My husband, Brian, had been talking about having a third child for months.
The problem was, I was already exhausted.
I worked part-time, handled school drop-offs, cooked, cleaned, scheduled appointments, packed lunches, and stayed up whenever one of our kids was sick.
Brian worked long hours and believed that because he earned more, he had already done his share.
One night, he brought up another baby again.
I finally told him the truth.
“I can’t raise three children when I already feel like I’m doing this alone.”
He took it as an insult.
The argument got worse until he stormed out and spent the night at his mother’s.
The next morning, he came home and said, “If you’re so unhappy, pack your things and leave.”
I was stunned.
Then I packed.
When I reached the front door, Brian looked almost satisfied.
That was when I turned around.
“The kids are staying with you.”
His expression changed instantly.
“What?”
“You want another child because you think parenting is easy. So spend one week doing everything I do.”
I wasn’t abandoning our children. I had arranged to stay nearby with my sister, and I would still see them every day.
But for one week, Brian handled mornings, homework, meals, laundry, bedtime, and a surprise school call when our son got sick.
By day four, he called me exhausted.
“I didn’t realize.”
That was the point.
When I came home, we didn’t immediately talk about another baby.
We talked about becoming equal parents first.
