Viral Mom's Creative Parenting: The Forgotten Sock Art

Dirty sock on floor of bathroomPhoto byLallaokeonUnsplash

It all started so simple. Xep Campbell, a Washington State Mom, found one of her daughter’s socks on the bathroom floor. It was dirty and had been there for a few days when Xep found it.

In a burst of creativity, Xep turned her annoyance into a unique art display with a small note mounted on the wall in front of the sock stating that it was a unique piece of art on display for a limited time by the artist.

The display note read: "The Forgotten Sock, Mixed Media, Nov 25, 2020. On loan from the collection of the artist."

The following day, her daughter sent her a picture of the sock with the “plaque” detailing that it was on loan temporarily and asked her mother if she had put the sign there. Owning up to what she had done, her mother went about the day without much thought regarding the sock situation.

Upon arriving home, the sock now had a platform upon which it resided.

The scene becomes funnier when her daughter, Kestrel, adds some barnyard animal toys, observing the “artwork.” You can read the story on Facebook here.

In the end, mother and daughter shared that the entire story had gone viral, and they certainly never expected that. Ultimately, mother and daughter started a donation drive for a children’s organization. You can learn more about it here.

Many parents struggle with teaching their children to pick up their belongings and clothes. For as long as children have had mothers, mothers have had unique and creative ways to get their children to pick things up. Here are a few ways that some of my friends and I have handled such issues as “picking up socks or toys.”

One mother started a neighborhood campaign called “Operation Clean Socks. " She included flyers and circulated them around her neighborhood to encourage children to keep their clothes up off the floor.

Another mother we knew had what she called “The Saturday Box. " Anything that the mother found on the floor throughout the week was put into “The Saturday Box,” which meant it couldn’t be retrieved until the following Saturday. One child even left her homework out and had to explain to her teacher why she had to wait until Saturday and would bring it in on Monday.

The “Sock Amnesty Box” also made the headlines. Members of this family could deposit stray socks in exchange for small treats or rewards….cookies, anyone?

How does your family handle such things in your household? How did your parents handle such things when you were growing up? Did this story resonate with you? Consider sharing on social media and ignite conversations that can make a difference.

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