The Joy of Cooking

Each day for me is a roller coaster of ups and downs with my family.  One second we're chasing each other around during an exuberant game of tag, the next we have two poopie diapers to change, the dog is ripping into the garbage, and the cat is throwing up in the hallway.  As mothers we learn to roll with the punches and to take pleasure in the little things.  But every so often we need to reclaim something bigger too.

For me, the most challenging part of my day is suppertime.  Generally, my nine-month-old gets just a little cranky about this time of day, my two big boys, starting to get tired and hungry, get super hyper, and, admittedly, I am really starting to fade.  When I was working full-time it was even worse since we rolled into the house at suppertime and I have never been very good at crock pot cooking.  All too often we end up eating sandwiches, pancakes, or plain pasta in an effort to prepare something quickly.  Cooking a fancy dinner around here has turned into spaghetti WITH sauce.  I know, your mouth is watering, right?

Over the last few months, though, I've started giving myself a pretty amazing gift.  I've reclaimed the joy of cooking.  No, I haven't started making fantastic meals every single night.  Spaghetti is still a staple in these parts.  And, no, I haven't started cooking dinner every night with a skip in my step and a smile on my face in an effort to change my attitude.  Instead, once every few weeks I have been choosing a challenging recipe from the dusty old cookbooks on my shelf, planning and preparing the meal for the benefit of my family.  We're learning how to "dine" together.  So far, I've made minestrone from scratch, a honey-glazed ham that was NOT pre-cooked, a turkey stuffed with lemons and basil, and, most recently, Bouef Bourignon for my mother's birthday.  In each instance, I have had to start cooking supper at about 1:00 in the afternoon to have it on the table for supper.  My family has enjoyed our special dinner, especially my husband, and we have laid out the table, lit candles, and taken our time eating together.  Since starting to give myself this gift, my children have given me the gift of thanking me not just for supper but for our "lovely supper" at every meal, even those spaghetti dinners.

I'm not super mom and I'm also not a neglectful mom.  I've timed these gifts for days when my husband has been home to help with the children, run downstairs for the onion I forgot to grab, or talk me off a ledge when things weren't working out.  In fact, it has brought some of the romance back from those days as a couple when we could prepare a meal together, lick sauce off each other's fingers, and, basically, flirt over food.

I challenge you to give yourself the gift of joyful cooking!  Get your partner involved, you can involve your children too.  Single parent?  Invite a friend over to help.  They keep your children out of your hair while you cook for the afternoon and, in return, they get to enjoy your incredible creation.  Shop together, cook together, dine together.  Reclaim a big thing!  Reclaim it the mommy way!