Mom of Zoe Wilson, the 8-Year-Old Who Drove Herself to Target, Still Hasn't 'Had Time to Process It Mentally'

“She never has done any of this before, so it still was not registering that she left with the dog," Tangie Wilson said

After 8-year-old Zoe Wilson's viral trip to Target in September, her mom is still processing everything.

In an interview with The New York Times published on Friday, Oct. 4, Tangie Wilson revealed what led her elementary school-aged daughter to take the family car to their local Target store in Bainbridge, Ohio, by herself on Sept. 15.

"I still haven’t had time to process it mentally," Tangie told the outlet, adding that the newfound fame is another thing she has had to navigate. "It was very stressful, very exhausting — mentally, physically, emotionally."

"I could not sleep because it all started with [Zoe] leaving the house when I was asleep. It was like someone snatched the rug from under my feet," she continued. "And it was just all these questions — everybody wanted to know who this little girl was and how did she do it."

Tangie said that the night before the incident, Zoe was still upset following an argument with her older sister. The next day around 7 a.m., Zoe took her mother's car keys, ID, wallet — and the family dog Bear.

Though Zoe didn't know where she would wind up when she had planned the trip the night before, her iPad screen broke when she left the house, inspiring her to head to the retail chain.

After Zoe's sister alerted Tangie that she was not home and that the car and the dog were missing, Tangie was confused. “She never has done any of this before, so it still was not registering that she left with the dog," Tangie told The New York Times.

Tangie also said that Zoe had no previous experience driving, aside from the occasional go-kart ride or sitting on her father or grandfather's lap as a baby.

Amid Zoe's outing, the police, family and friends got involved in the fleeting missing persons case. A neighbor's Ring security camera had footage of Zoe taking the car out of the driveway, which wasn't as difficult as reversing out since Tangie had backed the Nissan Rogue in.

Related: Video Shows Officer Saving Missing 3-Year-Old with Autism from Drowning

Meanwhile, Zoe arrived at Target just before 9 a.m. and was seemingly unnoticed, with no customers or employees questioning why she was there alone while she browsed toys and makeup.

Later that morning, Zoe was found safe, 10 miles away from her house and by her old school (hence her knowing where she was going). When she was found, "she walked out of the store so normal, like nothing happened. Her response was like, 'I only hit a mailbox and it was green,' " Tangie told The New York Times.

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After the incident, Tangie said that she's applied Zoe's Target escapade to encourage her daughter to figure out her schoolwork. "[Zoe] was like, 'I’m worried because we’re doing multiplication, and multiplication is hard,' " Tangie explained. "And I’m like, 'Zoe, did you know how to drive a car before you drove the car the other day?' And she was like, 'No' "

"And I was like, 'OK, so just like that with multiplication, you don’t know how to do it but you’re going to learn.' So that has encouraged her a lot as far as her schoolwork," Tangie added.

As for the Frappuccino Zoe had when she was found, Tangie thinks the police officers who found Zoe at Target bought her the drink. "I think the officers did it to make the story look cute because they thought it was a joke," she said. "They remained professional, but they were smirking and laughing. I think it was mind-blowing to everybody."

The Bedford Police Department shared a post on Facebook following the incident that said Zoe was "home safe." They added: “Not sure what she bought, or if she was even able to use her Target app to save 5%. We did let her finish her Frappuccino. We’re not mean.”

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