is it worth it?

Since I've been a wife, I've been really enthusiastic about cooking. It's pretty fun to cook for an audience. I've made it my responsibility to have dinner on the table every night, and judging by the increase in my sweet husband's pant size, I feel like I'm doing a good job.

So cooks and/or moms, please consider this scenario:

Last night, I made beef stroganoff. I browned the meat. I cooked egg noodles in another pot. I chopped onion and mushrooms and added it to the meat. I made a sauce of sour cream, flour, nutmeg, salt, pepper, etc. I put it all together. I boiled some asparagus, too. And, as if that wasn't enough multi-tasking, I made rice krispie treats at the same time for later. At one point, every stove top surface was covered.

As I served dinner, I was sure to mention to Shane that the meal was "from scratch," and "not from a box," to which he replied a sort of "humm," which I interpreted as surprise even though he probably was ambivalent.

And it got me thinking. Was it really worth it? I mean, I feel better that it wasn't from a box. But I dirtied every pan we owned and gave myself a huge headache with all the preparation. And basically it tasted the same as Hamburger Helper.

What do you guys think? Is it super important to cook from scratch? What do you always do from scratch? What do you never do from scratch?

I am a fan of:

• Cake and brownie mixes. From scratch never taste right to me. Maybe they're just not oily and fattening enough.
• Pasta Roni. There's just no substitute. How would one make Pasta Roni from scratch?
• Canned beans. I like dry beans, but I am never prepared enough to wash and soak them in enough time for a meal.

I much prefer:

• Fresh vegetables to canned ones. Boy howdy by far. Frozen vegetables are a close second, but I prefer fresh any day. The trick is to remember to eat them before they go bad. I actually have a whiteboard on the fridge where I keep track of what is in the veggie drawers.
• Cookies from scratch. No cookie mixes or prepared Nestle doughs for me. Those are lame. I don't buy a lot of cookies from the store, either. In fact, to keep my sanity, I avoid the snack food aisle altogether.
• Avoiding Bisquick. Sometimes it's convenient, but in general I don't really like it. I like other biscuit mixes, but Bisquick just doesn't do it for me.

I am on the fence about:

• Processed cheese and Velveeta. I just think the plastic-wrapped slices of cheese are best in grilled cheese sandwiches. And what could substitute for Velveeta? But I'm sure they're not healthy... right?
• Canned soup. Something tells me they are loaded with sodium, msg, etc., but they are just so convenient. Making homemade soup, although rewarding, is exhausting. Very involved. Cut lots of veggies. Cook the chicken. Add the bouillon (and is that the healthiest option? that's got plenty of sodium in it, too). Let it simmer and on and on.
• Goldfish, Ritz crackers, Nilla wafers, graham crackers. These are staples of Wesley's diet these days. Am I a bad mom? Are these all bad for my son? They're just convenient and they seem like normal enough food. I have a friend whose daughter eats these Trader Joe's plain (aka bland) rice cakes. And that's her snack food. Blah. I wouldn't even eat that stuff.

I guess I'm to the point in my life where I'm actually wondering: are my habits healthy? What could I be doing better to aid in weight loss and/or overall health? I have my son to worry about now. But is the reward worth the hassle?

As I write this, I currently am experimenting with making my own croutons for a Caesar salad for a potluck tonight... sounds dangerous...

Anyway, please chime in, I'd love to know your thoughts.