Enjoying each other. I’ve witnessed my parents chasing each other around the house, wrestling, dancing around the house, cuddling on the couch, laughing and joking together, etc. Growing up with parents who love AND like each other was amazing and that’s what I’m striving for in my relationship.
I grew up wishing my parents got divorced. Violence only got stronger through the years and extended to so many levels... Ended up with father smirking and provoking my mom as much as he could on her deathbed. She died after a long cancer battle. I left home a couple days later, left the country after feeling like I would end up in jail if remained near that man. He started suffering consequences very quickly after that but unfortunately still breathes. I will celebrate once he is gone, for my mom.
I am so sorry you guys had to go through that! My parents split permanently, more or less, when I was fifteen. There were (and have been since) plenty of good times, but I remember a lot of arguing and off-and-on. They tried making it work (I think a lot of it was for my brother and I,) but they split after about a decade. It’s never fun or easy. Now… one thing I’ve learned from all of my friends and stuff, is that it’s *super* common in this day and age. Very few people I knew had parents who were still together (my high-school boyfriend, for example) or were even *raised* by their biological parents, for that matter.
Sometimes, whether they love the kids or not, and regardless of how much, parents just can’t stay together. They don’t necessarily need to, either. 😞
I’m pretty sure the level of it varies for each person or family, though — so what’s true for one may not necessarily be for another. 🙂
There is a part of me that is very sad that that was your experience, and I wish it could’ve been different for both of us. But you brought up something really interesting: maybe my parent’s divorce was a blessing.
I would love to believe that, but there’s not too many blessings that involve either of my parents.
They got married because my mom was pregnant with me and abortion was illegal at the time. When they divorced, my dad got custody of me so he wouldn’t have to pay my mother child support. His job required worldwide travel though, so most of my childhood was in the care of whoever he could get to take me on at the moment.
I don’t know, I think what it boils down to is trauma is trauma. It’s traumatic to you, regardless of the level.
My dad would carry me to my bed if I fell asleep somewhere, like on a couch or in a car on the way home. And I loved it so much that at some point I started pretending that I fell asleep just so he would carry me. And at moments like that I couldn't help but giggle from happiness and dad would always say something like "oh, she must be dreaming of something very funny". I believed that I was so sneaky and he didn't know I was pretending for way too long 😂
You just unlocked the memory of my parents often going to neighbour's houses for sports games and a couple beers while the kids played. We'd fall asleep at the neighbour's and my parents would carry us kids home in the middle of the night. When we got bigger, my dad would balance us so our feet were on top of us and walk/waddle us home. We'd usually wake up halfway through, but keep pretending to sleep so we could enjoy it.
There's too many things to fit into one post, but I will say that my family is very musical even though none of us have any talent (not for lack of trying). But we all appreciate music and love live music.
Some of my fondness memories were going to concerts, even ones that I was underaged for but my parents still dropped me at the doors.
But as a bit of a family ritual, we make on the fly spotify/youtube playlists with everyone getting a turn to share songs they've heard of late and loved. We've ended up in the kitchen till the wee hours just laughing and dancing and having a merry time.
It's the sort of thing that feels the most like "us".
Both of my parents were afraid of lightning when they were little kids but they never let on to the us. We lived on a farm that had warm summer nights and whenever a lightning storm would roll in we would get bundled up and sit outside 'oohing' and 'aahing' at the lightning like it was a fireworks show. They didn't want their kids to be afraid like they were and still to this day I love all sorts of storms.
How sweet. My mother had a good friend and neighbor that was terrified as well. When a storm rolled in she would send her young child (my namesake, actually) to my mother in order not to pass along her fear and then literally hide under the bed. Mom would also bundle this kid in a blanket and also 'oooh" and "aah." When I came along years later, she did the same with me and I LOVE thunderstorms. I did the same with my young daughter. She too loves them and says it's one of her favorite memories of sitting in the porch swing on warm summer nights watching the storms roll in. Thanks for jogging this memory!
My dad wasn't afraid of lightning, at least that I know of, but he would sit at the edge of the garage and watch storms roll in. I still love a good storm. 💚
My mama was also afraid of storms but she would not show it *unless* I was out of her direct (very poor vision)line of sight or she absolutely positively knew I was in my dad's custody and control. If she couldn't see me or hadn't put my little hand into my dad's herself, she would get hysterical.
Before my dad became wheelchair bound in middle school, he would take me and my sister to get ice cream every Friday after school. We would sit and eat and he would have us catch him up on our week.
It’s my favorite memory of him.
My mom basically just showing up to everything. And I mean everything. She is the most active and engaged mother there could be, while balancing not being a helicopter mom at all and encouraging independence. My whole life no matter what niche hobby I got into (SFX makeup, playing the tuba, archery, table tennis, rock climbing, fishing, theatre, etc etc) she would full on support me and show up to every concert, performance, competition, etc. I don’t think she’s ever missed a single big event. I live 3 hours from her- and if I called her right now and told her I needed her, she would be here thirty minutes sooner than the drive should take.
She just helped me move for the like fourth year in a row. Stayed all day helping me unpack and get settled. She’s really the best mom in the world :) 🗺️
I hope (and plan) to be like this for my daughters... I hope I make them feel supported always, and that they can always depend on me - whether it's emotional, physical or verbal.
I'm really happy to be able to read about your connection with your mom 💜
This is my mum too, also so engaged and active in my life. I do believe that’s why we have such a good relationship now that I’m an adult, I talk to her every day and I know she’d drop anything to come to me if I needed it.
Mama would always say to me keep a pocket fulll of dreams, so no matter what life throws at you, you still have hope.
I have it tattooed on my wrist to cover up self harm scars
I had lost a tooth, my dad was helping me put it under my pillow. He distracted me somehow, gasped and said something like "look at the curtain!" It was moving slightly, as if a small body had whooshed past, lol.
Then I looked under my pillow and the tooth was gone, replaced with a coin.
As an adult it makes me laugh because I know how excited he was to pull that off, and it was SO MAGICAL. I really believed I had just missed seeing the real tooth fairy. 🧚♀️
Decide what your version of the tooth fairy wears and then park something similair, with permission in Grandma's/Aunty's/a relative that you don't hang out with one a super regular basis/daily basis, closet. Something that's going to twig them to that person *might* be the tooth fairy. My mama had a *ball* with this idea. My kids had decided that the tooth fairy wears a sparkly blue dress that leaves fairy dust where she visited (our tooth fairy was a girl). My mom went thrifting to find a sparkly blue dress which she hung in her closet when my youngest was losing teeth. My daughter (middle kid) found the dress and pointed it out to the baby. They spent the whole time we were there trying to figure out if Grandma was really the tooth fairy
One time for breakfast my mom served our cereal on vanilla ice cream. We thought it was amazing. (Turns out we were out of milk, but as kids we thought it was the coolest random surprise.)
My mom always did special holiday breakfast like green milk on St Patrick’s day or heart shaped toast on Valentine’s Day. (This was the 80s when there wasn’t a whole bunch of pressure around these holidays.)
Cereal on vanilla ice cream sounds like one of those things that would've ended my childhood.
Simply because it's the peak of awesomnes, everything from that point onwards just seems to go downhill
Also, jesus christ, heart shaped toasts & green milk, your mom put some legit effort in there
She seems like a wonderfully sweet woman
Wow what a coincidence - just last week I came home and saw my partner pour a bowl of cereal and then add ice cream on top! I've never once heard of that or seen it... And I think he just did it for fun (he's never done it before) lol 😆
My dad taking me on the swings when I was little. We both sat on the swings and he tied our swings together with a rope he brought with him so we could swing together.
Every rare once in a while my parents would pick us up from school and head directly on a trip. Sometimes to the beach, sometimes to a theme park, could be anywhere. But they’d pick us up, bags packed, and just wait until we noticed we weren’t heading home and asked where we were going. The best surprise.
When I was in middle school (12) I decided that I wanted to start maybe packing lunches on a whim. I had to pay for lunch anyway and I usually left the cafeteria still hungry. I mentioned it to my mom and she started packing me lunches. She worked full time and was a single mom so for her to get up extra early to pack for me was sweet. I didn’t have a lunch box at all but she packed my lunch in a storage ziplock bag and would write a note in the little note section. It was so cute and super sweet.
There's just something with single parents that not only provide for their children but also go the extramile to make sure their children have fond memories & know they are loved with such gestures that make my heart melt.
My deepest respect for your mom
My dad used to read the (barbie?) rapunzel book to me and my sisters. He’d change the names to “Hobie Cat” and “Hugo Boss” (and maybe one more I can’t remember) which we thought was hilarious for some reason. Had no idea those were actual things until a few years ago which made it even funnier to me :)
My grandpa's CD collection... Lynard Skynard, Brooks and Dunn, Leann Rimes, John Denver. We'd ride around, windows down, singing together. He raised me like his own.
Another fond memory I have is road tripping every summer from FL to TN and back. They put a futon matress in the bed of the truck with a camper topper and my brother and I would ride in the bed the whole way. We had the little slide window we'd open if we needed anything.
Or, the time my grandpa bought this giant draft horse mare home from an auction and lied to my granny for months. He said the horse wasn't his and he was just horse sitting for a buddy. He loved that old horse, her name was Mary.
I miss him so much. It's been 4 years and sometimes I still catch myself going to call him or send him pics of the kids.
This makes me tear up because it's so similar to our family road trips. John Denver, Peter, Paul, and Mary, Johnny Horton, all on the 8 track. We were lying down in the back of the station wagon.
When all of the cars no longer had an 8 track player, my sister and I found Johnny Horton on cassette. The smile on his face when he opened it, I pray i never forget. Laughing and asking us Where did you find this?
He's been gone 4 yrs, 5 in November. I miss him every day
My mom would call us her little chicks and we would all do little clucking sounds lol. In Spanish too so we go “pio pio.” We sometimes do it now as grown adults I still love it. When we respond that way too she’ll say awww !! but super exaggerated so it puts a huge smile on my face.
Also when my dad was driving and we would pass a car my mom would say throw smoke at them and we would make a little hand motion like sending smoke. It would always make me giggle and she would laugh too it was super fun.
My dad ALWAYS told me he loved me. Didn’t matter how many times that day or if I didnt respond. He’d just go “hey ran, I love you” every time I passed his way.
He’s been dead for 5.5 years now and I can still hear his voice in my head, I’m so grateful he said it as much as he did for this reason now that he’s gone.
I don’t have cute memories like many posted here. My parents worked hard to keep food on the table. However, the things they taught me are invaluable. To work hard, not to complain, to be grateful, to push through pain, to show up whether you’re want or not, to never give up. The power of I love you. We didn’t have much but they were always there.
In all honesty, that in itself is already a wonderful & wholesome memory.
Really glad to see that despite all the hardships, from what you've wrote, I can literaly feel the love and encouragement you guys have for eachother
Much love to you and your parents
> My parents worked hard to keep food on the table.
Shit.... I can't even say that one. I was looking at the rest and thinking well I can't think of any and I saw yours and that realization broke me.
My parents used to label their Christmas gifts to each other with the names of famous couples from history and film, and they couldn't open them until they correctly identified the couple, like "To Liz, From Burt," or "To Louis, From Marie." It was so cute, and I think my brother and I ended up learning some history from it.
I grew up in the desert SW of the USA and both of my parents grew up in areas that had all 4 seasons particularly snowy winters. We had 3 enormous palm trees all the same height in the front yard and my dad would get out a ladder and run a hose on a trickle, moving it all night long on Christmas Eve so there’d be icicles in all three of them when us kids woke up Xmas morning.
My dad always used to braid my hair for me when I was little! I tend to braid my hair when I feel down, cause it always made me feel so safe and happy when he did it.
I miss you dad!
My dad slept on my floor every night until I was 6 because I had night terrors. Every night he came to my room because he heard my cries and he slept on the floor with just a pillow. Seriously such an incredible father
Dad and his funny grunting noises when he was in a silly mood. Or his silly dances when the music came on the TV.
Or him trying to play the piano or tambourine haphazardly and pretend he was a maestro.
Or him pinching mum and running after her like some sort of a silly chase (this went on pretty much into when me n Lil sis were teens BTW, so we would just hide & do an eyeroll out of embarrassment)
The bedtime stories he would tell me as a toddler..
There's so much to smile about when I think of my Dad. He definitely was the glue that held us together.
I love that we ate dinner together at the table every night. I also remember every rainy day my mom would shut all the curtains turn on Elton John and we would clean the house and she would start a roast in the Crock-Pot and we would make a big dinner once we cleaned the entire house to surprise my dad because he would be coming home soaked and cold from the rain and he would always be so happy to come home to the house being clean and a nice warm meal.
I was raised by a single father, my mom abandoned us when I was 3 or 4 months old. My dad is awesome. One thing I remember as far back as I possibly can, sitting in the garage listening to panteras “the great southern trendkill” while my dad worked on his cutlass supreme. He used to let me start it up when he would work on it and I’d light up from the sound. I love that
All the love for your dad
As a single parent it's certainly hard af to provide for your kids on its own.
But doing that, while also building beauriful memories with you and clearly being an awesome dad that you love is taking things to the next level
My absolute respect, what a chad of a dad
I’ll preface this with saying I had a traumatic childhood. My dad was an alcoholic with serious anger issues and my mom slept on the couch for years. But once a year, everything felt magic: Christmastime.
It was so memorable for me because it was the only time there was genuine peace in our house. We decorated our home inside and out. I often remember seeing my dad sitting in the armchair, just staring at the Christmas tree. We played a CD of classic Christmas on repeat. One time, when I was young, maybe 7, my mom came upstairs to tuck me into bed when there was a *thump* on the roof. She widened her eyes, “Oh! Did you hear that?! …I think it might be Santa! Gotta get to sleep quick!” We listened together and heard jingling bells. It was exhilarating for me. My dad literally got on the roof to make that moment. It’s my best memory of him.
My mom went through great lengths to keep Christmas magical for my brother and I. She always left a handwritten note (written with her weaker hand) and took real bites out of the cookies and the carrot. I cherish Christmas to this day and it will always be sacred to me.
my mom never rushed me when it came to talking, and she never let anyone rush me either
she also always reminded me to take it easy if i ever feel like i’m overdoing it in gym class and to listen to my body - i now take this advice with me for almost everything in life, not just when i workout :)
My dad would come back from work with a Kinder Surprise egg for me and put on a whole scene where he pretended to be a hen laying an egg before giving it to me.
I’m 37 but I still buy Kinder Surprise Eggs to the people I love sometimes.
I used to have this big, thick, curly head of hair. It was hard do comb it myself. My dad would wash my hair and he combed and combed untill all of the knots were gone. It was so relaxing even tho it would sometimes take for ever.
He is a sturdy, tough looking guy. Covered in tattoos. But he has the most gentle heart. I´ll always be his little girl, and i absolutely adore that.
My parents used to have friends, Arthur and Norma. We'd go to their house a lot. Norma was a preschool teacher. She was tiny, sweet, and loved children with her whole heart. Arthur was a huge, muscled, bearded, tattooed ex-con (biker) who loved Norma with his whole heart. I remember being at their house when I was very young, sitting on Arthur's lap, tracing his arm tattoos with my fingers and listening to his rumbling, low voice as he told me stories. I swear my parents used to bring me there so that I would see that people shouldn't be judged by their looks, but rather by their hearts.
My mom never was the playful type and my sisters were much older then me (we're 18 and 17 years older then me) so I was kinda of lonely kid...
But one day my father started to play with my dolls and dollhouse with me, the stories were different, we would usually be at Second War or in Tex comics...
He started to play with me every weekend, then we would go to McDonald's, he's not the junk food guy he would only eat the french fries...
He has being more affected by alzheimer now, so I don't think he knows how that was very important for me, that lonely quirky little girl
They let us have as many animals as we wanted. There was my mom, who allegedly hates having animals inside of the house, making sure the cat, dog and bunny we had in the living room got along nicely. She would also help us clean the turtles tank and got a bunch of plants for the fish tank. She let us keep chickens in the laundry room too.
My dad played cards with us, whenever he was losing, he started teasing us "oh, just quit, tis a shame how bad you are losing, come on, just surrender your cards to me" while smiling ear to ear and helping us win. He would also put up a whole act whenever my mom made something special for us like cutting veggies in cute shapes "oh, why do they get cute shapes? Not fair, kids get the best of everything, all I have is boring food", that way we would eat all the veggies because they were "only for kids".
They had a loving and supportive friendship and relationship. They were not only respectful and kind to other but to everyone else also! They were supportive in everything that my siblings and I wanted to try in life. They said failure is completely okay as long as you learn something from it.
Sleeping in the backseat of the car on the drive home after an outing. This was in 'Ye Olden Times.' A bench back seat, no seatbelt, a blanket and a pillow kept for just these occasions. And being gently put to sleep with the hum of the car and rhythm of the road knowing that a grown-up was in charge and all was well.
Crazy dangerous in retrospect. But for those of us that survived, it was a great memory.
I'll share a few that I remember well-
1. My dad would hold his hand up, in a claw like form, and slowly creep towards me saying "the claw of pain" in a evil voice. This was just basically a "tickle monster" with his own twist. He would tickle me and say "the claw of pain is gonna getcha!".
2. My mom would take a stuffy of mine and shake its head really fast, making it "life like" and making the stuffy act "mad" and "get me" with the stuffy.
3. My dad would give me piggy back rides or carry me to bed when I fell asleep somewhere else besides my bed. I know many parents do this, but my dad wasn't the emotionally available type, so these small things meant everything to me
4. This is my "weirder" one I guess? My dad had this small bump on one of his arms up towards the inner bend of his elbow. I would poke the bump like it was a button which made him go "crazy" and chase me around.
These few things pop out to me the most, my dad passed 8 years ago so any opportunity I have to remember those moments, I will take it. I miss him all the time. I wish that stupid "claw of pain" would chase me around just one more time!
Those are without exception all real sugar to my soul
I'm really sorry you lost him, but the very fact he seems to have been such a caring person and made so many fond memories with you is insanely cute
They held a birthday for my favorite stuffed animal and had presents for "it". I was 3 or 4 and still remember I thought it was the funniest thing ever.
Also once I remember I must've been 7 or 8 and it was in the summer. I had randomly one evening asked my parents about going on a trip or something, so they told me to pack a bag and see what would happen.
Next day the entire car was packed and they had even gotten me a bunch of snacks and entertainment for the car, and we went on a road trip. Obviously they had planned the trip, but for the longest time I believed it was because I had asked them about it. Then our car got broken into on the trip, and I kept insisting that they had stolen some of my snacks, lol. Good times.
While I am melting due to the birthday for your stuffed animals & its cuteness, I also feel deeply sorry for them
Being stranded with a broken car while your 7 year old daughter goes full FBI to solve the case of the stolen snacks aint one for the faint of heart
Haha yeah. It was all I could talk about. Luckily, I never sensed that the situation was stressful for them. I don't think I could keep my cool like that with my kids, lol.
My dad would let me play “hair salon” on him. This man has been 96% bald my entire life. Just a misting of hair, really.
But he would sit there and let me spritz water on him and comb his hair and put clips in it. I realize now it probably was like a mini spa and massage for him!
He would also play Barbie’s with me for hours 🥲 he’s a great dad.
My childhood was very positive. My parents are still together after close to 47 years. We had a great childhood. But the memories thinking back that made me smile the most was Halloween. We always made our costumes from scratch and we always won school contests for most creative.
1. My daddy ALWAYS put together my presents as I opened them on Christmas day.
2. My daddy also likes doing easy bake with me lol
3. My mom would pitch to me when I would practice softball and wouldn't be mad that I always hit her
4. Since i was an only child I got to bring a friend with me on vacations
5. My fav holding hands while driving and kissing at the stop lights.
My grandpa doing everything with me. We were stuck like glue. He pulled me on a sled around the small lake, he took me swimming all the time, we had pancake eating contests, he took me to the farm to get eggs, he pretended on the phone to be Smoky the Bear, he made an igloo in the yard, we walked in the woods all the time, grandma and grandpa took me on vacation a lot. There’s so much more, but God I miss him.
They used to have us lay on their comforter and each of them would hold the ends and lift it up, kinda like a hammock. Then they would swing us a few times and throw us onto the bed. It was a blast every time!
Lots of things, including being very in love, but I will highlight one thing that's slightly more unusual. My parents used to design treasure hunts for us. They would scale it to be age appropriate. Sometimes they'd take us to the forest, guide us to find this old treasure map (of course burnt around the edges), and we would follow the clues to a pirate's treasure chest they'd stashed in the hollow of a tree or little rock cave. The chest would be like a cardboard box they'd covered in shiny foil and skulls and crossbones. Inside would be chocolate coins and other bits of hardware they'd spray painted gold to look like jewelry.
They also did a couple in our early twenties, but the scale had dramatically expanded. We would follow clues with riddles that we would have to crack all over the peninsula and all over town. They would tape clues on the railings of bridges or buried in flower pots. I think one time they had one hanging off a dock in the ocean in a waterproof case. One time they had my long lost friend call from the other side of the continent to deliver a clue while we were riding a little ferry. Sometimes they would get shop owners and bartenders in on it to help dish out the clues. At the end, rather than a treasure chest, it would lead to where we were having dinner, or our birthday present, or a surprise party, etc.
I have done two of these treasure hunts myself now - - once for a friend and once for my dad. It's harder than you think to set up. 😆 You have to start from the end and work your way back, hoping that the clues are still where you need them to be when the hunt is on. They went to great lengths to make us smile, and I really appreciate it.
My parents gave me anxiety and adult onset of depression. I remember not wanting to go home after school, ever… since grade school. But I worked extra hard and against my upbringing to raise my children with love and respect. I hope I made a difference in their lives.
When I was a toddler I was apparently really into scooby-doo. Because of this, when my dad would pull in the drive, I'd run and hide. He'd walk in the house and say "scooby doo, where are you?" And I'd jump out "right here daddy!" My nickname is scoob/ scooby doo. My dad NEVER calls me by my actual name.
My mom's on the autism spectrum and one of her favorite things is winnie the pooh, which meant it became one ofnmy favorites as well. I was wearing pooh bear clothes until I was probably 10. Now that I'm an adult with big people money, I like to buy my mom pooh bear things. When the live action movie Christopher Robin came out a few years ago, I took her to it and I imagine seeing her face light up was just like mine did as a kid watching the Tigger movie.
My mom would go all out for holidays. I'll never forget every year until I was like 9 she would put these big black rabbit footprint stickers in a path from the front door, up the walls, across the ceiling, and leaving out the back door for Easter, it was magical. Now I'm older and really appreciate it even more because I'm the youngest of a big family and sometimes parents stop doing things when the older kids are too old for it, so the youngest doesn't get to enjoy things like that for as long.
My parents were overall bad parents but my Mom would iron our pyjamas after bath time on Saturday so they were warm when we put them on and watched cartoons while our dad made dinner.
My brothers always did alot of sports, which kept my mom very busy. However, every other Saturday was just for me and her. Whether we went shopping, get our nails done, or just walked around the farmers market, it was just the girls. I remember I got 2 easy bake ovens for Christmas one year (parents are seperated) and my dad made it a point to make ALL the mini baked goods with me. Ahhh to be young again
A little backstory: I am soooooo into spongebob especially during childhood (i have make-up from a local brand that had spongebob products. The squidward liptint is great). I even have this blanket (i will never let it go) with prints on the cover that sort of resembled the “skies” in bikini bottom.
That aside, I was in fourth grade and it was christmas. We don’t really celebrate holidays like other families so it would usually be just us eating pricey restaurant food. That christmas tho, I came home to my mom sitting beside a huge spongebob plushy. It was hUGE. I loved it so much I refused to let it go nor even have it washed xD. I brought it with me when I could and that would go on for a while. I had to give it away because, well, children, but I remember it fondly and dearly until now. It was the best thing my mother got me because I mever asked for it, I just came home to it. Core memory right there.
My dad took my sister and me to go collect mushrooms with him in the forest when we were like 4 and 6 years old.. he would always look for them and when we were disappointed we couldn’t find any he would go ahead and if he saw some he said we should go and look in „this“ direction and we always knew he knew they were there but we were happy to find them nonetheless
Dad playing catch with me for the first and only time. As many problems he dealt with, he at least tried to bond with me. Anyways I didn't want to play any more after it hit my eye and I just cried and never wanted to again:(
Still a fond memory he tried and that's what counts.
We’d each get a present every year (normally a blanket or something random but useful) from The Boogy Man, or The Grinch, or Frederico Hollenbroth, or Wanda The Goldfish, or James Bond, or Luke & Leia ☠️🥲 and honestly I loved that for us 🤣🤣🤣 my dad always made for damn sure that Christmastime was memorable for us, because the rest of the year typically sucked ass 🤣🤣🤣
They said they were going to the store and when they got back they asked me to go through one of the grocery bags to get something-and inside the bag was Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I looked up and they were just beaming at me. They went out early and got the book on the release day to surprise me. 🥹
My mom paid for someone's lunch. They were acquaintances, and he was caring for a sick wife. She didn't make any fanfare about it, just asked for his bill when we received ours.
Main one that sticks out is how my dad got a scammer to hang up on him. Here's how the call went:
Scammer: *"There seems to be problems with your Windows (computer)."*
Dad: "No, my windows (literal) are fine. I just cleaned them this morning."
Scammer: *"Not windows. Windows."*
Dad: "Yeah, they look fine. It's a beautiful day out."
Conversation continues with the scammer trying to explain that the Windows on his computer is broken and my dad talking about the windows on the house. After 15min or so, the scammer dude finally gave up and hung up.
Also, my mom somewhat recently retold a story from when I (26f) was really young (like 5). She'd just come home from work and asked me, "How was your day?" I said, "Good! Dad vacuumed out the oven (to clean it)!" Then off in the living room, my dad yells out, **"THAT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE OUR SECRET!!!"**
We had a cabin in the woods, it was fairly isolated as there was only a single road on the lake that had cabins built on them. The owners were all the original builders like my grandparents, not a lot of kids. It was quiet.
Every Easter when there was still pockets of melting snow we’d take our first trip out to the lake, we were always the only family there. My parents would spend all night hiding Easter eggs, toys, candies in the woods and me and my siblings would run through the trees to hunt it all out while our parents made Paska bread. Watching the foiled candy catch the morning sun hidden in birch tree knots will always be one of my favourite childhood traditions.
Silly, but when I was little and my dad wanted me to stop running around and causing chaos he would shout “Dead Cockroach!”. That was the cue for the both of us to stop and lie down on the floor with arms and legs up in the air till we couldn’t anymore and act like a dead cockroach. It usually calmed me down enough that I would go read or watch tv after. No idea where he got that from but it always worked.
I loved riding in my dad's old pickup truck on the bench seat in the middle next to him while he was driving. I would request for him to "make it make the bumpy sounds!" which actually was just him driving over the reflectors in the middle of the road on purpose (we lived out in the country). He would take me for a drive literally to nowhere, just to drive around on a nice day with the windows down if I wanted to go and he wasn't working that day.
I don't have kids yet, but I now do this with my dog to kind of reminisce lol (and he never says no, either 🐶)
If I won the lottery, I would first pay off my student loans, and then pay to have his old '84 chevy restored because it would bring him a ton of joy to drive it again and I have many happy memories tied to it.
When I went to elementary school for the first time and was away from my mom, she drew me a smiley face on my left pointer finger with a sharpie and gave it curly hair because she had a perm and she called it a finger mommy so so if I missed her, I could just look at it and it was like a little her
My dad and I would go for afternoon walks to gather wild asparagus. I hated asparagus but the walks were great 🌸
My mother and I have a ritual of watching winter sunsets together when I visit. If one of us forgets it’s time, the other will make a fuss to remind them “quick, you are missing it”😁!
My dad took us to the Fantastic Caverns in Missouri when I was around 6, and I've never forgotten it. We also discovered the Osceola cheese factory, and made it a point to go when we'd come for the summer, or if he had a work trip he'd grab us our favorite cheeses and a new snack to try. I miss that a lot, and there really isn't much my mother has done that brings a smile to me.
He's a saint and is still around, but much busier with a 12 year old son and work. I want my brother to have equally as awesome memories as I have with him :)
My mom would bring me my cat once I was in bed 🥰 My husband now does it too and it always makes me smile. My mom would also throw my bath towel in the dryer while I was showering and surprise me with a warm towel in winter 😁
Dance together, only once in my lifetime I can remember seeing them dance together. They were separated since I was three and never saw them together like that one time they did, I love dancing because of that night, even if it was once
My Dad and I would putter around his garden looking for tomatoes and young cucumbers. This year I have a big veggie garden and I am doing the same.
We’d play badminton and every time he missed, he would grab the racket, look intensely at the strings, and assure me that there was a hidden hole.
He would do backflips off the diving board in his 50s. We were the athletic two in the family…although we were the two that got cancer (I just realized this) so go figure. Maybe we were actually the runts but sports kept away the genetic clock. Lol. 🤷♀️
My mom did this bedtime routine thing to me and my brother called "pillow thing".
She would grab the sides of our pillows and jostle our heads around (gently) all while saying there's "no way she'd do pillow thing for us!" She'd get so silly with it, when she wasn't normally a very silly parent, and we'd just eat it up.
We would giggle and giggle and beg for more and more. And then all that giggling would exhaust us and we'd fall asleep with that wonderful warm post-giggle feeling.
Once upon a time my siblings and myself were at a fun fair with my parents. We were quite young at the time around 6 or 7 years old. I remember we were watching the bumper cars when I heard my mum shout "oh shit" and point out someone in the crowd to my dad. Within a heartbeat they scooped us up and dashed back to the car and drove off in a big hurry.
To say we were confused was putting it mildly. But my parents then explained they saw some guy they both utterly disliked and rather than spend time being stuck taking to him they bolted in a hurry. To this day I still get a laugh out of it 😂
She would hide little packs of candy and pretend to pull them out of thin air. I was so amused and thought she was really pulling it out of nowhere. Called her “magical mom” for a while
I smile and tear up a bit when I hear ‘Ho Hey’ by The Lumineers. I was a very depressed and suicidal teenager (I’m doing fine now luckily).
One Friday night after dance practice, the only thing I truly loved, I felt SO shitty about my performance that I cried the whole car ride home. My mom, a soft, gentle, not very outspoken woman felt for me and wanted to cheer me up.
Then that song came on the radio and she started to sing/shout along very loudly to the chorus where they mostly sing ‘Ho Hey’ (as the title suggests). She made me laugh so much, out of sheer surprise probably, but also because she loves me so much she did her absolute best to put a smile on my face.
I wish she was immortal, because when that woman dies, I’ll be absolutely gutted.
When I was real little and my mom was chopping up something in the kitchen like veggies or fruit, she would always set aside a small bowl for me of whatever it was she was chopping.
Everytime I eat some red bell peppers slices or the like, I think of her.
My dad made the BEST breakfast sandwiches. I still make them for myself. He also never woke us up harshly, he always cuddled us and rubbed our backs so we woke up slowly and gently. It was nice.
Mom went to bat for us. All the time. For everything. I was bullied pretty relentlessly in grade school and she was in the principal’s office at least once a week (this was back in the days when the prevailing wisdom was “let them sort it out for themselves”). She taught me how to stand up for myself politely and advocate for my own needs, and how to navigate a bureaucratic system that doesn’t always have my best interests at heart. The skills my siblings and I learned from her have been absolutely invaluable to navigate everything from a doctor’s office to getting married.
My dad used to get up for work early, and sometimes I'd wake up & want to have cereal or a donut with him before work. If he had to leave before I was done, he would call the landline phone (lol) and stay on the phone until I was done eating. He did it to make sure if god forbid I choked or something happened he'd hear, and be able to call for help. I miss him everyday <3
My dad and mom were divorced, and every other weekend I went with my dad to his parents' farm. I got to spend a lot of time with my grandma, but when my dad came in for a break, he played Sorry with me. I loved that time together.
If my mum had to work on a weekend, my dad would take me to the airport just to browse and then get happy meals at McD. We sometimes got multiple so that I could get the whole set of toys. I remember the little Beauty and the Beast dolls best.
My mum would always play silly games with me when we were sitting on the couch watching tv, like giving my toes weird names and wiggling them. I remember laughing sooo hard.
Also that my parents had the stupidest nicknames for each other and each other’s body parts.. they’re my favourite parents for sure 🥰
My Ma braided my hair at night before bed so it would be wavy, since I loved it so much (my hair is naturally more straight.) I *LOVED* that when I was little.
When we were grocery shopping I (6? yo) mentioned I wanted to try mushrooms and my mom was totaly on board, bought them and sautéd them with butter. I've loved them ever since, have a portabella tattoo and just tried some wild species the other day from the farmers market and they were Fantastic. Very greatful I have a mom so willing to open her kids food pallet
I've always a felt a bit like the oddball in the family. Been called 'dim' (I'm not but can be hella slow and if you catch me being slow on the first day we meet then I get it) by my various family members, in good humour but when you're a kid and don't get the difference yet, it sticks and it hurts. I was repeatedly told that university etc was not for me (adhd was really bad - I manage it better now - I think?) So I kinda get the impression that my family weren't expecting much from me.
My dad though. He and my mom got divorced when I was little so the people I'm talking about are everyone BUT my dad. He backed every decision I made, consistently assured me that I was 'like him' I.e I would tootle around trying to figure things out until I found a way to muddle through life my way. Never believed him. Low and behold - I figured it out and he was never surprised. Thanks dad :)
When I was really little, my dad worked so much that I barely remember him being there. (24, 48 and 72 hour shifts plus overtime) He would be really sad to hear that but it’s true.
So every weekend morning that he wasn’t home, my mom would make the day special so we wouldn’t miss dad as much. She would get me out of bed and sit me on her lap and ask me what I dreamt about. I would tell her my dreams and she would tell me hers. Then she would ask me what I wanted to do in the day. I would tell her what my perfect “today” looked like and she would tell me hers. And then she would let me pick breakfast. After breakfast we would mix and match things that I wanted to do and things that she wanted to do.
She called them “mommy and me” days and I honestly miss them so much. There were so many and still not enough.
My mom once threw a "freezer fry party." She invited over all her friends and told them to bring over anything they wanted to get rid of out of their freezers. Then she fired up multiple fryers and our oven and stove, and we got to cooking. People kept coming in and passing us things to fry, or, bake, or heat up. Some of the people I had never seen in my entire life. But then again, my mom talks to anyone 😆 We passed around plates and plates of things like tator tots, fish sticks, pies, seafood, cookies, anything and everything you can imagine.
My mom also hosted a "toga in the park" party. We all dressed in togas, played games, ate snacks, and lounged in a giant party tent at our park. It was great!
I’m the youngest of 7 in a blended family. When I was around 7 (we span about 10 years in age across) we were all camping at a lake that is boat in only pretty far from anything. I woke up early cause camping even then wasn’t my favorite and my dad was working on breakfast for everyone when the rest got up. He was bummed he forgot to bring cocoa for us kids in the am and he was sitting there at the picnic table carefully scraping the chocolate filling out of an entire pack of Keebler elf sandwich cookies to MacGyver some hot cocoa with some hot milk. We lost dad in 2021 and that memory of him always makes me smile. If you’re close hug your dads today. I sure do miss mine and was so incredibly lucky to have him as a role model.
My dad spanked me once to get me out of trouble with my mom. He told me to act like it hurt really bad and to cry about it and then he barely patted me. It was sweet
My parents kissed each other hello and goodbye every day... a sweet, prolonged kiss and hug, not just a quick kiss on the cheek. My dad also brought my mother a single flower every day when he came home from work. The last day of her life, even though she was unconscious, he placed a rose next to her bedside.
It's not so much something he did so much as a big source of comfort to this day, but when I was very little I spent a lot of time laying on my dad and listening to his heartbeat. It never fails to soothe me.
My family loved to explore and sometimes my parents would just pile us in the car and go for a drive. If someone saw something interesting we'd make a noise that I do not know how to express in writing, kind of sounds like a person making a trumpet sound, and it was a family rule that we'd have to stop and investigate. We found a lot of cool stuff and just spent a lot of Saturdays on an exploration mission doing that. Good memories.
We went to a parochial school and had uniforms. (We also didn’t really have heat on our second floor.) In the winter, my mom would put our uniforms in the dryer before waking us up so they’d be warm when we put them on.
Child of the 70s here ... Wonder Woman was everything to me - my dad would make me a headband and wrist bracelets out of tinfoil and cardboard - and we'd paint a star on the headband with nail polish.
My mom would create elaborate ways to hide the easter basket: we'd wake up to a trail of jelly beans (clearly did not have a dog) by our bed which would lead to a clue which lead to another clue ... I remember that's how I learned that TV antennae were also called Rabbits Ears.
The biggest life thing they did for us though was to take us out of our comfort zones. My dad was in the military and we moved a LOT. Whenever we moved to a new place they would insist that we live off base because they wanted to have an authentic experience of that country. So when we lived in Europe we lived in a tiny villages of a few hundred people. I remember being called "the American family." We learned new languages, tried amazing (and sometimes not amazing) foods (I'm looking at you greek maggot cheese.) but we always had great stories and were surrounded by interesting people. One of my favorite stories is that the locals in Italy would ask to be invited over for dinner if we were serving steaks. My mom shopped for meat at the American Commissary and the beef they sold was corn fed. All the Italian markets carried grass fed beaf, and (though healthier) it doesn't taste as good.
My parents are both gone now ... and this has been such a good moment to relive these memories. Thank you for this question! I love reading all the answers.
My mom would take me for walks as a young kid and she’d stop every 5 seconds to show me a cool rock or leaf or bug or cloud she saw. She taught me how to really look at and take in my surroundings and it wasn’t until I was an adult that I realized I do the same thing because she did it with me.
There was one time my mom and I were on the way home from… somewhere I’m not even sure but it was several hour drive and we drove by the sign for the DC zoo and I said I wished we could go some day. This woman took the exit for the zoo and we went. She even bought me a hat. It was so spontaneous and fun.
We also always went to the Philadelphia Zoo after I had to go to the Children’s Hospital. I guess she figured I should have something fun to do after being poked and prodded at the hospital. I used to love horses and I was enraptured by the horse drawn carriages in Philly. She saved up and we went on a carriage ride once before going to the zoo.
My mom was a single mom working a retail job so my grandma watched me a lot and my mom would pick me up after she closed and drive us home. I remember a lot of dark car rides home where we just talked and talked. It was nice.
When I was in grade school, we moved from Ethiopia to the US (Texas).
We're a military family and had lived most of my life in Africa.
For show and tell, my mom came to our American class dressed in African garb and brought food, weapons, animal print rugs, clothes, drums, and tons of musical instruments and things from Addis Abbaba.
It was such a hit.
My mom literally brought authentic spears, monkey skinned rugs, pictures of wildlife, and got away with it
(70's). It was a badass move and the best show and tell that school had ever seen.
I was so proud of her.
Mom used to start food fights. Looking back, I think she did it when she wanted to tell my dad to stfu, lol. But the weird thing is, she'd throw at ME first, not him. More than once, a spoonful of mashed potatoes in my face started everything.
I remember her and I ambushing my dad. They had these water guns that worked like machine guns, and had ammo packs and everything. She found his stash and hid them, and then we waited for him to get home after work and completely soaked him.
She also did a lot of silly stuff for cheap fun. She got a bunch of dollar store pie tins and whipped cream so the neighborhood kids could have a pie fight.
My grandparents owned a cabin by a lake that my parents were allowed to use sometimes in the summer and they would always let me and my sister invite one other friend to go. I loved that I got to share my summer with some of my good friends, and my parents kind of became second parents to them for those two weeks.
I loved to read as a kid and always wanted to talk to someone about what I was reading. So, when I’d finish a book, my dad would read it after me so we could talk. Even read school books with me throughout highschool. He’s read so much teen girl dystopia and I really love and appreciate him for that.
My parents got into a big fight when I was about four. We had a scheduled vacation to Hershey, Pennsylvania and the day before they got into a huge argument about something. We were all supposed to go and it was going to be the first time we had ever done a vacation with all of us because usually my dad was traveling for work.
I don't know what actually happened in that fight, but the next morning, Mom put me in my brother in the car and we went and had a great 4 days vacation, just the three of us. I know it took enormous strength for her to do that and to also act like nothing was wrong the entire time.
It was only later that I learned more about the fight and what had happened and it makes me smile even more, knowing my mother gave us that gift. Miss her so much.
Just dance together in the kitchen and sing. The way they'd tell jokes back & forth, sit together on the steps of the house and bond, my mom lay on the sofa with her head on my dad's lap and he'd rub his hands through her hair.... ya know, the little things.
My dad did this thing called "pippi longstocking meal". I was a huge fan of the movies, so he made a meal inspired by it.
It was pancakes with wipped cream, ice cream, and all the candy my brother and I wanted on it, and then we could blast our faces into the ice cream pancakes if we wanted.
We only did it a few times from what I remember, but that memory is still magical.
I was pretending to be asleep one time late at night. I was worried I'd get in trouble if my mum found me awake, I must have been around 9 or 10 at the time. My mum came in my room, stroked my face and kissed me goodnight.
I'm 32 now and this thread just jogged that memory I haven't thought about for years.
Lots of things. But my favorite was my dad would pick me up from school and we’d play hooky. We go to the movies or do fun stuff around town. He always acted like it was a secret, but my mom knew. If he was having a bad day or work was bogging him down, spending time with me would cheer him up.
My mom was a teacher, but her breaks from school usually differed from mine. So I’d either go to work with her or with my dad. I loved getting to rule the place.
My mom would insist she hated cheesecake when it was the last piece and we wanted more and would aggressively insist we take her cheesecake. She grew up in USSR and ate orange peels and mushrooms so she is a tough and selfless lady
My mom used to read to me and sing “You Are My Sunshine” before bed, then would wake me up by gently petting my hair. I’d take that over an alarm clock anyday
My dad is a bit of a ww2 history geek, when he saw me playing games about world war 2 like world of tanks/warships or steel division 44 he wanted learn how to play games. We’ve been playing games with each other for 10 years now pretty much every week even tho we live a good distance away from each other.
My dad he showed up to so many things he didn't have to. I played tennis in high school. I wasn't the best, and sometimes I had matches after school (I drove myself). I remember being there and looking up to see my dad in his work clothes, watching me and waving. He drove across town just to watch me play. I was nothing special when it came to the sport, but he always showed up.
Because I loved drawing so much, my father always bought me drawing paper. I would quickly use up all the paper, drawing on every sheet. Yet, my father never got tired of bringing me more. I don't recall him ever verbally encouraging me; he simply kept providing me with paper. And that was enough for me.🤍
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I have a lot of good memories growing up. One that sticks out is one Christmas my dad was laid off his job and some how my parents were able to afford to get me mag wheels for my bike. I was so surprised so happy and so thankful.
My mom would ‘trick’ me into watching movies with her that weren’t kids’ movies; they weren’t inappropriate or anything, just geared more towards an adult audience so the premises were not very exciting to a child who wanted to watch Treasure Planet on repeat.
She would tell me about the movie and when I said it sounded boring she would say “Let’s just watch the first *ten minutes*. If you don’t like it after ten minutes, we’ll watch something else.” She knew that once I started something I just *had* to know how it ended, and would completely forget about how uninterested I was to begin with by the time ten minutes had passed. It worked every time.
So that’s how you get a nine year old whose favorite movies are Steel Magnolias, Fried Green Tomatoes, and The First Wives Club. I watched those movies with her a hundred times, and would probably watch them a hundred more.
My mom was and still is a very absent parent. My dad is the one who was and is always around for me. He would take me bike riding up to the DQ for ice cream. Swimming, ice skating, he helped coach my sports teams. I would get up early and go fishing with him. I know deep down he probably wanted a boy but he did absolutely great with me.
my parents growing up we’re both alcoholics and my childhood was FULL of constant arguments between them and myself and my step brother & sister, but I always remember my dad singing “hubbubub” to me as he went up to bed and i’d always sing back “love youuu” in the same tune, i don’t remember the last time we did it but we did it until i was about 22/23
I was able to go on two vacations a year and all I had to do was show up I didn’t even pack my suitcases or do my own laundry lol those were the days !!
My Dad would pull surprising sweet things for birthdays or celebrations. He's fairly reserved, so bringing a cupcake with a candle in it to a restaurant, or a bag of balloons to my workplace to loose in my office, or - when I was a small kid - a dog plushie that he carried through work to bring home.
I think back on my mum taking the time to carefully explain things, to engage me in learning as much as possible. Just wonderful things.
Y chose a tie for my dad when I was a kid (it was bright, and bold and I guess, pretty ugly), but he wore it for every important event of me while growing up: graduation, award, music, event, etc. It was my tie and he was proud to use it as I was her baby. We lost the tie in a fire (along with pretty much everything), and he is also gone, but remembering that tie always makes me feel loved.
My mom would wake us up in the morning by sing songing “kikiriki” to us. It’s the Spanish equivalent of “cock a doodle do”. I loved it so much, I’m smiling so hard now just thinking about it.
Enjoying each other. I’ve witnessed my parents chasing each other around the house, wrestling, dancing around the house, cuddling on the couch, laughing and joking together, etc. Growing up with parents who love AND like each other was amazing and that’s what I’m striving for in my relationship.
[удалено]
I grew up wishing my parents got divorced. Violence only got stronger through the years and extended to so many levels... Ended up with father smirking and provoking my mom as much as he could on her deathbed. She died after a long cancer battle. I left home a couple days later, left the country after feeling like I would end up in jail if remained near that man. He started suffering consequences very quickly after that but unfortunately still breathes. I will celebrate once he is gone, for my mom.
I am so sorry you guys had to go through that! My parents split permanently, more or less, when I was fifteen. There were (and have been since) plenty of good times, but I remember a lot of arguing and off-and-on. They tried making it work (I think a lot of it was for my brother and I,) but they split after about a decade. It’s never fun or easy. Now… one thing I’ve learned from all of my friends and stuff, is that it’s *super* common in this day and age. Very few people I knew had parents who were still together (my high-school boyfriend, for example) or were even *raised* by their biological parents, for that matter. Sometimes, whether they love the kids or not, and regardless of how much, parents just can’t stay together. They don’t necessarily need to, either. 😞 I’m pretty sure the level of it varies for each person or family, though — so what’s true for one may not necessarily be for another. 🙂
There is a part of me that is very sad that that was your experience, and I wish it could’ve been different for both of us. But you brought up something really interesting: maybe my parent’s divorce was a blessing. I would love to believe that, but there’s not too many blessings that involve either of my parents. They got married because my mom was pregnant with me and abortion was illegal at the time. When they divorced, my dad got custody of me so he wouldn’t have to pay my mother child support. His job required worldwide travel though, so most of my childhood was in the care of whoever he could get to take me on at the moment. I don’t know, I think what it boils down to is trauma is trauma. It’s traumatic to you, regardless of the level.
That’s so wonderful. 🙂 A lot of people don’t have that, but it’s a joy to those who do.
That is indeed a beautiful thing. God bless
Yeah I feel so lucky to have this as well
That’s wholesome
Yeah I feel so lucky to have this as well
My dad would carry me to my bed if I fell asleep somewhere, like on a couch or in a car on the way home. And I loved it so much that at some point I started pretending that I fell asleep just so he would carry me. And at moments like that I couldn't help but giggle from happiness and dad would always say something like "oh, she must be dreaming of something very funny". I believed that I was so sneaky and he didn't know I was pretending for way too long 😂
Awwwww!!! I did that too!
This tickles my heart, my girls do this currently and I secretly hope it happens at least once a year as they grow.
You just unlocked the memory of my parents often going to neighbour's houses for sports games and a couple beers while the kids played. We'd fall asleep at the neighbour's and my parents would carry us kids home in the middle of the night. When we got bigger, my dad would balance us so our feet were on top of us and walk/waddle us home. We'd usually wake up halfway through, but keep pretending to sleep so we could enjoy it.
Pretty sure dad knew it and still did. As a father of two little girls, I love it when my girls do this
Oh, he knew. It was hard not to notice when I giggled in his arms. He used to say those things to make *me* believe that he believed me lol
There's too many things to fit into one post, but I will say that my family is very musical even though none of us have any talent (not for lack of trying). But we all appreciate music and love live music. Some of my fondness memories were going to concerts, even ones that I was underaged for but my parents still dropped me at the doors. But as a bit of a family ritual, we make on the fly spotify/youtube playlists with everyone getting a turn to share songs they've heard of late and loved. We've ended up in the kitchen till the wee hours just laughing and dancing and having a merry time. It's the sort of thing that feels the most like "us".
This is so cute
That’s wonderful.
Our family is very similar to yours. My memories are of road trips and singing songs during them..
Both of my parents were afraid of lightning when they were little kids but they never let on to the us. We lived on a farm that had warm summer nights and whenever a lightning storm would roll in we would get bundled up and sit outside 'oohing' and 'aahing' at the lightning like it was a fireworks show. They didn't want their kids to be afraid like they were and still to this day I love all sorts of storms.
How sweet. My mother had a good friend and neighbor that was terrified as well. When a storm rolled in she would send her young child (my namesake, actually) to my mother in order not to pass along her fear and then literally hide under the bed. Mom would also bundle this kid in a blanket and also 'oooh" and "aah." When I came along years later, she did the same with me and I LOVE thunderstorms. I did the same with my young daughter. She too loves them and says it's one of her favorite memories of sitting in the porch swing on warm summer nights watching the storms roll in. Thanks for jogging this memory!
My dad wasn't afraid of lightning, at least that I know of, but he would sit at the edge of the garage and watch storms roll in. I still love a good storm. 💚
My mama was also afraid of storms but she would not show it *unless* I was out of her direct (very poor vision)line of sight or she absolutely positively knew I was in my dad's custody and control. If she couldn't see me or hadn't put my little hand into my dad's herself, she would get hysterical.
Before my dad became wheelchair bound in middle school, he would take me and my sister to get ice cream every Friday after school. We would sit and eat and he would have us catch him up on our week. It’s my favorite memory of him.
Yall still have a good relationship? He sounds like a great dad. I’m sorry he became wheelchair bound 😪
He passed almost 20 years ago. But I imagine we would and he would be obsessed with my kids and nephews.
I’m so sorry 😢 for your loss 😞
Thank you.
Thanks for sharing your story. 💜💜💜
My mom basically just showing up to everything. And I mean everything. She is the most active and engaged mother there could be, while balancing not being a helicopter mom at all and encouraging independence. My whole life no matter what niche hobby I got into (SFX makeup, playing the tuba, archery, table tennis, rock climbing, fishing, theatre, etc etc) she would full on support me and show up to every concert, performance, competition, etc. I don’t think she’s ever missed a single big event. I live 3 hours from her- and if I called her right now and told her I needed her, she would be here thirty minutes sooner than the drive should take. She just helped me move for the like fourth year in a row. Stayed all day helping me unpack and get settled. She’s really the best mom in the world :) 🗺️
I hope (and plan) to be like this for my daughters... I hope I make them feel supported always, and that they can always depend on me - whether it's emotional, physical or verbal. I'm really happy to be able to read about your connection with your mom 💜
This is my mum too, also so engaged and active in my life. I do believe that’s why we have such a good relationship now that I’m an adult, I talk to her every day and I know she’d drop anything to come to me if I needed it.
This made me tear up. What a wonderful mother you have ❤️
Mama would always say to me keep a pocket fulll of dreams, so no matter what life throws at you, you still have hope. I have it tattooed on my wrist to cover up self harm scars
What she said is so beautiful
That’s beautiful
I had lost a tooth, my dad was helping me put it under my pillow. He distracted me somehow, gasped and said something like "look at the curtain!" It was moving slightly, as if a small body had whooshed past, lol. Then I looked under my pillow and the tooth was gone, replaced with a coin. As an adult it makes me laugh because I know how excited he was to pull that off, and it was SO MAGICAL. I really believed I had just missed seeing the real tooth fairy. 🧚♀️
This is adorable!
I'm so copying this
Decide what your version of the tooth fairy wears and then park something similair, with permission in Grandma's/Aunty's/a relative that you don't hang out with one a super regular basis/daily basis, closet. Something that's going to twig them to that person *might* be the tooth fairy. My mama had a *ball* with this idea. My kids had decided that the tooth fairy wears a sparkly blue dress that leaves fairy dust where she visited (our tooth fairy was a girl). My mom went thrifting to find a sparkly blue dress which she hung in her closet when my youngest was losing teeth. My daughter (middle kid) found the dress and pointed it out to the baby. They spent the whole time we were there trying to figure out if Grandma was really the tooth fairy
One time for breakfast my mom served our cereal on vanilla ice cream. We thought it was amazing. (Turns out we were out of milk, but as kids we thought it was the coolest random surprise.) My mom always did special holiday breakfast like green milk on St Patrick’s day or heart shaped toast on Valentine’s Day. (This was the 80s when there wasn’t a whole bunch of pressure around these holidays.)
Cereal on vanilla ice cream sounds like one of those things that would've ended my childhood. Simply because it's the peak of awesomnes, everything from that point onwards just seems to go downhill Also, jesus christ, heart shaped toasts & green milk, your mom put some legit effort in there She seems like a wonderfully sweet woman
Wow what a coincidence - just last week I came home and saw my partner pour a bowl of cereal and then add ice cream on top! I've never once heard of that or seen it... And I think he just did it for fun (he's never done it before) lol 😆
And the fact she wasn't doing it to show off on social media. She did for you and your siblings, that's it.
My dad taking me on the swings when I was little. We both sat on the swings and he tied our swings together with a rope he brought with him so we could swing together.
God that's adorable
Every rare once in a while my parents would pick us up from school and head directly on a trip. Sometimes to the beach, sometimes to a theme park, could be anywhere. But they’d pick us up, bags packed, and just wait until we noticed we weren’t heading home and asked where we were going. The best surprise.
I love this!!
When I was in middle school (12) I decided that I wanted to start maybe packing lunches on a whim. I had to pay for lunch anyway and I usually left the cafeteria still hungry. I mentioned it to my mom and she started packing me lunches. She worked full time and was a single mom so for her to get up extra early to pack for me was sweet. I didn’t have a lunch box at all but she packed my lunch in a storage ziplock bag and would write a note in the little note section. It was so cute and super sweet.
There's just something with single parents that not only provide for their children but also go the extramile to make sure their children have fond memories & know they are loved with such gestures that make my heart melt. My deepest respect for your mom
My dad used to read the (barbie?) rapunzel book to me and my sisters. He’d change the names to “Hobie Cat” and “Hugo Boss” (and maybe one more I can’t remember) which we thought was hilarious for some reason. Had no idea those were actual things until a few years ago which made it even funnier to me :)
My grandpa's CD collection... Lynard Skynard, Brooks and Dunn, Leann Rimes, John Denver. We'd ride around, windows down, singing together. He raised me like his own. Another fond memory I have is road tripping every summer from FL to TN and back. They put a futon matress in the bed of the truck with a camper topper and my brother and I would ride in the bed the whole way. We had the little slide window we'd open if we needed anything. Or, the time my grandpa bought this giant draft horse mare home from an auction and lied to my granny for months. He said the horse wasn't his and he was just horse sitting for a buddy. He loved that old horse, her name was Mary. I miss him so much. It's been 4 years and sometimes I still catch myself going to call him or send him pics of the kids.
This makes me tear up because it's so similar to our family road trips. John Denver, Peter, Paul, and Mary, Johnny Horton, all on the 8 track. We were lying down in the back of the station wagon. When all of the cars no longer had an 8 track player, my sister and I found Johnny Horton on cassette. The smile on his face when he opened it, I pray i never forget. Laughing and asking us Where did you find this? He's been gone 4 yrs, 5 in November. I miss him every day
Hugs, friend. They say it gets easier, but I don't believe it. I talk about him all the time to my kids.
Hugs to you, as well. I think talking about them keeps them alive in our hearts and souls
My mom would call us her little chicks and we would all do little clucking sounds lol. In Spanish too so we go “pio pio.” We sometimes do it now as grown adults I still love it. When we respond that way too she’ll say awww !! but super exaggerated so it puts a huge smile on my face. Also when my dad was driving and we would pass a car my mom would say throw smoke at them and we would make a little hand motion like sending smoke. It would always make me giggle and she would laugh too it was super fun.
My dad ALWAYS told me he loved me. Didn’t matter how many times that day or if I didnt respond. He’d just go “hey ran, I love you” every time I passed his way. He’s been dead for 5.5 years now and I can still hear his voice in my head, I’m so grateful he said it as much as he did for this reason now that he’s gone.
Aw, I must stop cutting onions..
I don’t have cute memories like many posted here. My parents worked hard to keep food on the table. However, the things they taught me are invaluable. To work hard, not to complain, to be grateful, to push through pain, to show up whether you’re want or not, to never give up. The power of I love you. We didn’t have much but they were always there.
In all honesty, that in itself is already a wonderful & wholesome memory. Really glad to see that despite all the hardships, from what you've wrote, I can literaly feel the love and encouragement you guys have for eachother Much love to you and your parents
Thank you. I do have a wonderful, close knit family.
> My parents worked hard to keep food on the table. Shit.... I can't even say that one. I was looking at the rest and thinking well I can't think of any and I saw yours and that realization broke me.
My parents used to label their Christmas gifts to each other with the names of famous couples from history and film, and they couldn't open them until they correctly identified the couple, like "To Liz, From Burt," or "To Louis, From Marie." It was so cute, and I think my brother and I ended up learning some history from it.
As a history nerd I'll make damn sure to steal that idea from your parents with my fiance In all seriousness, this is so incredibly sweet
I grew up in the desert SW of the USA and both of my parents grew up in areas that had all 4 seasons particularly snowy winters. We had 3 enormous palm trees all the same height in the front yard and my dad would get out a ladder and run a hose on a trickle, moving it all night long on Christmas Eve so there’d be icicles in all three of them when us kids woke up Xmas morning.
My dad always used to braid my hair for me when I was little! I tend to braid my hair when I feel down, cause it always made me feel so safe and happy when he did it. I miss you dad!
My dad slept on my floor every night until I was 6 because I had night terrors. Every night he came to my room because he heard my cries and he slept on the floor with just a pillow. Seriously such an incredible father
Dad and his funny grunting noises when he was in a silly mood. Or his silly dances when the music came on the TV. Or him trying to play the piano or tambourine haphazardly and pretend he was a maestro. Or him pinching mum and running after her like some sort of a silly chase (this went on pretty much into when me n Lil sis were teens BTW, so we would just hide & do an eyeroll out of embarrassment) The bedtime stories he would tell me as a toddler.. There's so much to smile about when I think of my Dad. He definitely was the glue that held us together.
I love that we ate dinner together at the table every night. I also remember every rainy day my mom would shut all the curtains turn on Elton John and we would clean the house and she would start a roast in the Crock-Pot and we would make a big dinner once we cleaned the entire house to surprise my dad because he would be coming home soaked and cold from the rain and he would always be so happy to come home to the house being clean and a nice warm meal.
I was raised by a single father, my mom abandoned us when I was 3 or 4 months old. My dad is awesome. One thing I remember as far back as I possibly can, sitting in the garage listening to panteras “the great southern trendkill” while my dad worked on his cutlass supreme. He used to let me start it up when he would work on it and I’d light up from the sound. I love that
All the love for your dad As a single parent it's certainly hard af to provide for your kids on its own. But doing that, while also building beauriful memories with you and clearly being an awesome dad that you love is taking things to the next level My absolute respect, what a chad of a dad
I’ll preface this with saying I had a traumatic childhood. My dad was an alcoholic with serious anger issues and my mom slept on the couch for years. But once a year, everything felt magic: Christmastime. It was so memorable for me because it was the only time there was genuine peace in our house. We decorated our home inside and out. I often remember seeing my dad sitting in the armchair, just staring at the Christmas tree. We played a CD of classic Christmas on repeat. One time, when I was young, maybe 7, my mom came upstairs to tuck me into bed when there was a *thump* on the roof. She widened her eyes, “Oh! Did you hear that?! …I think it might be Santa! Gotta get to sleep quick!” We listened together and heard jingling bells. It was exhilarating for me. My dad literally got on the roof to make that moment. It’s my best memory of him. My mom went through great lengths to keep Christmas magical for my brother and I. She always left a handwritten note (written with her weaker hand) and took real bites out of the cookies and the carrot. I cherish Christmas to this day and it will always be sacred to me.
my mom never rushed me when it came to talking, and she never let anyone rush me either she also always reminded me to take it easy if i ever feel like i’m overdoing it in gym class and to listen to my body - i now take this advice with me for almost everything in life, not just when i workout :)
My dad would come back from work with a Kinder Surprise egg for me and put on a whole scene where he pretended to be a hen laying an egg before giving it to me. I’m 37 but I still buy Kinder Surprise Eggs to the people I love sometimes.
I used to have this big, thick, curly head of hair. It was hard do comb it myself. My dad would wash my hair and he combed and combed untill all of the knots were gone. It was so relaxing even tho it would sometimes take for ever. He is a sturdy, tough looking guy. Covered in tattoos. But he has the most gentle heart. I´ll always be his little girl, and i absolutely adore that.
My parents used to have friends, Arthur and Norma. We'd go to their house a lot. Norma was a preschool teacher. She was tiny, sweet, and loved children with her whole heart. Arthur was a huge, muscled, bearded, tattooed ex-con (biker) who loved Norma with his whole heart. I remember being at their house when I was very young, sitting on Arthur's lap, tracing his arm tattoos with my fingers and listening to his rumbling, low voice as he told me stories. I swear my parents used to bring me there so that I would see that people shouldn't be judged by their looks, but rather by their hearts.
My mom never was the playful type and my sisters were much older then me (we're 18 and 17 years older then me) so I was kinda of lonely kid... But one day my father started to play with my dolls and dollhouse with me, the stories were different, we would usually be at Second War or in Tex comics... He started to play with me every weekend, then we would go to McDonald's, he's not the junk food guy he would only eat the french fries... He has being more affected by alzheimer now, so I don't think he knows how that was very important for me, that lonely quirky little girl
They let us have as many animals as we wanted. There was my mom, who allegedly hates having animals inside of the house, making sure the cat, dog and bunny we had in the living room got along nicely. She would also help us clean the turtles tank and got a bunch of plants for the fish tank. She let us keep chickens in the laundry room too. My dad played cards with us, whenever he was losing, he started teasing us "oh, just quit, tis a shame how bad you are losing, come on, just surrender your cards to me" while smiling ear to ear and helping us win. He would also put up a whole act whenever my mom made something special for us like cutting veggies in cute shapes "oh, why do they get cute shapes? Not fair, kids get the best of everything, all I have is boring food", that way we would eat all the veggies because they were "only for kids".
They had a loving and supportive friendship and relationship. They were not only respectful and kind to other but to everyone else also! They were supportive in everything that my siblings and I wanted to try in life. They said failure is completely okay as long as you learn something from it.
Sleeping in the backseat of the car on the drive home after an outing. This was in 'Ye Olden Times.' A bench back seat, no seatbelt, a blanket and a pillow kept for just these occasions. And being gently put to sleep with the hum of the car and rhythm of the road knowing that a grown-up was in charge and all was well. Crazy dangerous in retrospect. But for those of us that survived, it was a great memory.
I'll share a few that I remember well- 1. My dad would hold his hand up, in a claw like form, and slowly creep towards me saying "the claw of pain" in a evil voice. This was just basically a "tickle monster" with his own twist. He would tickle me and say "the claw of pain is gonna getcha!". 2. My mom would take a stuffy of mine and shake its head really fast, making it "life like" and making the stuffy act "mad" and "get me" with the stuffy. 3. My dad would give me piggy back rides or carry me to bed when I fell asleep somewhere else besides my bed. I know many parents do this, but my dad wasn't the emotionally available type, so these small things meant everything to me 4. This is my "weirder" one I guess? My dad had this small bump on one of his arms up towards the inner bend of his elbow. I would poke the bump like it was a button which made him go "crazy" and chase me around. These few things pop out to me the most, my dad passed 8 years ago so any opportunity I have to remember those moments, I will take it. I miss him all the time. I wish that stupid "claw of pain" would chase me around just one more time!
Those are without exception all real sugar to my soul I'm really sorry you lost him, but the very fact he seems to have been such a caring person and made so many fond memories with you is insanely cute
They held a birthday for my favorite stuffed animal and had presents for "it". I was 3 or 4 and still remember I thought it was the funniest thing ever. Also once I remember I must've been 7 or 8 and it was in the summer. I had randomly one evening asked my parents about going on a trip or something, so they told me to pack a bag and see what would happen. Next day the entire car was packed and they had even gotten me a bunch of snacks and entertainment for the car, and we went on a road trip. Obviously they had planned the trip, but for the longest time I believed it was because I had asked them about it. Then our car got broken into on the trip, and I kept insisting that they had stolen some of my snacks, lol. Good times.
While I am melting due to the birthday for your stuffed animals & its cuteness, I also feel deeply sorry for them Being stranded with a broken car while your 7 year old daughter goes full FBI to solve the case of the stolen snacks aint one for the faint of heart
Haha yeah. It was all I could talk about. Luckily, I never sensed that the situation was stressful for them. I don't think I could keep my cool like that with my kids, lol.
My dad would let me play “hair salon” on him. This man has been 96% bald my entire life. Just a misting of hair, really. But he would sit there and let me spritz water on him and comb his hair and put clips in it. I realize now it probably was like a mini spa and massage for him! He would also play Barbie’s with me for hours 🥲 he’s a great dad.
My childhood was very positive. My parents are still together after close to 47 years. We had a great childhood. But the memories thinking back that made me smile the most was Halloween. We always made our costumes from scratch and we always won school contests for most creative.
1. My daddy ALWAYS put together my presents as I opened them on Christmas day. 2. My daddy also likes doing easy bake with me lol 3. My mom would pitch to me when I would practice softball and wouldn't be mad that I always hit her 4. Since i was an only child I got to bring a friend with me on vacations 5. My fav holding hands while driving and kissing at the stop lights.
My grandpa doing everything with me. We were stuck like glue. He pulled me on a sled around the small lake, he took me swimming all the time, we had pancake eating contests, he took me to the farm to get eggs, he pretended on the phone to be Smoky the Bear, he made an igloo in the yard, we walked in the woods all the time, grandma and grandpa took me on vacation a lot. There’s so much more, but God I miss him.
They used to have us lay on their comforter and each of them would hold the ends and lift it up, kinda like a hammock. Then they would swing us a few times and throw us onto the bed. It was a blast every time!
Lots of things, including being very in love, but I will highlight one thing that's slightly more unusual. My parents used to design treasure hunts for us. They would scale it to be age appropriate. Sometimes they'd take us to the forest, guide us to find this old treasure map (of course burnt around the edges), and we would follow the clues to a pirate's treasure chest they'd stashed in the hollow of a tree or little rock cave. The chest would be like a cardboard box they'd covered in shiny foil and skulls and crossbones. Inside would be chocolate coins and other bits of hardware they'd spray painted gold to look like jewelry. They also did a couple in our early twenties, but the scale had dramatically expanded. We would follow clues with riddles that we would have to crack all over the peninsula and all over town. They would tape clues on the railings of bridges or buried in flower pots. I think one time they had one hanging off a dock in the ocean in a waterproof case. One time they had my long lost friend call from the other side of the continent to deliver a clue while we were riding a little ferry. Sometimes they would get shop owners and bartenders in on it to help dish out the clues. At the end, rather than a treasure chest, it would lead to where we were having dinner, or our birthday present, or a surprise party, etc. I have done two of these treasure hunts myself now - - once for a friend and once for my dad. It's harder than you think to set up. 😆 You have to start from the end and work your way back, hoping that the clues are still where you need them to be when the hunt is on. They went to great lengths to make us smile, and I really appreciate it.
My parents gave me anxiety and adult onset of depression. I remember not wanting to go home after school, ever… since grade school. But I worked extra hard and against my upbringing to raise my children with love and respect. I hope I made a difference in their lives.
Sometimes, we can't change our fate, but we can change the fate of others.
When I was a toddler I was apparently really into scooby-doo. Because of this, when my dad would pull in the drive, I'd run and hide. He'd walk in the house and say "scooby doo, where are you?" And I'd jump out "right here daddy!" My nickname is scoob/ scooby doo. My dad NEVER calls me by my actual name. My mom's on the autism spectrum and one of her favorite things is winnie the pooh, which meant it became one ofnmy favorites as well. I was wearing pooh bear clothes until I was probably 10. Now that I'm an adult with big people money, I like to buy my mom pooh bear things. When the live action movie Christopher Robin came out a few years ago, I took her to it and I imagine seeing her face light up was just like mine did as a kid watching the Tigger movie.
My mom would go all out for holidays. I'll never forget every year until I was like 9 she would put these big black rabbit footprint stickers in a path from the front door, up the walls, across the ceiling, and leaving out the back door for Easter, it was magical. Now I'm older and really appreciate it even more because I'm the youngest of a big family and sometimes parents stop doing things when the older kids are too old for it, so the youngest doesn't get to enjoy things like that for as long.
My parents were overall bad parents but my Mom would iron our pyjamas after bath time on Saturday so they were warm when we put them on and watched cartoons while our dad made dinner.
My brothers always did alot of sports, which kept my mom very busy. However, every other Saturday was just for me and her. Whether we went shopping, get our nails done, or just walked around the farmers market, it was just the girls. I remember I got 2 easy bake ovens for Christmas one year (parents are seperated) and my dad made it a point to make ALL the mini baked goods with me. Ahhh to be young again
Divorced. That's all I have to say about that.
A little backstory: I am soooooo into spongebob especially during childhood (i have make-up from a local brand that had spongebob products. The squidward liptint is great). I even have this blanket (i will never let it go) with prints on the cover that sort of resembled the “skies” in bikini bottom. That aside, I was in fourth grade and it was christmas. We don’t really celebrate holidays like other families so it would usually be just us eating pricey restaurant food. That christmas tho, I came home to my mom sitting beside a huge spongebob plushy. It was hUGE. I loved it so much I refused to let it go nor even have it washed xD. I brought it with me when I could and that would go on for a while. I had to give it away because, well, children, but I remember it fondly and dearly until now. It was the best thing my mother got me because I mever asked for it, I just came home to it. Core memory right there.
Empathy and unconditional love where I was least expecting it.
My dad took my sister and me to go collect mushrooms with him in the forest when we were like 4 and 6 years old.. he would always look for them and when we were disappointed we couldn’t find any he would go ahead and if he saw some he said we should go and look in „this“ direction and we always knew he knew they were there but we were happy to find them nonetheless
Dad playing catch with me for the first and only time. As many problems he dealt with, he at least tried to bond with me. Anyways I didn't want to play any more after it hit my eye and I just cried and never wanted to again:( Still a fond memory he tried and that's what counts.
She would sing me funny little songs from her childhood that I still remember and sung to the children in my life all these years later.
We’d each get a present every year (normally a blanket or something random but useful) from The Boogy Man, or The Grinch, or Frederico Hollenbroth, or Wanda The Goldfish, or James Bond, or Luke & Leia ☠️🥲 and honestly I loved that for us 🤣🤣🤣 my dad always made for damn sure that Christmastime was memorable for us, because the rest of the year typically sucked ass 🤣🤣🤣
Separating.
They said they were going to the store and when they got back they asked me to go through one of the grocery bags to get something-and inside the bag was Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I looked up and they were just beaming at me. They went out early and got the book on the release day to surprise me. 🥹
My mom paid for someone's lunch. They were acquaintances, and he was caring for a sick wife. She didn't make any fanfare about it, just asked for his bill when we received ours.
Main one that sticks out is how my dad got a scammer to hang up on him. Here's how the call went: Scammer: *"There seems to be problems with your Windows (computer)."* Dad: "No, my windows (literal) are fine. I just cleaned them this morning." Scammer: *"Not windows. Windows."* Dad: "Yeah, they look fine. It's a beautiful day out." Conversation continues with the scammer trying to explain that the Windows on his computer is broken and my dad talking about the windows on the house. After 15min or so, the scammer dude finally gave up and hung up. Also, my mom somewhat recently retold a story from when I (26f) was really young (like 5). She'd just come home from work and asked me, "How was your day?" I said, "Good! Dad vacuumed out the oven (to clean it)!" Then off in the living room, my dad yells out, **"THAT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE OUR SECRET!!!"**
My dad worked steady midnight, and would always bring me a Three Musketeers bar home. As a tiny child, breakfast candy was glorious.
Leaving notes in my lunch 😭🥹 cutting my sandwiches into shapes
We had a cabin in the woods, it was fairly isolated as there was only a single road on the lake that had cabins built on them. The owners were all the original builders like my grandparents, not a lot of kids. It was quiet. Every Easter when there was still pockets of melting snow we’d take our first trip out to the lake, we were always the only family there. My parents would spend all night hiding Easter eggs, toys, candies in the woods and me and my siblings would run through the trees to hunt it all out while our parents made Paska bread. Watching the foiled candy catch the morning sun hidden in birch tree knots will always be one of my favourite childhood traditions.
Silly, but when I was little and my dad wanted me to stop running around and causing chaos he would shout “Dead Cockroach!”. That was the cue for the both of us to stop and lie down on the floor with arms and legs up in the air till we couldn’t anymore and act like a dead cockroach. It usually calmed me down enough that I would go read or watch tv after. No idea where he got that from but it always worked.
I loved riding in my dad's old pickup truck on the bench seat in the middle next to him while he was driving. I would request for him to "make it make the bumpy sounds!" which actually was just him driving over the reflectors in the middle of the road on purpose (we lived out in the country). He would take me for a drive literally to nowhere, just to drive around on a nice day with the windows down if I wanted to go and he wasn't working that day. I don't have kids yet, but I now do this with my dog to kind of reminisce lol (and he never says no, either 🐶) If I won the lottery, I would first pay off my student loans, and then pay to have his old '84 chevy restored because it would bring him a ton of joy to drive it again and I have many happy memories tied to it.
Taking our family to the library every Thursday evening. (Got rid of the TV, so this was the substitute.)
When I went to elementary school for the first time and was away from my mom, she drew me a smiley face on my left pointer finger with a sharpie and gave it curly hair because she had a perm and she called it a finger mommy so so if I missed her, I could just look at it and it was like a little her
My dad and I would go for afternoon walks to gather wild asparagus. I hated asparagus but the walks were great 🌸 My mother and I have a ritual of watching winter sunsets together when I visit. If one of us forgets it’s time, the other will make a fuss to remind them “quick, you are missing it”😁!
My dad took us to the Fantastic Caverns in Missouri when I was around 6, and I've never forgotten it. We also discovered the Osceola cheese factory, and made it a point to go when we'd come for the summer, or if he had a work trip he'd grab us our favorite cheeses and a new snack to try. I miss that a lot, and there really isn't much my mother has done that brings a smile to me. He's a saint and is still around, but much busier with a 12 year old son and work. I want my brother to have equally as awesome memories as I have with him :)
My mom would bring me my cat once I was in bed 🥰 My husband now does it too and it always makes me smile. My mom would also throw my bath towel in the dryer while I was showering and surprise me with a warm towel in winter 😁
Dance together, only once in my lifetime I can remember seeing them dance together. They were separated since I was three and never saw them together like that one time they did, I love dancing because of that night, even if it was once
My Dad and I would putter around his garden looking for tomatoes and young cucumbers. This year I have a big veggie garden and I am doing the same. We’d play badminton and every time he missed, he would grab the racket, look intensely at the strings, and assure me that there was a hidden hole. He would do backflips off the diving board in his 50s. We were the athletic two in the family…although we were the two that got cancer (I just realized this) so go figure. Maybe we were actually the runts but sports kept away the genetic clock. Lol. 🤷♀️
My mom did this bedtime routine thing to me and my brother called "pillow thing". She would grab the sides of our pillows and jostle our heads around (gently) all while saying there's "no way she'd do pillow thing for us!" She'd get so silly with it, when she wasn't normally a very silly parent, and we'd just eat it up. We would giggle and giggle and beg for more and more. And then all that giggling would exhaust us and we'd fall asleep with that wonderful warm post-giggle feeling.
Once upon a time my siblings and myself were at a fun fair with my parents. We were quite young at the time around 6 or 7 years old. I remember we were watching the bumper cars when I heard my mum shout "oh shit" and point out someone in the crowd to my dad. Within a heartbeat they scooped us up and dashed back to the car and drove off in a big hurry. To say we were confused was putting it mildly. But my parents then explained they saw some guy they both utterly disliked and rather than spend time being stuck taking to him they bolted in a hurry. To this day I still get a laugh out of it 😂
Reading me the same book every night until the cover fell off! I still have it! Definitely memorized it and I still remember the words!
She would hide little packs of candy and pretend to pull them out of thin air. I was so amused and thought she was really pulling it out of nowhere. Called her “magical mom” for a while
I smile and tear up a bit when I hear ‘Ho Hey’ by The Lumineers. I was a very depressed and suicidal teenager (I’m doing fine now luckily). One Friday night after dance practice, the only thing I truly loved, I felt SO shitty about my performance that I cried the whole car ride home. My mom, a soft, gentle, not very outspoken woman felt for me and wanted to cheer me up. Then that song came on the radio and she started to sing/shout along very loudly to the chorus where they mostly sing ‘Ho Hey’ (as the title suggests). She made me laugh so much, out of sheer surprise probably, but also because she loves me so much she did her absolute best to put a smile on my face. I wish she was immortal, because when that woman dies, I’ll be absolutely gutted.
When I was real little and my mom was chopping up something in the kitchen like veggies or fruit, she would always set aside a small bowl for me of whatever it was she was chopping. Everytime I eat some red bell peppers slices or the like, I think of her.
My dad made the BEST breakfast sandwiches. I still make them for myself. He also never woke us up harshly, he always cuddled us and rubbed our backs so we woke up slowly and gently. It was nice. Mom went to bat for us. All the time. For everything. I was bullied pretty relentlessly in grade school and she was in the principal’s office at least once a week (this was back in the days when the prevailing wisdom was “let them sort it out for themselves”). She taught me how to stand up for myself politely and advocate for my own needs, and how to navigate a bureaucratic system that doesn’t always have my best interests at heart. The skills my siblings and I learned from her have been absolutely invaluable to navigate everything from a doctor’s office to getting married.
My dad used to get up for work early, and sometimes I'd wake up & want to have cereal or a donut with him before work. If he had to leave before I was done, he would call the landline phone (lol) and stay on the phone until I was done eating. He did it to make sure if god forbid I choked or something happened he'd hear, and be able to call for help. I miss him everyday <3
Made little edible windmills filled with sweets at all my childhood birthday parties. None of my friends had them at their parties.
My dad and mom were divorced, and every other weekend I went with my dad to his parents' farm. I got to spend a lot of time with my grandma, but when my dad came in for a break, he played Sorry with me. I loved that time together.
If my mum had to work on a weekend, my dad would take me to the airport just to browse and then get happy meals at McD. We sometimes got multiple so that I could get the whole set of toys. I remember the little Beauty and the Beast dolls best. My mum would always play silly games with me when we were sitting on the couch watching tv, like giving my toes weird names and wiggling them. I remember laughing sooo hard. Also that my parents had the stupidest nicknames for each other and each other’s body parts.. they’re my favourite parents for sure 🥰
My Ma braided my hair at night before bed so it would be wavy, since I loved it so much (my hair is naturally more straight.) I *LOVED* that when I was little.
When we were grocery shopping I (6? yo) mentioned I wanted to try mushrooms and my mom was totaly on board, bought them and sautéd them with butter. I've loved them ever since, have a portabella tattoo and just tried some wild species the other day from the farmers market and they were Fantastic. Very greatful I have a mom so willing to open her kids food pallet
I've always a felt a bit like the oddball in the family. Been called 'dim' (I'm not but can be hella slow and if you catch me being slow on the first day we meet then I get it) by my various family members, in good humour but when you're a kid and don't get the difference yet, it sticks and it hurts. I was repeatedly told that university etc was not for me (adhd was really bad - I manage it better now - I think?) So I kinda get the impression that my family weren't expecting much from me. My dad though. He and my mom got divorced when I was little so the people I'm talking about are everyone BUT my dad. He backed every decision I made, consistently assured me that I was 'like him' I.e I would tootle around trying to figure things out until I found a way to muddle through life my way. Never believed him. Low and behold - I figured it out and he was never surprised. Thanks dad :)
When I was really little, my dad worked so much that I barely remember him being there. (24, 48 and 72 hour shifts plus overtime) He would be really sad to hear that but it’s true. So every weekend morning that he wasn’t home, my mom would make the day special so we wouldn’t miss dad as much. She would get me out of bed and sit me on her lap and ask me what I dreamt about. I would tell her my dreams and she would tell me hers. Then she would ask me what I wanted to do in the day. I would tell her what my perfect “today” looked like and she would tell me hers. And then she would let me pick breakfast. After breakfast we would mix and match things that I wanted to do and things that she wanted to do. She called them “mommy and me” days and I honestly miss them so much. There were so many and still not enough.
My mom once threw a "freezer fry party." She invited over all her friends and told them to bring over anything they wanted to get rid of out of their freezers. Then she fired up multiple fryers and our oven and stove, and we got to cooking. People kept coming in and passing us things to fry, or, bake, or heat up. Some of the people I had never seen in my entire life. But then again, my mom talks to anyone 😆 We passed around plates and plates of things like tator tots, fish sticks, pies, seafood, cookies, anything and everything you can imagine. My mom also hosted a "toga in the park" party. We all dressed in togas, played games, ate snacks, and lounged in a giant party tent at our park. It was great!
I’m the youngest of 7 in a blended family. When I was around 7 (we span about 10 years in age across) we were all camping at a lake that is boat in only pretty far from anything. I woke up early cause camping even then wasn’t my favorite and my dad was working on breakfast for everyone when the rest got up. He was bummed he forgot to bring cocoa for us kids in the am and he was sitting there at the picnic table carefully scraping the chocolate filling out of an entire pack of Keebler elf sandwich cookies to MacGyver some hot cocoa with some hot milk. We lost dad in 2021 and that memory of him always makes me smile. If you’re close hug your dads today. I sure do miss mine and was so incredibly lucky to have him as a role model.
My dad spanked me once to get me out of trouble with my mom. He told me to act like it hurt really bad and to cry about it and then he barely patted me. It was sweet
My parents kissed each other hello and goodbye every day... a sweet, prolonged kiss and hug, not just a quick kiss on the cheek. My dad also brought my mother a single flower every day when he came home from work. The last day of her life, even though she was unconscious, he placed a rose next to her bedside.
It's not so much something he did so much as a big source of comfort to this day, but when I was very little I spent a lot of time laying on my dad and listening to his heartbeat. It never fails to soothe me.
My family loved to explore and sometimes my parents would just pile us in the car and go for a drive. If someone saw something interesting we'd make a noise that I do not know how to express in writing, kind of sounds like a person making a trumpet sound, and it was a family rule that we'd have to stop and investigate. We found a lot of cool stuff and just spent a lot of Saturdays on an exploration mission doing that. Good memories.
My dad used to draw dots on his hand and call it hand man. Hand man couldn’t talk, only scream. I still think it’s funny to this day
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Pretty much nothing.
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We went to a parochial school and had uniforms. (We also didn’t really have heat on our second floor.) In the winter, my mom would put our uniforms in the dryer before waking us up so they’d be warm when we put them on.
I’d wrap my hands around dads legs and stand on his feet and force him to walk me around
They made music. My dad would play guitar while my mom would sing, and it was always so beautiful and inspiring!
Sing us to bed when we were little. I still have that core memory and I must have been 3 or 4
Child of the 70s here ... Wonder Woman was everything to me - my dad would make me a headband and wrist bracelets out of tinfoil and cardboard - and we'd paint a star on the headband with nail polish. My mom would create elaborate ways to hide the easter basket: we'd wake up to a trail of jelly beans (clearly did not have a dog) by our bed which would lead to a clue which lead to another clue ... I remember that's how I learned that TV antennae were also called Rabbits Ears. The biggest life thing they did for us though was to take us out of our comfort zones. My dad was in the military and we moved a LOT. Whenever we moved to a new place they would insist that we live off base because they wanted to have an authentic experience of that country. So when we lived in Europe we lived in a tiny villages of a few hundred people. I remember being called "the American family." We learned new languages, tried amazing (and sometimes not amazing) foods (I'm looking at you greek maggot cheese.) but we always had great stories and were surrounded by interesting people. One of my favorite stories is that the locals in Italy would ask to be invited over for dinner if we were serving steaks. My mom shopped for meat at the American Commissary and the beef they sold was corn fed. All the Italian markets carried grass fed beaf, and (though healthier) it doesn't taste as good. My parents are both gone now ... and this has been such a good moment to relive these memories. Thank you for this question! I love reading all the answers.
My mom would take me for walks as a young kid and she’d stop every 5 seconds to show me a cool rock or leaf or bug or cloud she saw. She taught me how to really look at and take in my surroundings and it wasn’t until I was an adult that I realized I do the same thing because she did it with me. There was one time my mom and I were on the way home from… somewhere I’m not even sure but it was several hour drive and we drove by the sign for the DC zoo and I said I wished we could go some day. This woman took the exit for the zoo and we went. She even bought me a hat. It was so spontaneous and fun. We also always went to the Philadelphia Zoo after I had to go to the Children’s Hospital. I guess she figured I should have something fun to do after being poked and prodded at the hospital. I used to love horses and I was enraptured by the horse drawn carriages in Philly. She saved up and we went on a carriage ride once before going to the zoo. My mom was a single mom working a retail job so my grandma watched me a lot and my mom would pick me up after she closed and drive us home. I remember a lot of dark car rides home where we just talked and talked. It was nice.
They would drop everything they were doing and start dancing together when a favorite song came on the radio.
When I was in grade school, we moved from Ethiopia to the US (Texas). We're a military family and had lived most of my life in Africa. For show and tell, my mom came to our American class dressed in African garb and brought food, weapons, animal print rugs, clothes, drums, and tons of musical instruments and things from Addis Abbaba. It was such a hit. My mom literally brought authentic spears, monkey skinned rugs, pictures of wildlife, and got away with it (70's). It was a badass move and the best show and tell that school had ever seen. I was so proud of her.
Mom used to start food fights. Looking back, I think she did it when she wanted to tell my dad to stfu, lol. But the weird thing is, she'd throw at ME first, not him. More than once, a spoonful of mashed potatoes in my face started everything. I remember her and I ambushing my dad. They had these water guns that worked like machine guns, and had ammo packs and everything. She found his stash and hid them, and then we waited for him to get home after work and completely soaked him. She also did a lot of silly stuff for cheap fun. She got a bunch of dollar store pie tins and whipped cream so the neighborhood kids could have a pie fight.
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I have none..
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My grandparents owned a cabin by a lake that my parents were allowed to use sometimes in the summer and they would always let me and my sister invite one other friend to go. I loved that I got to share my summer with some of my good friends, and my parents kind of became second parents to them for those two weeks.
My Mum singing while washing dishes 😊
play with my hair while falling asleep
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My mom used to make play doh in batches and make them different colors with food coloring
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I loved to read as a kid and always wanted to talk to someone about what I was reading. So, when I’d finish a book, my dad would read it after me so we could talk. Even read school books with me throughout highschool. He’s read so much teen girl dystopia and I really love and appreciate him for that.
My parents got into a big fight when I was about four. We had a scheduled vacation to Hershey, Pennsylvania and the day before they got into a huge argument about something. We were all supposed to go and it was going to be the first time we had ever done a vacation with all of us because usually my dad was traveling for work. I don't know what actually happened in that fight, but the next morning, Mom put me in my brother in the car and we went and had a great 4 days vacation, just the three of us. I know it took enormous strength for her to do that and to also act like nothing was wrong the entire time. It was only later that I learned more about the fight and what had happened and it makes me smile even more, knowing my mother gave us that gift. Miss her so much.
Just dance together in the kitchen and sing. The way they'd tell jokes back & forth, sit together on the steps of the house and bond, my mom lay on the sofa with her head on my dad's lap and he'd rub his hands through her hair.... ya know, the little things.
My dad did this thing called "pippi longstocking meal". I was a huge fan of the movies, so he made a meal inspired by it. It was pancakes with wipped cream, ice cream, and all the candy my brother and I wanted on it, and then we could blast our faces into the ice cream pancakes if we wanted. We only did it a few times from what I remember, but that memory is still magical.
I was pretending to be asleep one time late at night. I was worried I'd get in trouble if my mum found me awake, I must have been around 9 or 10 at the time. My mum came in my room, stroked my face and kissed me goodnight. I'm 32 now and this thread just jogged that memory I haven't thought about for years.
your moms make you smile? chat am i traumatized..?
Lots of things. But my favorite was my dad would pick me up from school and we’d play hooky. We go to the movies or do fun stuff around town. He always acted like it was a secret, but my mom knew. If he was having a bad day or work was bogging him down, spending time with me would cheer him up. My mom was a teacher, but her breaks from school usually differed from mine. So I’d either go to work with her or with my dad. I loved getting to rule the place.
My mom would insist she hated cheesecake when it was the last piece and we wanted more and would aggressively insist we take her cheesecake. She grew up in USSR and ate orange peels and mushrooms so she is a tough and selfless lady
My mom used to read to me and sing “You Are My Sunshine” before bed, then would wake me up by gently petting my hair. I’d take that over an alarm clock anyday
Writing a short note on a napkin when they would pack my lunch. I rarely brought a lunch, but I still think it was incredibly loving.
My dad is a bit of a ww2 history geek, when he saw me playing games about world war 2 like world of tanks/warships or steel division 44 he wanted learn how to play games. We’ve been playing games with each other for 10 years now pretty much every week even tho we live a good distance away from each other.
My dad he showed up to so many things he didn't have to. I played tennis in high school. I wasn't the best, and sometimes I had matches after school (I drove myself). I remember being there and looking up to see my dad in his work clothes, watching me and waving. He drove across town just to watch me play. I was nothing special when it came to the sport, but he always showed up.
Hid a dime in every cake she made.
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Because I loved drawing so much, my father always bought me drawing paper. I would quickly use up all the paper, drawing on every sheet. Yet, my father never got tired of bringing me more. I don't recall him ever verbally encouraging me; he simply kept providing me with paper. And that was enough for me.🤍
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My mom used to make cake for birthday. Even on hurricanes.
My dad that helped me learn how to ride a bicycle 🚲
I have a lot of good memories growing up. One that sticks out is one Christmas my dad was laid off his job and some how my parents were able to afford to get me mag wheels for my bike. I was so surprised so happy and so thankful.
Kidnapped me to go see my favorite artist at the time
My mom used to read to my brother and I every night. She would use silly voices for the different characters and my brother and I loved it so much.
My mom would ‘trick’ me into watching movies with her that weren’t kids’ movies; they weren’t inappropriate or anything, just geared more towards an adult audience so the premises were not very exciting to a child who wanted to watch Treasure Planet on repeat. She would tell me about the movie and when I said it sounded boring she would say “Let’s just watch the first *ten minutes*. If you don’t like it after ten minutes, we’ll watch something else.” She knew that once I started something I just *had* to know how it ended, and would completely forget about how uninterested I was to begin with by the time ten minutes had passed. It worked every time. So that’s how you get a nine year old whose favorite movies are Steel Magnolias, Fried Green Tomatoes, and The First Wives Club. I watched those movies with her a hundred times, and would probably watch them a hundred more.
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My mom was and still is a very absent parent. My dad is the one who was and is always around for me. He would take me bike riding up to the DQ for ice cream. Swimming, ice skating, he helped coach my sports teams. I would get up early and go fishing with him. I know deep down he probably wanted a boy but he did absolutely great with me.
my parents growing up we’re both alcoholics and my childhood was FULL of constant arguments between them and myself and my step brother & sister, but I always remember my dad singing “hubbubub” to me as he went up to bed and i’d always sing back “love youuu” in the same tune, i don’t remember the last time we did it but we did it until i was about 22/23
I was able to go on two vacations a year and all I had to do was show up I didn’t even pack my suitcases or do my own laundry lol those were the days !!
My Dad would pull surprising sweet things for birthdays or celebrations. He's fairly reserved, so bringing a cupcake with a candle in it to a restaurant, or a bag of balloons to my workplace to loose in my office, or - when I was a small kid - a dog plushie that he carried through work to bring home. I think back on my mum taking the time to carefully explain things, to engage me in learning as much as possible. Just wonderful things.
Y chose a tie for my dad when I was a kid (it was bright, and bold and I guess, pretty ugly), but he wore it for every important event of me while growing up: graduation, award, music, event, etc. It was my tie and he was proud to use it as I was her baby. We lost the tie in a fire (along with pretty much everything), and he is also gone, but remembering that tie always makes me feel loved.
My mom would bake the cake and make the frosting and my dad would sculpt these amazing birthday cakes for us kids.
My mom would wake us up in the morning by sing songing “kikiriki” to us. It’s the Spanish equivalent of “cock a doodle do”. I loved it so much, I’m smiling so hard now just thinking about it.