Viral trend that will help you survive the school holidays

People say they'll be relying on this in 2025 because it's "fun" and an "unconventional way of connecting."

Lauren Robinson

@L_Robinson96

2 min read

January 2, 2025 - 2:34PM

Parenting

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It’s only a few days into 2025, and a relatable new parenting trend is already upon us.

Parenting can be exhausting, but for one dad has found a solution that is as simple as lying down.

Literally.

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"We're bonding"

The trend draws comparisons to the once-viral “sittervising” strategy but involves a more hands-on approach than supervising from a distance.

Despite its growing popularity, not everyone is on board.

Critics have slammed the approach as “lazy,” but author Michelle Woo defends it, claiming it offers parents a much-needed mental health boost while still giving their children attention.

“It’s a really fun, unconventional way of connecting,” Michelle told the New York Post.

Image: elkeyzandstra/TikTok

"Genius!"

Parents have flooded TikTok with their own creative takes on horizontal parenting, sharing how they incorporate it into their own play time.

Elkey and William Zandstra has been among those to go viral with the trend.

Elkey and William Zandstra, parents to a 3-year-old and a 1-year-old, have gone viral with their “Car Massage T-shirt” game.

The activity keeps their kids entertained while dad gets a back massage. Win-win!

Footage of the game has gained well over one million views.

Commenters heaped praise onto the father’s genius idea.

“He somehow created an activity where you still did the work and he got a massage. Genius!” one commenter praised.

“Love it,” wrote another.

A third joked, “My kid would have started slamming the car into me.”

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Others reminisced about their own experiences.

“My dad would 'nap' by taking off his shirt, giving us markers, & laying down like this-for hours! It's literally one of my favourite memories,” reflected one.

“I used to babysit and played a game where I would pretend to be asleep and they needed to sneak up on me without waking me, trick was I actually was asleep.”

These school holidays just got a whole lot more horizontal!