Meet Kim – A Chef, a Wife and a Child

Continuing on in our series about having a child with a chef, I’d like to introduce you to Kim. Just a short time after starting my blog, Kim was the first chef wife I connected with and I’m so grateful she is willing to share her story with us tonight. 🙂

Tell me a little about yourself and your spouse. (Please include how long you have been married and what your job is (in addition to being a wife and mom.)

My name is Kim. I’m a stay at home mom in Annapolis, Maryland. Before children, I was an elementary general music and choral teacher. After I had our first child, I was the elementary coordinator for our church’s children’s ministry. I decided to stay home with my children once I had our second child. My husband Keith is the executive chef and GM of a farm-to-table restaurant in downtown Annapolis called Factors Row. We will be married 7 years this December. We are both musicians (I sing and he plays keyboards/runs sound) and we met while playing with our church’s young adults worship team.

How many children do you have?

We have two wonderful boys, ages 5 and 19 months!

What has been the hardest part for you and your chef/husband with the addition of a little one to your family?

It was hard after my second was born, especially in the first few months, knowing that my husband was missing all of the firsts. I’d be so excited that he rolled over but I could never get him to do it for my husband in person. He had to witness a lot of things through videos or through my texts. I also had super hard time adjusting to life with two children. The weight of the situation took its toll on me and I was diagnosed with PPD and PPA soon after I had him. I know that was hard on my husband because he wasn’t able to be home to help as much as he would have liked to be.

What would you consider the pros and cons of staying home full time?

Pros: Enjoying my boys as they learn, explore, play, and grow here at home or at preschool. I love taking them to playdates, the library, or to a special lunch at Daddy’s restaurant after school. It is important to my husband and I that we instill our beliefs and values in our children before they go out into the world. We are trying to be intentional with our parenting and I feel we would miss a lot of opportunities if I was still working (though I miss it!). Childcare in our state can cost over $1,000 a month and on a chef’s salary, we really can’t afford that!

Cons: The work is mundane and tiring and somedays I don’t leave the house. It can be incredibly lonely, even though you’re with your children who are talking constantly! Also, we run a tight budget. Every purchase is planned and thoughtfully carried out so that we don’t break the bank every two weeks. It is stressful at times, but I still feel blessed to be able to stay home with our boys.

Any advice for young chef couples who are thinking about starting a family?

You will have days where you are very stressed or frustrated that you may be doing the majority of the baby raising alone. And your husband will feel upset that he can’t help more. But be sure to take those times as a family and make them memorable, for you, your husband, and your child. I also could never have done it without the help of my mom and my mother-in-law.

Make sure to spend a little time every week on yourself and let a grandma hold your baby for a couple hours! Over time, it will get easier and the blessings outweigh the sleepless nights, endless diaper changes, and the spit up on your clothes!

(This is Jennifer again.)

Any other stay at home moms/chef wives out there? If so, I’m sure you can relate!! Living on one income is HARD!!

From one chef wife to another,