I Hate to Cook

I really hate to cook, hate every aspect of it. I don't mind housework. I'll clean all day long, do laundry all day long. (Although my mom says that I don't do the laundry, a machine does. Can you imagine having to wash everything by hand like in her day?) But, cook? No, thanks. In college, my sister and I were roommates and we had a great deal. She would cook and I would do the dishes. I don't mind doing the dishes so much. My poor family rarely eats anything that doesn't come out of a box or a can. I don't mind grilling, so we have grilled chicken and hamburgers. I hate all the mixing and such. I rarely touch any recipe that has more than 3-4 ingredients.

In most families, Sunday dinners are a big deal, but I especially hate to cook on the weekends, so Sunday is fend for yourself day. Most Sundays, my husband opens up a can a soup. (He eats a lot of soup, and not the homemade kind, but the canned kind. I've never in my life made soup except from a can.) Actually, a lot of times, he opens up a can of soup. A typical Sunday is, pasta for my oldest, grilled cheese for my middle one, a scrambled egg for the baby, a can of soup for my husband, and a sandwich for me.

I always said to myself in years' past, I'll do a better job of cooking when I don't work full-time, when the baby gets older, when we're not in the middle of this or that, after I have the second baby, when I don't work at all, when the baby gets older, when I have more time, when I finish this book, after I have the baby, when the kids get bigger. And, I have come to a realization, I'm never going to get better at cooking because I hate it! And, it's okay. My family still gets fed. They eat fruits and veggies at every meal. I'm still a good mom. I would just rather spend an hour on the floor playing with them than in the kitchen making something that will all disappear in a little while.

I think that's what it comes down to. Time is so precious, I like to have something to show for my time. At least if I do laundry, that lasts a week. A clean kitchen floor lasts a few days. Playing with my kids lasts forever. Writing is something I can see for a long time after. Cleaning a toilet lasts only a few hours at my house, but at least that's a few hours. A cooked meal is gone so soon and then you're left with a mess in the kitchen. So, I'm going to stop feeling guilty at hating to cook.