Let’s get one thing straight right off the bat—parenting is incredibly hard and it’s full of challenging surprises. So we try our best not to judge parents for small mistakes. Everyone makes them after all. However…, some folks raise their kids in such a bizarre and unusual way that it’s making us consider whether someone should have called child services. Or at least if some grownups should have had a candid chat with the parents about what the ever-loving frick is going on in their homes.
Reddit users opened up about the creepiest things that they noticed about other kids’ families when they were small, in a very peculiar thread on r/AskReddit. ‘Weird’ isn’t a strong enough word for the type of behavior that wouldn’t feel out of place in our favorite ‘Goosebumps’ books or on TV in ‘The Twilight Zone.’ (Shout-out to R. L. Stine for scaring the bejesus out of us, time and time again.) 'The Addams Family' seems relatively tame in comparison to these real-life families.
Scroll down for what might be the weirdest things you’ll read all week, Pandas. And if you happen to recall anything similarly unsettling from other people’s homes in your childhood, you can tell us all about it in the comments. A small note of warning: some of these stories aren't for the faint of heart. If you'd like something lighter that will restore your faith in humanity, you should read our article about the most wholesome teachers ever right here.
Bored Panda got in touch with parenting blogger Samantha Scroggin, the founder of 'Running Outside in Slippers,' for some insights. We had a chat about what parents can do for their kids to always be honest with them, how the community should intervene in families' lives when the kids are being neglected, and how to avoid judging other parents for small flaws or differences in how they raise their children when they're not harmful. Read on for the full interview
Discover more in People Are Sharing The Most Unsettling Things They've Noticed As A Kid About Another Kid's Family, Here's 35 Of The Creepiest Stories
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#21
When I was around 11 or 12, I was best friends with this girl who lived about a half mile away (grew up in a very rural area so us kids just walked through forests to our friends' houses). We did everything together but I wasn't usually allowed to stay the night at her house. Her dad was 'ill' and divorced from her mom so they lived with her dad's parents. When my mom made sure the grandparents were there the whole night, I was able to stay over. For some reason, I wasn't allowed to stay in my friends room and had to sleep out in the living room. In the wee hours of morning, I heard her dad come into the living room and breathing heavy...he was arguing with himself about cuddling and touching me but his other voice kept saying "no! She is a child and a friend of my child, so no!" I was so creeped out I never stayed the night again.. I later found out her parents divorced because of the worsening of his schizophrenia and the wife was bipolar. He was having a conversation with one of his bad voices and luckily her dad was able to suppress it and kept me safe. Still scary as a tween though. Still confused as to why I couldn't stay in her room...her grandparents were very religious so maybe they didn't want us lesbianing out? Who knows.
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#22
I always find it really sad that my neighbors dad sat on his lawnmower from dawn to dusk so he didn't have to deal with his family.
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#23
When I was about 11-12 I had a friend that lived in a really big house in my neighborhood. We were never allowed to go to her house, outside or inside. One day, we were riding bikes and I fell right near her house and I insisted we get a napkin from her house to clean the blood. She was really weird about it. I only went into the kitchen and there was a door that was closed, she opened it and yelled that I was in the house. Her mom came in, she was a very pretty woman and was wearing a silk robe. She told us to hurry up and and then sent us on our way. About three months later they were in the news for running an illegal e****t service out of their home. Both of her parents went to jail and my friend was sent to Florida to live with her grandma. I can't imagine what her life was like during that time or afterwards.
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#24
Went to a friends house and could hardly breathe when i stepped through the front door..they had like 20 dogs/cats and would just let them p**s and s**t anywhere in the house the smell of ammonia was so strong i could barely breathe, it was so bad that all the floor boards were just soaked with urine and were rotted.
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#25
Oh man, almost EVERY day before we got on the bus my friends mom would pretend that he was some male suitor leaving the house. She would run out half clothed and throwing his clothes yelling "oh billy that was amazing! Ohhhhhh billy!" Pretty weird.
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#26
Pour the unfinished drinks--milks, juices, sodas--back into the containers after the meal.
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