All families, like all people, have their quirks, and their secrets. Most of them are harmless, or even funny, but it can definitely be jarring to realize that what you thought was happening in everyone’s homes were only happening in yours.
These 18 people have some pretty amusing tales of the moment they had that very revelation.
18. I bet they were a little sad, too.
A Christmas mouse sounds lovely.
Growing up my family always read the book “Santa Mouse” before Christmas. Along with putting out milk and cookies for Santa and carrots for the reindeer, we left cheese for Santa Mouse. I was in college before I found out Santa Mouse isn’t part of every family’s Christmas. pic.twitter.com/Gtrn1CC1U7
— K O (@kate10010) September 8, 2020
17. I’m sorry, what?
I can’t even figure this out.
pasta in milk every morning for breakfast
— rachel (@bugposting) September 7, 2020
16. At least they were all in it together?
Being lonely at night is the worst.
Ours would have to be sleep. NO ONE in my family actually slept at night: my brother sleepwalked, I have insomnia and sleep paralysis, my sister has night terrors, my mom was an insomniac too – so I just thought everyone’s family spent the night in various states of weirdness
— Grendel’s Mom (@ambernoelle) September 8, 2020
15. Really she didn’t want to take you.
This is too funny.
My mom explained that we didn’t do particular activities because “Jews don’t ski” and “Jews don’t sail” and “Jews don’t bowl” – there was a very long list of things Jews don’t do.
— ⭐️bex schwartz (@starbex) September 7, 2020
14. Talk about going straight to the worst option.
When you don’t have time to mess around with your kids.
Or, another example: "you have to crack eggs carefully, or else when you eat them the egg shell will scratch your throat on the way down and kill you". We just accepted this info like "hm, yeah makes sense. Ok."
— Victoria (@ViktorijaRoseB) September 9, 2020
13. Wow.
I mean…maybe just buy a television cabinet?
Combo of my mother and father's quirks: my mom felt very strongly there should be no visible tv in the living room, and my father loves things to be "just so", so after every movie he wld put the whole tv, remote, & cords back into factory packaging. "Just like new!" he would say
— Lynn(e) (@betteronpaper1) September 7, 2020
12. My future kids are going to write this.
I’m trying to figure out how to undo it in time for preschool.
https://twitter.com/Nicole_Cliffe/status/1303093821824069633?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1303105127570497536%7Ctwgr%5Eshare_3&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fruinmyweek.com%2Ffunny%2Fweird-things-families-normalized%2F2%2F
11. A girl has no first name.
This isn’t that strange, though, comparatively.
answering the home phone as: hello "name surname" speaking, how can i help you?
— you okay? (@sheldonknaggs) September 8, 2020
10. First of all, the Smurfs are Communist.
Second of all, it turns out stockpiling dry goods isn’t a bad idea.
my parents had a secret stash of dry goods in case the Rapture happened
also we weren't allowed to watch the Smurfs because it was communist
— Cora Linehan (@CoraLinehan) September 8, 2020
9. We all have our priorities.
Popcorn isn’t the worst thing.
The first non-awful thing I can think of is Popcorn Time. 7:30pm, every night, everyone got a bowl of popcorn. There were assigned bowls, and my stepdad would drop everything and go to the store at 7:25 if he suddenly realized we were out of popcorn.
— amelia ~ the pumpkin queene (@broken_queene) September 7, 2020
8. I mean I get the concept.
But I also like to go places.
Cleaning the entire house before going anywhere because you wouldn't want to come home to a messy house. You really can't be spontaneous, and everybody had to clean. Sometimes it was easier just to stay home, cause the cleaning could take hours.
— BLM Thir Equus Van De Flanken (@OneWomanOfMany) September 7, 2020
7. Going to start this tradition in my own house.
Because why would I not?
Yelling “I need backup!” to the whole house when you are on the toilet and out of toilet paper 😂😂
— Kate Morgan (@katie_thelady) September 8, 2020
6. A family of witches, to be sure.
I approve.
Quite a wholesome oddity: grew up believing that you could never destroy a wild mushroom because that was a fairy’s home. Came from my mum, and her mum, and at least two more generations of her family. To this day I never step on mushrooms in forests or gardens.
— Siân🔮 (@cacklingwitch20) September 8, 2020
5. The lengths moms went to to avoid cursing.
Who has the time?
My mother had many turns of phrase that I thought were just normal sayings but either completely weren't or were very uncommon outside of our household.
"Big Bird, what to do?" and "Heavens to Murgatroyd!" are the two that come to mind.
— ValeriEEEK Witch-ard 🧙🏼🦇 (@valeriecodes) September 7, 2020
4. It depends on the sandwich.
Bologna needs butter.
Just found out the other day that putting butter on sandwiches instead of mayonnaise is weird? Apparently?
— Bob Prescott (@thekidaintright) September 8, 2020
3. How did those kids not have nightmares forever?
I’m going to have nightmares forever now.
My dad told my brother and I we had a brother and sister named Peter and Suzie but they were bad so they had to live under the house. I freaked out when we moved when I was 5 and didn’t take them. Weird to realize this was not a typical threat to get your kids to behave
— this fraudulent christmas prince (@thexmasprince) September 7, 2020
2. How many times did they try it before they refused?
Too many, I’m thinking.
For minor injuries, our mum would say tell us to give it a little smack so it would stop hurting. Apparently, selective corporal punishment is not a well-known trauma management strategy.
— Jordan Gray (@jordangray) September 8, 2020
1. This is a fantastic idea.
Tasting spoons!
Spoon jar. The jar/mug you kept next to or on the stove full of tasting spoons. I still spoon jar.
— Molly McAleer (@molls) September 7, 2020
Everyone has a few of these stories, right?
Please, do tell us yours in the comments!