Omg we did it (not that! get your mind out of the gutter...). We actually went out on a date without the Arch (the one and only time, btw, I will call him "the Arch") and lived to tell about it.
Planning your first date is difficult but important for you, downtown mama. First, at 7 weeks, let's face it, you're still tired. Actually "tired" is a word that doesn't even really describe how we feel, does it? No, it really doesn't. We're more like the walking dead - zombies really. But put a little lip gloss and a sundress on a zombie and you will realize, they clean up pretty well. And so can you.
Note how I talked above about "planning" your date. "Plan" is a word I really didn't use all that often before Archer when it came to my social life. I liked spontaneity. I liked to wait to hear about what was going on that night - was there a gallery opening? or a party? or other friends getting together for a little drink after work - that sort of thing. Well, those days are gone downtown mama. I think, probably forever (I'll let the more experienced mamas confirm that).
So be sad about that for about 30 seconds and then move on because it can still be good. It's just different.
Here are some things we did to plan our date which you may want to think about for your own first night out (if you haven't done this already):
1. Childcare. The most important thing of all. I started our planning for our first date by first securing a babysitter. This may or may not be a consideration for you. Some of you may have family or friends that will be able to look after your baby. For us, we reached out to our network of friends with kids to ask who they knew that could help and within days a friend tipped us off about a very reliable babysitter. So about 3 week ago, we called the babysitter, met her in person, checked out her references and confirmed her availability for our night out.
2. Introduced a bottle. About 2 weeks ago, I started pumping milk and would offer Archer a little with a bottle because of course, unless you plan on speed dating with your spouse (which is up to you, no judgment), your babysitter is going to have to give your little one a bottle... something I never though I would have to consider just to have a mojito with my husband. Of course, I left *way too much milk with the babysitter. I think I left her like 10 ounces for a 2 hour date... Apparently I thought Archer was Michael Phelps.
3. Found an affordable date activity option. Guess what, babysitters aren't cheap - at least good ones aren't. So if, like me, you are trying to be a financially responsible downtown mama, you need to do some research. I'll talk more in a later post about about affordable going out options that suit the downtown mama but coincidentally our first date plan fell right at the end of Toronto's Summerlicious. So we got a 3-course meal at Spice Route in Toronto for $25. Can't beat that. And despite the fact that I wouldn't normally go to a scene-y place like Spice Route, my husband and I actually had a lot of fun going to this restaurant right after work at 6pm so we could engage in our favourite activity - people watching (in this case of scene-y people) accompanied with editorial comment about said (scene-y) people provided by us that only we would find funny.
Some other random observations from the actual night out that you may or may not be interested in: a) it was too hot and stinky to sit outside on a patio last night (thank you garbage strike); b) people are super nice to you and bring you free stuff if you tell them you are on your first date after having a baby; c) hipster girls are really wearing those torn up jeans (a la Katie Holmes - see http://www.elleuk.com/starstyle/celebrity-trends/(section)/Everyone-s-Wearing-Rolled-up-jeans/(offset)/0/(img)/204670) that fashion editors keep trying to convince us are cool; and d) despite our best efforts, conversation always went back to how cute we thought Archer was and how much we missed him.
Not surprisingly, we came home early. :)
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