Mom sparks debate after making son take her on dates
If we don’t teach our boys how to treat women, who will? Melissa Ann Marie hopes the outings with her 12-year-old son will help him be a breath of fresh air to any woman he dates in the future.
A woman's decision to pay her son to take her on "dates" has been met with admiration and criticism.
Melissa Ann Marie and her 12-year-old son go on monthly dates together, which he plans from start to finish. She gives him $50 (R870) for the outings.
The 31-year-old single mom says she heard about the idea from another 'boy mom'.
"We've done this a handful of times now. We always have the best time with it! Basically, you give them an allowance ($50), and they take you out on a date," she captioned a video of one of their dates.
Melissa adds that she wants her son to learn to be thoughtful and creative when planning his own dates when he starts dating.
"The idea is you are prepping them for how to take a girl out on a date in the future so they aren’t completely lost when the time comes. So, you help them along the way with how to plan and execute a date and you teach them basic etiquette and manners."
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However, that's not the only thing she is teaching him on the dates. She shares several things her son learned on their latest date:
- to open the doors for his date
- not to walk ahead of his date
- pay attention to their preferences with things (ask where they want to sit in the movies — not just where YOU want)
- pulled their chair at a dinner table
- learned how to give a waiter a non-verbal cue and signal for the check
- learned how to pay for everything all on his own
- to get creative and thoughtful with not a lot of money to spend
Melissa and her son watched a movie, went out to eat, and visited a Boba shop on their date. He ended up spending $43 in total.
Melissa's post has been watched over eight-million times on Instagram and received more than 500,000 likes. Reality stars Kourtney Kardashian and Khloe Kardashian also gave the video a thumbs up.
Many social media users think her mom-son dates are a fantastic idea, saying he is learning valuable life lessons while spending quality time with his mother.
"That is so sweet. Along with manners, He’s learning how to plan, budget and communicate with people in the service industry the right way," one Instagram user wrote.
Another woman added, "I used to do this with my boys every other week. Now they are 18 and 15.5 with girlfriends who they are SO good to. One time my youngest showed up with a bag full of loose change and dollar bills to treat me to a pazookie at BJ’s - he was 7."
A third person commented, "This is beautiful and as a single mom I love these ideas! Please keep sharing even though people are commenting mean things. They just don’t get it."
Despite an overwhelming amount of positive feedback, some people felt the idea was weird. "Got real hot for your son. Kinda weird," one man wrote.
"He is going to be a playaaaarrr," another person said.
"Why do we call it a date? It's so nasty. Dating is for the purpose of marriage. It isn't, but it sounds like grooming. Just say, 'I give him $50 and gets to take me out to do something fun that he chooses.' Dating your kid. Yikes," one woman commented.
Melissa shared a follow-up post after her video went viral. She says she wants her son to "be a breath of fresh air to any woman he dates".
"My entire goal of that practice is to raise my son in a way where he respects women, makes them feel safe, and can be thoughtful, creative, and receptive. And to learn basic skills like planning budgeting. Things that are not taught in school, and even if they were, I would be teaching him," she wrote.
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Main image credit: Instagram/Melissa Ann Marie