Millennial dad compares modern parenting to the ’90s — and parents everywhere relate
Parenting looks very different today than it did in the past. Modern parenting is less about raising kids and more about being their full-time cruise director. This, for sure, is not a singular feeling as millennial parents across the world related to a video posted by Jack Skipper, who goes by @mrjackskipper on TikTok.
The 37-year-old millennial dad from the UK compared how kids were raised in the 1990s and how parents manage today. He argued, "When I was growing up in the '90s, you just did what your parents wanted to do." Half laughing, he added, “You just had to sort of follow them... and make your own entertainment.” For him, that meant long hours wandering behind his mom in clothing stores, helping her hunt for the right sizes. He stressed that it was "the closest [he] came to a scavenger hunt." And when his dad ran errands, even a trip to the dump felt like an outing. “That was a treat!” he joked.
“We’re always doing stuff,” Skipper summed, Newsweek reported. “When I was a kid, we only did special activities on birthdays.” Now, with soft play off the table ('unfortunately,' his kids have outgrown it), he’s turned to budget-friendly bonding like park walks, free playgrounds, and candid chats. “I try not to spoil them,” he adds. “It gives us a good opportunity to talk. But yeah, it’s nothing like my own childhood.” In the ’90s, family time often meant tagging along, whether you liked it or not. Today’s dual-income households and hyper-scheduled lifestyles mean that 'quality time' is carefully curated and kid-focused. “I’ve tried to integrate some of that parenting into what I do now, to show the kids there are different ways to have fun," he said.
Skipper realised this while brainstorming birthday ideas for his son, only to find that most of his 'special activity' options, trips to adventure playgrounds, themed hunts, or indoor soft play zones, had already become part of his kids' regular weekends. What began as a casual rant is now a full-blown social media moment, with over 368,000 views and hundreds of nostalgic comments.
Parents related to the viral video, with netizens narrating their own memories and observations. “Children these days need to learn how to be bored and make their own fun. They have no idea!” wrote @Giraffe18, while @Russ F recalled the agony of being stuck in a store while his mum chatted with a friend. He said, “When you’re with your mum in M&S and she stops to chat to her mate for 20 minutes and you’re dying inside.” Others noted how parenting has shifted out of a desire to rewrite their own childhood experiences. “Honestly, I think people are just trying to give their kids the childhood they wish they’d had,” argued @IG_fun_aunty. Meanwhile, @Emzz summed up the generational difference perfectly: “So true. I don’t remember ever asking my parents what we are doing today, ever. You just did whatever they were doing, that’s it.”
For more such videos, you can follow @mrjackskipper on TikTok!