I Keep My Sweaters in My Oven

Okay, I don't really keep my sweaters in my oven... but this was a line uttered by Sarah Jessica Parker that made me giggle when I (finally) saw the Sex and The City movie this weekend. I'm not quite as bad as Carrie Bradshaw when it comes to the kitchen, but I'm also not quite a master chef... yet.

Once the wedding is over and a little bit of chaos subsides in our lives, I really want to take a cooking class or two so that I feel more confident in the kitchen. I really want to enjoy cooking, but right now Mr. Cupcake cooks way more often than I do because I just can't find the time to organize ingredients and actually prepare meals. With everything going on, cooking dinner feels more like another chore on my growing list of to-dos than something I would do to relax and unwind. Luckily, Mr. Cupcake likes to cook and has a knack for throwing together a yummy meal using whatever ingredients we happen to have, but I still want to be able to hold my own in the kitchen someday.

I am hoping that all of the delightful kitchen items on our registry will give me the added motivation to get my act together in the kitchen, since cooking with a hodge-podge of old college cookware and hand-me-down electronics isn't the most fun at the moment.

I have mentioned my adoration for it before, but let's just take another moment to appreciate the beauty that is the KitchenAid Stand Mixer:

My color of choice: Ice, from Bed, Bath and Beyond

It will be refreshing and hopefully less frustrating to have some nice, matching, non-stick cookware:

Calphalon Contemporary Non-Stick Cookware from Crate & Barrel

I'm also thrilled to replace my trusty (but too small for two burgers at a time and frankly getting a little gross) college-buddy, my George Foreman Grill, with a nice new replacement:

Cuisinart Griddler with removable plates from Bed, Bath & Beyond

And perhaps I'll be inspired to blend more things once I have this:

Cuisinart Smart Power Premier Blender from Bed, Bath & Beyond

It will also be nice to eat my culinary creations off of our real, grown-up dishes with our real, grown-up flatware:

Halo Dinnerware from Crate & Barrel

Stanton Mirror Flatware from Crate & Barrel

Is anyone else hoping that their fancy new registry items will inspire them to find their inner Julia Child? Are you planning to take a cooking class to learn how to best make use of your new kitchen gadgets?