her niece to send a “good morning” message to her mom. But to her surprise, her niece simply shakes her head and refuses. Undeterred, Lentz then asks, “What about dadda?” to which the toddler confidently replies with a clear “Daddy.”
Two images from the viral video of Mary Lentz and her niece.
@maryjlentz
Lentz gives it one more try and asks, “What about brother?” Her niece quickly shuts it down again with a firm no and begins to cry at the suggestion.
“My niece’s personality is a blend of sass, sensitive, energetic [and] compassionate,” Lentz told Newsweek.
The TikTok video, which has reached almost 1.5 million views, resonated with many on the platform. Hundreds of users recounted similar stories of their children reacting to well-intentioned gestures.
“That’s my toddler, she’s in her ‘no phase’,” one wrote.
Another mom shared that her daughter would tell her she loves her every night, but when her dad asks, “What about me?,” she says “no” in the exact same way as Lentz’s niece.
One user who picked up on the little girl’s whine after Lentz mentions her brother wrote: “She said girl no I’m on vacation.”
“We love a selective queen,” another commented.
“Brother sent her over the edge she said delete and start over,” a different person joked.
While toddlers may show preferences to one parent, this behavior typically balances out over time as they develop deeper, more complex relationships with both their mom and dad.
Lentz’s niece appears to be in her daddy phase. This is not usually an indication of deeper issues but rather a normal aspect of early childhood development.
Lentz told Newsweek: “Reactions [on social media] have been mainly everyone finding it funny and making comments about how my niece has sass—she does.”
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