Housemates in love

Hey housemate, 

How was your sleep? 

How long did it take for our toddler to finally close her eyes last night? 

It took me ages to get our 9 month old to settle 

I know you love our kids 

I know you know that I love our kids 

But they’ve changed us 

Divided us 

Shifted how our love operates 

Long gone are the days of pillow talk until one of us is too tired to carry on the conversation 

Cuddling to sleep until one of us rolls over 

Waking up to morning snuggles with my best friend

Now, it’s bedtime stories and negotiating which book is the last one

It’s resettling our kids for an hour after we say “it’s bed time now” 

It’s waking through the night to cries from a baby wanting the boob and a toddler having a scary sleep story 

It’s waking up unrested, hoping our little ones will extend the grace of an extra hour of sleep 

It’s, different 

We sleep separately 

Not because we aren’t in love 

Not because we don’t want to cuddle

Not because we want space from one another 

But because to divide and conquer the kids bedtime routines keeps the peace 

Moreso, our sanity 

Somewhere between birthing our second and the car ride home from the hospital, we turned into house mates 

Housemates who love each other 

Who steal kisses between doing the dinner dishes and bath time 

Who slow dance together in the living room until our toddler stands on the feet between us 

Who miss each other more than we miss the life we had together before our mini-me’s entered our world 

We may be glorified housemates now 

But underneath that we’re still more 

Husband and wife 

Best friends 

Business partners 

The only people in the world we trust with everything

The nights are rough and our beds are many meters a part 

But somehow, in the distance, my love for you has grown 

My respect for the sacrifices we make for our family deepens 

The trust I have that we can make it through tough times widens 

Being your housemate is my favourite thing in life

Just remember, one day those little feet kicking in the middle of the night will have their own bed

Own sheets

Own rooms to wake up in through the night 

And we will have each other

Housemates transformed back to husband and wife 

Even if the kids will wake us at 5am with cuddles and giggles

It’ll all be worth it