While communicating via a note seems truly archaic in the age of the smartphone, there are still some times where it’s pretty useful, for example, leaving one as a reminder to close the washing machine door before one, you know, starts it.
So we’ve gathered some of the funniest and most creative notes parents have left for their kid’s enjoyment (or displeasure.) Get comfortable as you scroll through, upvote your favorites, take note if you’ve been inspired and be sure to share your thoughts and experiences in the comments section down below.
#1 Every Christmas, I Give My Kids A Personalised Card. This Year, I Decided To Mess With Them
Image source: reddit.com
#2 The Laundry Basket Is Watching
#3 Laundry Lessons
Image source: Shelli Marple
Every great invention seems to have a “eureka” moment involving a bathtub or a falling apple, but the Post-it Note began with a big, sticky failure. In 1968, a scientist named Dr. Spencer Silver was working at 3M to develop a super-strong adhesive for the aerospace industry. Instead, he accidentally created something that was essentially the opposite of his goal: a “low-tack” adhesive that stuck to surfaces but could be peeled off easily without leaving a residue.
At the time, this was considered a bit of a scientific dud. For years, Silver promoted his uniquely weak glue to colleagues, calling it a solution looking for a problem. It wasn’t until 1974 that his colleague, Art Fry, had a moment of divine inspiration, literally.
#4 Found This Note In My Bathroom Drawer After My Dad Tried To Borrow Toothpaste
Image source: imgur.com
#5 Typical Note From Mom
Image source: Shontoodle
#6 My Mom And I Are Both Atheists, But She Left Me This Note This Morning
Image source: imgur.com
Fry was singing in his church choir and grew frustrated when his paper bookmarks kept falling out of his hymnal. He remembered Silver’s odd adhesive and realized it could create a bookmark that would stay put but wouldn’t damage the pages. The path to global dominance wasn’t immediate, however. When 3M first tried to market the product in 1977 under the name “Press ‘n Peel,” the public reacted with a collective shrug.
#7 WI-Fi Chore Challenge
Image source: mohamadayman45
#8 Trying To Keep My Lunch Notes Fresh And Cool During Summer School
Image source: Michellehas2ls
#9 Just Got Home From Work And Found This Note From My Dad On The Fridge. A Little Confused, I Walked Into The Living Room To Find My Cat, As Promised
Image source: imgur.com
It turns out that people didn’t realize they needed a sticky piece of paper until they actually held one in their hands. Everything changed with the Boise Blitz, a massive marketing effort where the company handed out free samples to office workers in Boise, Idaho. Once people started using them, the addiction was instant. More than ninety percent of those who tried them said they would buy the product.
#10 Apple Juice Marketing Is Getting Intense
Image source: orphan_blud
#11 My Wife Normally Writes Notes For Our Daughter’s School Lunch
Since my wife’s away for work, my daughter has been worried that “dad’s just going to draw a stick person.” Joke’s on her: I’m going to draw a ton of stick people!
Image source: SleepWouldBeNice
#12 My Mom Left Me A Note For Me When I Got Home From Work That, She, She, She, She, She Let The Dogs Out. Gotta Love Her
Image source: dirtylongs
By 1980, the iconic canary yellow squares were being sold nationwide. Interestingly, that famous yellow color was also an accident, the lab next door to the Post-it team happened to have a pile of yellow scrap paper, and a legend was born. Today, these little squares are ubiquitous, serving as the physical ancestors of the modern notification ping, cluttering our monitors and fridges with reminders of our humanity.
#13 The Joys Of Working From Home
Image source: 4musing_User_Name
#14 The Difference Between Moms And Dads
Image source: Hey_HoofHearted
#15 This Note My Mom Left Me Is How I Feel 90% Of The Time
Image source: ChaneyMcKinney
While the Post-it Note revolutionized office organization, it also accidentally created a new medium for one of the most difficult forms of expression: the parental comedy routine. When a parent leaves a note for a child, they are working within a very specific set of constraints. They have roughly three square inches of space and about thirty seconds before the kid ignores the message entirely. This is where the concept of brevity in comedy becomes essential.
#16 I Was Walking Out Of My House, Without A Coat, And I Saw This Note My Dad Left Me
Image source: TheAnnaBoat
#17 Living With My Parents Is Going Well. Had To Get Blood Work Done Today, So They Left Me A Note On My Bedroom Door. It Turned Out To Be Surprisingly Menacing
Image source: PrestonHoopes
#18 So My Parents Left For A Week, And My Dad Left Me This Note
Image source: _amandabastien
There is an old theatrical adage that “brevity is the soul of wit,” a phrase famously penned by William Shakespeare in Hamlet, and nowhere is this truer than on a sticky note. In comedy, the shorter the setup, the harder the punchline hits. Because the Post-it is so small, it forces the author to strip away all the “parental fluff”, the lecturing, the “because I said so,” and the long-winded explanations, leaving only the raw, comedic truth.
#19 My Kids Haven’t Cleaned Their Bathroom Like They Were Supposed To. I Decided To Leave A Note Under A Rag They Left On The Floor. It’s Been A Week Already
Image source: prevuznack
#20 My Mom Sent Me This In The Mail
Image source: BushyEyes
#21 My Daughter Said She Was Too Old For Notes In Her Lunch – My Reply And Win
Image source: Michellehas2ls
The humor in a parental note usually relies on a sharp contrast between the mundane and the absurd. When a parent writes “The Wi-Fi password is the answer to your math homework” or “I have hidden $20 in your room, you just have to clean it to find it,” they are utilizing the economy of language. In a world of long-form digital content, the sticky note is the ultimate “short-form” platform.
#22 Carrots Over Commerce
Image source: babygaga
#23 My Dad Leaves Misspelled Notes, And I Leave Replies
Image source: imgur.com
#24 My Mom Left This Note On The Cereal This Morning. She’s 5’1
Image source: reddit.com
It functions like a well-crafted joke: there is a clear premise, a sudden subversion of expectations, and a quick exit. A funny note left on a lunchbox or a bathroom mirror works because it catches the audience off guard in their natural habitat.
#25 If You See A Black Man With A Machete. It’s Ok
“Dave,
Dad and I are canoeing!
Steve is here working, so if you see a black man with a machete… It’s OK.
Mom”
Image source: reddit.com
#26 My Wife’s Note To Our Graduating Son vs. Mine
Image source: benbernards
#27 My Mom Left Me A Note That Told Me To Share Her Curly Fries With The Dog
“Share these with Teddy, they’re mine”
Image source: Bri_Alexis_Hall
It turns a chore into a laugh and a command into a connection. By embracing the limitations of the medium, parents have turned Dr. Silver’s “failed” glue into a permanent fixture of family bonding, proving that sometimes the best way to get a point across is to keep it short, keep it sweet, and keep it sticky.
#28 While My 7-Year-Old Daughter Loves The Notes I Leave In Her Lunch, Her Friends Have No Idea Why Her Dad Is “So Weird”
Image source: skryb
#29 Hide Them Tats
Image source: kimi_lamkin
#30 The Force Of Hunger
#31 First Year Taking Lunch To School, So We Put A Note Every Day
First year of “school” (Pre-K/pre-primary), so we needed to send a lunch bag. Put a note with a drawing in on the first day, and now it’s a thing – these days she has to pick one to throw out if she wants a new one on the fridge.
Image source: Redshirt_Down
#32 This Is Amazing
Image source: JessecaDale
#33 I Just Got A Job In The Same Area As My Mom. Here’s A Note I Found On My Car In Our Shared Parking Garage
Image source: DannyElfLord
#34 I’m Feeding My Parents’ Cats For The Week, And This Is The Note My Dad Left For Me
Image source: thegalagaship
#35 I Gave My Teenage Kid A “Dad Gift”, How Did I Do? Also Ps5, But That’s For Me, Kind Of Maybe
Image source: SirRipOliver
#36 My Parents Went Out Of Town. He Left Me A Note
Image source: imgur.com
#37 My Parents Left Notes All Around The House Before They Left For Their Week-Long Cruise
Image source: CypherTheBeast13
#38 The Life Of A Streamer Living At Home
Image source: Bailey_Boi_
#39 That’s So Cute
Image source: MeanyChristiney
#40 I Like That It’s Written In Two Different Styles
Image source: ItsEvanTube2
#41 When The Housing Crisis Becomes Too Real
Image source: Kolvinn
#42 Your Mom Is So Funny
Image source: scottyandsimone
#43 This Note My Mom Left
Image source: PrettyLLiar
#44 Dish Duty Delegation
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