One mum has shared that she lets her little one draw all over the floor for a specific reason, but some parents are just as convinced.
In a viral TikTok video, Arizona mom Kira showed what was left after allowing her two-year-old daughter to draw on the kitchen floor of her rental home. The hardwood floors were covered in red, blue, and brown crayon marks. “Healing my inner child is letting my two-year-old son color the kitchen floor while I cook,” Kira wrote in the TikTok video.
“She asked me first and I said yes. She tried to ask me if she could color the cabinet and I said no and she listened. She knows this is only allowed here. But she had a lot of fun and everything can be cleaned,” her mother added.
The 29-year-old mother captioned the viral TikTok video: “Trying to give him the happiest childhood.”
Since it was posted last November, Kira's clip has been viewed more than 322,000 times. In the comments section, other parents were divided about Kira's parenting technique. While some people praised her for allowing her daughter to express her creativity, others believed there was a way to do it without making as much of a mess.
“There is nothing healing more than letting your child boss you around,” one person commented.
“This is NOT healthy. Limits and respect for the environment are,” wrote another critic.
“Absolutely NO,” said a third person, while someone else commented: “That's always a no from me. You can color on paper and we'll even hang it up, but she'll assume that coloring on the floor is okay everywhere.”
In response, Kira clarified that she allows her daughter to draw on the floor because “she would have been yelled at” if she had done the same at her age. “The children weren't allowed to make a mess,” the mother said. Kira also noted that her daughter has “never” tried to draw on other people's floors “and she always asks permission at home before doing so.”
“She has limits. She knows that she can only do it here and that she has to clean up afterward,” the TikToker added.
Despite some negative comments, several users defended Kira by sharing that they too were not given the opportunity to be creative growing up. “Giving my kids a safe space to be themselves is the best thing I can give my inner child,” said one parent, to which Kira responded, “Exactly! “She knows the limits and feels safe to express herself.”
“You're a great mom, keep making pivotal memories,” another user said.
Meanwhile, many parents suggested purchasing a peel-and-stick chalkboard or wallpaper, so that it would come off without damaging the wall of Kira's rental house. In a follow-up post, she shared pictures of her clean hardwood floor with no crayon marks in sight.
“For everyone who panicked with my last post, the floor is clean and took a full minute to mop,” Kira said in the clip. “Oh yeah, and my two-year-old son is the one who cleaned it up.”
speaking to The independent, The TikToker explained that letting her daughter draw on the floor allows her to experience certain freedoms she wanted to have as a child. “When she was a child, she had a father who said no to everything and she would get angry if we wanted to do something; actually, that wasn't exactly how they wanted it,” Kira said.
“I thought it was a nice moment that my daughter just wanted to hang out with me and draw on the floor while I made dinner. She made me feel good to be able to give her a safe space when that's not something I always had growing up.”
For Kira, healing your “inner child” means giving your little one a safe space where they can explore themselves. “I think she's creating an environment where she's not afraid to be herself and push boundaries and try new things,” the mother of one said. “Then I engage with her and it makes me feel, 'Okay, now I'm in a safe space too.'
“I feel like I'm getting a part of my childhood that I didn't have all the time,” he added.
Still, Kira was “a little” surprised by the handful of negative comments she received from users, who claimed her parenting technique was too messy. She explained that her daughter had asked permission to draw on the floor and, when she was finished, Kira had taught her how to clean up after her.
“I was a little surprised that people got so angry about it, like I destroyed the floor or I was teaching them how to destroy. He has never tried it anywhere else other than this house,” Kira clarified.
Despite the criticism, she believes TikTok users responded “out of fear” to her video, because they may not understand how some people parent differently than others. “We all parent differently, even if it feels a little strange to you,” Kira said. “I think people get very critical, especially on social media.”
However, Kira urged other parents to “keep an open mind” when it comes to new or different parenting techniques.
“It doesn't have to be the same for everyone, and she doesn't have to grow up the same way you grew up. I think it is important to break that generational trauma that many people have, changing the way they raise their children,” Kira said. “If you didn't like the way you were raised, you can change it.”
