Mom brilliantly teaches her daughter kindness in viral morning hairstyle videos

Life for parents with young children is busy, busy, busy.

You have a lot of great ideas about what you want to teach your children, what wisdom you would like to pass on.

But in reality, you spend most of your time figuring out what they're going to have for dinner, doing the dishes, and folding laundry.

When should you actually find the time, you know? parent?

A mom has turned her morning hairdo into a precious time and put it online for everyone to enjoy and learn from.

Carmen Veal posted a series of videos on her Instagram titled “Mornings with Maddie.”

On the surface, the videos show a mother doing her daughter's hair – brushing, braiding, whatever. There are styling tips for curly hair and lots of homage to Maddie's biracial flair.

But the reason people keep flocking to these videos runs much deeper.

In the sweet moments, Carmen is styling her daughter's hair for the day while they just… talk! There is so much joy and affection in these moments that you can't help but cheer up watching the two interact.

Carmen sometimes brings in a lesson or two or a topic to discuss. In a video, Carmen and Maddie talk about the difference between being nice and friendly.

“[Nice] “means being nice by talking about nice things,” Maddie explains, while “friendly” means… “um, hugging people.”

Mom gives a few more examples, but let's be honest, Maddie nailed it.

Carmen Kalbfleisch/Instagram

In another video, Carmen talks to Maddie about her newfound viral fame – after one of her morning videos racked up a whopping 2 million views.

Maddie's face lights up as her mother tells her how many people admire her.

“Our videos inspire people to be nicer, well, not nicer. “Nice is not as good as friendly, you know that, right?” Carmen says. “It inspires people to be kinder to themselves and others.”

What does Carmen herself think about the massive response?

“The response to the videos was overwhelming in the best possible way,” says Carmen. “People from all over the world have expressed to us how they have found joy, comfort and inspiration in our morning moments. It’s humbling to see how something so personal had such a far-reaching impact.”

“At the heart of Mornings with Maddie is the desire to show that kind and purposeful parenting can create deep connections. I hope viewers walk away with a sense of peace and inspiration knowing that small, consistent acts of love and care can create a world of difference.”

“Mornings with Maddie” makes me think of how special the seemingly mundane moments with our children really are.

The regular “Instagram highlights” of Disney World vacations, pumpkin patches, and other special experiences are memorable, but it's the smaller things that are even more meaningful.

In particular, positive rituals and routines (like getting your hair done in the morning) help children develop self-regulation skills, strong self-confidence and better long-term mental health. It is repetition that drives this positive change over time.

“The joy that families experience through shared rituals can leave an 'emotional residue' that children retain to cope in stressful times,” writes Dr. Erika Bocknek from Zero to Thrive. “When times are uncertain and children feel worry or sadness, rituals provide an inner sense that they are not alone and provide a balance between positive and negative experiences in their lives.”

The Instagram views and media coverage will die down, but Maddie will undoubtedly remember these moments with her mother forever. And millions of people will be inspired to make the most of the little time we have with our children.