Father brilliantly ends toddler's public tantrum in viral video

Terrel Crawford taught a lesson to his 3-year-old daughter Ari in a Walmart parking lot, and at the same time, he ended up educating parents all over the world. The father of four became a viral sensation and an inspiration to other fathers out there.

When Ari Crawford started to scream and cry while shopping with her parents at Walmart, her dad decided to discipline her without hitting, yelling or getting angry at the girl. Terrel took the toddler out of the store and sat her on the hood of their car as he waited patiently for her to calm down.

At the time, Crawford live-streamed the incident on Facebook, to show his followers how he deals with his kids’ tantrums in public. The man looked bored and undisturbed by his daughter’s wailing, and when she started to calm down, he told her:

“Are you done? You sound like you’re still whining to me. You gonna listen in the store? You gonna stop whining? You gonna stop screaming?”

He then proceeded to explain to his daughter, in a somewhat calming tone, that they weren’t going back into the store unless she halted “her mess.” Adding that, if they went back and she started to behave once again, they’ll be back in the parking lot in no time.

“We don’t have to walk around the store with your mom. That’s a privilege,” he stated.

The 29-year-old then proceeded to talk into the camera, addressing all those parents that have dealt with a screaming child at some point.

“See when you spoil the hell out of your kids this is what happens,” he said, referring to her tantrum, and continued:

“That’s our fault for being raised as ghetto kids and never having anything. But see people don’t know how to tell their kids no. I don’t care if you were born with a silver spoon in your mouth, do not put one in your child’s mouth because this is what happens.”

Crawford explained that the best way to punish kids these days is taking away what they love the most, iPads, games, batteries to controllers, tablets or any other form of entertainment, like walking in Walmart. Whooping or yelling, he said, does more harm than help in the long term.

In the end, Ari calmed down enough for the father-daughter duo to go back into the store, and she even shimmied her way into her father’s arms, causing a hilarious reaction from Crawford, who said everyone is bipolar, including his kids.

Before ending the video because Ari needed the bathroom, Terrel gave his final lesson to the viewers saying:

“I ain’t about argue with no three-year-old kid, no two-year-old kid, no damn kid. I’m the daddy. I’m grown.”

CHANGING THE RULES OF PARENTING AT A WHOLE FOODS STORE

In a similar situation of a child throwing a tantrum in public, actor Justin Baldoni, better known for “Jane the Virgin,” also took the best out of the situation to teach other parents a lesson about parenting.

The handsome actor took to Instagram to share a photo of him and his father standing in the middle of the store, looking at ease, while staring down at Justin’s daughter, who was face down in the floor in what looks like a severe meltdown as she presumably screamed and cried her heart out.

Baldoni said that the picture had become one of his favorite with him and his father, and proceeded to explain what went down, writing “I can only imagine how many times I did this when I was her age,” and continued:

“My dad taught me so much about what it means to be a man, but this post is about one thing and one thing only. Being comfortable in the uncomfortable. Something I grew him do with me over and over again.”

Justin explained that his father never limited him or his emotions, even if he was noisy in public, something that, he learned with time, helped with his emotional development. “I don't remember him ever saying "You're embarrassing me!" or "Don't cry!" he wrote. So, following his father’s example, that’s exactly what Justin did: let his daughter drain her emotions in the middle of a crowded store.

FEELINGS SHOULDN’T BE EMBARRASSING

The 34-year-old, who also gave a TED talk about men and their emotions late last year, also brought to light a harsh truth: the fact that expressing feelings is looked down upon in society. Kids are not embarrassed to show their emotions though, and they will cry, yell, and whine whenever they are if something is bothering them.

“Our children are learning and processing so much information, and they don't know what to do with all of these new feelings that come up,” he wrote. “I try to remember to make sure my daughter knows it's OK that she feels deeply.”

Baldoni believes that adults could learn a thing or two from children, by allowing themselves to feel and express their emotions. He concluded:

“If we got out everything we were feeling and allowed ourselves to throw tantrums and cry when we felt the need to then maybe we'd could also let ourselves feel more joy and happiness. And that is something this world could definitely use a little more of.”