The day I decided to be a smiling mother rather than make perfect meals😊 #HouseworkAlly

Housework is actually great and vast

The evening when the kids ask, "What's for dinner tonight?"🌆
Four growing children.


(What should I make today🤔?)

"It's fried food tonight😊!"

500g of potatoes
2.3kg of chicken thighs
500g of pumpkin croquettes

Total over 3kg⚠️
Frying time, easily over an hour...

In the meantime, I make miso soup and salad.
I also cook 6 cups of rice every time.

Once they start eating,
they say it's delicious,
and it's gone in a flash as they scramble for it😋

After setting aside a little for lunch boxes,
there are no side dishes left😂

I'm happy,
I'm grateful, but
(What should I make tomorrow?😊💦Again)

Child-rearing. Work. Never-ending tasks.
And housework.


"I have to do it right"
I was pushing myself🙏

Me, pushed by housework

I'm actually a bit of a perfectionist🤣

* Perfect meals
* Perfect cleaning
* Perfect parenting

But
the more I aim for it,
the less breathing room I have🥲

The "heavy labor" of parenting is
far different from when I lived alone
or when I lived as a couple😳


I used to be fine with
overtime and no days off🤩
That's why
I never imagined that
a series of troubles while sleep-deprived


would be this hard...💦
I was also surprisingly in the cooking club.
Since my girls' school days,
I've been cooking quite a bit to help my mother,


who lost her dominant hand in an accident🍳🔥
Making dashi, removing odors, skimming scum...I like cooking slightly elaborate menus𓌉◯𓇋 ‎

But...
After work, before putting them to bed,
while parenting and helping with homework,
in a parallel speed-cooking battle,
I don't have that kind of leeway!!⚠️

Torn between "wanting to do it",
"having to do it",
and "not being able to do it",
my heart was exhausted...😳

Within what I can do☺️🙏

There was a time
when I truly, honestly collapsed🫠
It seems I had long since
surpassed a limit I hadn't even noticed myself💦

I collapsed limply,
and fortunately there were no major injuries,
but the kids were crying their eyes out😭😭😭
My husband was pale as a sheet😨
And me...
I had a deep sleep(?) without any memory for the first time in 10 years lol

I used to wake up even at the sound of my children's breathing.
I would move to peek at their faces
at the slightest cough or the sound of bedding rustling as they turned over.

How long had I been on high alert 24 hours a day?
How long had I not been resting?
When was the last time I really looked at myself in the mirror?
When did I last sleep soundly without thinking about anything...?

That day, my family was in a total panic😵‍💫!
Just by having me rest in the hospital
for one full day,
they seemed to understand a fraction of how hard I work. lol

From here on, I introduced new housework rules
to ensure I don't collapse again‼️
Delivery and frozen food are okay❣️
Helping each other with shopping and taking out the trash💪🏻❤️‍🔥
Eating out a little more often✨
Just this much.
But, this much is everythingーーーーー!



Even so, at first I felt guilty.
But...
The number of times I sighed decreased✌️
The number of times I got angry at the kids decreased✌️
And my smiles...
Increased😆😆(I win💖)


↓


From then on,
I studied how to cut corners diligently📖
(In the end, I'm still serious😂ww)

Appliances that are even a little more convenient💡 ̖́-
Cheap and high-quality delivery services🚚
Government services I can rely on in a pinch🈂️

Being able to think
“I’m not alone”
saved my heart🤲🫧

The point of housework
isn't to “keep everything running perfectly”🤭

“that the family can spend time together with peace of mind”

might have been it all along🍀

And, within that “family”,
you have to make sure to include yourself🌈✨

Even if it's instant or frozen!

Even if it's a meal
made by a high-class, wonderful chef...
what if the dining table is devoid of smiles❓

It would be lonely and joyless, wouldn't it💦

What if, even with instant or frozen food,
you eat happily while comparing the flavors and ingredients with your family❓

It's a form of food education, it becomes a memory, and it's delicious
😋💓

For me, my housework ally is

Easygoing rules that work for me

That is
my ally and my perspective🕊️🌈✨

The day I decided to be a smiling mother rather than make the perfect meal
😊#AnAllyForHousework

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