My husband does all the cooking and grocery shopping. The first thing people always ask me is, “Does he also clean up the kitchen?” My answer is yes. Maybe I am a slow eater, but he always finishes before me. He will then jump up and start washing and cleaning. 

He loves to cook and began cooking in high school. His mother worked and when he came home from school he would prepare dinner for the family.

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Cooking is one of the great gifts you can give to those you love.

— Ina Garten (b. 1948) American television cook and author

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I never liked to cook. My mother did not seem to enjoy it and always apologized for her food. I think this trait was passed on to me.

Recently my husband had wrist surgery and the job fell upon me for several weeks. I did not fix anything elaborate. The menu mostly consisted of cheese sandwiches, hamburgers, chili, sloppy joes, pork chops, soup, bagged salads, popcorn, and smoothies. (Cut me some slack! I work full time and was also filling in as organist for him.)

In the grocery store? I always end up in the fruit aisle picking out too many fresh strawberries, blueberries, muscadines, peaches, grapes, watermelon . . . well, you get the idea. Furthermore, I get a workout from all the walking (not a bad thing). I never know where items are located and will wander throughout the store searching. Often, I look down at the list and realize I failed to get something—then I walk back several aisles (or sometimes all the way across the store) to get it. To help me, my husband started writing the shopping list in the order things are found in the store.

I discovered something very interesting about my husband. After several weeks, when he was feeling well enough, he began accompanying me to buy groceries. Everyone from the stock clerks, deli people, cashiers, baggers, shopping cart attendants, and pharmacists knew him—often by name. They would stop and talk. He would introduce me to them.

It began to feel like he had a second life—one that I knew nothing about. All these people had a genuine fondness for him. They laughed, smiled, and greeted him. His friendly, gregarious spirit was on full display.

Being an introvert, I do not tend to develop acquaintances when shopping. I am friendly and will have conversations—but apparently not as much as my husband.

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Some people meet people in the grocery store, but I get my tomatoes and I’m out.

— Ryan Seacrest (b. 1974) American television presenter and producer

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Cooking and grocery shopping are hard work. It takes time, effort, planning, and a certain amount of skill. Having to do this all myself gave me a new appreciation for my husband. The care he gives to grocery shopping and food preparation is certainly a labor of love.