We’re parents to three children seven years old and below. We both agree that it’s the hardest job there is. Anyone who disagrees must be have figured out parenting and all its challenges and eccentricities. Because, seriously, raising miniature humans is tough. You second guess yourself all the time. There’s no manual that tells you what to do every step of the way.
We agree that, in our case, this is a team effort and that no role holds more weight than the other. We also agree that parenting is not just about children.
So we invest in alone-times. This is one of them. We dropped off the children in Lapu-Lapu City to be under the care of their Auntie Bonbon and my Mom.
At lunch, we talked about Christmas plans and how to hide presents until Christmas morning. We discussed future plans: living in Japan or going back to China or the US. We whined about the Covid-19 virus and then laughed about how far we’ve come since the time we met almost a decade ago (when all we thought about was blocking the next travel destination).
Jeff makes me a better person, a better wife, a better mother. He recognizes, listens and values my opinions and views. We don’t consider ourselves as equals because in every aspect of our relationship, we have different standings, expertise, and resources. Some situations, I’m better than him; other times, he’s a million steps ahead of me. But this ain’t a competition despite the fact that we’re two headstrong individuals. What we have is a clear understanding of our strengths and weaknesses and respect for each other. It’s not a perfect relationship. We have had our share of conflicts and misunderstandings. But we always go back to our core; that we are two independent, successful individuals who chose to be with each other because we love and like each other.
We are conscious about this relationship and we work hard to be in this relationship because we become better parents when we treat each other with love, respect, and a dash of silliness.
