How hard it is.
Right, so you’ve heard the rumours. Parenthood is tough. And being a stay-at-home mother sometimes feels like a daily battle. But I have to confess, I love the challenge. Despite being a complete routine freak, no two days are the same with Mster. He picks up new skills daily, and constantly throws me a curve ball when I least expect it. But this is the part I love – being able to wing it.
The man my husband has become.
I had a lot of doubts about whether marriage with the X would work. We are as polar opposites as it gets. Even my parents who would’ve been relieved to see me marry ( any man at all), balked at the idea. But any question marks I had about the man completely disappeared when M turned up. X was the first to do everything for him, since I was so out of it after the C-sec, and even when we got home. He’s an expert diaper-changer, burper, lullaby-crooner and best-friend/hero to M. He is in his element as a father. And he’s not too shabby a husband either. A defining moment for me, when was a few days into confinement, I was exhausted, dishevelled and smelt of old milk, and X came into the room where I was staring at my wide-awake unsmiling baby, who was surely working his way up to a new fit of wailing. He just put his arm around me, and said, ‘you will always come first with me. I hope you know that right?’ It didn’t register then, but it set the tone for our relationship.
Appreciating my own parents.
It’s true. You never fully understand the sacrifices your parents made, until you have kids of your own. I still marvel at how my parents put their own ambitions and plans on hold to make sure that my brother and I realised ours. My parents dragged us along on every holiday they went on, even when we were adamant we didn’t want to go. And each one was meticulously planned by my mum, who wanted us to gain maximum exposure and kept it all within budget. She also took cooking classes and turned out new dishes weekly for us – and we never even ate the same meal for lunch and dinner. And she did it all while holding down a full-time job. One of my best memories was of my Papa coming home during his 1 hr break just to read with me, and speeding back to school to start his evening classes. Much later I realised, he didn’t have time for a toilet break! I hope I do half as good a job as them.
Leaning on others.
It really does take a village. People give me too much credit as a SAHM. What they don’t see is my parents taking M for a morning stroll, my mum-in-law watching him one afternoon a week while I nap and even the friends who call and chat just to keep me sane some days. Its nice to have a support network that holds us up. I’m truly blessed.