Parents Who Outsmarted Their Kids
We’ve heard a lot of young parents say that the greatest days of their lives were the days that their children were born. However, we’ve also heard a lot of older parents say that the greatest day of their lives was the day that their last child moved out for college. We’re pretty sure the parents in that second group are joking, but could you blame them if they weren’t?
Parenting is an art that requires nuance, skill, and a whole lot of patience. Thankfully, these parents from the pictures below have all of the above, and we can all learn a thing or two from them as well. So, we compiled these pictures of parents being amazing and totally outsmarting, pranking, and getting a kick out of their kids. Scroll down to see what we mean!
Proper Parenting or Highway Hazard? You Decide
While we’re sure this parent had their priorities in the right place when they taped these blinders onto their child’s speedometer and tachometer, a lot of commenters on the internet pointed out that this parenting hack might have been just a little dangerous. The point here is to prevent the kid from going over 60 miles per hour. But, if they do get up to speed, now they can’t tell how fast they’re driving?
We all know people who drove too fast when they were kids. We all probably know people who still drive too fast now. So obstructing someone’s view of their instruments probably isn’t the best solution for someone with a lead foot. Still, you can’t say this wasn’t a creative display of parenting.
Don’t You Know Those Things Are Permanent?
How many friends do you have that got a tattoo and tried to hide it from their parents? We have a few of those people here at our office too. It can be a shock when kids come home with new ink tattooed on their bodies, and a lot of parents won’t react as well as this dad. He’s having a little fun at his daughter’s expense, but still being supportive and accepting her decision anyway. Still, just look at the way he decides to mess with her while they’re out to lunch.
You’ve got to admit, the two images look pretty similar. Both father and daughter have a knife on their arms, they’re making funny faces, and they kind of look alike too. Still, we’ll let all you parents know if we ever figure out the secret to stopping kids from getting tattoos.
Ladies and Gentlemen We Present To You: Pizza Lasagna
Most toddlers go through a tough phase where they’re incredibly picky about what they eat. It can be a nightmare for parents to get their kids to sit down and have a meal, and it can be even worse when that child only wants one specific food. It can lead to temper tantrums, arguments, and even itty bitty hunger strikes. But, this mom found the perfect response when her toddler would only eat pizza. We present to you: pizza lasagna.
What is pizza anyway? It’s a crust, tomato sauce, and cheese. What is lasagna? It’s pasta, tomato sauce, and cheese. So, the way this mom sees it, cut lasagna into a triangle, and to a toddler, that’s practically a slice of pizza. Just make sure not to ask her whether they prefer Chicago or New York style.
Does Your Fridge Need A Child Lock?
When someone says they’re going to have a piece of cake, that usually means they’re going to have a single piece of cake. This kid took that way too far and wound up eating almost the entire thing. So, naturally, her dad had to take action. The next day when she came down to show no restraint or understanding of portion control and raid the fridge, she found that it had been locked shut. How’s that for a little bit of confectionary karma?
We’re sure this dad let his daughter back into the fridge to grab her breakfast in the morning. But, hopefully, he hid any other stray desserts beforehand. We have a feeling that given the chance, this girl would probably have cake for breakfast, lunch, and dinner!
Happy Graduation, Now Get Out of Here!
Graduation is a special day in everyone’s life. You get to celebrate with the friends that helped you along the way, you get to thank your parents for all their support, and then you get to frantically try to figure out what to do next with your life. Now, that’s always a little easier if you have a place to stay. But unfortunately for our friend Keith here, that’s not the case. Just take a look at Keiths’ graduation cake below.
We love the graphic work on the piping here. Keith has his shades on, he’s checking his watch, and he’s walking right off the cake to get ready for his next adventure. The cake looks pretty delicious too, but we don’t know if we’d want it if eating it meant we had to move away from home!
Your Parents Are Still Your Parents, Even 1,000 Miles Away
Even though we all have email and texting to stay in touch now, there’s still something special about getting a letter from a family member. The person in this picture knows that feeling well, and they were overjoyed when they were away from home and a package showed up from their mom. Was it candy? Soda? A heartfelt note from Mom? We’re sure that’s what this kid was hoping, but inside, all he found was trash!
So, no candy, soda, or heartfelt notes. But, there was a candy wrapper, a soda can, and a note from Mom saying, “Why didn’t you take out the trash?” Actually, this guy kind of got exactly what he wanted. He just got all of it a few weeks earlier, and then forgot about it (along with a few other things).
You’ve Lost Your Cutlery Privileges Young Man
If there’s one thing our parents were strict about growing up, it was the nice cutlery and fine china. Everyone loves to have nice plates to eat off of and host with, so we all wanted to be on our best behavior when our parents broke out the good stuff. Unfortunately for this family, one of their kids got into magic, and as a grand reveal of his newfound talents, he wound up bending one of the family’s best spoons into a state of disrepair!
It’s convenient when you don’t have to clean, but nobody really likes eating with those plastic forks and knives. So, we figure the parents were punishing themselves just as much as their kids. That being said, this is a pretty clever way of persuading your kids not to become magicians, so we’re here for it.
Imagine Losing All of These At Once
Don’t you just hate losing the remote for your television? Oh well, at least you can watch the Roku after that. Lost the Roku remote too? Can we listen to music? Nope, nope, nope. Losing remotes is the worst, and if you’ve got kids that get distracted easily, you can basically kiss that thing goodbye. That’s why this parent thought of an ingenious solution to keep everyone in the house happy: they bolted all the remotes to a two by four!
At first glance, we were really stoked with this idea, but to be honest, we think we found one flaw. What happens if the kids lose the entire two by four? Then you’re going to have to replace all four remotes at once! And maybe you’re thinking, “How could a kid lose that whole thing?”. Trust us, they can.
Just To Clarify, Your Daughter is Not a Seal?
Facebook is like a meeting place for parents of all shapes and sizes to get together and post totally embarrassing stories and pictures of their kids. The parents don’t need a special occasion to post their kids either. Any holiday, birthday, Monday or Tuesday will do. In this case though, it was a special occasion: it was Raylin’s 21st birthday. So, to celebrate, Raylin’s dad went on Facebook, posted a picture of Raylin and a seal, and then clarified: Raylin’s on the left.
His daughter was, of course, embarrassed. But, she took the joke in stride, tweeting, “Thanks for the clarification, Dad.” We still think the real star here is the seal though. Just look at that face– and those whiskers! Forget about Raylin, we want to go to the seal’s birthday party.
Self-Isolation Is Always Better With Friends
These past few years of Covid complications have been tiring, stressful, and pretty downright awful for all of us. Having to spend months separated from loved ones is enough to drive a person mad, and with restrictions changing every single day– loosening and then tightening and then loosening again– how is anyone supposed to find a rhythm! We’ve been struggling like crazy over here, so maybe we can take some notes from these people about how to kick back and enjoy these crazy times.
While we’re sure the kids in this house were pretty embarrassed, Mom and Dad deserve to have some fun and see some friends every once in a while too! Except in this case, it looks like maybe Mom is the one having all the fun. Sorry Dad, you’ll get them next global pandemic.
Putting A Whole New Spin on “Eat Dirt”
Kids love to keep pressing our buttons once they find out what bothers us. For some reason, it gives them pleasure– maybe because they’re so small, and finally have a bit of power. But, that power is very fragile, and can always be turned against a kid if they’re not careful. For example, this four-year-old was having a grand old time provoking Mommy by stuffing leaves in her mouth, and what did he get in return? He got a salad for dinner. That’ll teach him!
This move by Mom was actually a pretty clever workaround to put vegetables into her four-year-old’s diet. A lot of kids have trouble with picky eating at that stage and a parent will do well to give their kids healthy foods like salads. The only trouble is convincing other kids that a salad is actually “Special eating leaves.”
Spotting A Mom Joke In The Wild
There are plenty of classic dad jokes. “I’m hungry,” followed by, “Hi, Hungry, I’m Dad.” Do you get the point? But, we never hear about the classic mom joke. Mom’s have to have just as good a sense of humor as dad’s– if not better, since they’re the ones who had to carry the kid’s anyway! Still, we never hear about mom jokes… until now that is. Buckle up, because this one burns. We figured a mom joke would be gentle, and boy were we wrong!
To be fair, we haven’t heard this mom’s other jokes, so what her child said may be true. But, on the other hand, she fired back with such a nasty roast that this kid is going to be recovering for years. Although, to be fair, if the kid is failing in life and the mom considers them a joke, whose fault is that but the mom’s in the first place?
They Say The Parents Always Know
For LGBTQ youth, it can be a challenge coming out to their parents. These authority figures that raised them may have some preconceived notions about homosexuality or bisexuality or being transgender that their child has to confront. But, a lot of the time, parents say they already knew their kids were gay. Apparently, one gay man didn’t believe this, but when he asked his mom to prove how she knew, she showed him this image.
Now, we’re not advocating for antiquated stereotypes of homosexual men that claim they’re flamboyant and feminine and all that jazz, but if we take a step outside of wokeness for a moment, it’s pretty clear that this kid in the middle is gay. The hip, the hand– this definitely isn’t a picture from Outdoorsman magazine, we can tell you that much.
Is Having Kids Just An Excuse to Have Daily Roast Battles?
Parents know better than anyone, better than we even know ourselves, about what we’re into and what we’re doing. Even when they don’t let on, there are subtle things that only a mother or a father can pick up on. But, after they pick up on that specific thing, it’s every parent’s prerogative to decide how to handle that information. For example, this parent found an extra pair of sunglasses in the house, figured out who it might be, and then laid out an epic roast to humble their kid at the end.
This note must’ve come from a dad. Calling his son gay, classic locker room burn. Calling his son gay again– with an old music reference that the kid won’t understand– classic burn again. And finally, the truth of the matter, where dad lets his son know that he can’t get away with anything, not while he’s living under that roof.
Let’s Put This One Next to the Live, Laugh, Love Sign
Isn’t losing socks in the laundry such a pain in the butt? After a while you wind up with a pair of socks that’s mismatched, but close enough so you can wear them together, and then you wind up losing one all over again! Well, this mom decided to buy a laundry rack to help with her kids losing their socks, but it only worked to make her kids laugh! Something about that phrasing… this quirky laundry room decoration should probably be hanging at a speed dating event instead.
To some degree, we’re all different levels of clean, single and looking for a mate. Although, that sock on the right doesn’t exactly look clean, does it? There’s a lot of wear on the sole. Maybe this mom needs to head to the store and buy a few pairs of socks that already come with their mates attached!
Read Receipts Before Read Receipts Were A Thing
You can tell pretty quickly that this picture is old. The iPhone interface has changed so many times over the years, and they’re not using this heading, clock, battery icon, or text interface anymore. One of the new changes over the years has been to add read receipts to some message threads, but this mom found a way around that long before Apple changed anything. She figured out that if she couldn’t get an answer from the kids, she could fake them out with a put-on text.
This time, Mom promised her kid a car, which brought them back and had them responding to texts in a matter of minutes. Of course, Mom was just joshing. Still, how hard is it just to answer your messages? Hopefully this kid will respond a little quicker next time and save themselves the heartache.
Would You Like To Read This Note for The Class?
Don’t you remember having days where the thought of going to P.E. was enough to make you fake an illness? The child in question with this picture, sure remembers the feeling well enough. But, when Olivia asked her mom to write a note and get her excused from gym class, Olivia’s mom had other ideas. She wrote a note explicitly telling the teacher not to let Olivia out of class, and even went as far as to suggest extra laps for her daughter!
That’s pretty cruel, but at the end of the day, Mrs. McEvay has to parent her child as she sees fit. Maybe Olivia has had a lasting case of bone-idle-itus recently, but at the same time, maybe Mom could’ve given her a day off. It’s not our place to judge, but we can at least sit back and laugh and be glad that we’re not the ones doing laps.
Come Back and Visit Anytime
Here we can see a typical child’s bed, laid out with superheroes and dinosaurs on the covers. Except, that’s not actually a child’s bed, it’s a couch. And it’s not for a child at all, it’s for an adult! This man came home to visit his parents – when he was almost 30 years old– and his mom had made a bed for him with the same dinosaur sheets he slept on as a baby! This had to be an amazing trip down memory lane for that guy, and was probably a little embarrassing if anyone else came over to visit!
It’s really sweet that this mom went through the effort to set her son up like this, even if she just wanted to have some fun at his expense. That’s what makes parents and parenting so amazing. She remembered some of her son’s earliest moments, and found a way to show him 30 years down the line!
There’s A Killer On The Road
Being away from home while scary things are going on adds to the stress of any situation. We dealt with it through Covid, and now with this picture, we see someone dealing with a criminal context. This person got a little worried because a convicted murderer escaped from a jail near their childhood home. With their parents at the house they texted to check-in…and received this picture back. Seriously though, who but your parents could think of something like this?
If anyone is a little slow on the pickup, there’s a knife swinging down in the background, probably being held by one of the couple’s other children. These parents wanted to show that they were fine, while also having a little fun at their child’s expense. So they set a scene, snapped a picture, and did just that.
Enjoy Your New iPad Honey
Have you ever heard the saying, be careful what you wish for? It’s a tale as old as time where someone asks for something, and they get exactly that, but not in the way they were expecting. Take this little girl for example. She decided to ask her parents for an iPad, and she probably expected to get it too. But, as you can see by the harrowed look in her eyes, promises were made to be broken. Her parents didn’t get her an iPad– they got her an eye pad!
We’re hoping there was a real iPad lying around for this little girl somewhere because with that look in her eyes, we think Mom and Dad might need those eye pads soon! Plus, this little girl is going to be very suspicious about what she’s promised from here on out, but better to learn earlier rather than later.
Dad! Stop Embarrassing Us in Public!
As an adult, doing errands with your parents is always weird. You’re reminded of all the grocery trips you took together when you were young, but now you’re shopping for two different families. Still, there are a lot of ways to enjoy those trips and make the best of them. For example, when this woman brought her father out shopping with her and had to leave him in the car for a bit, she found him holding this up out the window, trying to attract the attention of all the different people in the parking lot.
You can tell by that smirk on Dad’s face that he thinks this whole thing is hilarious. Apparently, she only left him in the car for a few minutes and already a crowd had gathered to laugh at his sign. Plus, as the daughter puts it, she left the A/C on for Dad, so he should’ve been fine!
You Want to Play Lego Towers Again?
Did anyone else have to play video games with their younger cousins growing up? Did you ever set up a game, and leave one controller unplugged so you play in peace? Yep, so did we, and spoiler alert, it never works! The same thing happens with other toys too, where a more mature brain can figure out how to use an item before a kid has a chance. In this case, a father faced off against his daughter in a lego tower building contest and well… you be the judge.
It looks like Dad raced to build the highest tower he could, and then left barely any pieces for the little girl to build hers. If it was up to us, maybe we would’ve tried some more inclusive architecture. Like, combine the two towers. Or, actually, play together instead of making it a competition. That’s just a thought.
Is it Wanna Fanta or Wanna Fanta?
Remember the old commercials? “Wanna Fanta, wanna Fanta…” They really made us want a Fanta! This little girl was feeling the same way, but her parents weren’t so sure. Sugary drinks can do damage to kids’ developing teeth, and more importantly, they can make kids bounce off the walls which becomes a huge problem for the parents. Luckily though, these parents thought of a hack for every time their child says they want a soda. Just pour out the can and pour in some juice!
These parents probably thought this would be a clever move, but as you can see from the little girl’s face, she’s not buying it. That’s probably because these parents decided to put apple juice inside of the orange soda can! Why not fill it with orange juice guys, come on. That’s fruit 101.
Prom Pics With Dad Turned Out Great!
A lot of the father’s we know have incredibly special bonds with their daughters. There’s something about that relationship that is really unique and heartwarming. But, it can also be scary for young men trying to date the daughter of an overprotective father. As the father in the pictures below put it: “Whatever you do to my daughter, I will do to you.” Thankfully though, this one seems to have said it with a wink. Just look how he and the young man are both smiling in the right side picture– they’re having a blast!
Dare we say that the picture of the boy and the father looks even better than the picture of the boy and his date? The sun is shining off of the dad’s scalp, the kid is grinning and holding his future father-in-law tight– if that’s not a Polaroid moment we don’t know what is! Shoot, we gotta go, there’s the limo for prom!
Another Successful Graduation Party in the Books
Owen was always a good kid. He got good grades, studied hard, and got into Yale after high school. Just one problem: he wound up dropping out. Now, we don’t know Owen’s struggles or his challenges. We don’t know why he eventually dropped out of school, so we can’t judge him. On the other hand, his parents definitely know, and his parents definitely can judge him. They also decided to put that judgment out for all of town to see!
We hope this one was a joke that Owen took well, because this seems like a pretty brutal welcome home sign to show up to. Although we’ve still seen parents do more embarrassing things like that, like showing up at the airport with a “Welcome Back from Rehab!” sign, or dropping the kids off at school blasting awful music.
They Grow Up So Fast
This kid definitely had the funniest parents in his high school, because the yearbook letter they left him for his senior year is through-the-roof funny. Every sentence has a new burn, and a new direction to go to make fun of this poor kid. But, that being said, it takes a lot of love to say such brutal things about someone, so we can tell that these parents are beaming with pride. They picked such great pictures of this kid too, so this was obviously meant to be more heartwarming than insulting.
Our favorite line of this whole thing is probably “You are at least in our top four children.” If we knew who this kid really was, we could ask if they have siblings, but imagine this is a family of three: does that put someone else’s kid in the running for favorite alongside him? What if it’s a family of five, who wasn’t included? So many questions!
Mom Roasts Belong in the Facebook Comment Section
When this person tried to wax poetic and get all philosophical on Facebook, their parents took no time in smacking them down and putting them back in their place. The quote they put up is an interesting one too, so maybe it didn’t deserve such a burn in response, but when it comes to parents anything goes.
As Ashton Kutcher would say if this were That 70s Show: “Burn!” We’re not sure how this kid was supposed to recover from this one. Plus, the bigger brother is supposed to be the cool one, now the younger brother can hang this over his head. Kinda seems like the older brother here is having a pretty rough day.
The Best Prank– and The Worst Christmas– Ever
Santa Claus is coming to town, and at first glance, it seems like he’s bringing exactly what the kid’s ordered. But when we dive a little deeper, we can see that one child’s Christmas won’t be as merry as the others– unless they’re a huge Big Bang Theory fan that is. As you’ll see below, this parent used a clever misdirect to make their kid think they were getting an iPad, when all they actually got was a Big Bang Theory t-shirt. Bazinga!
Could you really blame this kid if they were mad? Everyone loves a good dad joke, but dad pranks can be totally brutal. Anyway, we’re hoping the laptop was actually stashed away for later because if there’s one thing a good parent knows, it’s how to bribe their kids with delayed gratification.
He Said He Wanted Cold Hard Cash
On this kid’s birthday morning, we’re sure his parents said something like, “Happy birthday, Son! We got you exactly what you wanted!” And then we think they probably lifted the lid off the monstrosity on the table, and then we think they probably started laughing hysterically. You have to admit, this is a job well done. When this kid asked his parents for cold hard cash on his birthday, they gave him exactly that and froze a bunch of bills in a giant block of ice.
That doesn’t look like anything a blow dryer can’t fix, but the look on this kid’s face says it all. He can’t believe he played himself. It’s almost like he’s already planning for next year, since he knows he’s going to have to ask for his money in exact change, with specific instructions for its delivery.
Don’t Forget, That Camera Broadcasts to the North Pole
This ultimate parenting hack is so good, that you’re going to have to give it a go. These parents figured out that when the holiday season rolled around, they could call in an assist from the big guy in the North Pole to keep their kids in line. So, they bought a fake security camera and mounted it to the wall in their kids’ playroom. Then, they told the little ones that the camera was broadcasting to Santa 24/7, and the two little munchkins fell in line in a snap.
This whole setup cost the family less than $20, and gave the parents more peace and quiet than a lifetime of bribery ever could. If the kids really did behave themselves, we hope they had a pretty crazy Christmas. As the old proverb goes, “Everyone deserves a reward for good behavior, even if they’ve been misled as to the reason why they’re behaving.”