Being a parent is hard. You’re in charge of raising these little humans and turning them into kind, functioning adults. Most of us are just skating through and hoping we don’t screw up. Sometimes you’re not even aware you’re screwing up. It’s when your kid does something thoughtful without being prompted that you realize that maybe you are doing something right.

My husband and I always ask the kids “What was your favorite part of the day?” when we sit down for dinner. Sometimes I change it up a bit and ask about recess and who they played with. Just fishing for some insight into their world that I’m not a part of. Tonight during dinner I asked Finn about recess and what he did. As usual, he answered that he played Wall-Ball. The kids bounce tennis balls off the school and race to catch them. He rattled off some names of the kids he played with. Then he said that his friend Derek’s ball bounced into the dumpster. Bummer.

When we got home he asked if we had more tennis balls because he was going to bring one to school and bring another for his friend Derek. My heart melted. It’s that unprompted thoughtfulness that makes my hear melt. Parenting win.