Padma Lakshmi Says She 'Cried' Over Feeling Too 'Exhausted' to Put Together Halloween Costume
Padma Lakshmi is getting candid about the difficulties of being a working mother.
On Saturday, the Top Chef host, 49, revealed that although Halloween is typically a “sacred” holiday for her and 9½-year-old daughter Krishna Thea, and an occasion to wear coordinating costumes, things were different this year.
“We always plot and plan our costumes together, just after Easter. Usually,” she wrote alongside a photo of herself wearing an all-black outfit while Krishna Thea dressed up as Harley Quinn.
But things were different this time around, she explained, noting that “this year mom was away a lot” and felt “overwhelmed” and “exhausted.”
“I love Halloween. And, I’ve never not gone all out. But, I just didn’t get it together,” she wrote. “Luckily, I managed to save #littlehands’ situation by what I think is a really kick ass Harley Quinn, but I just didn’t get my own costume ready [because] I had no energy.”
Although Lakshmi wrote that she didn’t want her daughter “to feel I was chumping out and didn’t care enough to get dressed up for her,” she added that “something had to give.”
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories
A post shared by Padma Lakshmi (@padmalakshmi) on Nov 1, 2019 at 4:41pm PDT
“As moms we try to do it all and often put more pressure on ourselves than others,” she added. “It’s been intensely stressful balancing it all lately. I even cried. More than once. Luckily I found this mask to hide behind. #momlife #halloween.”
In September, Lakshmi brought Krishna to the 2019 Emmy Awards in Los Angeles, where they were joined by Krishna’s dad Adam Dell for photos on the purple carpet. The TV host was overheard introducing Dell as her daughter’s father. She has yet to confirm a rekindled romance between herself and the venture capitalist, 49.
The pair settled custody in 2012 and in January 2017, the trio attended the Women’s March on Washington in D.C., just a day after The New York Post‘s Page Six published a story claiming the pair were “giving it a try” and that Lakshmi was “taking it slow” with Dell, whose brother founded computer manufacturing company Dell Inc.
This past June, Lakshmi celebrated Krishna’s dad in a heartfelt Instagram post, which featured a snapshot of her only child sitting on Dell’s lap as the two shared a sweet bonding moment.
A post shared by Padma Lakshmi (@padmalakshmi) on Jun 16, 2019 at 8:29am PDT
RELATED: Padma Lakshmi Doesn’t Care How Much She Weighs: ‘It Shouldn’t Be About What I Look Like’
“Happy Father’s Day! Everyone should be lucky enough to have such a loving father,” she captioned the image. “Thank you for all you do for us. 👨👧💜 #fathersday #littlehands.”
