The mom who went viral for sobbing as she baked a birthday cake has slammed her ex-husband for sharing her dark past.
Elizabeth Teckenbrock, 29, from Tampa, Florida, went viral after sharing a clip on TikTok showing the difficulty of being a single parent which has amassed more than 53million views.
In response, her ex-husband, Andrew Cormier, 37, made a series of bombshell claims and said he is in full custody of their two children that she barely sees because she ‘goes out all the time.’
On Monday Teckenbrock uploaded a video and said: ‘I will proudly say, without a doubt, I know who I am. I know that I’m a good mother, that I love my children.
‘I’ve made mistakes in my life, yes, I did get arrested, that’s not something that I’ve even remotely denied. I’ve actually touched base on that before on my page.’
Elizabeth Teckenbrock, 29, from Tampa, Florida, posted a video on Monday in response to her ex-husband, Andrew Cormier, 37, sharing her dark past
Cormier alleged that his ex-wife was previously arrested for fraud. The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office confirmed Teckenbrock was taken into custody in August 2023 on third degree grand theft and cash or deposit item with intent to defraud.
‘I went through some pretty bad mental things as I was about a year out from getting divorced. And then when I left, even worse, I was going out all the time, I made a bunch of mistakes,’ she added, revealing that she was arrested for ‘writing a bad check.’
Since her mistakes, the single mother said that she has tried to ‘rebuild her life’ while struggling with mental illness.
‘It’s really hard to come out of anything like that, especially when you’re being torn down at the same time.’
Teckenbrock added that ‘regardless of her mistakes,’ she ‘devotes’ her time to her children.
‘No hate to his father whatsoever, but I was a single mom at the age of 16 years old. I have struggled since being emotionally distraught, I guess you would say,’ she said as she teared up.
Teckenbrock said that she didn’t make the video to ‘bash’ Cormier, but wanted to make it clear that her mistakes don’t define her as a mother.
On Friday, Cormier made a series of bombshell claims and said he is in full custody of their two young girls that she barely sees because she ‘goes out all the time’
‘I got on here to defend myself,’ she said.
‘My whole page has never been discussing him whatsoever. I never cared to, I never wanted to bring him down no matter the amount of pain I was feeling, but I also got to the point this past week where I did not have a choice to defend myself.’
She admitted that during her divorce she ‘lost herself’ but has fought to be ‘the best mom since then.’
On Friday, her ex-husband made a series of bombshell allegations in response to her crying as she made a birthday cake for herself.
‘Being a single mom is making your own birthday cake on your birthday so that your babies can feel happy they are singing to you,’ Teckenbrock said in her dramatic TikTok.
Cormier said: ‘Right now I have full custody of our kids,’ he said. ‘This is our parent agreement. As you can see, I have all weekdays and weekends, time sharing with the kids on holiday academic breaks.
‘People that follow her are giving her praise and showing them telling her how strong and how you know amazing, she’s doing well, she’s really not a full time mom. She barely has her kids. She goes out all the time.’
eckenbrock was taken into custody in August 2023 on third degree grand theft and cash or deposit item with intent to defraud
She responded to Cormier’s claims and accused him of being ‘extremely abusive’ before admitting she does not have custody of their kids but that she does see them
The following day, Teckenbrock accused him of being ‘extremely abusive’ before admitting she does not have custody of their kids but that she does see them.
‘Andrew is extremely, extremely abusive and has always been extremely abusive,’ she claimed.
‘First I’ll start by the custody, okay, because that’s what we’re all talking about. I see my children, I see all my children.
‘I’m the one who hosts their birthday parties. I’m the one who puts them to bed. I’m the one who does everything until he pulls them away.’
Cormier denied her claims and said he has never abused Teckenbrock.
Teckenbrock insisted the incident began after she went for a birthday dinner with her friends after her daughter’s recital.
She said: ‘It was a late dinner at nine o’clock and I said to him after the dance recital, I’m going to go to the dinner but I’m still free for the rest of the weekend for the girls.
‘He said “No, you made the decision to go to dinner, you will not see them on your birthday”.’
The emotional mother told Newsweek that it was her first time spending her birthday alone.
Teckenbrock’s Linkedin shows that she is the founder of ‘Fear to Fierce,’ a domestic violence non-profit that helps women
‘Typically I would have family… but all of my family is far this year, and it is just me living in Tampa,’ she said.
‘But as I was making the cake, I was emotional and started crying which I was not expecting. It was an emotional day. I was so upset at the time. Truth be told I don’t love cake. It was all for them.’
Teckenbrock’s Linkedin shows that she is the founder of ‘Fear to Fierce,’ which is a non-profit organization ‘committed to assist survivors of domestic violence through support services and advocacy, empowering women to stand against fear and embrace their inherent fierceness.’
She attended Purdue University where she earned a Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery, according to her Linkedin. She now lives in Tampa, Florida.
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