Older Sisters Meet Younger Sister at the School Bus Stop, Maintaining the Pleasant Custom
For three years, an Indiana child waited at the bus stop every day for her elder sisters to arrive home from school, regardless of the weather.
A TikTok video of the adorable reunions shared by mom Robin Whitsett went viral two years ago, and she told “Good Morning America” that waiting and greeting her sisters Lilah and Lily was a way for tiny Loxley to cope when she missed them during the day.
Now the roles are flipped. Whitsett uploaded a follow-up TikTok video earlier this month, comprising a montage of previous Loxley recordings, but this time, she also included a film of her husband Dustin Whitsett, and 13-year-old Lilah waiting for Loxley to return from her first day of kindergarten on July 26.
“Today was the day her sister got to wait for her,” Whitsett wrote in the video, which shows Lilah and her father imitating Loxley’s mannerisms and waving at the 5-year-old as she exits the school bus and crosses the street toward them.
Whitsett’s new video instantly went viral, with more than 23,000 likes and hundreds of comments.
“I knew this day was coming but I wasn’t prepared to see this day come by so [fast],” according to a commentator.
“Awwww now it’s her school turn!!! 💕💕💕,” another TikTok user remarked.
The mother of three explained that after seeing so many films of Loxley eagerly welcoming her sisters home, the older siblings did not want to break the tradition and suggested doing the same for her.
“Both of the girls were like, ‘Well, we’re going to have to wait for Loxley,'” Whitsett told “GMA” in a new interview. “It was totally their instinct and their idea to continue the tradition [and] be there for her.”
Whitsett explained that Lily, 14, and Lilah, 13, now take turns waiting for their 5-year-old sister after school.
“They’re both excited to get out there, even though Lily is in high school,” the mother of three remarked. “It does not bother them at all. They are not embarrassed about it. “They are proud of their relationship with their sister.”
She went on to say, “And I believe honestly her first day, Lilah was just as anxious to get out there and make sure her sister was okay. They appear to enjoy it, and Loxley looks forward to it.
Whitsett said her daughters have an “extremely close” relationship and have relied on one another as Loxley, who has struggled with the move to school, begins a new chapter.
“It was a huge deal. She’s having a difficult time adjusting to full-time school, so we’ve tried to make it fun for the girls every time they’ve waited for her,” she explained.