Three April Fool's Day Jokes that Were Played on Me

April Fool's Day has always made a fool of me, but rarely have I ever been able to use the day to make a fool of anybody else. It's way too hard for me to keep a straight face if I try and pull an April Fool's joke on someone. The person is onto me before the punchline.

I've had some great jokes playe on me, however. My sister and my daughter are April Fool's Day masters. Even though I expect them to trick me every single April Fool's Day, and I'm prepared not tobe tricked, they get me every single time.

One year my sister called me up in a panic and she sounded like she had been crying. I asked her what was wrong and she told me that she was in jail. She went into a long speech about how she had been falsely accused of stealing something out of her boss's purse. She needed me to come and bail her out of jail. The problem was I had no money, so I spent most of the day trying to come up with the funds to bail my sister out of jail. When I called her house to tell her son I was on my way to the jail to bail her out, he told me to hold on a moment. A minute later, my sister got on the phone.

"Oh my gosh. Did someone already bail you out?" I asked her.

"Oh...didn't I tell you?" she asked. "April Fools!"

Several years ago when my daughter was working at her first job as a teenager, she played a good one on me. She was working at a bagel shop at the time. She had been at work for a couple of hours when she called me.

"Mom, can you come and pick me up?" she pleaded through a broken voice. It was obvious she was crying.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"I got in an argument with the boss and she fired me."

"What on earth were you arguing with your boss about?"

"I can't talk about it now. Please come get me." In the background I could hear someone yelling at her.

"I'm on my way, honey."

I ran to the car and headed toward the bagel store. When I got there she ran out to the car, obviously very upset. Still, she could not bring herself to tell me what had happened.

After I had driven about 5 miles and was almost home, she looked at me and said, "Mom? Would you do me a favor?"

"Sure, honey. What is it?"

"Turn around and take me back to work. April Fools!"

Good one, huh? Yes, her boss was in on it with her. All of the yelling was part of the joke.

My daughter played another good one on me when she was around 17 years old. She was having her first serious relationship, and I liked the boy but was concerned they were getting too close too fast. One day she was leaving to get on the school bus and she handed me a note. Don't read it until I leave, she said.

I waited until she was on the bus and began to read the letter. It was very serious, telling me how she thought she was pregnant and she knew how disappointed I would be with her. She was discussing her options, and telling me not to worry. She talked about how she and her boyfriend got carried away one night and did not use protection. She then said she was not going to have sex anymore until she was married.

Well, I was freaking out when I read her letter. About 30 minutes later, my phone rang. It was my daughter.

"Did you read the letter?" she asked me.

"Yes." I didn't even know what else to say at that point.

"I'm sorry, Mom. Oh...wait a minute. April Fools!"

I was livid and definitely not laughing at this one. Still, I felt an enormous relief flood over me.

This year I am already wondering what April Fool's joke is going to be played on me. I have no doubt, however, that it will be the same this year as it is every year. I will think I'm prepared for whatever joke is played, and I will be totally taken by surprise.