It’s time for a little reflection here: I think I am no longer the ‘fun mom’ I used to be. Sadly, that’s how I feel right after that short conversation with my kid earlier. While I was assisting him on a homework that required him to list down his favorite activities with his family, he spontaneously answered, “Playing and doing arts and crafts with mom!” Then he added, “But it has been a long time since the last time we played, right mom?”
Admittedly, ever since our new baby needs more time, ever since my firstborn entered grade one and ever since our helper is down to one, I became the taskmaster-and-checklist kind of mom. You must have noticed that with the several organizers I share on the blog so I could (in my mind) budget my time. My hands are always, always so full. I breastfeed the little one 24/7, I write from home for a living, I tutor the little guy and on and on and on.
Luckily, I have a great husband and partner who patches up my shortcomings.
I have so much to learn from my husband when it comes to time management and to being the cool parent that he is. Just like me, he is a busy man. But unlike me these days, he swings by parenting and his being a husband so effortlessly, so smoothly.
To show you a snippet of his life, he wakes up early in the morning to drive our child to school and then he goes straight to his workplace. In between work breaks, he calls me up for a short chat. And when the work schedule is over, he calls up again to say that he is about to go home. When he’s home, he religiously plays with our kids. He is in his goofy, spontaneous and silly self, like a kid. And I want to be like him in that aspect. I want to be like our cool kid once in a while. My load is going to be lighter, I know!
I wholeheartedly mean this: I don’t want my children to see me as that taskmaster mom. I want them to see their Mama as the lighthearted, funny and cool person that I used to be that I am. I don’t want them to miss out on knowing me just because I didn’t make time to show them the me that I am when there’s no task in my head to be accomplished.
It’s true, motherhood is hard work, but it’s also a chance to renew our youth. I need to take off my taskmaster hat every now and then and play on the floor with my kids again. Yes, I need to bring out the kid in me all over again.
Thankfully, I got to make this reflection while my kids are still young. While I can still add loads of giggles and laughter to my motherhood trail.
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