Parents Share Their Children's Funniest Mishaps

Parenting can be a daunting task, even in the best of times, and the quarantine doesn’t really help

Damjan

• Published in Funny
• May 5, 2020

Parenting can be a daunting task, even in the best of times, and the quarantine doesn’t really help. Lack of the usual routine and more time on their hands have enabled the kids to think of even more loony things to do, and they are pushing their parents to the limits.

We have collected some of the funniest posts shared by the parents, and basically, they are all saying: “Help! Get us out of here!” Not in those words exactly, but us parents have an unspoken language, and we can totally relate.

Lenore Skenazy, chairman of the nonprofit organization Let Grow, whose goal is fighting overprotection, supporting independence, and getting kids to be „future-proof,” says “Before the pandemic, a whole lot of kids were scheduled to the max: school, super-short recess, more school, extracurriculars, sports, homework, reading for the reading log (which is also homework!), sleep, repeat.” 

“Zero unstructured time was making kids anxious. More than two-thirds of teens said anxiety and depression were “major problems among their peers,” according to a 2018 Pew Research Center study, and by the way, this pressurized childhood was not just among the one percent. Across the economic spectrum, parents felt they were supposed to schedule, hover—even ‘helicopter’ their kids,” Lenore said.

1. "My Daughter Backed Into A Light Pole And Promptly Got Out Of The Vehicle And Fled The Scene. Her Very First Hit And Run"

“And then—well you know what happened. An explosion of free time. And while some of it is spent in distance learning, most of it is free-form, which means…it’s videogame time! Three hours later, it’s still videogame time! But at some point, even that gets old for most kids, and they start figuring out new things to do.”

According to Lenore, kids are now discovering new activities and hobbies to enjoy, from riding skates to making cakes. “One mom told us her daughter was so bored (‘or a pod person has taken over her body’) that she started folding her own laundry. Then she folded her mom’s! And so many kids have started sewing, it’s like Little House on the Prairie out there.”

The chairman of Let Grow described that this is happening since adults are passing over the reins to their children. “Our whole belief is this: When adults step back, kids step up,” Lenore shared the moto of their association.

2. "Cereal Bowls"

“What’s good about this new independence? Well, that’s like asking what’s good about those canals in Venice. For years they were so outrageously busy, the water was filthy. But now, you can see fish—it’s coming back to life. And that’s what’s happening to kids. For years, they were so outrageously busy with adult-run, adult-supervised activities, they couldn’t see all the other things they were capable of, or who they were deep down.”

These days, children are helping their parents out more with their choirs, brothers and sisters are getting along better, nand many people report that family ties are stronger than before.

“The reason is that at last, they’ve got time. They don’t have to get out the door at 7:03 every morning or make it to soccer by 4:15,” Lenore indicated. “We wish we could say that everything is this rosy everywhere, but of course, that’s not true. There’s frustration and fear. Some parents are out of work. Some families are worse off than that. Nonetheless, we are hearing stories of kids becoming the competent, confident young men and women they were secretly ready to become all along. As the single dad of an 8-year-old told us: ‘My daughter can do more than I realized on her own.’”

And what are the lessons that parents should remember about raising their children for the future when the epidemic is finally over? Lenore says that our controlling and overscheduled culture is restricting children’s growth, even though they’re more robust and creative than people think. “Allow them to flourish by letting them do more themselves.”

“Kids want to help out. Even if they complain about chores (and they will!), making dinner or keeping their little brother out of mom’s office makes them feel proud to be givers, not just takers. Let’s let them keep helping.” 

Free play is very educational since children gain crucial life skills when they resolve problems and make their own choices. There is a huge difference between when a child is forced to do something for a grade and when they do it for fun.

“One mom told us that her daughter has ‘dysgraphia’—difficulty with handwriting. Getting her to do her homework was torture. But since the pandemic? Her daughter is writing a diary,” Lenore says. “Kids are like seeds buried in the earth—they need water to grow. Free time is that water. When kids get it, they blossom.”

3. The worst thing ever...

4. This means war!

5. "My Son Found Some "Stickers" In The Bathroom"

Lenore shared one mom’s story regarding how her 7-year-old had always been afraid of the forest behind their home. Nevertheless, a couple of weeks into the isolation, the kid asked his mom to explore the forest with him. “In the woods, he fell off a log and it knocked the breath out of him. But then he sat up, brushed himself off, and got right back on the log. ‘When the sun started to set, he didn't want to leave,’ said his mom. One afternoon—and one mishap that he dealt with—made those woods his own.”

“Kids have talents that they may never get to show off in school. A kid who fixes the toilet during the quarantine is smart—and a hero. A’s are not the only measure of success,” Lenore stated. “When kids see we believe in them, it’s the wind beneath their wings. We demonstrate that belief by letting them do more and more on their own. Now that so many parents are trusting their kids to chop the vegetables, or scooter around the block, the kids feel terrific—and so do their parents.”

6. "My Wife Dressed My Son Up As Frida For A Project For His Class To Recreate Her Art. Today In His Zoom Meeting We Found Out That Meant A Drawing Or Painting"

How should parents behave during the quarantine? Well, Lenore says that the essential thing is not to fear if your kids are falling behind on their schoolwork. “They’re learning all sorts of important things they couldn’t get back when there was no time goof off or goof up. Making meatballs, changing a diaper—even getting to the next level in a videogame— all take focus, patience, and practice. Those are not nothing! Those are transferable skills.”

Lenore says that when Einstein was a child, he loved creating card houses. “That is an activity about as pointless as pointless can be…. but it doesn’t seem to have slowed him down. The idea that every childhood moment must be spent ‘productively’ is not true. It’s a pandemic out there! Give yourself a break and your kids, too.

7. "Lockdown Day 17. In Case Anyone Is Wondering How Us Parents Are Doing, This Is My 3-Year-Old Cleaning His Potty With My Toothbrush"

8. "From 1st Day Working At Home. She Got Pink Slime In Her Hair"

9. "Homeschooling"

Many parents who are working from their homes are now seeing that isolation has tangled their work and home life. And that their kids love playing, even if the results can turn into something serious.

However, not all children are naughty and causing chaos with every footstep. Some of them are behaving much better than usual because they’re happy because they have more quality time with their family, sleep more, and don’t have to run around not to miss any of the numerous afterschool activities.

10. "An Actual Text I Had To Send Today. I'm So Tired"

11. Let the games begin!

12. Hunger games

13. Easy cooking.

14. "My 3,5-Year-Old Ran Inside To Go To The Bathroom, But Apparently Took A Detour For A Fistful Of Brownies. There's Literally A Handprint In The Middle Of The Pan"

15. No TP? Solved!

16. "My 3-Year-Old Daughter Set Her Chalk Up This Way & Demands It's A Turtle. She Made Me Pet It Twice"

17. "He's Crying Because He Bit His Own Arm"

18. "My Son Stuck His Finger In My Eye And Scratched Off The Whole Top Layer Of My Cornea"

19. "3-Year-Old Threw A Toy Through The TV Screen This Morning. Now She Keeps Trying To Turn It On Saying "It's Broken". Yeah, No S**t Professor"

20. "Now I Know My Abc's, I’ll Write Them On Our SUV"

21. "Kid Left With This Lockdown Haircut After Asking His 7-Year-Old Brother For “Old Man” Hair"

22. That is not a bathtub.

23. That will definitely put the candle out.

24. "Kid Decided To Play With The Vents In The House Today. What A Brilliant Idea To Leave Them Open"

25. "Quarantine Is Going Awesome"

26. "Awesome"

27. "My Daughter Found Scissors And Cut Her Hair. Now She Looks Like Yolandi"

28. No questions....

29. "My Son Is At His Dad's For The Weekend And It Turns Out Today Is The Day He Gets A Haircut"

30. "My 7-Year-Old Drew On The Walls And Furniture In His Bedroom And Tried To Pin In On His 3-Year-Old Sister. He Almost Got Away With It, But As A Good Artist Should, He Signed It With His Name"

Damjan