Little thoughtful things your parents still do for you?

[Charlavail]

My mum buys me a little bag of powdered milk bottles each Friday when she does her weekly shop. She also buys me nappies and wipes every week so we have a stash for newborn DS. If I go round her house for lunch she always makes my favourite for me. Jacket potato with cheese, beans and coleslaw.
She does loads for me and DC but the little things make me feel so loved.

My lovely mum is in a nursing home and in the final phase of dementia. She was a kind mum and gran to my children. We called every day and she really listened to me about my ideas and my life.

I miss her

A lovely thread but definitely ‘here’s what you could have won’ for many of us.

@Stillmousy

These are all so heart warming, and inspiring too on those little things we can do for our own dc as they grow up. And maybe for those of us who don't have this sort of parental relationship, we could do them for ourselves, I've been reading about healing the inner child, and being a parent to your own inner child - easier said than done I know, but I think we all deserve to heal

@FourEyesGood

My late dad was never especially sentimental or affectionate, but after I left home, he used to send me cuttings from the newspaper if there were features about bands he knew I liked. No message, just an envelope in the post with, e.g. an interview with Super Furry Animals from The Guardian. I was always very touched.

That's so lovely x

@maeveiscurious same as my mum, she was a wonderful mum and grandma/Nan/nanny. She looked after my dd from 9 months to allow me to go back to work, did the housework, shopping etc, was always at every event, birthdays, Christmas. Always there at the end of the phone for a chat, cry, laugh, gossip. I miss her endlessly.

My parents are well into their seventies. Once a week, they drive to my empty house and mum does the ironing and dad either does the garden or any bits of DIY depending on the weather. Me and DH are in our fifties and work full-time long hours and they've been doing this since the DCs were small. This ongoing act of kindness has made a huge difference to our lives over the years. My DM is also the sounding board for DD (22) who is away at uni and takes a lot of the emotional weight off by calling DD most days to see how she is. That one's huge as well. I am so so grateful and realise I just got lucky.

@TheSweetestHalleluja

These are all so heart warming, and inspiring too on those little things we can do for our own dc as they grow up. And maybe for those of us who don't have this sort of parental relationship, we could do them for ourselves, I've been reading about healing the inner child, and being a parent to your own inner child - easier said than done I know, but I think we all deserve to heal

So true.

And we can also learn from these wonderful and enduring yet simple gestures that the impact of these little acts of loving kindness is profound and cherished much more than they know - we can then do this for others and have that satisfaction and healing in doing so.

Lots for the kids.
Help with uniform.
Occasionally buy persil (actually a big help).

During the initial months of Covid when everything was a bit crazy and worrying my Dad would phone me or leave messages with any bits of positive news on vaccines or anything else just to reassure me and to tell me it was going to be ok. I had probably already heard the same news and really was not overly anxious about it but I think it made him feel better to think he was helping me by keeping my spirits up😊

@LyndaSnellsSniff

This is all so wonderful. My parents are very much "out of sight, out of mind" and always have been.

Sigh. Sorry for the downer!

Mine too unfortunately. Well, my dad passed away last year but these posts are so lovely.

Jeez my dad died 21 years ago. He always bought me flowers from a florist and when I drove over to see him, always used to wipe my headlights with his handkerchief to make sure they were bright.

You are all so extremely lucky.....I had to fight for time.....from either parent.....mum passed away years ago young and dad shut me out...now no contact....cherish every moment with them x

My dad always brings me flowers from what was 'my' bit of the garden in whatever jar he has to hand. I currently have daffodils in a Nescafé jar and primroses and grape hyacinth in a jam jar . He puts them in water in the jars and then the jars in bags to prevent spills when I drive them home or he drives them to me. Makes me feel happy inside when I see them!

These are so so lovely, have reduced me to tears, such thoughtful parents 🥰

My mam always has pink wafer biscuits in cos she knows theyre my favourites!

Some lovely things here.

@SpiderinaWingMirror

Jeez my dad died 21 years ago. He always bought me flowers from a florist and when I drove over to see him, always used to wipe my headlights with his handkerchief to make sure they were bright.

Keeping you safe. So beautiful

My mum is amazing 🥰

There are many many things she does and has done over the years to help me out.

I only hope that I will follow in her steps when the time comes.

Solidarity to all those whose parents never go above and beyond. I sometimes feel like an idiot having reached my 50s before realising that my parents are v much adequate rather than exceptional. No offers to babysit or treat my dc, or me, to anything. And it's not down to material hardship either.

Still, as others have mentioned, it makes me want to do the opposite and although I sometimes have to remind myself to do the little things that mean so much (because I have never experienced them).