A teenage mum who couldn't find a babysitter for the night of her debs took her toddler as her date.
Melissa Mccabe, who got pregnant at the age of 14, describes her son as her "little blessing" and wanted him to "be a part" of her special day.
The teenager from Liverpool told the ECHO: "When prom came around, no one could really have him and I wanted him to be a part of my prom day. I ordered him a suit and took him with me. All of the teachers were saying how gorgeous he looked.
“It was honestly so cute having him with me and getting pictures taken together because we don’t really have any nice up-to-date pictures of us. He loved it and he particularly loved all the snacks!”
READ MORE: Tearful schoolgirl excluded from debs after buying €580 dress as gran €1k out of pocket
Melissa shared a video from her school leavers celebration on her TikTok account and the clip has already received almost 230,000 likes and a staggering 1.6 million views.
She explained: “I’ve had the odd couple of negative comments but I’ve also had messages off girls who are pregnant and are still in school and are worried about going back to school. I’ve mainly had loads of people being really supportive which is really nice because it's coming from people I don’t know.”
After discovering she was pregnant in the middle of lockdown, Melissa was inundated with negative comments about the impact of having a child so young. However, the former Ridgeway High School student is keen to break the stigma that surrounds being a teen mum.
Melissa said: "I had Arthur at 15. I’ve just sort of done it on my own really, with my brother and sister-in-law’s support.
“When I found out I was pregnant obviously I was really young. It was hard because everyone told me I was ruining my life and I wasn’t going to get my GCSEs (Junior Cert). So many people make comments when I’m out with him."
Despite the criticism that sometimes comes with being a teenage mum, Melissa was delighted with the supportive response she and Arthur received when they arrived for the school debs on June, 30.
“It was so nice because people who I don’t normally even speak to were coming up and saying how cute Arthur is and saying how proud they are of me.
"I couldn’t have asked for better support from my teachers at school. My deputy head and my form tutor especially have been so supportive throughout it all. They’re the people who’ve got me through the bad times being a mum," she said.
After completing her exams last month, Melissa has secured a place to study Health and Social Care at college in September. Although she is proud of what she's achieved as a teen mum, she is incredibly grateful for the help she's received from her brother and sister-in-law who have been a massive support since Arthur was born.
She told the ECHO: “I am proud of myself because when I found out I was pregnant I thought that was it. I was thinking I wouldn’t be able to go back to school but when I looked into it I realised there’s ways that you can do it. I’ve got my place in college in September so I’m looking forward to that.
"Especially considering Arthur only has one parent, I think I’ve done a good job. It has been difficult but I’ve managed to get through my exams. My brother and sister-in-law had him the night before my exams so I could revise. I wouldn’t have done as well if I didn’t have their support.
“Arthur is genuinely the most kind-hearted little boy. He loves everyone around him and he’s so spoiled.”
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