Good Parenting Sometimes Goes Unnoticed
Parenting is something you realize is extremely difficult the older you get. As a child, it's easy to think a parent's only responsibility is to look after them, but as an adult, we know how many other hurdles you have to balance. That's why many actions that parents do often go unnoticed by their kids while they're young. Here are 20 everyday things parents do that kids don't appreciate enough - but will come to in the future.
1. Preparing Their Breakfast Before School
It can be easy waking up as a kid, knowing that you have a delicious, filling breakfast waiting for you downstairs ready to be devoured before you head to school. But what kids often don't realize is that their parents are putting them first, making sure that they're fed before they even see a bite of the food themselves.
2. Wishing Them A Good Day
Sometimes it's the simplest things that go the most unnoticed. While being told to "have a good day" by your parents doesn't seem like much, not everyone is so lucky to have someone so close and caring. Parting ways on this positive note can do a lot more to your mood than kids realize.
3. Driving Them To School
It may just feel like part of a routine, but many parents go out of their way, even waking up extra early, just so they can drive their kids to school and see them off. Whether it's going the opposite direction from work or spending an extra 30 minutes in traffic, kids don't know that their parents are willing to take on the challenges just to make sure they arrive safely.
4. Packing Their School Lunch
Packing school lunches takes even more effort than preparing breakfast. After all, you have to have it ready and planned before your child leaves for the day! From saving extras from last night's dinner to whipping up a fresh meal in the morning, parents go out of their way to make sure their children have food in their tummies by the time noon rolls around.
5. Weekend Outings
Weekend outings are a treat and a lot more thought goes into them than kids know. Planning where to go, picking somewhere your kid will enjoy, and making sure you have the money as a family is more of a balancing act than you might realize.
6. Cooking Dinner After Work
After a long 8-hour shift, most kids don't understand that their parents are tired from work because of how well they hide it. And with dinner approaching, they need to put food on the table! Making sure their kids have a healthy and filling final meal of the day is something kids only come to appreciate as they grow older. Because at a young age, it may just feel like food will always appear no matter what.
7. Doing Their Laundry
No matter how dirty kids get their clothes, from playing around in the mud to accidentally spilling milk on their shirt, it always seems like they return to their closets clean, fresh, and nicely folded up. That's no magic though, it's all thanks to the parents!
8. Taking Them To Sports Practice
Many kids grow up partaking in different sports teams or clubs thank to their parents who want them to try everything at a young age. While these practices are fun, what often goes overlooked by the kids is the time it takes driving back and forth every weekend. Parents never complain though - so it's not hard to see why it goes unnoticed.
9. Helping With Homework
School can be hard, but knowing you have supportive parents to help you out at home can make all the difference. At the time, having your parents help with your homework may seem like the natural thing for them to do, but overtime, kids will learn to see that it's because of their love and care that brings them to the dining table for hours on end trying to teach geometry.
10. Keeping The House Clean
Kids are used to living in a clean and tidy home, but it doesn't come like that without hard work. While they're out playing in the yard or taking their afternoon nap, we know you parents are hard at work getting the chores done. They may not appreciate it yet, but they will when those responsibilities fall on their own shoulders.
11. Going Grocery Shopping
Kids might see grocery shopping as a fun activity where they have an opportunity to persuade their parents into buying their favorite snacks, but as adults, we know the struggle. From making sure you're buying everything on the list to staying in budget (on top of dealing with kids!), grocery shopping is a lot more tricky than picking out everything you want to eat.
12. Making Them Eat Vegetables
While being "forced" to eat vegetables might be something your kids hate about their parents in the moment, but when they get older, they'll be grateful knowing you cared about their health. It's something they can't see in the moment but just know seeing them grow up healthy and well is enough of a thank you.
13. Looking After Them When They're Sick
Most people know to stay away from others who are sick, but if it's your kid, nothing matters. Parents aren't afraid to risk catching the flu themselves as long as it means they can check up on their children. Whether they're preparing the most comforting soups or reading bedtime stories so their kids can better sleep, parents are willing to do whatever it takes - though it may go over the children's heads.
14. Buying Them New Toys
Not everyone has the luxury of getting new toys to play with, but that's not something children are always aware of, especially when they're very young. And while they'll be thankful for their parent's gifts, they don't know that these toys come out of their hard-earned money.
15. Finishing Their Leftovers
Ever take one bite of something before changing your mind and not wanting it anymore? Even if you don't think you have, you likely did when you were young. One of the gifts of being a kid is knowing your parents will always be there to finish whatever leftovers you refuse you eat (even if they don't like it themselves).
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16. Making Sure They're Dressed Warm Enough
We've all been kids before, thinking we were invincible to the cold and could head out in the snow in nothing but a t-shirt. But thankfully, our parents were always there to stop us. Making sure we're layered from head to toe and wearing appropriate clothing for whatever weather, parents never fail to ensure their children are dressed warmly enough even if they protest.
17. Reading Bedtime Stories
How well we sleep often depends on how we're feeling as we head to bed. So if you were lucky enough to be given bedtime stories as a kid while you dozed off, you were likely blessed with loving parents who wanted to send you to dreamland on a good note.
18. Playing Games With Them
If one thing's for sure, kids have no idea how much energy it takes adults to play with children. While kids are active balls of energy, parents are tired from their jobs and chores throughout the day. But regardless of how busy they are, they're always willing to make the time to play with their kids and create memories. That's something truly beautiful that's only appreciated as their children grow older and come to remember these lovely moments.
19. Working Hard At Their Jobs
The concept of work is one that flies over the heads of little kids, meaning money, hard work, and jobs are things they won't understand until they're older. As far they're concerned, their parents go away during the day while they're at school, and then they come home to pick them up and spend the rest of the day together.
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20. Doing Their Best To Be Good Parents
No one knows how hard it is to be a parent than parents themselves. It's an everyday struggle, one that takes constant persistence and an openness to learn. But here's the amazing thing: even if parents don't get the recognition from their kids just yet, it doesn't make a difference. All that matters is that their children grow up happy and healthy; that's all they care about.
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