A Table for One
As of this writing, I am 5 months postpartum and for the first time, I went and ate in a cafe on my own.
You may think it’s a weird thing to say, but honestly, doing things on my own now that I am married and have a baby is a luxury. Since then, the only alone time I get is when I’m in the shower. It’s sad just saying it out loud but that’s just the reality. They did say the newborn stage is the shortest but hardest.
Whenever my husband and I go for a grocery run, it’s always a race to return home so I can feed the baby. I do prepare at least 2 bottles of milk so my mother-in-law can feed her but sometimes it’s not enough. I don’t want to prepare too many bottles since breastmilk doesn’t last long, its shelf life is quite short. (Even when it’s stored in the fridge, it doesn’t last as long as you would expect. It’s packed with nutrients from the mom to be passed to the baby. That’s why it’s called liquid gold) I want to store as much breast milk as possible for other emergencies.
Trying to divide my time between my husband, the baby, and myself has been challenging.
So last Friday, I decided to take myself on a date. I badly needed it. I had everything planned out in my head the night prior and woke up early to execute it.
The game plan was to breastfeed the baby before I left, that way I had around 2 hours to work with, go have my eyebrows done, and eat out. I made sure to utilize the time I had. You may think it’s such an easy thing to do but when you have a newborn, going out takes strategic planning.
The first order of business was Laybare, to get my eyebrows threaded. (I wasn’t able to take photos) After that session, (which took about 30 minutes) I looked in the mirror and I felt that I could be a normal human again. It was such a relief. I walked out happy and accomplished. The last one on my list was eating out. I was deciding on where to eat, then I remembered there was this cafe called SIFT by Laureana. By that time, I had an hour left which was just the right amount of time for me to place my order and eat without rushing.
When I got to the cafe, I approached the waitress and she asked me “Table for how many?” I answered “A Table for One Please” She led me to the couch area and I settled down.
From left to right (see photo), this is what I ordered. Pork Tocino, Biscoff cheesecake, and Iced Caramel Latte Decaf. As I was sitting in the cafe, I admired the ambiance and enjoyed the food.
Thankfully, my baby was fast asleep so I was able to take my time and just enjoy being alone. Having that hour alone was so refreshing. Reconnecting with myself helped me reassess what I wanted to do with my career, with my new role as a mom and as a wife to my husband. I missed times like this when I could just slow down and take everything in. I found myself deep in thought. How things will be the same but different. Do I miss being alone? Yes, but knowing that I have my own family to come home to, I would rather embrace the chaos than come home to an empty house.
That date with myself gave me the energy to come home, and give the care and love, my family deserves. I am grateful I was able to regain a sense of self again, no matter how short it was. 💕
#notsponsored #selfcare #first-time mom #loveyourself #dayinalife
