Taylor, a mother and nursing student who goes by @craveslim on social media, was alarmed after discovering that her son’s Christmas photo had gone viral for the wrong reasons.
In a TikTok video, Taylor said he was disappointed that his 5-year-old son’s father and stepmother failed to get him matching pajamas for their family holiday pictures. The pictures have since gone viral, amassing more than 59 million views on a social media post.
The mother said she shared the professional images on Facebook and was baffled to find her son, Trü, in last year’s pajamas while his father, stepmother, and two children were all dressed in identical pajamas.
“I sent those from home,” Taylor said of Trü’s pajamas in the video. “They are something to sleep in, not take professional photos in. My son could have [at] least got a fresh new set of pajamas.”
Taylor told People that she learned about the pictures on Christmas Day after her ex texted her the pictures, which had been taken on December 21.
In one family portrait, four members pose beside a tree in festive green pajamas, while Trü wears a black set with the words “Christmas Crew” on top.
Taylor said in a second video, “My whole problem with this whole situation is that my son did not match everybody else, and I feel like the pictures were already booked on dad’s free weekend. Dad was already not supposed to have my kid. My kid was never supposed to be there. Therefore, my kid was never part of the plan. I feel like dad should have just left my son at home with me, and all of this would have been avoided.”
But she said she doesn’t blame her son’s stepmother, saying, “The blame was never on the girlfriend. I never pointed a finger at her, but once my post started getting a lot of views and stuff, that’s when she made her post, and she felt like I was attacking her, but I never attacked her. The internet blamed her. Let’s just get that straight.”
The disappointed mom continued, “I’ve always blamed dad from jump.”
Taylor recounted that when she asked her son how he felt about not matching with his family, he said, “Not good.”
Still, the young mother was determined not to let the photo incident ruin her son’s visit. She spoiled him with lavish activities like watching movies and sipping hot chocolate, as well as wearing matching pajamas.
“He really enjoyed his Christmas,” she told People.
Meanwhile, when Riya Lee, Trü’s stepmother, uploaded the family photos on Facebook on December 25, she was immediately accused of excluding Trü. In a later post, she stated that she “very much didn’t leave him out” of the photo shoot.
Lee explained that the rest of the family had already set out their pajamas, and the boy’s father “couldn’t find” any matching ones for him. Though “it was too late because our shoot was literally mins away,” she said that she was uncomfortable with Trü’s outfit.
Lee added that she was unaware that Trü would be taking part in the photo session.
