Motherhood and our Partnership
If someone had asked me a few years ago what kind of father my husband would be, I would have smiled and said, “I think he’ll be a good one.”
But I never imagined just how wonderful he would become.
Before Hithesh came into our lives, we were simply husband and wife. We enjoyed quiet evenings, made plans for the future, and dreamed about the family we hoped to have one day.
Now our home looks very different.
There are toys in every corner, tiny shoes by the entrance, little fingerprints on the windows, and the cheerful sound of a toddler who seems to have endless energy. Some days, by lunchtime, I already feel like I’ve lived through an entire day!
Hithesh is at such a playful age now. He loves running from one room to another, climbing onto the sofa, bringing us every book he owns, and laughing when we chase him around the house. Sometimes he wants me to carry him all morning, and other days he is determined to do everything by himself.
Keeping up with him isn’t always easy.
There are moments when I’m cooking while trying to stop him from opening every cupboard in the kitchen. Sometimes I’m folding laundry only to find that he has unfolded every single piece behind me. I’ll finish tidying the living room, turn around for just a minute, and somehow it looks exactly as it did before I cleaned it.
If he is at home Those are the moments when my husband quietly steps in.
He doesn’t complain.
He simply says, “I’ll play with him.”
Within minutes, our living room becomes their little playground. They build towers with blocks, roll toy cars across the floor, play hide-and-seek behind the curtains, or make funny faces.
Sometimes I don’t even join in.
I just stand in the kitchen preparing dinner, listening to their laughter from the next room.
Those sounds have become one of my favourite parts of everyday life.
Every morning, we both leave home early because Hithesh goes to hoikuen while I go to my part-time job. Dropping him off isn’t always easy. There are mornings when he clings tightly to us and cries as we say goodbye.
As a mother, those moments break my heart.
But in the evenings, everything changes.
Almost every day, the moment Hithesh hears the front door open, he knows Daddy is home.
He runs as fast as he can, his face glowing with excitement. Sometimes he squeals with happiness before my husband has even taken off his shoes.
Even after a long day at work, my husband doesn’t sit down and disappear into his phone. Instead, he picks Hithesh up, lets him chatter away in his own little toddler language as though every word makes perfect sense. I get my time to refresh.
That simple moment reminds me what truly matters.
Living in foreign country as a foreign family has also brought us closer.
We don’t have our parents nearby to help when we’re tired. There aren’t grandparents who can babysit for an afternoon or relatives who can pop in with a home-cooked meal.
Most days, it’s just us.We’ve learned to work as a team.
Sometimes he tells me, “Go and have a shower. I’ll stay with Hithesh.”
Those small acts of kindness mean more to me than expensive gifts ever could.
Motherhood has also changed me.
There have been days when I questioned myself.
Days when I wondered whether I was doing enough.
Days when I felt guilty because I was tired or overwhelmed.
There were moments when I cried from exhaustion, especially during those sleepless nights in the early months. There were times when I worried every time Hithesh became sick, wondering if I was making the right decisions.
Through all of that, my husband has been my calm.
He reminds me that I’m a good mother, even when I doubt myself.
He celebrates the little things with me—our son’s first steps, his first words, the first day at hoikuen, and even the small victories, like finishing a meal without throwing it onto the floor!
These are memories we’ll laugh about one day.
Looking at my husband now, I don’t just see the man I married.
I see a father who patiently teaches our son, who gets down on the floor to play after a tiring day at work, who carries a sleepy toddler to bed without being asked, and who chooses our family every single day.
Marriage after children isn’t always romantic in the way movies portray it.
Sometimes romance looks like washing the dishes while the other parent gives the baby a bath.
Sometimes it’s sharing a quiet smile across the room because your little one has just done something unbelievably funny.
I’ve realised that love grows in those ordinary moments. As well I truly believe that that is the true love, gratitude and respect to one another.
It grows through teamwork.
patience.
It grows through choosing each other again and again, even on the tiring days.
When I look at the life we’ve built here in Japan, I don’t see perfection.
I see two parents doing their best.
I see a happy little boy who knows he is deeply loved.
And I see a husband who has become an even better man than I ever imagined.
For that, I will always be grateful.
To my husband, if you ever read this...
Thank you for being Hithesh’s safe place. for making me laugh when motherhood feels heavy.for reminding me that I never have to do this alone.
Our little boy may not remember every bedtime story you read or every game you played on the living room floor, but he will grow up knowing one very important thing—that his father loved him with his whole heart.
And as your wife, that is one of the greatest gifts I could ever ask for. I thought I must give a shout out to my beautiful husband!
