An entire day dedicated to harmless pranks and practical jokes with no repercussions? Sign me up! I don’t remember exactly when we started, but April Fool’s Day has become one of my top holidays to celebrate!
For the past several years, I have thoroughly enjoyed celebrating the quirky holiday with my children. I’ve attempted to include my husband, but he has blatantly said not to mess with his stuff. That’s okay, it leaves me with more pranks to play on the kids! Both kids are now teenagers, so sometimes I get smiles, other times eye-rolls. They know I’m all about some light-hearted fun, so as long as they live here, they can expect something on April Fool’s. Before I give you my list of 25 pranks, here are some fun facts and history about the day. First fact: Homeschool moms will try to turn most anything into a lesson.
About April Fool’s Day
April Fool’s Day has been celebrated for several centuries by different cultures. Its exact origins remain a mystery. Some historians speculate that April Fool’s Day dates back to 1582, when France switched from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar. Historians have also linked April Fool’s Day to ancient Roman festivals such as Hilaria, inspired by the Egyptian legend of Isis, Osiris and Seth. There’s also speculation that April Fool’s Day is tied to the first day of spring in the Northern Hemisphere, because of the unpredictable weather. It’s even associated with the Catholic church and their “Feast of Fools”. It is a worldwide celebration, and Wikipedia has a nice list of April Fool’s customs from lands far away.
Whatever the origin, April Fool’s Day has achieved worldwide fame with notable pranks and hoaxes, ranging from spaghetti trees to rhinos getting elected for city council. Even corporations like Google, and other big brands get in on the caper! Remember the left-handed Whopper?
How We Celebrate a Harmless April Fool’s
There are two rules: Don’t mess with anyone while they’re sleeping. Don’t mess with anyone’s food – and I mean swapping one thing for another. If I wake up with something drawn on my face, or I pour salt instead of sugar in my coffee, it will be a very bad day! All of these pranks are harmless, low prep, and not too messy. Most of them are tried and true, except for a few new ones that I aim to do on the big day. This is one time I hope my kids don’t read my blog post right away!
- Mismatch and tie everyone’s shoes together.
- Place plastic insects in inconspicuous places.
- Put a drop of food coloring in the toothbrush.
- Cover TV remote sensor with a piece of tape.
- Put bubble wrap under the bathroom rug.
- Swap out framed family photos with pictures of celebrities, historic figures, or psychopaths.
- Sprinkle confetti on the top of ceiling fan blades, and turn it on.
- Replace the toilet paper roll with duct tape.
- Turn everything upside down – wall art, chairs, etc.
- While you’re at it, turn the books on the bookshelf spine in.
- Put Vaseline under handles of sink, on doorknobs, and buttons of TV remote.
- Stick googly eyes or draw on fruit and veggies, and fridge containers.
- Place a small piece of plastic wrap over the opening of the shampoo or body wash bottle and put the lid back on.
- Stuff cotton balls or waded up paper in the toes of shoes.
- Make a surprise batch of brownies, but “brown letter E’s” in the pan instead.
- Draw a spider or two on the toilet paper and re-roll.
- Or, smear peanut butter in the toilet paper. Yuck!
- Replace fresh eggs with hard-boiled eggs.
- Tape the edge of toilet paper with clear tape, or hairspray.
- Tape a paper cut-out of an insect and place in a lampshade.
- Put coffee grounds or food coloring inside of toilet tank.
- Poisson d’avril. Try to tape a paper fish on someone’s back.
- If you have wooden letters in your decor, rearrange them to spell something.
- Make up a believable story, and play it out for several hours.
- Put a picture of Pennywise or other scary character in a frequently opened drawer. Be sure to include “April Fool’s, signed Pennywise”.
One of my favorite memories is a prank our daughter did to us when she was very young. She drew a picture of a monster, attached string to it, then taped to the door frame of our bedroom. She must have gotten up early and got a step stool and all, because when we opened the door, a scary monster was dangling down looking at us! So sweet, and so much fun! Enjoy a day of silliness this April Fool’s Day – the smiles will be worth it!
A look through some of our past pranks.
Do you celebrate April Fool’s Day? Got any good pranks to add to the list? Feel free to comment below, I’d love to hear if you tried any of these. Be sure to pin this for next year!
