If you've ever been in possession of a clingy toddler, you'll know that it's next to impossible to get anything done. Bathroom break on your own? Forget it. Quick dash into the kitchen to make a cup of tea? Dream on, lady. They don't call them 'Velcro babies' for no reason.
One Chilean mum, currently in the thick of this rather challenging parenting stage, devised a genius method to ensure that bub's need for mum's proximity and mum's need for freedom of moment, are both met.
No, your eyes are not deceiving you. That's a teddy bear, in a pair of jeans and what looks like ugg boots.
In a post to the online community
MaterniDarks, the very creative mum writes, "My baby is at the stage that if I walk away he starts crying ... he doesn't want me to hold him or play with him, he just needs to feel like I'm sitting there."
Sounding familiar? The struggle is real.
The mum continues that her little one doesn't even look her in the eye - he simply wants his mama at arm's reach.
"I've gone to the bathroom several times!" our hero writes in the caption, alongside her "double".
The mum also shared that in devising her plan no details were spared. As you can see her feet are separated - she is all too aware that her little one likes playing between her legs.
Brilliant, no?
As it turns out, she's not the only one with a Dummy Mummy.
Take a look at this bedtime solution (which we're totally stealing.)
"I perfected the 'fake mom sleeping on the floor beside me,'" this photo is captioned.
Another shared her patting-to-sleep solution: a glove full of rice.
"This woman deserves wine, chocolate, a free babysitting covered night out on the town, a medal, and someone to cook and
clean her entire house for a day that's how brilliant this is!" one commenter wrote. "If I had thought of this with my kid when she was younger the hours of crying that I wouldn't have had to go through."
clean her entire house for a day that's how brilliant this is!" one commenter wrote. "If I had thought of this with my kid when she was younger the hours of crying that I wouldn't have had to go through."
Other commenters, however, expressed concern about the level of trauma the child would likely experience upon discovering the truth.
"How bad is that kid going to freak out when he discovers his mom has been sawed in half," said one mum, in a sentiment expressed by many.
A valid point, yes ...
Look, we're not saying it's foolproof - and it's certainly not something you'd do unless you were simply popping to the bathroom, but Stand-In Mummy is certainly an impressive solution to one of the most frustrating problems of parenthood. And if it facilitates peeing in peace, or making a cup of coffee to get through witching hour, we're all for it.