Moms Are Loving How Paris Hilton Responded To Heated Backlash Over A Car Seat TikTok

Paris Hilton is a mom of two under two, and anyone who has ever been in that situation will tell you that the learning curve is steep indeed. But Hilton learned something that many a mom has learned via social media: there’s a right way to have a child in a cars eat and if you don’t know it a small army of people who do are going to let you know about it. After posting a video on TikTok featuring her “Cutesie Crew” heading to Mother’s Day brunch, fans and followers were quick to point out her misstep in securing Phoenix, 1 and London, 6 months. But now she’s responded to the uproar.

“Taking the #CutesieCrew to #MothersDay brunch in my new #SlivingMom van,” she captioned a now-deleted video (that’s still available via other TikTok users who’ve stitched it). It showed the two little ones in what could only be referred to as a “ludicrously capacious” side by side in their car seats, facing forward. According to California law (and national best practice) a child must be rear-facing until they’re at least 2 years old, 40 inches, or 40 pounds. In fact, the Doona car seat (which Hilton was using) is only designed to be rear-facing. (Most car seats can be reversed once a child meets the criteria to face forward.)

“Oh my god this can’t be real,” commented one TikTok user on a video stitched by @paolamfebles.

“What was she thinking,” wrote another.

“After 16 months and 2 kids, she’s no longer a new mom and there’s absolutely no excuse on why she didn’t know basic car seat safety,” opined another. [My two cents: my kids are 12 and almost 10 and there are many, many days I still feel like a new mom...]

“RIGHT I SAW THIS AND WAS LIKE WHO THE HECK PUT THAT IN,” exclaimed another.

“She had more than 9 months to do basic research,” replied @paolamfebles.

According to reporting from The Daily Mail and other outlets, it would seem Hilton’s original video also garnered horrified responses of varying levels of politeness. Some were not hiding their disdain and judgment, but others just wanted to help a girl out and let her know. “Hey girl, you missed this day in Mommy School. Oh wait! There is no Mommy School so we’re all learning on the fly.”

And the heiress responded... frankly in the best way possible.

She posted another video, now with her littles appropriately rear-facing. “Thanks for the mom advice, I’m new to this☺️,” she wrote. “The #CutesieCrew is now ready for take off in the #SlivingMom van. ✨🚐👶🏼👶🏼💕”

Honestly, you love to see it. She could have just deleted the video and moved on, but she was able to take good advice from predominantly well-meaning people and thank them for bringing it to her attention. Not only that, but the comments in response were amazingly civil.

“I love that you showed you were vulnerable and not perfect and took the advice,” one fan commented. (“No one is perfect,” Hilton responded. “Love you.”)

“Thanks for being real with us,” wrote another. “Being a new mom is really hard and you’re doing great.”

As Hilton told Romper this past December, “I’m in my Mom Era. This is my best era yet.” And honestly, Paris, one mom to another, it’s an era jam-packed with learning and some humbling moments like this. So kudos for rolling with the punches, knowing better, and doing better.