It’s important not to put your kids in a box, they say, but try telling that to this mother.
One mom on TikTok revealed that she puts her kids in a literal cardboard box when she needs them to stop bothering her so she can tidy up the house.
While some parents are fans, others simply can’t believe it.
Gabrielle Dunn has gone viral for the “hack” in a video that now has more than 10.9 million views. The idea was first started by user @abbyfranco6, whose video Dunn had duetted.
The beginning of the 30-second clip shows Franco’s child sitting in a box, coloring on it with markers.
“This buys me 30 min of unbothered cleaning,” the text over the original video read.
Dunn then cuts to a clip of herself going outside to find a cardboard box of her own — and plops her two children inside, along with a big box of crayons.
After seeing another mom’s video, Gabrielle Dunn found a box that she had taken outside and decided to try it out for herself. TikTok/mrs.gabidunnWhile her two kids played, she vacuumed beside them, with the song “Gangsta’s Paradise (Feat L.V.)” by Coolio and Kylian Mash playing over the top of the video.
“PURE GENIUS,” Dunn wrote in the caption of her TikTok. “Glad we hadn’t broken the box down yet!!”
The Post reached out to Dunn for comment.
One mom on TikTok said that she puts her kids in a box when she cleans, as she was inspired by another user on the app. TikTok/mrs.gabidunnHowever, while some agreed that the hack was, in fact, “genius,” others slammed her for even daring to do such a thing.
“You are just teaching them how to draw on the walls,” one viewer commented.
Another agreed, writing, “My paranoia could not let me do anything else while I watch the kiddos to make sure they don’t put the small broken pieces of crayon in their mouth 😬.”
The original video was made by TikToker @abbyfranco6, who put her kid in a box with markers. TikTok/mrs.gabidunn
Some users slammed her for the parenting hack, with one person writing, “You are just teaching them how to draw on the walls.” TikTok/mrs.gabidunn“Saying ‘I’m proud of my ingenuity’ without saying ‘i’m proud of my ingenuity,'” someone else typed.
Other parents praised the mom for her cleaning strategy.
“OMG THIS IS AMAZING!!!” one viewer exclaimed. “My little girl is an absolute nightmare with crayons, pencils etc & wants to draw everywhere!! I know what I’m away to go get!!”
Another labeled the idea as a “modern playpen!”
“My mom used a playpen in the 1960s for us little ones to keep us occupied and safe,” they wrote.
“OMG THIS IS AMAZING!!!” one viewer exclaimed. “My little girl is an absolute nightmare with crayons, pencils etc & wants to draw everywhere!! I know what I’m away to go get!!” TikTok/mrs.gabidunnA second user concurred.
“This is brilliant. I wish we had had social media when I was a young mother. so many clever women out there!” they said.
