Mom's Viral Video About Millennial vs. Boomer Parenting Is Hilarious — And Offers An Important Truth

A viral video that comically portrays a millennial daughter teaching her boomer mother about today’s parenting practices is resonating with parents and grandparents alike. The tongue-in-cheek video has been viewed more than 21 million times and counting since it was posted on Wednesday.

Comedian and writer Taylor Wolfe of @thedailytay Instagram account is the millennial mom in the video, with her mother, Sandy, playing the role of the boomer grandmother. In it, Wolfe corrects her mom again and again for saying seemingly innocuous phrases to her granddaughter — things like “Be careful,” “Stop hitting,” “I’m so proud of you,” “Hurry up” and “Watch out.”

But if you’re a millennial parent who spends time on social media, you’ve no doubt been inundated with Instagram posts and TikToks imploring you to avoid this language in favor of“gentler” alternatives, lest you damage your child.

In one scene, grandma tells the child to “be careful” while they’re playing outside. Wolfe butts in to say, “We don’t say ‘Be careful’ anymore. Instead say, ‘Whats your plan here?’” To which grandma shoots back an exasperated: “I don’t even know my plan. Do you know your plan?”

The idea for the video came about when grandma was visiting for a week to help with the kids, ages 1 and 3½, Wolfe said.

“What inspired me is knowing she was going to come out here and there would be things that we obviously disagree with. Parenting has changed a bit,” Wolfe, author of the book “Birdie & Harlow,” told HuffPost.

“But I don’t really say those things to my mom, obviously. Sometimes, internally, I think them because I’ve watched too many of those [social media] videos.”

Parents today have access to so much more information about how to raise kids than