Stephanie and Nick McArthur were caught off guard during parent-teacher conferences when their daughter’s teacher handed them a writing project that was meant to showcase how much their 7-year-old, Gwen, had improved over the semester.
The St. Louis–based parents of three were eager to read the nonfiction assignment—until they realized what Gwen had chosen as her topic.
“I was really confused when I read the first line,” Stephanie, 40, says. “Then I mostly thought it was funny, but part of me was like, of all the things I’ve taken my kids to do, she picked the one night I went out with friends?” After some reflection, Stephanie came to see it differently. “I realized it was actually a compliment that my leaving for a few hours was such a big deal to her.”
In a video that later went viral on Instagram, Stephanie shared Gwen’s essay, titled The Big Night. The piece opens dramatically, with Gwen addressing her readers directly.
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“Has your mom ever left? Well, mine has. Let me tell you about that,” Stephanie reads aloud in the clip, flipping through the pages of her daughter’s project. She quickly clarifies that she didn’t actually leave her family behind—she simply went out to dinner with friends for one evening and came home afterward.
In the essay, Gwen describes the night her mom went out while she and her siblings stayed home with their dad. According to Stephanie, the kids had a perfectly enjoyable evening, complete with a movie, dinner, and milkshakes. Still, Gwen ended her story by writing that she was “shocked that mom was FINALLY home” when she woke up the next day.
In the caption accompanying the video, Stephanie leaned into how relatable the moment is for other parents. “Just in case anyone was wondering how easy it is for moms to go have fun alone for 3 hours,” she wrote, encouraging others to share it with someone who would understand.
The response was immediate. Parents—especially moms—flooded the comments with their own stories, laughing and bonding over similar experiences. Stephanie says she’s been overwhelmed by how many people connected with her daughter’s essay.
“I’ve absolutely loved hearing the hilarious stories from other people and connecting over this shared phenomenon of our kids thinking we’ve ‘abandoned’ them when we leave for a few hours,” she says.
She adds that it’s been surprisingly comforting to realize how common these feelings are. “Some people have said their kids still try to guilt them about the time they were ‘away’ giving birth to a sibling,” she laughs. “It’s reassuring to know other moms are living the same life.”
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Looking back on the assignment, Stephanie—who is also mom to 10-year-old Clayton and 3-year-old Penelope—admits she was surprised the night out left such a strong impression on Gwen. At first, she couldn’t even remember which evening her daughter was referring to, a detail that many commenters joked was proof she should go out more often.
“I was very surprised that it made such an impression on her,” she says. “Maybe I do need to go out more, but as moms it’s always such a struggle—logistically and emotionally, apparently.”
She believes the moment stood out because it’s rare for her to go out alone. “Usually, when I go out, my husband is with me. I’m not worried about attachment issues—it’s just a stage of life when you’re with your family all the time,” she explains. “And honestly, I’m savoring it while my kids still want to hang out with me.”
