Teen mum takes toddler son to prom after she 'couldn't find babysitter'

A teen mum became a viral sensation on TikTok after posting a video of her taking her toddler son to her school prom. Melissa Mccabe, from Tranmere, Merseyside, welcomed Arthur into the world in November 2020 when she was aged 15.

Despite the challenges of becoming a mother at a young age, Melissa regards her son as her "little blessing". And when her prom came around in June 2022, she was desperate for him to "be a part" of her big night.

The mum, who was 16 at the time, initially tried to find a babysitter for then-one-year-old Arthur, but she was not put off when she couldn't get someone, instead deciding to bring the tot with her, the Liverpool Echo reports.

She said: "When prom came around, no one could really have him and I wanted him to be a part of my prom day. I ordered him a suit and took him with me. All of the teachers were saying how gorgeous he looked.

"It was honestly so cute having him with me and getting pictures taken together because we don't really have any nice up-to-date pictures of us. He loved it and he particularly loved all the snacks!"

Melissa shared a video collage of pictures of her and Arthur in their gladrags, both at home and at prom. The clip, in which she describes her boy as her "biggest blessing", racked up hundreds of thousands of likes on TikTok and over 1.6million views.

Discussing the reaction to her video, she mentioned: "I've had the odd couple of negative comments but I've also had messages off girls who are pregnant and are still in school and are worried about going back to school. I've mainly had loads of people being really supportive which is really nice because it's coming from people I don't know."

After falling pregnant during lockdown, Melissa faced a barrage of negative remarks about the challenges of being a young mother. But she has always been determined to challenge the stereotypes associated with teen mothers.

Melissa said: "I had Arthur at 15. I've just sort of done it on my own really, with my brother and sister-in-law's support. When I found out I was pregnant, obviously I was really young. It was hard because everyone told me I was ruining my life and I wasn't going to get my GCSEs.

"So many people make comments when I'm out with him. Often people think he's my little brother and when I tell them he's mine their attitude completely changes. Older people especially find it disgusting because obviously their way was to get married first and then have kids."

Despite facing judgement as a teen mum, Melissa received an overwhelmingly positive reaction when she attended her prom with Arthur at Thornton Hall on June 30, 2022.

She expressed her gratitude, saying: "It was so nice because people who I don't normally even speak to were coming up and saying how cute Arthur is and saying how proud they are of me."

"I couldn't have asked for better support from my teachers at school. My deputy head and my form tutor especially have been so supportive throughout it all. They're the people who've got me through the bad times being a mum."

Melissa, who described Arthur as "the most kind-hearted little boy", welcomed another boy into the world in May this year when baby Finley was born. In an Instagram post announcing Finley's birth, she said he was "Arthur's best friend".

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