Today, Mandy and I went out for dinner together. It was the first time we had a romantic dinner with just the two of us, after we became first time parents six months ago. We realized that this type of quality time is much needed every once in a while.
Our day-to-day lives are packed. As an entrepreneurial couple, we think about work from the moment we wake up. Ever since we had a baby, obviously he's the first and most important thing we think of every morning. Every evening when we get home, we immediately start cooking, taking care of Ollie, and, if possible, watching a Korean drama on Netflix. When Ollie goes to bed, we often work some more. Most weeks, we work six to seven days. When we have a day off, the gap is filled with visiting friends or family.
As you can see, quality time with just the two of us is nonexistent. So when we had the chance to have dinner at a fancy restaurant (thanks to AMEX), we got excited. We parked Ollie at my cousin's place, who also has a baby and a toddler. And off we went for a romantic dinner for two at 't Koetsuys.
Mandy and I both love food. I love cooking more than she does, but she loves eating good food more than I do. We don't go out for dinner often because in the Netherlands, the price often doesn't match the quality. And I'm not a bad cook, we can eat as if we're in a restaurant at home. But tonight's experience exceeded our expectations.
I'm not going into detail about the food. The four-course meal was delicious and surprising. From almost every course, we could draw inspiration for new recipes to cook at home. Only the main course had more classic flavors, but it was still delicious. But the food wasn't the highlight of the evening.
What we valued the most was the time we had just the two of us. Of course, we talked a lot about work. When you run a business together, it's impossible not to talk about work. Surely, we also talked about Ollie. We spoke about how we currently feel as parents. And how we feel about having dinner without our baby boy.
We both came to the same consensus. Life is better now that we're parents. The love we have for our son is on a whole different level than the love we have for each other. Yet, at the same time, we are still ourselves. Instead of what we sometimes see with other parents, our lives don't revolve around our kid. Instead, he smoothly became part of our routine.
Not only did we express our appreciation for our baby. We finally had the time and peace to say what we're thankful for and admire about each other. In modern day lives that's more sprinting than running, it's difficult to stand still to enjoy the scene. To understand what we already have and to express what we see and value.
I think it's important to have moments like these from time to time. On normal days, we move. On special occasions, we have to stand still. I'm already looking forward to our next moment together.