Influencer Emilie Kiser has issued an apology after her toddler was filmed sitting on a boat without wearing a life jacket.
Friend and fellow influencer Madi Curtis shared the snippet in a compilation from a day on the water during a joint family holiday in Spain with the Kisers.
In the now-deleted video taken in June, 16-month-old Theodore ‘Teddy’ Kiser can be seen alongside his father, Brady Kiser, at one point.
At other points, Curtis’ daughter is also seen without a life jacket; however, her son can be seen wearing an orange vest.
In Spain, the law requires all children under the age of 13 to wear life jackets while on the deck of any moving recreational boat.
Social media was quick to question why further precautions weren’t taken for the toddler, despite the fact he wasn’t in the water.
The sight hit a raw note with followers given the couple’s eldest son, Trigg, died at age three after drowning in the family’s Arizona backyard pool in 2025.
Kiser, who is currently pregnant with the couple’s third child, has millions of followers, sharing lifestyle and family life content.
In the public apology, Kiser acknowledged her child should have been in a life jacket for the entire course of the boat ride.
“We are painfully aware that in a matter of seconds, your entire life can change, and we should have done better,” the mother wrote.
She thanked everyone for their “genuine care” toward her children and also recognized the “deep level of anger and hurt” directed to the family.
“It comes from the belief that Trigg should still be here, and we share that same belief more than can be expressed,” she continued.
“He was only three years old, and should have lived a lifetime more. That reality lives with us every moment of every single day.”
To end the message, Kiser insisted the family would continue to “do better, advocate for better and as hard as we try to avoid them, still make mistakes.”
“We can only promise that we will never stop learning from them and continue loving our children with everything we have,” she finished the message.
Many showered the family with support in the comment sections of her most recent Instagram posts.
“I just wanted to send over a virtual hug,” wrote a follower.
“I hate how cruel people can be, Em. Everyone is always the perfect parent when it’s not them. Love you. Keep going, Trigg would be so proud,” another said.
A third added: “You’re a human too. As a mom myself, I know that none of us is perfect. You’re a great mom. You’re doing the best you can. We love you, Em.”
A police report states Trigg had been left unsupervised for more than nine minutes, and in the water for about seven, before he was pulled out.
A fence did not surround the pool, but it was typically covered, which wasn’t on the pool at the time of Trigg’s drowning.
In June, the mother sat down with British podcaster Jay Shetty for her first interview since the tragedy.
“I always try to remind myself that I have a choice to make,” she said at the time.
“I can either let this completely derail me more than it already has, and not really feel like I’m fit or able to take care of my younger son, or I can do everything in my power to be the best mom I possibly can for him, and give him the same love that Trigg had and has.”
