People Are Sharing The Sweetest Things Their Parents Did To Make Their Childhoods Magical, And I Definitely Shed A Few Tears
I am a sucker for a sappy story, so I was thrilled when I recently came across this tweet by journalist Molly Wadzeck Kraus. Kraus asked people to describe something that their parents did that brought magic to their childhood:
I saw a TikTok recently about little things parents did to make childhood magical. Things adults remember now with such fondness and clarity. I can’t find it again so I’m opening it up here. What’s something your parents did that brought magic to your childhood?
— Molly Wadzeck Kraus (@MWadzeckKraus) August 23, 2024
And the responses were, as expected, adorably sweet. Here are 26 of people's best childhood magic memories:
1. This dad who named everything after his daughter:
When we went on walks my Dad would name nature landmarks after me. "That's Emily Stream." "And that's Best Daughter Beach".
— Emily Andras (@emtothea) August 25, 2024
2. This mom who made sure her kids experienced a winter wonderland:
I live in the deep South, had never seen snow. Mom knew we were going to have a freeze, so she sprayed our tree with the hose, really soaked it. Next morning, every tiny twig and leaf was coated in sparkling ice.
— Alex 🏳️🌈🏳️⚧️ (@Onlyhere4terry) August 25, 2024
3. This dad who made getting a treat a whole experience:
As a kid I marveled at all the random coins “people” lost on our driveway. Dad would point them out for me to pick up. Then we’d go to the store for a treat. Took me years to realize Dad was dropping the coins for me.
— So tired (@Iammo_25) August 26, 2024
4. This mom who made her child's imaginary friend turn real:
When I was about 4 I had an imaginary guinea pig that lived in the bread box. I fed it, played with it etc daily. One day my mum bought a toy guinea pig and put it in the bread box so when I went to play with my imaginary one it had TURNED REAL. I still have the toy.
— Amy Scott Robinson (@Ameandme) August 26, 2024
5. These parents who created a special birthday game:
On birthdays we'd play 'Follow The String' — you'd wake up and find a long piece of string/wool tied to your doorhandle, then unhook it and start winding it up, following it as it led you all over the house, finding presents along the way. As a parent, I continued the tradition. https://t.co/cFd5ughkBs
— Ben Stephens (@stephens_ben) August 26, 2024
6. This parent who surprised their daughter on St. Patrick's Day:
When my daughter was about 3/4 & night before St Paddy I snuck in her room after she fell asleep & painted her toenails green also got the dogs. She was so excited …. She still talks about that being one of her fondest memories. Also tooth fairy left glitter every time …
— A Rose Pozzi (@ARosePozzi) August 25, 2024
7. This mom who made lunchtime special:
Very true. My mom once put a little gift in my lunchbox for no reason when I was in 2nd grade, a little scented bar of soap, and I remember this little feeling of joy and surprise so clearly, 45 years later.
— Joanna D. (@JoannaInNY_MPH) August 25, 2024
8. This dad who had his timing just right:
On Easter, my dad took my brother and I out for breakfast donuts. When we came back, the Easter bunny had hidden eggs all over the place.I was very upset that we missed the Easter bunny by minutes 😂 I was totally enveloped in the magic. https://t.co/9mczN6sUDs
— ツ Hunterprobss (@HunterProbss) August 26, 2024
9. This mom who just kept on driving one night:
My mom & I were driving. It felt late (7? 9?). The moon was big and full and right in front of us as we drove. We were about to turn towards home, but I asked my mom if we could keep going and follow the moon. So we did. We ended up at a bakery and had a late night slice of pie.
— Maria (@likethepotomac) August 25, 2024
10. This mom who made sure the tooth fairy had her own special handwriting:
My mom used to write notes from the toothy fairy in very wiggly writing because she was struggling to work this giant pen! The paper would be torn and crumpled. My mom was great!
— Kerry (@JKB0000000) August 26, 2024
11. This parent who made adorable fairy gardens where their child found gifts:
I also made this fairy garden with my kids and sometimes the fairies would leave them little gifts because they'd been well behaved. They'd run home from school every day to check. I loved it as much as them. pic.twitter.com/GkRIBRVJlT
— Natali Simmonds (@NJSimmondsbooks) August 25, 2024
12. These parents who made sure their kid got a chance to pursue their interests:
I was obsessed with animals when I was a kid, and my parents did a lot to help foster that interest. Getting a UW zoology prof to let me interview him, taking me to a wildcat rehab sanctuary, asking the vet if I could see the back of the clinic, etc. thanks parents https://t.co/37lx5J2udS
— fifty-four (@Unum__Solum) August 26, 2024
13. This dad who still stays up half the night to make sure no one knows exactly where the Christmas gifts came from:
On the night before Christmas when me & my siblings come home…my dad waits until 3-4am to put presents out. I’ve gone my whole life never seeing him or my mom put presents under the tree, it’s his way of “keeping the magic alive” 🥺🤍
— melissa marie 🖤 (@pocohh3) August 25, 2024
14. This dad who kept the magic going even after his child went to college:
My dad used to bring me back toys and stuff from conferences. My first year away at college, he sent me a little stuffed animal of a stork. When I called him up to ask about it, he said he won it at Dave and Buster's at a work meeting and wanted to send it to me. 😭 https://t.co/6vOQAmZN1S
— ®️achael "Trademark Clippy" Dickson™️ (@TudorsAndTMs) August 26, 2024
15. This dad who invented "monster spray":
i shared a bedroom with my twin and my sister and we were all afraid of under the bed and our closet. so my dad invented ‘monster spray’ it was a can w a label and everything and it worked every time. years later i found the can and peeled the label - it was just bug spray
— niigaan a'awe binesi (@niigaanbinesi) August 26, 2024
16. This grandpa who made his grandkids feel all-powerful:
My grandpa used to tell us to press the Pontiac emblem on the glove box to change the traffic light green. It always worked!! 😃
— Nancy Le (she/her) (@gracejoyvictory) August 26, 2024
17. This busy dad who made time to be a pen pal:
my dad would leave for work before i woke up so as a kid i would leave notes for him when I went to sleep and he would write replies for me read! one time i mentioned chocolate and he left a chocolate granola bar on the note 🥰
— big bowl of homemade pasta (@ZoeInTheory) August 25, 2024
18. This dad who made a special morning meal:
I was obsessed w/ Dr. Seuss when I was 5 or 6 years old. One morning, my dad surprised me with green eggs and ham for breakfast! He added blue food coloring to the eggs and they were green and I thought it was the greatest thing ever!
— Blondish is not going back (@V_G_Plus) August 25, 2024
19. These parents making a surprise late-night ice cream run:
My sister & I vividly remember being woken up one hot summer evening and taken, in our nighties, to get ice cream. Parents got an ice cream craving at 9.30pm, after we were in bed, so brought us out to the ice cream stand. My sister & I recall this as one of the best things ever
— dr. k 💗 Kate 💗 Pamcake (@kittensnotkids) August 25, 2024
20. This dad who fudged the details of his day job:
My father was an aeronautical engineer and worked for a helicopter company. Every day he would come home from work and tell us what color helicopter he had made that day. One day he said made a pink one because I had asked him to!
— Bella Englebach (@BellaEnglebach) August 25, 2024
21. These parents who made thunderstorms fun:
Every time when there was a thunderstorm we went into my parents bed room, build a fort and they brought us a popsicle calling it stormsicle so we had a positive experience while thunder and lightning. https://t.co/W55k0fjZg1
— Mari 🩷🦋 (@timelapse127) August 26, 2024
22. This mom who had a special secret ingredient:
My mom would make her special spaghetti recipe when I wasn’t feeling well. The magic ingredient was Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious (but I couldn’t tell anyone.) I always felt better after eating it.
— Carly 🐈 (@theregoesCarly) August 25, 2024
23. This dad who said he could receive hugs through the air:
My dad was a paramedic and worked a lot of OT to make ends meet. I used to send imaginary hugs at bedtime and when I asked if he got them he always said yes
— makaʻāinana (@keoraborealis) August 27, 2024
24. This dad who created a special kind of fruit tree:
In 1979, there was a tv ad where Juicyfruit gum grew on trees. I kept asking my dad where it was. He deflected, said they only bloomed once a year, on midnight on Oct. 30. I remembered. So he taped sticks of gum to a tree in our yard and led us to it by flashlight.
— Lysa (@Lysistratify) August 25, 2024
25. This mom who passed notes from a "dragon":
My mom convinced us that we had our own pet dragon who would come visit us. She left little notes on our doorstep saying he flew by and missed us but would give us rides to school if we could catch him. The dragon was supposedly purple and green and turquoise.
— BIG T🧞♀️ૐ (@WithLoveTee7) August 25, 2024
26. And finally, this dad who created special Tooth Fairy dollars:
My dad used to draw Dracula teeth on George Washington when he gave us tooth fairy money. I instantly knew that meant he was the tooth fairy but instead of being disappointed, I was so tickled by the whole thing and still smile whenever I think about it.
— Bunny (@kit1049) August 26, 2024
These stories are so lovely. Now I have to know — do you have any amazing memories from your childhood, or is there anything special you do for your own kids to keep the magic alive?
