From knickknacks and keepsakes to decorative accents that betray an unusual sense of taste, some people keep some really, really strange things in their homes.
And sometimes, it takes growing up, moving out, and beginning to furnish one’s own home before a person realizes just how odd his or her parents’ stuff is.
A Chicago woman named Jenn was curious about just what was hiding in everyone’s houses, and took to Twitter on Thanksgiving to ask others to share pictures of the baffling things in their families’ homes while they were visiting for the holiday.
Naturally, Twitter delivered. Jenn was inundated with thousands of replies, with hundreds of men and women sharing pictures of the strangest, funniest, most confusing, and most outrageous things in their mom and dads’ houses.
There were plenty of animal figurines — small and very, very large — religious accessories, pieces of long-obsolete technology, unsettling collections, and less-than-festive holiday decor that would make nearly anyone — except, of course, the owners — raise their eyebrows.
This’ll be fun… A Chicago woman named Jenn prompted hundreds of people to share pictures of the strange things they found in their parents’ houses while home for Thanksgiving
Mind-boggling: One woman had no explanation for the plant holder that looks like a free-standing pair of suspenders found in her parents’ house
The bust has left the building: It’s a good thing the Twitter user behind this picture explained that it’s supposed to be a bust of Elvis Presley, because we never would have figured it out
Don’t toy with them! One family has this very old and creepy display of old toys and knickknacks
Huh? Some things just go beyond words and are utterly confusing
Hatching an escape plan… Lots of people have collections, but this family has its own ‘egg room’
Eternal damnation vs. constipation: This family’s bathroom mirror reminds people to pray (and there’s more — this is actually the guest bathroom!)
Only YOU can prevent bad taste: Surprisingly, several homes had large stuffed bears
She’s really anal about her decor: The Twitter user behind this photo said this was found in his grandma’s house
What holiday are you celebrating? Some families have some very odd holiday decorations, including a barefoot Santa and a disturbing Pilgrim
Pretty funny: The poster said that when he was in high school, his dad accidentally took a picture of himself from an off angle — so the son decided to paint it, and the mom had it framed
Odds and ends: This person captured the unique prayer bell in his parents’ house, as well as an odd drawing of a bald eagle turning into a fighter jet
Look ma, no hands! The more you go, the more this unicylist pedals
IT is super weird: One man shared the seriously creepy clown collection his step-dad keeps
Sit back and watch: This user took Twitter through a tour of his parents’ house, which includes lots of elephant figurines
That’s not all! In the same house are a bunch of bulldog stuffed toys and figures
And more… Besides the bulldog toys, his mom and dad have an award for the Bulldog Burlesque, whatever that is
Hoarding much? The parents also have, inexplicably, a knight and a giant penguin
Clean-up time! A man whose in-laws ‘throw nothing away’ gave a startling peek at ‘1/100’ of their basement, where they’ve stored all of their obsolete technology
Gone huntin’ (for TP): One woman made a composite of two images of the, uh, woodsy bathroom in her parents’ house, which includes a Billy Bass and a Talking Buck
Just keep swimming… Bathrooms seem to be a favorite place for odd decor, like this fish-themed one with a fish mobile from the ceiling
Saving for dinner? Shaped soaps are definitely a ‘mom’ (or perhaps ‘grandma’) thing. This one has one that looks like a lobster, which is kept in a crate
A Jesus statue out front? Sure. But the mother who owns this house changes the statue’s hats depending on the weather
Batch one: One woman shared several images of the little tchotchkes her parents keep
The rest: There are angels and cute woodland animals in her house
Cluckin’ weird: Someone found this worse-for-wear hippie turkey at her aunt’s
Sole sentry: This picture, said the poster, is of the ‘wooden goose that guards our shoes’
Well that’s kind of sweet! There is an explanation for this turtle-shaped planter — the daughter bought it for her mother when she was six