The TikTok highlighting the play space is captioned, “Can you guess who the family favorite is? #grandchild #babiesoftiktok #playtown #thisiswhatdreamsaremadeof.”
The viral clip shared by the baby’s mother has been viewed 16.8 million times and liked 3.3 million times since it was posted on March 15. The short 14-second video, shared by TikToker @hannahshanae, or Hannah, was accompanied to music as the camera panned along the entirety of a small play town that fits in one room.
“Tell me you’re the first grandchild without telling me you’re the first grandchild,” the screen read in text overlay that was also said out loud.
According to Bankrate.com, the average amount it costs to raise a child to 17 years of age amounts to $233,610 based on data from the Expenditures on Children by Families report by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Meanwhile, new research from AARP reports that grandparents spend around $2,562 a year on their grandchildren, which totals to a whopping $179 billion a year.
The play town was connected with separate areas for the baby to play in. The playroom was set up for a young child, and the video started with a look at a small house all the way to the left. It had windows and even a number like a real house. Inside, small furniture can be seen as well as a fake grill outside. Next to the house was a mock hospital and further along was a shop.
Beside the boutique was a grocery store where the child played at the checkout. There was even fake fruit in little baskets as well as an open sign. Next to the supermarket was the school area, which was complete with backpacks hanging up.
There was even a diner with an outdoor eating area with a little white fence enclosing it. Before concluding, the video featured the baby playing at the grocery checkout.
In a separate video update to a TikToker’s request for a tour, the creator obliged. The video started from the other side of the town, and gives a more thorough look at each detail of the space, including inside each little area.
The diner had a kitchen set up where the little baby played for the second video. There were shelves and other toy appliances as well. Next up, the school had a lot of books on shelves as well as a desk and chairs accompanied with wall decals.
The grocery store included a little cart and bins with play food to use at the register. While the boutique featured dresses of different shades and shelves complete with a vanity. Inside the hospital were dolls laid out as patients on numerous beds.
Lastly, the final space, which was the mock home, had chairs and toy cleaning products as well as shelves and décor inside.
Over 26,000 comments came in over the original video showcasing the play town, and people are impressed.
Some were admittedly jealous of the child’s play area. “Am I jealous of a…baby?” a TikToker asked.
Comments of appreciation were everywhere for the space. “Wow that’s amazing!” a viewer wrote. “So much love put into that.” The creator replied back saying, “You have no idea!”
Others had jokes about the situation. “When you’re born in a pandemic and can’t go out in public, so they build you your own private public,” a TikToker wrote.
Some people had comments like, “This was my childhood dream,” and “I’m 29, and I want this.”
People were quite impressed by the detail of the play town. “This looks like a children’s museum!” a viewer pointed out.
Another thinks the town is “every little kid’s dream,” adding, “So nicely done!”
A TikToker thinks the baby will have “years of fun” in the play area. “Pretty amazing, and she’s shopping already.”
Newsweek reached out to @hannahshanae for comment.