sweat the details

This past weekend, I asked my parents to “Come and get these kids!” like I do every couple months when I’ve just had a little bit too much face time with these kids and need a breather.

My parents enjoy their roles as grandparents and come and get them without complaint. My dad makes it a point to go to the grocery store and buy all the food that they eat at our house so all the food is familiar to them.

So my dad goes to the store to stock up. He calls me while wandering the aisles. “What kind of chicken nuggets do the kids eat?”

“Tyson, all-white meat nuggets,” I reply.

“I don’t see it.”

“What store are you in?”

“Walmart Supercenter.”

I think for a second. “It’s about $4.99, then. Wide green stripe on the front. About 40 pieces per package. It’s probably on the third shelf from the top.”

He pauses and follows my directions. “Yup, I see it.”

He laughs, and I laugh too.

It got me thinking about all the little behind-the-scenes things that every mom does, all this knowledge that we possess that men (most men) have no clue about. 

For example, at this moment, I know we have 13 diapers left in the box and that will get us through about four more days before I have to spend the $7.98 for another pack of 30. I know that the kids are hungry whenever we pick them up from daycare so I always pack little plastic baggies full of Cheerios. How many Cheerios? Three handfuls.

Every mom does her little calculations that makes the family run smoothly. And usually, those things go unnoticed. But I’m here to say that I see you, I recognize your hard work and I applaud you for “those little things” that no one notices but you.