Welcome! Welcome!
February 11, 2011 in Life
So here we are! Hopefully by now you’ve had a chance to look around. Well, What’cha think? We still are working on the final touches, but what you see here will hopefully be the place you come to when you need to find your voice, a ‘home base’ of sorts. This truly has been a labor of love for us. So we thought it fitting to launch on the day that embodies love. Valentines Day.
Because really, when it comes down to it, this site is about love, my friends. Initially, the love that your restaurant man or woman has for what he/she does. If they are a chef, the emotional investment he/she puts into making food that others devour and crave would be constituted as a commitment to love. Then, when you meet, and begin your relationship, it’s about falling in love, yes? The ups and downs that come with being with your loved one, no matter what they do – bring depth and contrast, discovery and fulfillment to the journey your on. Kinda makes the ride worth while, wouldn’t you say?
Ask yourself, if the journey of your relationship didn’t have its twists and turns, situations to maneuver around, would you be as invested? For so many of us, it’s the ride that really makes seeking the destination THAT much more enjoyable. (ROAD TRIP!) If you’re here, we think it’s safe to say you find excitement in having an exciting life. Being with a Chef, or anyone in this industry is not always easy, we know this. But what does that say about you, that you are here, attempting to find success, and connect with others who are in the same boat as you? To us, it’s the common thread that connects us and makes being successful in this relationship. PERPETUAL DRIVE, PASSION, (and yes) LOVE for ourselves and for the one we’re with.
Look around, what common threads do you see between us all?
We’re here is to recognize these strengths in each other, and more importantly, in ourselves. We’re programmed from a young age to look OUTSIDE of ourselves for the answers. Well, we at Married to a Chef are here to SHOW you that the answers to what brought you here today – LIE WITHIN.
And it is our mission to reconnect with the tools you already have but rarely use (if ever!) To use both the gifts and challenges of being married to (or dating) someone within the restaurant industry to be a platform to jump into the pool that is YOU.
So to end, yes It is Valentines Day. A day when most of the world is out celebrating with the one they love. Red hearts and flowers. (A proverbial 24 hour festival of LOVE!) We ask you to DECLARE that today, this day of love, be the first day that you CHOOSE to redirect that love for your other half, BACK toward that love that you have for yourself; to recognize the strength you have within.
And we’re not going anywhere. We’re going to be there, every step of the way!
Happy Valentines Day!
**What are you going to do FOR YOURSELF TODAY to show yourself you’re in it for the long haul?
To my wife I love you with all my heart, and I toast to you and our dreams. I love you, I love you, I love you !!
Your husband….
Oh honey, I love you too. Thank you for supporting me. (I know it hasn’t always been easy to do so…..)
I’m glad you started this site. I just got married to my chef/sommelier last year and recently it’s tougher than before. Just moving to a new state and both of us starting new jobs. It’s especially hard to be married to a chef/sommelier when you have no support group nearby. Thank you! Happy Valentine’s Day to you!
Hey Lara! I’m glad you found us! So you’re in D.C, huh? Well you’re in luck! That’s where I am too! We’ll be creating monthly events in the D.C area (in the hopes that other cities will join in) to have a regular network of support close by!
Congratulations on the launch!
What a perfect time to roll out Married to a Chef. 🙂 Valentine’s Day is one of the main days throughout the year that those of us in a relationship with a restaurant industry pro need support. I’m very lucky that for the first time in a several years, my other half is with me tonight. However, there have been MANY years when I have had to wish my Valentine a happy Valentine’s Day at 2am when he rolls in after closing down the restaurant. Here’s to those of us woman enough to celebrate love, even when our love’s not there to celebrate with us. A big hug to all of you out there on your own tonight & happy hearts day to you!
Hey Emily! I’m so glad you are happy about our roll out… Girl, we feel your pain. I’m so glad you were able to be with your other half on Valentines Day! Great reminder lady, we ARE ‘women enough’ to do what we have to do (including coming here!) to feed our souls and find out how to make it work! Go glad you’re here!
Kerilyn, I was just looking through the TWP gallery of your wedding & saw a picture of you with the cardboard cutout of Peter. You have to put that on this site as a funny! “I mean sometimes, he can’t be with me on date night, but I make do…” or “Just in case he had to work on the day of our wedding, I had back up.” Haha! 😉
Emily – that’s an AWESOME idea! And that really is hilarious!
My husband didn’t have it so bad last night. He met me as I was done w/ my party & lots of good food left over for him to eat! 🙂 We went out to karaoke after
Welcome Danielle! Sounds like you had a great Valentines Day!
Hello Kerilyn, Kyra and everyone. Wonderful job on “Married to a Chef!” Kerilyn you inspire me to make my dreams happen!
Hi Kriss! Welcome! We’re so glad that we have inspired you!!! That is SO wonderful to hear!!!
My husband and I have been married 18+ years. At the beginning, when he was still a culinary student, it all seemed novel and fun. Then as he moved up from line cook, saucier, and sous chef, he hours got more severe and he saw the kids and I less and less. I always expected that when he finally made Exec Chef, he would be away from the stoves and would have more time for us. Then came 9/11 and everyone was afraid for their jobs. And now, 10 years later, it seems all the Chefs are slaves to the job, with the constant fear of layoffs and losing benefits hanging over their heads. Sure the passion is there for the food, and that’s something anyone would support. But the enslavement is awful for families, for marriages. Most of his peers in his company are divorced.
Debbie. Thank you for sharing! Sounds you have much wisdom to share with us all. We are so glad you are here!
I’m happy to share – Congratulations on your launch! This site is very much needed!
I am so glad I found your site!!! My boyfriend is going to culinary school in Colorado. We’ve been together for 5 years and getting ready to take the next step..Ah! 🙂 We’re working out the decisions to move in together and as a 9-5 working girl, the hours get to us. I feel better knowing that others are in the same situation and can still make it work! Thanks 🙂
I moved with my husband to Vermont (before we were married) so he could attend culinary school. It was tough, but I learned so much about food and wine when he went to school. His classmates considered me one of their own! It was a pretty amazing 2 years.
Are you moving away from home to be with him, or are you already in CO? Good luck with everything!
Lara – that’s amazing that you moved to support your husband! What do you think that says about you as a wife and a partner?
Hey there Courtney! Welcome! Please make yourself at home here!!
I have been married for 15 years. My husband was a sous chef when we met; he was then an acting pastry chef, and is now an executive chef. I have never spent a Valentines Day with him and to be honest, I don’t care. It isn’t a huge day for me. We have 4 children and I would much rather he be able to be home on the holidays that mean something to them. The kids and I spent Valentines Day together, taking a class at our public library. We didn’t wait for my husband to come home. We went to bed. We have to live our lives without him, because we never know if and when he’ll be home. When he is home, we do everything we can to be with him and to bring him into the family life that goes on when he’s at work. I love my husband and do everything I can to be supportive of him, as he does the same for me. Neither of us is the same person that we married, as we have grown as individuals, separately, but the love and commitment to each other is still there, and that’s what matters most.
Welcome Heather! Please make yourself at home! Sounds like you already have the understanding and the workarounds to make your family successful. Hats off to you! How did you get where you are today, and still maintain that love and commitment?
We had to start with 2 people who both wanted the same things in life. We both wanted to have a family. Once we had that family, our kids were what was most important to both of us. When our oldest daughter started public school, it was hard on my husband and I. The school would call and need her picked up, because she was sick. If they couldn’t reach me, they would call my husband at work. There were all of the early outs, holidays, and school vacations to work around, too. It didn’t take long to figure out that I was needed at home. Even then, my husband only had Mondays off. He would only see our kids Monday afternoons and a bit on Saturday mornings. The rest of the time either he was at work, or they were at school. He felt like he was missing out on so much and I felt like a single parent. When we started having trouble with the level of education my kids were getting at school, I pulled them out and decided to take the plunge into homeschooling. My husband wasn’t sure at first, but then he saw that they were learning even more at home that at school, and that we were a family again. We were able to stay up late to see him at night, and to sleep in with him in the mornings. We could take trips on Mondays, and spend our time together instead of on somebody else’s schedule. We had to think outside the box a bit to make our family work. That open mindedness and flexability has helped us to work around life’s speed bumps without making them mountains. Love and commitment comes easier when you can adjust to life’s changes.
Heather – really awesome insight into the ins and outs of raising a family. What has been your biggest takeaway from making the decisions you have for your family? Sounds like flexibility is one thing for sure!
I’m really excited about this site. I was looking around for actual forums but I didn’t see any so I was really confused when I first signed up. But I get! This is a new site and you’re making last minute changes! And I can’t wait!
Hey Annie! We are SO glad that you are enjoying the site! Please make yourself at home! Once you create your profile, you can join a group to chat up with others where you are! You are right! We will be making adjustments as we see how we can make improvements! Email us if you have any suggestions!