Grandpa Given One Important Job at Waterslide, Fails Miserably

A New Zealand grandpa's epic fail is going viral this week, leaving the internet in stitches.

Narelle Whakaari, along with husband Craig (Koro) and their 4-year-old grandson Matty were enjoying the summer break at a campground an hour from their home in Tauranga.

In a clip posted by Whakaari on TikTok (@narellewhakaari), Matty makes his way down the waterslide while Craig waits to catch him. Unfortunately, the grandpa misses Matty's grand entrance into the pool despite standing a few inches away.

Craig waiting to catch his grandson coming down the waterslide. Matty was getting more confident going down the slide after some lessons from his grandparents. @narellewhakaari

The two grandparents were teaching Matty to slide into the pool confidently and Whakaari decided it was time to capture the moment to share with Matty's mom, their daughter.

"[I] explained to Matty that Koro was going to catch him while I took a video. He climbed the stairs to the top of the slide, [and] as there were other kids coming down ahead of him, Koro was unable to see when Matty had begun his descent," the 49-year-old told Newsweek.

As Whakaari filmed, Matty popped out of the slide and splashed into the water behind Craig who was still patiently waiting for his grandson to emerge. Matty surfaced safely and Whakaari kept recording to see how long it would take for her husband to realize what had happened.

"When he realized Matty was there we laughed and Matty wanted to do it again," Whakaari added.

Whakaari aptly set the TikTok clip to Camille Jones' "Waiting." The video went completely viral on the platform, amassing 5.3 million views and over 663,000 likes. Thousands of TikTok users found the comedic timing hilarious.

"Have they met before?" one joked. Commenting on his double take, another user wrote, "He even looked and went, nope, he's not the one."

As a mom of four, Whakaari showed the video to her grown up children who "weren't surprised" by their dad's small misstep.

"Their dad has lost them in crowds, even gone to the wrong school to pick them up," she told Newsweek.

Matty, the couple's only grandchild, lives with them alongside his mom. "Koro is a strong male role model for Matty, and they have a wonderful relationship. We love to see him grow through experiences and feel privileged to have him in our lives," Whakaari said.

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