‘You’re doing the best you can, Mom and Dad!': A family gathering of parenting laughs for witty mothers and fathers (October 17, 2026)

Author image for Melissa Knudson
Melissa Knudson • Writer
Oct 17, 2026 5:45 PM EDT

Can we please give parents a break? 

"Cherish every second of it". I've heard that advice a thousand times in friendly family films and moralistic TV shows. Don't get me wrong, they're not exactly mistaken; but they are certainly not right either. It is very hard to "cherish the moment" while also trying to gently parent an out-of-control toddler. We all have our "cherish" limit. 

All I have to say to parents today is that I am sorry, for I have misjudged you. Let me explain. As a writer, everyone thinks they can easily do what I do. You're constantly getting "fantastic ideas", style corrections, and unwanted feedback. Things like "you should add more adjectives to your description" and "maybe you should've clarified that part was sarcasm". Not complaining, sometimes I do get amazing ideas that I turn into short stories. Other times, though, I am stuck in an unwanted conversation about how my style and writing voice could use a quick AI revision. "What on earth does this have to do with parenting?" You ask. Well, I'm sure you can completely relate. Leave it to a childless stranger to try to tell you how to parent your kids. Nobody is as opinionated as a person who has zero information about something. And yes, that was me. Here, have this hilarious meme collection about parenting as my sincerest apology. 

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  • 01
    The gentle parenting leaving my body after asking my kid to get her shoes on 48 times
    via Getty Images (Via 3dMediSphere ) / Macaroni KID Marysville & Cherry Valley
  • 02
    When you can't eat, sleep, think, drive, cook, clean, sit, or take a single step without being assailed with demands from your kids, and you're just like @themomatlaw Can I live?! B
    via @themomatlaw
  • 03
    me trying to lure my toddler into the car with a fruit snack during a STAGE 5 EPIC MELTDOWN @realtoughdad
    via @realtoughdad
  • 04
    Me yelling at my kid to stop yelling
    via Danielle Anderson Lavway
  • 05
    Me: "Ahhh the house is finally clean." [hears bucket of Legos dump out] @stamfordmommy
    via @stamfordmommy

  • I was walking to the store one day, reviewing my shopping list so I wouldn’t forget anything (as I usually do). When I got there, a lady and her three toddler sons were selecting some products to put inside the cart. Suddenly, one of the kids saw a new car toy that changed colors with different water temperatures. His mother said no. He, of course, lost it. I’m talking about screaming, crying and throwing a full-on tantrum. It was majestic. 

    His poor mother, very strictly, continued to say no. The screaming got higher, and the scene got more attention. Store personnel were already starting to move in. She went from “the firm voice” strategy to bribing: “I won’t buy you the toys, but I’ll buy you some candy”. That kid’s going to be a businessman when he grows up because he did not back down; he knew he could get more out of the situation. Then came the punishment: “If you don’t stop screaming, we will cancel the playdate with Jack”. Didn’t work. The other kids started running around, and the situation was getting out of hand when, finally, the ultimate boss made an appearance. Mom took out an iPad. That put an end to it. A desperate move, but a necessary one. 

    I dared to judge her. How could a mom give in so quickly? Why was the kid getting rewarded with iPad time after having such awful behavior? That’s before I learned that parenting is way harder than I thought. A few years later, my uncle had a kid of his own, and I offered to babysit a couple of times. Parents of the world: I get it now; a little iPad time hurts nobody, and desperate times call for desperate measures. Just like, as a writer, I have succumbed to the temptation of adding a wordy quote to make my text feel a little more epic, I will never ever have anything negative to say against those parents who had to use the cheat code of the iPad time. Sincerely, I get it now. 

  • 06
    PUTTING ON YOUR CHILD'S SHOES YOU ONLY BOUGHT A MONTH AGO LIKE
    via Bibliophile80
  • 07
    Kids, when you're talking to them Kids, when you're talking about anything that doesn't concern them
    via Razzledbrat
  • 08
    Took my daughter out for a nice dinner.
    via Brenda C
  • 09
    #1 Imagination Level 100. My 2-Year-Old Daughter Drew A Pillow With Chalk, Then Lay Down For A Nap
    via JtandJennifer Edds-Mcclanahan
  • 10
    A woman told her daughters that glow-in-the-dark pajamas need to be charged in the light and that they can't move while charging.
    via Misty James
  • 11
    Me walking into Target with my toddler who skipped his nap
    via Jessica Whiteman
  • 12
    Kid: "Can you hold this?" Me: 004 중 @wivesnightin Thoughts for The to
    via @wivesnightin
  • 13
    Kids, making requests and asking questions to mom when dad is right tf there @HowToBeADad TRAZAM ATHST
    via @HowToBeADad
  • 14
    me looking at the F my kid got for the math homework i solved @stfrock
    via @stfrock
  • 15
    *Everytime I have a video call* My kid:
    via Rachel Rabago
  • 16
    Boosh @whatsupboosh Little kids will look you straight in the eye and cough like this
    via @whatsupboosh
  • 17
    @Real Life Mommy Me on day 3 of being stuck in the house with a toddler: I WANT TO BE WHERE THE PEOPLE ARE
    via @RealLifeMommy
  • 18
    Looking at myself in the mirror this morning after my kids were up 14 times last night: @with_love_becca Oh, look. Another glorious morning.
    via @with_love_becca

  • Who would’ve thought that parenting is hard (note the sarcasm). So, for the parents of the world, just know that it is okay to bend the rules a little sometimes. You don’t have to be perfect always, and you do not have to feel bad for having fixed your toddler’s behavior with a chocolate bar. You’re truly doing the best you can, and at the end of the day, as long as you love and cherish your kids, everything is going to turn out okay. Here’s an idea: get some English grammar games on the iPad and pretend you’re just giving them iPad time, when really you’re teaching them proper syntax. Nothing a little creativity can’t solve.

  • 19
    Parent: Please try not to get any water outside the tub. Kid: @HowToBeADad
    via @HowToBeADad
  • 20
    RELAXING MOMMY relaxingmommy When my kid trots into my room after I put him back into his bed for the 9th time @stamfordmommy
    via @stamfordmommy / relaxingmommy
  • 21
    When you've finally accepted you'll be bed sharing for the unforeseeable future
    via Button Monkey
  • 22
    nobody: teething babies:
    via 𝓓𝓪𝔀𝓷𝓶𝓪𝓻𝓲𝓮₊🪽·˚🪷.‧₊˚ 🦢🌞₊˚.
  • 23
    When you hear your kids fussing & fighting in another room, but you're just waiting for one of them to cry so you can go whoop everybody a Γ
    via eBaumsWorld 
  • 24
    When you give your toddler the wrong color plate USMC @macaroniandmomjeans
    via @macaroniandmomjeans
  • 25
    Me: Mommy's going to potty alone for two seconds, okay? My kid: @momsconfession (IG) What about side by side with a friend?
    via @momconfession

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Tags

humor parenting comedy parenthood toddlers childhood funny kids funny parents moms Memes comedy new parents weekend family funny parents
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