Woman Continues To Enjoy Her Ice Cream In Peace As Entitled Mother Yells Profanities At Her For Not Sharing The Treat With Crying Toddler
Interview With Author
There is always something you’re looking forward to. The end of a long workday, the end of a lousy movie, the end of this article, or the sweet delight just inches away from your face. An ice cream—a gift from the gods! You feel the cold air against your lips, the scent of vanilla, the promise of the crunch of the cone, and then…
A child. Looking straight at your morsel of happiness, reaching their tiny hands toward it as if they’re drawn to it. The child, a mere stranger, may not be your worst enemy though; it’s their very entitled mother who believes that the ice cream is now the toddler’s rightful possession. This is the situation one person dealt with, describing it all in the subreddit r/AmIthe[Jerk].
A story full of twists, turns, satisfaction, and confusion. When Bored Panda reached out to cheesesandwitch96, who shared this story, the one thing she said about it all: “Be kind and civil but stand your ground if someone tries to cross your boundaries.”
Dear reader, I encourage you to stick around to the very end, leaving your opinions and potential ways to have solved this situation in the comments below. If by any chance you’re craving more afterward, here’s another article for you, sure to tickle your tastebuds. Now let’s get into it!
There’s nothing better than a cone of your favorite ice cream after a long and arduous day—that is until a toddler sets its gaze upon it
Image credits: Andrea Piacquadio (not the actual photo)
Vanilla. Chocolate. Orange. Cookie Dough. Cherry Swirl. Mint Choco Chip. These are some of the potential flavors that we’ve all grown up with. They’re nostalgic, they’re refreshing, they’re comforting after a breakup, or after a sad movie, or just in any situation of life that is challenging. The last thing we want to happen to this morsel is for it to be stolen by none other than a stranger.
You’re gonna prevent that from happening at all costs, especially when that bit of joy was something you’d been looking forward to for most of the day. One Redditor named cheesesandwitch96 detailed this sort of situation in the r/AmIthe[Jerk] subreddit, where she wondered whether she was in the wrong for how she acted.
One woman was unexpectedly placed under harsh scrutiny for not submitting her ice cream to a fussy toddler by the child’s mother. Here is the full story:
Although one is always taught to never take candy (or in this case ice cream) from a stranger, this didn’t seem to stop the mom demanding it from the woman
Image credits: Mahalaxmi Silwal (not the actual photo)
“Give it to my son and buy yourself a new one” are fighting words in my book. No one threatens my dessert and gets away with it! Now, to be the devil’s advocate, being a mother is no easy task. You will do anything it takes for your child to be healthy, happy, and content, even if that means asking strangers for their snacks.
The pressure and the social stigma, especially when it comes to the child crying in public, could drive the best of us to make some interesting choices in our lives. However, there is asking for help and there is demanding it.
Had the mother asked the stranger with some kindness if she could go to the shop and get her child a similar treat that she’d pay for afterward, I’m sure the original poster (OP) would have complied and we would not be speaking about this at all. You’d be off looking at a list of cats or something… But that ain’t the case now, is it?
Knowing what to do in said situations isn’t as ingrained in our minds as the fact that the mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell. Are you to do all it takes to fulfill the toddler’s wishes and help out a mother? They say that it takes a village for a reason… Or should you act the same way as this woman did? Let’s continue with the story.
Image credits: cheesesandwitch96
The mother didn’t continue to berate the woman for the rest of their trip; however, it did leave her wondering whether she was in the wrong for her actions
Image credits: Liana_Kyle (not the actual photo)
One should strive to lead their life with kindness and grace, yet one can also argue that being allowed to be spoken down to and reduced to a mere pawn of entertainment and wish-fulfillment to a random child is an unkind act to oneself. We should never allow disrespectful people to make us act in ways that only benefit them.
In my eyes, the OP did nothing wrong in this situation. The child should not be blamed for wanting the ice cream, yet the mother, if she ever gets the chance to look at this situation from the side and take it as a learning experience, should never have approached a stranger with a demanding and entitled attitude, let alone berate them when she wasn’t getting her way.
It’s understandable that she wanted to prevent a temper tantrum from her child. According to KidsHealth, tantrums are a normal part of child development and they’re how young children show that they’re upset or frustrated, most often over not getting something they want. Learning to deal with frustration is a skill that children gain over time.
Dr. Linda Rubinowitz, a marriage and family therapist at The Family Institute at Northwestern University, argues that the worst thing a parent can do when their child is having a tantrum is to react as violently as the child by yelling or through acts of physical violence.
Tactics such as bribing, begging, and giving in aren’t great either. “If you give in, you are rewarding the tantrum and ensuring that it will happen again and again,” says Dr. Rubinowitz. Kids need to know that “no” means “no,” even if they are upset about it. However, it is important to make it clear that while their feelings are OK, hurting others or themselves is not.
So, getting back to this situation, one thing is for certain—parenting is hard. Although the mother may have been tired from wandering the city for the full day and didn’t want another thing to add to her plate, shoving her problems onto another in such a rude way was definitely uncalled for, and it’s good that the OP decided to ignore the berating comments, rather than lashing back.
But let us know your thoughts on this! Do you agree with what happened? What would you have done differently? Write all your opinions down in the comments section below, and I shall wish you a much more calm day or evening than this person had to deal with. Adios!
People online have unequivocally agreed that she was right to have acted the way she did. Do you agree? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!
wtf? "It takes a village..." Nope. Your kids, your choice, but not my responsibility in any way, shape, or form.
It is my descision to be child free. If you want your kid to be my responsibility you have to be sure that I know you, like you and like your kid. I can be a part of a village but I don't want to be included in a random strangers village
I had 5 children in 7 yrs & never in my life would I expect, let alone demand, a stranger give them their food. What species of toadstool do these people squat under?! ...for F's sake!
Right. I'd be happy to make the walk for them if they asked nicely and gave me the money. Otherwise I'm going to make them reconsider the hardest way I know how. By telling them how many diseases I might have that could seriously harm their child for the rest of his life.
EXACTLY. But I ain't walking for them either. 5 kids all grown now. World Travelers. NEVER, EVER asked anyone to do anything for or to my children except those I paid like a daycare.
That just reminded me of Batman laughing when Diana and Clark asked him to be the child's guardian if anything happened to them. Of course he was honored, but then he realized how powerful the child was going to be...be very careful who you want in your village.
"it takes a village" means neighbors that know each other help out SOMETIMES. Like if a neighbor's kid goes missing, then, hell yeah, we're going to do what we can for said neighbor as well as the kid. But not a stranger's ice cream. That's extremely tacky.
Beyond tacky. It os reckless and nasty.
That phrase has more to do with all the positive influences in the kids life that help them to be a better human. This is more of a "I demand that this village bow to the whims of my toddler."
I mean even in a "village" situation you wouldn't cave to a tantrum, that just teaches them that tantrums are how you get what you want. There's been times I was going to give my daughter something but because she threw a tantrum before she got it, the yes suddenly became a no. It's an important lesson for the kid and for the sanity of the adult. (And a "village" situation would be saying, I'll keep an eye on him while you stand in lines, as these were two strangers and not friends that doesn't really work.)
It does take a village... to teach kids that just because they want it doesn't mean they get it. EM (entitled mother) didn't get that lesson.
It takes a village means when I wiped out hard on my bike in front of their house (and they were home and heard) they helped me get home or called my mom to tell her while comforting me, maybe even helped patch me up first depending on how bad it was and how young I was. It's everyone driving slowly through our dead ends in cul de sac neighborhood because they knew it was likely some of us were running around playing. It's how the 10 years older kids were so good with the younger kids we'd genuinely think they were our friends, and all the (always paid) babysitting that was done, and that I also did when I was older. It meant at block parties/superbowl parties everyone would keep an eye on the kids, and take turns entertaining us. It meant during power outages in the winter our older neighbor who had a fireplace and a generator gave my parents (and others) with two young kids a blanket invite to stay the night of our house got too cold. What we didn't do was demand any of these things
It does take a village and honestly in this moment he learned that day. It was on the mom to teach him, but I bet he remembers not to demand strangers ice cream again if he doesn’t want to end up disappointed
The saying that it takes a village to raise child hardly implies that toddlers get to take ice cream from strangers.
The thing about a village is, historically, villages are extended family or close knit community. This was a stranger. I feel sorry for the kid
Well, people are social creatures. Humans have always depended on others for help in child rearing (look at tribal groups). Today, you pay taxes into the public education, (I'll admit poor K-12 education in the U.S. that needs some huge overhaul) as an investment for a future workforce. Everyone does have a role to play in living a society. However, a demanding Mom expect a stranger to give up her ice cream. However, the OP also inadvertently taught the toddler that he will not always get his way because he "wants" something. Unfortunately, it's not going to be a consistent learning experience with Mom's entitlement and laziness. Indirectly, kids are everyone's responsibility as they can not care and fend for themselves, especially when you have lousy parents. It does take a village, because the child needs to learn from others outside their caregivers. But, yes, that phrase does not mean to demand things from strangers.
Apologies for grammar errors, was going to edit over phone.
Every child predator looks for the kid that will walk away with them for an ice cream or piece of candy. THE VILLAGE is like minded people but in every village are those everyone knows to steer clear of. ASK for treats from friends. NOT strangers.
In this case the village teaches the child it can't always get what it wants.
Every village has the town curmudgeon. Steer clear of them. Hi. I am THAT person.
It does take a village, but not in this sense. It's more along the lines of....when you see someone else's kids messing up when they are unsupervised, you call them out as if they were your own kid. That's how it was when I was little. It does NOT mean that every parent has to spoil everyone else's child in an unhealthy way.
It takes a village, but the village has to conset
*consent
I just can't believe any parent would be like that,Never come across anything like it in all my 53 years .Where do these people exist??
In the world of AITA creative writing
Could be, but man - the things I’ve seen through my life… This could very well have happened. I wish it wasn’t so, but it really could have.
I mean if you can't imagine a real person doing this, try working in retail for a year you'll get plenty of experience with crazy outlandish demands. :S about 1:30 people is some type of sociopath, and to them everybody else is just NPCs so that's why they then expect you to do whatever they want even when it's weird.
Anytime you deal with the public you see the worst of people. I worked in retail while going to school. To this day I avoid sales or any event where there is going to be a larger number of people.
This could be fake, but it's simpler to assume it's not. I've seen worse. There's no reason it can't be true.
It really is a genre all of it's own.
I would tell them I don't want to share my i.c or my germs. The mom has no idea if you have a cold etc
Lol. They exist in real life too.
I'm guessing you have an office job that doesn't require you to interact with the general public. Anyone in retail or education knows that entitled children and their entitled parents are extremely common.
You know I was thinking about that... Reddit's Creative Karma Writing at its finest...
Word to that 🤣
That’s what I was thinking.
As a life-long teacher, I can affirm that they're out there in real life. One school year the enrollment at our private school went up. The good news: getting to know 75 more students. The bad news: getting to know 150 more parents.
It's getting more and more common. I'm going to sound 70 and not 35 here but parents aren't parenting anymore, they are friending. Every time i go to store someone is letting their squalling brat echo off the ceiling while giving a "isn't that cute" smile to everyone in vicinity. Mine are teens now but when i brought the babes to store i brought snacks to keep them quiet. Daughter threw a tantrum once and i gave my cart to an employee, apologized and left the store. Noone should have to endure someone else's children in public!
Then you are not looking hard enough. These entitled parents and thier brats are everywhere
I saw a father force a waiter to bend down and apologize to his son for some minor thing--these people exist
IDGAF who they are they aren't forcing me to bow to anyone. That father would have received my knee to the side of his fucken head. Doesn't matter the perceived insult no one HAS that right.
Having worked with the public for 40 of my 54 years on this Earth, I can assure you this behavior has become very commonplace in the last couple decades. Since the participation award kids have become parents, they believe their children should be given everything they want.
I've seen people that entitled. I believe it.
Personally, if mum there demanded that of me, I'd bite a chunk of the ice cream (and bear with the brain freeze) just to spite her even more and rub it in her face (sorry, all these tales of entitlement have pretty much turned me into a monster). NTA by miles. Mum needs to get off her entitled behind and buy her kid the ice cream if he wants it that bad.
Look mom in the eye while licking the ice cream then saying on that's so yummy OMG I love ice cream this is the best.
Tell the kid "if your mom really loved you, she'd go get you some"
Love it
Ok, now "poking a bear" is one thing, while poking a Moma Bear is quite the other,
Me too
Loved your take on this by looking at some pest while licking her ice cream. Once had a good friend that was a great person who would do stuff like this; she kind of looked like Goldie Hawn and was a bit of an "Imp" and when people tended to stare at her she would always come up with some "Daffy" move which I know had to short circuit a fuse somewhere in their brain, LOL.
So u r proud to bully a toddler?
It is life affirming. NOT everyone will kiss their butts. Let the lessons start early..a toddler trying to take ice cream is bullying too FYI, as a mother of 5. I HAVE no problems bullying a toddler or their self entitled mummy. Beware.
No one said anything about the toddler. They were talking about the mum.
I'd go and get a second ice cream, for myself
I'd go out and buy another and eat that too.
As an a.hole. I would have threw it in the trash. Bought another one and then eat it obnoxiously loud.
While licking it slowly, saying, omg, I've never had such an amazing ice cream cone!!
I get it, but petty vitriol only makes the situation worse. I wish people would stop worrying about being "within their rights" and start caring about human decency again...
Please kids and their parents must learn they are NOT the sun and the rest of us DO NOT revolve around them. I like the stare to the face, eating double cones and telling the toddler if his mummy loved him she would buy him an ice cream. Gonna employ all suggestions at the first opportunity.
Love this!
YES! I totally agree you.
Mom is wrong but why does her child have to suffer! I would have offered something else No way I could listen to a child cry and be smug to show mom it's MY ice cream
Discipline cannot be invoked without trial. The kid must learn or they will be self entitled twits later..lessons on planet earth are for everyone.
It's not about the child's suffering. I have four sons and I often did outings with them on my own. I was always prepared and if I did forget something or run out I would always have money on me to get what I need. I have never asked another to share nor did I expect they would, even other mothers with children. That being said, for all we know, the child was throwing a tantrum because he saw ice cream which means a substitution wouldn't have worked. Not giving into a child's tantrum is not making them suffer, it's teaching them they can't get what they want.
Well said. I don't believe in spiting a child because of the mother's ignorance and lack of judgment.
It builds character for both of them. I am working today with self entitled kids they are mostly lazy, weak cry babies and a nightmare. They all should have experienced the ice cream lesson. Multiple times and not experiencing it netted us a terrible , coddled. workforce.
It's not spiting the child. The child asked, was told no, and then threw a tantrum. The mother acted entitled and both were ignored. The OP did the right thing rather than call the mum out for entitlement.
So instead you believe in rewarding tempertantrums?
wtf? "It takes a village..." Nope. Your kids, your choice, but not my responsibility in any way, shape, or form.
It is my descision to be child free. If you want your kid to be my responsibility you have to be sure that I know you, like you and like your kid. I can be a part of a village but I don't want to be included in a random strangers village
I had 5 children in 7 yrs & never in my life would I expect, let alone demand, a stranger give them their food. What species of toadstool do these people squat under?! ...for F's sake!
Right. I'd be happy to make the walk for them if they asked nicely and gave me the money. Otherwise I'm going to make them reconsider the hardest way I know how. By telling them how many diseases I might have that could seriously harm their child for the rest of his life.
EXACTLY. But I ain't walking for them either. 5 kids all grown now. World Travelers. NEVER, EVER asked anyone to do anything for or to my children except those I paid like a daycare.
That just reminded me of Batman laughing when Diana and Clark asked him to be the child's guardian if anything happened to them. Of course he was honored, but then he realized how powerful the child was going to be...be very careful who you want in your village.
"it takes a village" means neighbors that know each other help out SOMETIMES. Like if a neighbor's kid goes missing, then, hell yeah, we're going to do what we can for said neighbor as well as the kid. But not a stranger's ice cream. That's extremely tacky.
Beyond tacky. It os reckless and nasty.
That phrase has more to do with all the positive influences in the kids life that help them to be a better human. This is more of a "I demand that this village bow to the whims of my toddler."
I mean even in a "village" situation you wouldn't cave to a tantrum, that just teaches them that tantrums are how you get what you want. There's been times I was going to give my daughter something but because she threw a tantrum before she got it, the yes suddenly became a no. It's an important lesson for the kid and for the sanity of the adult. (And a "village" situation would be saying, I'll keep an eye on him while you stand in lines, as these were two strangers and not friends that doesn't really work.)
It does take a village... to teach kids that just because they want it doesn't mean they get it. EM (entitled mother) didn't get that lesson.
It takes a village means when I wiped out hard on my bike in front of their house (and they were home and heard) they helped me get home or called my mom to tell her while comforting me, maybe even helped patch me up first depending on how bad it was and how young I was. It's everyone driving slowly through our dead ends in cul de sac neighborhood because they knew it was likely some of us were running around playing. It's how the 10 years older kids were so good with the younger kids we'd genuinely think they were our friends, and all the (always paid) babysitting that was done, and that I also did when I was older. It meant at block parties/superbowl parties everyone would keep an eye on the kids, and take turns entertaining us. It meant during power outages in the winter our older neighbor who had a fireplace and a generator gave my parents (and others) with two young kids a blanket invite to stay the night of our house got too cold. What we didn't do was demand any of these things
It does take a village and honestly in this moment he learned that day. It was on the mom to teach him, but I bet he remembers not to demand strangers ice cream again if he doesn’t want to end up disappointed
The saying that it takes a village to raise child hardly implies that toddlers get to take ice cream from strangers.
The thing about a village is, historically, villages are extended family or close knit community. This was a stranger. I feel sorry for the kid
Well, people are social creatures. Humans have always depended on others for help in child rearing (look at tribal groups). Today, you pay taxes into the public education, (I'll admit poor K-12 education in the U.S. that needs some huge overhaul) as an investment for a future workforce. Everyone does have a role to play in living a society. However, a demanding Mom expect a stranger to give up her ice cream. However, the OP also inadvertently taught the toddler that he will not always get his way because he "wants" something. Unfortunately, it's not going to be a consistent learning experience with Mom's entitlement and laziness. Indirectly, kids are everyone's responsibility as they can not care and fend for themselves, especially when you have lousy parents. It does take a village, because the child needs to learn from others outside their caregivers. But, yes, that phrase does not mean to demand things from strangers.
Apologies for grammar errors, was going to edit over phone.
Every child predator looks for the kid that will walk away with them for an ice cream or piece of candy. THE VILLAGE is like minded people but in every village are those everyone knows to steer clear of. ASK for treats from friends. NOT strangers.
In this case the village teaches the child it can't always get what it wants.
Every village has the town curmudgeon. Steer clear of them. Hi. I am THAT person.
It does take a village, but not in this sense. It's more along the lines of....when you see someone else's kids messing up when they are unsupervised, you call them out as if they were your own kid. That's how it was when I was little. It does NOT mean that every parent has to spoil everyone else's child in an unhealthy way.
It takes a village, but the village has to conset
*consent
I just can't believe any parent would be like that,Never come across anything like it in all my 53 years .Where do these people exist??
In the world of AITA creative writing
Could be, but man - the things I’ve seen through my life… This could very well have happened. I wish it wasn’t so, but it really could have.
I mean if you can't imagine a real person doing this, try working in retail for a year you'll get plenty of experience with crazy outlandish demands. :S about 1:30 people is some type of sociopath, and to them everybody else is just NPCs so that's why they then expect you to do whatever they want even when it's weird.
Anytime you deal with the public you see the worst of people. I worked in retail while going to school. To this day I avoid sales or any event where there is going to be a larger number of people.
This could be fake, but it's simpler to assume it's not. I've seen worse. There's no reason it can't be true.
It really is a genre all of it's own.
I would tell them I don't want to share my i.c or my germs. The mom has no idea if you have a cold etc
Lol. They exist in real life too.
I'm guessing you have an office job that doesn't require you to interact with the general public. Anyone in retail or education knows that entitled children and their entitled parents are extremely common.
You know I was thinking about that... Reddit's Creative Karma Writing at its finest...
Word to that 🤣
That’s what I was thinking.
As a life-long teacher, I can affirm that they're out there in real life. One school year the enrollment at our private school went up. The good news: getting to know 75 more students. The bad news: getting to know 150 more parents.
It's getting more and more common. I'm going to sound 70 and not 35 here but parents aren't parenting anymore, they are friending. Every time i go to store someone is letting their squalling brat echo off the ceiling while giving a "isn't that cute" smile to everyone in vicinity. Mine are teens now but when i brought the babes to store i brought snacks to keep them quiet. Daughter threw a tantrum once and i gave my cart to an employee, apologized and left the store. Noone should have to endure someone else's children in public!
Then you are not looking hard enough. These entitled parents and thier brats are everywhere
I saw a father force a waiter to bend down and apologize to his son for some minor thing--these people exist
IDGAF who they are they aren't forcing me to bow to anyone. That father would have received my knee to the side of his fucken head. Doesn't matter the perceived insult no one HAS that right.
Having worked with the public for 40 of my 54 years on this Earth, I can assure you this behavior has become very commonplace in the last couple decades. Since the participation award kids have become parents, they believe their children should be given everything they want.
I've seen people that entitled. I believe it.
Personally, if mum there demanded that of me, I'd bite a chunk of the ice cream (and bear with the brain freeze) just to spite her even more and rub it in her face (sorry, all these tales of entitlement have pretty much turned me into a monster). NTA by miles. Mum needs to get off her entitled behind and buy her kid the ice cream if he wants it that bad.
Look mom in the eye while licking the ice cream then saying on that's so yummy OMG I love ice cream this is the best.
Tell the kid "if your mom really loved you, she'd go get you some"
Love it
Ok, now "poking a bear" is one thing, while poking a Moma Bear is quite the other,
Me too
Loved your take on this by looking at some pest while licking her ice cream. Once had a good friend that was a great person who would do stuff like this; she kind of looked like Goldie Hawn and was a bit of an "Imp" and when people tended to stare at her she would always come up with some "Daffy" move which I know had to short circuit a fuse somewhere in their brain, LOL.