I'm happily married - but fell in love with another mum at our kids' school

“I noticed that she was staring at me intently... As the days wore on, it became clear that it was more than just physical chemistry."

Leah Hamilton found love in an unlikely place.

A happily married mum claims she unexpectedly fell for a woman she met at her children’s kindergarten — before the pair plunged into a passionate two-year relationship.

Leah, who hails from New Zealand, was living in Berlin, Germany, with her husband and two young kids when she met the unidentified woman while getting to know other mums at the school.

“One day, I noticed that my new friend from my kids’ school was staring at me intently,” Hamilton wrote in a personal essay published by Insider. “‘You look really fit,’ she mumbled. ‘And your eyes are so beautiful.'"

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Hamilton admitted that she and the other mum — who was also married to a man — were both “wild, adventure-seeking types, looking for fun” and said their friendship quickly turned physical.

However, the Kiwi wasn’t expected to fall deeply in love with the gregarious German, confessing: “As the days wore on, it became clear that it was more than just physical chemistry.”

Leah Hamilton was living in Berlin with her husband and two young kids when she met the other woman while getting to know the mums at school. Picture: Leah Hamilton/Twitter

"I had no idea whether my husband would support me"

Hamilton and her husband were in a non-monogamous marriage, with the New Zealander admitting that they had even kissed other people on their own wedding night.

But the mum was unsure how her spouse would react to the news that she was in love with somebody else.

“I had no idea whether my husband would support me if I wanted to connect with her — not just as a hookup, but as an actual relationship. This was a new step for us,” she stated. “But he was measured, calm, and accepting.”

The other woman’s husband was also accepting of the relationship, with the foursome embarking on an unconventional romance.

“We spent time swimming in lakes, biking through the forest, and partying until 4 a.m. Our families intertwined: My husband and her husband joined us for dinner with all of our kids; we shared childcare; we supported each other in times of sadness; and we celebrated joys and successes together late into the night,” Hamilton wrote.

“I cried every day for weeks. My husband patiently delivered chocolate chip cookies and red wine to me as I lay in bed." Picture: Leah Hamilton/Twitter

“I cried every day for weeks"

She and the other woman kept their relationship going for two years before it became “too intense and ultimately unbalancing,” she said.

“It was a fun relationship, but not a healthy one. The breakup was inevitable,” she mournfully recalled, revealing that the split left her feeling heartbroken.

“I cried every day for weeks. My husband patiently delivered chocolate chip cookies and red wine to me as I lay in bed. He listened to my sorrow and hugged me. He took care of our children and the household more than usual,” Hamilton recalled.

Several months after the split, Hamilton wrote that she re-connected with the other woman — and they ultimately decided to stay friends.

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She also revealed that the woman’s husband is also someone she “trusts very deeply” to this day.

However, Hamilton penned the essay as a tribute to her own hubby for standing by her and supporting the exploration of her feelings and desires.

“With my husband’s support, I felt empowered to be myself and to experience life in all its fullness, including the soaring heights of new love and the plummeting depths of heartbreak,” she declared.

“I always say that my husband is the best person I know, and after 12 years together, I still believe it."

This article was published in the New York Post and is republished here with permission. 

This story was updated in April 2024.

Originally published as I'm happily married - but fell in love with another mum at our kids' school