It's a holiday tradition. Parents dress their kids up and take them to the mall, so they can take their picture with Santa Claus.
If you couldn't tell this baby was not having it.
In fact, according to his mom, Kerry Spencer, he was signing for help.
"We taught our baby sign language. This is the sign for "help." You're welcome," she tweeted.
We taught our baby sign language. This is the sign for "help." You're welcome. pic.twitter.com/i6NkxBf4KP
— Kerry Spencer (@Swilua) December 5, 2017
The photo has captured so much attention, she shares it on Facebook every year. Her son, Samuel Spencer, is 13 now, but was just a 1-year-old when the photo was taken at Provo Town Center Mall in Provo, UT. The Spencer family has since moved to Parkton, Maryland.
This year, Spencer's friend, Author Mette Harrison, told her to tweet it, so she could retweet it. Now, the post has more than 6,000 retweets and 24,000 likes.
Several Twitter users said it didn't look like the toddler was signing for help, but Spencer said it was just a different variation of the ASL sign.
Which sign variant is this? BSL and ASL are a bit different (thumb up fist on palm upwards flat hand). I think the left hand might be moving away? Maybe I'm overthinking this...
— James Alex Gibson (@JamesAGibson) December 6, 2017
"It's ASL baby sign, so he is slightly "mispronouncing" the word, but it is the sign he always made when he needed help," she wrote in a response on Twitter.
For comparison, she even tweeted the proper way to sign help.
Here's the actual sign for comparison: pic.twitter.com/WTu2FPTl7O
— Kerry Spencer (@Swilua) December 8, 2017
Spencer said she taught both her kids baby sign because they can sign before they talk and it is so very useful to be able to communicate with your baby.
Now, posting this photo has become a holiday tradition for the Spencer family and her son, Sam, doesn't seem to mind.
