Country star Maren Morris has deleted all photos of her son, Hayes, after a “mom shaming” controversy. Morris previously said she would probably stop sharing photos of her three-month-old son Hayes since her social media pages were bombarded with critiques when she shared a photo of herself with Hayes on a float in a lake. Her husband, Ryan Hurd, also came to Morris’ defense, assuring everyone they would never knowingly put their son in danger.
The situation began earlier this week when Morris shared what she assumed was just an adorable photo capturing a mother-son moment. She was sitting in a golf cart float on a lake with Hayes, and both wore matching cactus-printed swimsuits and sunglasses. Morris shared the photo on both Instagram and Twitter, where one fan instantly asked where Hayes’ “life jacket” was. Morris has since deleted the photo from her social media pages, as well as other pictures of Hayes. She even deleted Hayes’ birth announcement, which included a photo of herself cradling Hayes in the hospital.
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After one fan defended Morris on Twitter, the “My Church” singer said she would likely stop posting new photos of Hayes. “Honestly, I get so many criticisms of my motherhood on anything I post of Hayes, so I may just discontinue posting photos of him. Sucks but it’s kind of where I’m at,” she wrote.
Singer Mickey Guyton told Morris she should not give in to the haters, but Morris said she and Hurd were already considering no longer sharing photos to protect Hayes’ privacy. “Thanks, babe. I mean, we talked about curbing posting photos anyway now that he’s a little bit older, but the added crap from (mostly other moms) folks definitely forced our hand,” Morris wrote.
Meanwhile, Hurd still has photos of Hayes up on his Instagram page, including a different one showing Hayes in a float being held by Hurd. On Thursday, Hurd defended Morris, calling her a “great mom.” They made sure Hayes was safe and the water was only one foot deep. There were also five people watching while Morris got the photo. “Hayes has 2 coast guard approved life jackets that he wears. Also, sometimes moms have a drink, and homegirl earned it,” Hurd tweeted.
Morris and Hurd, who is also a country singer, married in 2018. In a May interview with PEOPLE, Hurd said it was difficult to welcome a baby during the coronavirus pandemic because they could not invite people over to meet Hayes. “I feel like we’re very blessed in that we have avoided a lot of hardships that other artists have had to face, because we haven’t had to really cancel many shows,” he told the magazine. “We’re really lucky to just be here learning how to be a family of three and it’s been really an amazing time in our lives.”
