There are all kinds of parents out there. Anywhere you go, you can find good ones, bad ones, and just plain terrible ones. The apparent exception to this rule, however, is Walmart. This is the one place where you will not only find falling prices, but also a disproportionate amount of parents falling on the job. Perhaps it is the attraction of massive discounts or being able to get your food shop, shoe polish, and your own casket all in one place, but something draws the worst of America through those glass double doors. Of course, there are wonderful parents that shop at Walmart as well, but they don't merit their own hashtag like the bad ones have.
Though most of the Walmart shaming image relate to people not wearing pants or staining their pants, there is a good deal of shots that capture parents at their worst. To help you just see the best of these, without having to see the worst of these (read, lots of naked bottoms!), we have complied 10 great parenting fails at Walmart for your viewing pleasure. Some are funny, and some are just plain sad. But, I guess that is Walmart for you, some great deals mixed in with some stuff that is so gross, it'll make you cry!
11 Preparing for COVID-19 Years in Advance
Long before COVID-19 was a thing, this woman was apparently preparing her child for a future pandemic. Plastic bags clearly state that they are not to be used as toys, but they do not say anything about being used as headgear, so you can see why she was confused. Now, this is kid is like, "I'll happily wear a mask, sure beats the plastic bag my mom used to make me wear in public!"
10 Who Needs a Dog?!?
Who needs a dog when you can walk your kid?! I can only imagine that, like a dog, this kid licked his hand immediately following crawling all over the Walmart floor. The thought of ingesting all those germs and general yuckiness makes me throw up a little in my mouth.
9 I Know We Don't Want Them to Grow Up, But...
My guess is that the only thing that would make lugging anyone this size in a front carrier is if they were a flight risk when in public. Good thing Walmart also sells back braces. She is going to need one after that!
8 That's One Way to Travel
This parent has a plan. Older kid pushes the cart while younger kids mops the floor. As you can see from his bare feet that is one dirty floor. I'm sure the staff at Walmart appreciated the effort!
7 Mom Fail or Mom Win?
I can't actually tell if this is a mom fail or a mom win? I mean, on the one hand, maybe that kid is not exactly old enough to push a cart properly –especially one that contains his younger sibling. On the other hand, that mom may just be a genius.
6 Where is Waldo –Kid Edition
Once you spot the child, you soon realize that nowhere in the picture is a parent. Also, there appears to be another lone kid who got out of having to be packed like sardines in the cart. Hopefully this parent was scoping out where the checkout was and not making a purchase in the large electronic aisle! "Honey, I'll just lay this TV right here over your head..."
5 Keep Your Enemies Close
I guess this parent wasn't up for the front carrier like our other parent pictured previously. Instead, they went for the handcuff approach for keeping their kid close by. The only question that remains is if/why she has those in her purse? Or, it is Walmart afterall, maybe she conveniently grabbed them in the "police supplies" section!
4 This Grandma Just Gave Up
We have all been there. That point at which you say, "Fine, just do what you want." Only this kid looks like he just gave up as well. Hopefully, all the soda Grandma is buying perked them all back up once they got home!
3 Can I Get a Price Check?!
Ok, so it may look amazingly fun as a child to take a ride on the check out belt, but it is our job as parents to tell them "no." So, this parent either tried and failed at keeping her kid off the belt, just plain gave up, or doesn't even realize that he is there. In any case, it is the type of parenting fail that we only see at Walmart!
2 This Looks Like a Terrible Idea
One of the joys of having grandkids is when they are old enough to help you out with the things you can no longer do as you get older. I guess this grandpa took that idea to an extreme by putting this kid in real danger for the sake of some kind of packaged food item. Hopefully the child is safe and grandpa learned a hard lesson about social media shaming.
1 Walmart Fail in Training
This kid is in early training to be a future Walmart Parenting Fail Instagram star. With no shoes on his feet and no pants over his tush, he fits right in! I'm assuming he is peeing and just adding to the fun for all the kids pictured in our earlier parenting fails above, who were crawling and sliding across that floor.