Mom Danced in Rain When Son Was 2, Can’t Believe What He Says Years Later

Motherhood can be overwhelming, but one woman has reminded parents to cherish even the smallest moments.

In a video posted to TikTok by user @sophiejamesporter, Sophie James said her son, who is almost 4 years old, remembered dancing in the rain with her at age 2.

Since it was posted, James’ video has received more than 189,000 views and 11,000 likes. James, 30, spoke to Newsweek about how memory-making was simpler than she once thought.

“When my son was 2, we danced in the rain. Something silly in the moment, I didn’t think much of it,” James wrote in the video’s captions. She continued: “It wasn’t until the other day, now almost 4 years old, I asked him to come in from playing as it was about to rain. He then said, ‘I want to dance in the rain with you.'”

James, a mental health nurse and psychotherapist, said the memory was made on a summer afternoon during a sudden downpour. She noticed her son watching the rain from inside the house as she cleaned the kitchen.

“I took a minute to stop what I was doing to spontaneously see if he wanted to dance in the rain with me,” she said. “He was giggling away, and I could tell he really enjoyed doing something silly: Just taking in the rain on our faces and puddles under our feet while the air was still warm … taking a moment from the day-to-day life admin, housework and work just to be present.”

James said realizing her son remembered that moment almost two years later was meaningful to her. She concluded that there was no need for fanfare when it came to making family memories.

“The best memories aren’t what we buy or where we go. It’s how you make someone feel. Being fully present in the moment made me realize the importance of just spending time and giving your kids your undivided attention,” she said. “There’s more to life than housework, and the best memories cost nothing.”

James, who also has a five-year-old son, said the family of four—mom, dad and the two boys—had a “really close relationship,” and that she prioritized memories her kids could look back on as the years pass, such as walking in the forest and “making dens in the woods.”

On TikTok, viewers praised James for her observations, offering their own insights into the simple joys of parenthood or reflecting as adults on the childhood memories that shaped them.

“When I was younger I said to my dad, ‘I wanna run in the yellow field.’ He pulled over and said, ‘Go for it,'” a user wrote. “We went running together, it’s one of my fondest memories and it cost nothing.”

“I always think he forgets these little things but he never does,” another added, presumably about their own child. “They are the big things for him. And, through his eyes, they become big for me, too.”