Parents sometimes view joking as a distraction or departure from the usual routine – a break from the serious side of parenting, but contrary to what many think, you don’t have to be a comic or jokester to make humor work for you and your children. In fact, it can be a parent's most useful tool for calming situations, encouraging proper behavior, and cementing the parent-child bond. 

"Parental anger may seem like the right response when your child does something wrong. But, you run the risk of putting a wedge in your relationship," says Susan Newman, Ph.D., who is a social psychologist researching and writing about parenting concerns and family dynamics.

However, as you can see in the pictures, you have to know how to pick your spots.

"Consider a thoughtful, humorous exchange: laughter or a joke, but one not made at your child’s expense in a way that demeans him," Newman says. "Sarcasm and put-downs work against tightening your parent-child bond."

"Let’s say you send your child to his room or take your daughter’s cell phone away for two weeks. You are ultimately pushing a child away who already feels miserable because he broke a rule or your favorite bowl (or because he got caught). She’s stressed by the transgression that curtailed her privileges and may begin to harbor resentment toward her restricting parent."

So according to the psychologist, sometimes humor isn’t the answer. "Anything that puts your child in physical danger or seems to put his academic or social standing at risk calls for a serious chat or imposing restrictions."

But in so many instances, a lighter approach reduces both the parent’s and the child’s stress, and can also keep a situation from escalating as well as reduce a child’s feelings of regret or remorse over having done something inappropriate. Most importantly, however, humor underscores that you love your child despite any missteps on their part.

Injecting humor into a difficult situation doesn’t make you a pushover. It is a tool that can soften the rough parenting patches and preserve your connection with your child. Newman suggests catching yourself before you explode, and asking yourself, “How important is this misbehavior or accident in the scheme of your or your child's life?” Most of the time. the answer will probably be, not very. And the moms we see in the pictures seem to not only understand this, but also apply it to their everyday lives.

If you decide that the indiscretion isn’t serious enough to warrant an actual punishment or talking to, Newman encourages trying these silly approaches instead (and she says you don’t have to be all that funny to do them):

• Act silly. Walk backward or abruptly stop speaking as a signal that you don't approve of whatever might be going on at the moment. Your children will laugh at you once they understand your action means you are not happy with the current behavior.
• Talk to your child in pig Latin. Or ask her to repeat back to you something you said in the language she’s studying in school or in Pig Latin.
• Swoop in. Pretend you’re an angel or part of a cleanup crew (if a mess has been created) to diffuse the situation and get help with cleanup.

• Get emotional, but not really. Make believe you are crying or sad, or do a dance and give it a name: “The Broken Vase Dance” or the “Not Going to Bed Dance.”
• Make up a jingle. Use it when your child might be acting unsuitably or is about to break one of your rules, and repeat it often. For example, bust out a tune when you see your daughter is about to go over her allotted nightly screen time. Or, sing when your son is about to touch an object he shouldn’t.
• Laugh at yourself. Do this when you make a mistake or do something boneheaded.

We're not all naturally funny, but we can still foster situations for laughter to emerge. By changing the tempo, you deflect your child’s apprehension; using humor gives him a chance to rethink his actions instead of being upset with his parent’s reprimand or pouting over the grounding you deliver.

When asked about their aspirations for their kids when they reach adulthood, roughly nine-in-ten parents say it’s extremely or very important to them that their children be financially independent and the same share say it’s equally important that their children have jobs or careers they enjoy.

About four-in-ten say it’s extremely or very important to them that their children earn a college degree, while smaller shares place a lot of importance on their children eventually becoming parents (20%) and getting married (21%).

And, as we can see, moms are ready to not only help their little ones get there, even if it means sacrificing for their success, but also make the most out of the twisty and bumpy ride.