I’m so excited to move on in this series and introduce you to other chef wives who are willing to share their stories with us about what it’s like having a child with a chef.
I’ve asked them all the same 5 questions and hope that you’ll be encouraged by what they share.
So tonight I want to introduce you to Alisa . . .
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 Alisa and I am 44 years old. I am married to Chef Paul who is 46. We have been married for 22.5 years. I work full time at a Benefits office for a Union. I do general office work. When we were first married I worked full time as a preschool teacher and a director of a daycare. I have always worked full time since getting married.
How many children do you have?
We have a son who is 17.5 years and a daughter who is 11. (more…)
While my chef/husband and I have struggled with miscarriage and ectopic pregnancy, we have never dealt with infertility. Knowing how much I struggle with loneliness because of the hours my chef/husband works, I can’t even begin to imagine how hard this must be for many chefs and their wives. I often wonder if I’m hurting someone when I write posts about my children and the struggles of raising children with a chef. I know that my struggles could be someone else’s dream.
I could write a post on a subject I really know nothing about, or I could ask someone for help . . . someone who has lived it. I’ve asked my sweet cousin Leanne if she would let me ask her a few questions about her and her husband’s struggle with infertility. While her husband is not a chef, she knows me well enough and has been to enough family functions over the years that my husband has missed because of work, that she has a pretty good idea of what our lives are like as chef wives. I am so grateful for her willingness to share with us today!
Have you ever noticed that many people have gone through the same struggles as you have, but you never knew it until you started to talk about it? This happens to me all the time.
I had no idea how many women had miscarriages until I had one.
I know now that many women have miscarriages, but my Mom had 14. Yes you read that right. 14. I am an only child and she was on bed rest the majority of her pregnancy with me. I am like my Mom in many ways, but would this be one way I was like her as well? I of course had no way of knowing. So as we started to pray for our unborn child, we prayed that if it was God’s will, I would carry him/her full term.(more…)
I’m excited to start a new series here on Emulsified Family called A Chef, A Wife and a Child. During the series I’ll be sharing about our life with children, but have asked other chefs’ wives to share their stories as well.
We all have different stories and different experiences about having a child with a chef. If you have children, or are thinking about it in the future, I hope you will be able to relate to one or more of us as we share our lives with you. I’ll also be talking a bit about miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy and infertility as so many of us struggle with those issues as well.
To those chef families who do not have children yet, having a child is often an overwhelming thought because of the long and crazy hours a chef works. And for those of us living it every day, there are ups and downs as we try and figure out how to combine restaurant and family life. Then there are those with grown children who have lived to tell about it. (Feel free to leave your advice in the comments!!)
So to start off the series, I thought we should start at the beginning. . . .
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Dear Young Chef Wife,
This month my chef/husband and I will be celebrating our 19th wedding anniversary. It’s hard to believe it’s been that long. I’m not quite sure where the time went. (Update – We celebrated 24 years in July 2019! Woohoo!)
As I look back on our marriage, there are so many things I would have done differently as a chef’s wife, if I only knew what I do now.
I know you love your husband and would do anything for him. I also know that his career as a chef is tough on your marriage. I’m writing to you today to encourage you to not give up. It’s not easy. I’ve been there. Wait . . . I’m still there! I’ve learned so much in 19 years and still have so much more to learn in the next 19+ years to come.
I would love to sit down and talk with you, share with you, laugh with you and cry with you about what life is like being married to a chef. But since I have 3 young children, we would probably be interrupted (politely, of course) about 800 times during our chat. So for the moment, I’ve come up with 11 things that I really wish I would have known early on in my marriage to a chef. I would love to share them with you. You might have already figured them out or they might be something you never thought about. There’s even a chance you might not agree with all of them. Whatever the case, I hope and pray that they will be helpful to you in your marriage. (more…)
So tonight I want to introduce you to Alisa . . .
