5 Easy, Clean and Funny April Fools' Jokes

Editor's note: Thanks to a member of our Patch family in Murrieta, Ca. for these great ideas.

Perhaps you were the one who thought for weeks about the best and most elaborate schemes to fool your friends or family on April 1. Or perhaps you were the one who took advantage of the day and ran around shouting “April Fools” to every little thing.  No matter your fooling style, one thing is for sure:  the good-natured pranks of the day bring out the kid in all of us, regardless of age.

In honor of April Fool’s Day, here are five fun and easy pranks to pull wherever you are, including some of our own and some we have rounded up for you:

1.) Prank your spouse or even your children during your morning routine. Ladies, tell your husband when he wakes up, “Happy Anniversary!” Groggily they will panic, not realizing what day it is until they fully wake up! Or try putting salt on their toothbrush and see what happens. The best part about this trick is it is easy clean up; the victim can easily rinse the brush (and their mouth) out. Another classic prank is to switch the cereal bags and boxes around. Won’t your son or daughter be surprised when their Lucky Charms are actually Wheaties!

2.) If you’re stuck at the office, try unplugging your neighbor's mouse while they have their back turned. It is something fast and easy that won’t risk any of the work they happen to be working on. If you have more time to really trick them, try changing the cursor to the hourglass image as suggested by AprilFoolZone.com.  On most computers, go to Start->Settings->Control Panel->Mouse, and select the "Pointers" tab. Then change the cursor to the hourglass image. Now the victim will think their computer is stuck on a task endlessly.

3.) For those in school, scare a classmate with an unexpected test. As you are walking into the classroom, ask one of your classmates if they are, "ready for the test today?" Have a friend walk with you to confirm there is a test and watch them panic!

4.) No matter your schedule, you are never too busy for a prank, like this one suggested by AprilFools.com. Find a spool of thread that matches your shirt and hide it in your pocket. Leave a length of thread hanging out. Your victim will see it and try to pull it out. It will keep coming and coming! Try it while you are waiting in a line today or while you are running errands.

5.) If you have made it through the day without being able to perform a prank, there is still time! AprilFoolZone.com has you covered. If you are hanging out with some friends, tell them you know a great trick. Put your hand palm-down on the table and balance a full glass of beer--or any liquid--on the back of your hand. Bet your friend that they can't balance a glass on both hands at once, with your help to put them in place. As soon as you have the glasses balanced, stand up and walk away. They will be trapped and will have to spill the beer to escape. Let the others in your group know beforehand so they can go along with it!

Fun Facts:

According to Museumofhoaxes.com, in 1998 Burger King published a full page advertisement in USA Today announcing the introduction of a new item to their menu: a "Left-Handed Whopper" specially designed for the 32 million left-handed Americans. According to the advertisement, the new whopper included the same ingredients as the original Whopper (lettuce, tomato, hamburger patty, etc.), but all the condiments were rotated 180 degrees for the benefit of their left-handed customers. The following day, Burger King issued a follow-up release revealing that although the Left-Handed Whopper was a hoax, thousands of customers had gone into restaurants to request the new sandwich. Simultaneously, according to the press release, "many others requested their own 'right handed' version."

Or remember the time Pat Sajak was bald on "Wheel of Fortune?" Much to the amazement of viewers, the next day he had hair again.

So watch out, the jokes are bound to be everywhere you turn!

Did you try any of the pranks mentioned in the article? How did they turn out? What are your most memorable pranks? Tell us in the comments.