M: ” My husband is on tour”
X: ” Again? Poor you!”
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X: ” Is the Daddy coming for little one’s PTA meeting?”
M: ” No, but I will be there ”
X:” Aww.. Poor you, almost a single parent. How do you do it? ”
M: ( imagining punching her over sympathetic face.)
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Sounds familiar? Then you will have fun reading ahead.
It takes two to make a baby unless you went the doner sperm way, or are a single parent of an adopted child. But in most cases, it takes two to procreate, and then the baby gets a Mommy & a Daddy to care for her and raise her in the best way they can.
In a lot of households, both the parents work to provide for the family and to achieve their dreams and career goals. In a lot of households, one parent works and the other one takes over as the Vice President of House management, Child management, Logistics & stakeholders management. We call this person, Stay at home mom or Stay at home dad as the case be.
So, this division of duties & responsibilities is mostly done keeping the goal in mind. Goal is typically set with good intentions and with a resolve to compliment your partner and raising a wonderful little person.
As time progresses, many insecurities, communication gaps, expectation gaps emerge and it then becomes the prerogative of the partners to meet each other half way. To remind themselves that they are a team. To play together and not against each other. To not blame each other ‘s work and occupation and especially not to undermine the efforts they take on a daily basis to provide the family with their best.
Since I am a wife of a globe trotting, very driven, hardworking husband, who is a very dedicated family man but also an ambitious executive, I am left managing our fort alone a lot of time while he is away for business. If I was not a senior management executive myself before I took a break to raise my little one, I may not have understood the work pressure he bears as a professional. To add to that, since he is currently the only earning member of our family, he also has this added stress to provide for the financial security of our family. It’s not an easy task. For example, he does not have the luxury of slapping a resignation and go backpacking anymore, just as I don’t have the luxury to sleep in and stop Mommying around the days I am down with a flu. We both are working hard with utmost sincerity and focus in our designated line of work.
When my husband comes back home from work, he spends all his waking hours with our child and me. He feeds the baby, plays with her, teaches her cool stuff and wipes her dirty bum after potty. So he is a pretty hands on father. But he is ( mostly) not available for her school functions, or PTA meetings or even pediatric appointments. And guess what, it’s OK. It’s not preferable obviously, but it’s OK. Because I know, if he could, he would.
As a stay at home partner it’s my duty to give him benefit of doubt. It’s not easy. There are days when I feel very exhausted, and lonely and overwhelmed, and I am sure there are days when he feels trapped in his business suit too, but it’s a choice. We made it, when we decided to have a baby.
So since I am just about getting in terms with parenting with his limited presence physically around us at this point in time, I have a few tips to share with you.
These tips will come in handy to give you a more positive perspective and hopefully it will lead to less conflicts at home and more brownie points for the both of you.
Here goes,
1. Do not compare
Do not compare with other parents. Period. If some one else ‘s husband is home at 4pm and is always available cheering up the child and the wife on national day, and sports day and pta meetings and Facebook wall, look at them, smile, grind your teeth a bit and move on.
He is not your husband. He is not the father of your child and you can do nothing about it. You have your very own walking talking loving man that you got married to and had a baby with, respect him. Respect his uniqueness and respect your marriage.
2. Share a calender
If your partner is a traveller or has many important meetings to attend or busy schedule, do plan in advance. Give him/ her ample notice of event you definitely, surely want him to attend. Make a note of it on his calender with the picture of your angry face so he/ she knows, skipping this is non – negotiable. Once you have done it, let it go. Cross your finger and now the ball is in his court. Let him figure out or explain to you.
3. Do not brood, crib, sulk or nag .
If your husband is really a good father but is going through a very busy phase at work, so has been missing on a lot of appointments or happy family events lately, why brood about it? Show a little understanding and compassion and ask him to make up for it after this phase gets over ( big project, business deal, new acquisition, whatever)
If your husband is really not into you and would rather be at work than spend time with you and the kids, then also why act despondent? This clearly cannot be solved by cribbing or nagging him. This situation will need counseling may be, clear communication or some very serious decisions.. In any case, cribbing about it won’t help.
Got my point? Why mope & pine about it and make yourself sad. Get busy in your life, fill your free time with your friends,books & passion. You will always miss your busy partner, but you don’t have to cling on to him. Keep your life going and brimming with activities.
4. Be grateful
If you are a stay at home partner, realise that you have the privilege to be one. I am sure there are a lot of people out there who would like to spend as much time with their kids as you do. You get to see their first crawl, first walk, first everything. They take your name all day long, their world is lit up by your presence. You are their comfort zone, their preferred parent. Isn’t that something to feel smug about?
I bet there are many single parents around who single handedly raise their children by playing both the roles of father and mother in their life. They don’t have a support system. You do. Be grateful. If you must compare, compare with people who got it tougher than you and then you will be happier.
5. Make the Busy Partner responsible for Family Time.
So what if he could not be there for your kid’s Christmas party, make it his responsibly to plan a special Christmas event of your own. Let him take out time from his busy schedule to make up for the lost time.
Try and make the most of weekends and holidays that you get together. If your partner comes back after the bed time of your child, let him be the one to spend 15-20 minutes with the child in the morning before the child leaves for school or he/ she leaves for work. Isn’t it much better than nagging him/ her down?
Your child is your priority. Your marriage is your responsibility and your happiness is your choice. Once you imbibe this deep in your mind and repeat it every time you get bogged down, missing the presence of your working partner, you will see the light.
Guaranteed!!
Great post, and I agree, that even though the other half get busy being the bread winner of the house, i thank God that my husband comes home and gives all his attention to my little one.
I agree. I feel grateful too, to have a caring husband and doting father in my life.
I agree that it’s important to each work towards a happy family life. Sometimes, the burden may not be divided equally, but that’s okay!
True. Thanks for stopping by. Truly appreciate your comment.
I love this post!! Yes!! Every family is different. Sometimes I think that I\’m the busy parent and my husband is an amazing sport about it!
That\’s awesome
Every home, family, relationship, career is different. No room for judgement… They all have a variety of goals, priorities, needs, and expectations.
Chelsea || http://www.binkiesandbaubles.com
Truth
Love this post-and these are some of the reasons why I chose to be a SAHM
I live in an area with a lot of military and I hear alot of the struggles the mom\’s go through when their spouse is gone. I guess the one thing the ladies keep in mind is that they know who they married and what that meant. So even though it\’s hard they keep a hold of their strength because their spouse will be back. I do like the keep spouse responsible tip. Making him pitch him not because he has to but because he can andight need that nudge to do something.
Thanks so much for sharing your perspective. I agree with you
My partner works a lot, too. It has it\’s challenges, but overall we have found our groove and get by just fine:)
That\’s awesome..
My husband works full time and has a side job because he loves working on cars. Is he busy, yea! does he miss some functions, of course…but is he an awesome and involved father..you bet! We make it work and found a balance, some people just don\’t get it
Wow. I get it. A marriage has to have the space for an individual to be his best, within family and outside. We as spouse must allow ourselves and our partner that right. I am glad you guys have found your groove in there
Can I just say how refreshing it is to read an article that is encouraging women to be resilient and grateful instead of feeling self-pity? Of course we all need to vent and seek consolation at times, but this was a great read. My husband has been working a great deal of overtime, and I have not had the proper attitude about it – especially since he is such a supportive and loving husband. Thank you for sharing your wisdom.
Thanks Lauren. First reaction is always to feel self-pity. But if you look objectively you will see that this is a phase, an innocent necessity and then you get up and do whats best for u, in a lighter, more appreciated manner
Great message! So glad you guys are making it work, even while your husband is traveling a lot!
Yes. Because this too shall pass
This is so true. It\’s so easy to get bummed out or frustrated when your hubby or partner is busy.
True
I love so much about this! You have so many great points. I especially like the quote \”We often take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude.\” Thank you for sharing. And I also love caption for the last photo!
Thanks so much, for observing, appreciating and even telling me. Humbled!
I love this post! It is very empowering. I feel it applies even if your husband is not high profile. I think a big thing parents may have trouble with, is when aways becomes the new normal. When they are back, you have to readjust the mindset. Can get tricky, especially when you have a strong, self-sufficient mom, and an additionally as strong, dad. I do think there is a lot of take aways from your words though. Best to you and your family. This post is going to help a lot of people.
Thanks so much. I am touched. I write to also remind myself to look at the bigger picture and be grateful and supportive. I am glad it touched a chord with people like you.
Good luck to you. It\’s all about communication I suppose. Parenting is tough in ANY situation. If it were easy, we all wouldn\’t have anything to blog about.
Wow.. Word.
Everyones life is different. What works for one doesnt work for the other. You go mama!
True. One can only try and stay positive and choose happiness
Well written and you\’re absolutely right. I agree with every point you made.
Thank you
Such great tips! We just started sharing a calendar, and it\’s been a game-changer for sure.
I am glad it worked. Thank you
I\’m in the same boat. My partner works A LOT and I\’m often on my own. I need to remind myself of your points because sometimes it\’s not always easy to see it from that perspective when you\’re making dinner for hangry kiddos! Thanks for the nudge!
I agree. I have to remind myself too.
This is so true.
It\’s so important not to judge or compare. Even though it\’s hard not to say, well I\’ve been home with the kids all day. Encouragement and support is definitely a must do.
Yes. its tough as it is. Comparing cab add additional pressure on your expectations
I can totally relate to this. Thanks for the post.
Glad to hear
This is pretty much all the awesome. I\’m pretty much single parenting this year while hubby is on active duty and it is tough but hey, we can do it!
Yes it is tough. And we breakdown too.. But we jump-start.. And that\’s awesome
We are in the same situation (minus the school events). It is mostly me and the kids, and then when hubby comes home from work I am off to school. This is our life, our routine and it\’s up to us to make it work. Thank you for this reminder of the importance of being a team!
You are welcome. I write to remember myself. It\’s easy to get drawn in the drama.
Great read!!
I LOVE being a SAHM, and I\’m grateful that my hubby works so hard so I can homeschool the kids. I love your quote about people needing to quite feeling ignored and get busy enjoying their lives. Amen to that.
Thanks
Love this, nobody is perfect. I\’m a SAHM and sometimes I can take that for granted. I need to learn to appreciate it.
Yes, I forget it too. Write it here to remember 😂
This is so fantastic! You are absolutely right. And we can\’t judge others for what looks to us like \”perfect\” partners, because they are almost guaranteed to not be perfect.
True that
True