Not wanted but needed

My father-in-law owns a small glass company in their town and he had cut some customized pieces for us. We had traveled down and stayed over the night to spend time with them and my sister-in-law that were in town as well. On the day that we were leaving, all the ladies went to town while we stayed behind. My father-in-law and I worked on getting the pieces of glass in the car and I mentioned that my wife would be excited when I told her I remembered to get the glass.

He gave me a look over his glasses and told me advice out of the blue. I have been married to his daughter for over 10 years and have known her and the family for over 14 years but this was one of the few times he had ever given me advice, especially without me asking.

The first part was to not brag on what I do but to let the joy of the work be its own reward. Second, he said that if I wait until she has forgotten about something and then remembers it in a panic, me explaining that I had already done it would get me more brownie points. This was exactly what happened.

On our way home, my wife was talking about their shopping trip and then lets out a shriek of panic, saying that we forgot the glass. I told her it was already loaded in the back and packed to prevent damage. She was ecstatic!!

Since then, she has appreciated me being a detailed person that remembers things that she may forget. It doesn't always work out but it's been pretty fun to see what things I can surprise her with.

TL;DR Father-in-law gave awesome advice that worked and gave me massive brownie points with his daughter in the short and long term.