Behind Every Great Man… There is Him Behind Me!

There’s a saying: “Behind every great man, there’s a great woman.”
But today, I see it the other way around.

People often ask me how I do it.
How I manage three kids on my own.
How I keep going.

Before… I didn’t do any of this. Nothing. Nada.
I gave love — handfuls of it, endless love — but I didn’t cook, I didn’t clean, I didn’t do laundry.
The truth? We had Lupe at home — our amazing nanny — and I had Sean, who spoiled me in every possible way.

Just before our trip, he told me, “Mi amor, when have I ever said no to you?”
And he was right. He never did.
He loved me so deeply, and he showed it to me endlessly.
And I spoiled him too.

If only you knew how many times I re-read our conversations on my phone.
Whenever he asked, “Mi amor, can you…?” my answer was always the same:
Of course, mi amor.
I would have done anything for him.

He used to tell me all the time:
“Mi amor, we are the perfect team. I couldn’t do what I do if I didn’t have you.”
And now, in this life without him, I realize the same is still true —
I couldn’t do what I do if it wasn’t for him.
He is still my teammate, just in a different way.

But that’s not the point of today’s blog.

The truth is: now it’s just me.
I’m the one raising our three beautiful children.
There is no one else.

Everything that gets done — gets done because I do it.
And if I don’t? It simply won’t.
The dishes will just sit there, staring at me, reminding me that nobody is coming behind me to finish what I leave undone.

It’s not easy. I’m not going to lie.
I don’t have everything under control 24/7.
I lose my mind sometimes.
I’m organized, and I hate mess — but I also love my kids, and I have three of them.
I’m constantly teaching them to clean up, to put things away, to help… but life with kids will never be perfectly organized.

And maybe that’s okay.
Maybe perfect is this: healthy little humans running around, playing, making messes, living life.
(Yes, I’m writing this to remind myself not to be so picky.)

But here is the real truth behind everything I manage to pull off — the Christmas decorating nights, the movie nights, the games, the training nights, the reading before bed, all the little and big traditions…

It’s because of him.

He used to do those things with the kids.
He taught me.
He showed me what joy looks like in their eyes.
He is still behind me, pushing me, guiding me, helping me be a better mom.
A mom who creates happiness even when all she wants, sometimes, is to cancel Christmas, crawl into bed, and cry.

I was so lucky to have him behind me.
And in so many ways, I still do.