Thoughts on Frozen Pizza

About a month ago, Thomas and I were grocery shopping at Walmart. It was the Saturday before Thanksgiving, and we were planning a trip home, so we didn't need much food for the few days we would be home. We grabbed a frozen pizza, with the intent of saving it for Wednesday night. We planned for Thomas to throw it in the oven before I got home from work, and we would eat it as a quick dinner before hitting the road.

When we were done grocery shopping, we had several other errands to run. By the time we got home, brought the groceries inside, put them away, and cleaned up the kitchen, it was evening (around 7:30PM). We were both totally exhausted, and we were hungry. I asked Thomas what he wanted for dinner, and he asked me,

"Can't we just heat up the frozen pizza?"

Immediately, I was furious. Doesn't he think I can cook? Does he hate the food I prepare? Why does he want a frozen pizza? It is better than the pizza I make? I'll bet he hates my cooking. What is wrong with him? What is wrong with me?

I allowed these thoughts to crowd my head until I finally had to go sit in a quiet room, alone, for a few minutes.** Why in the world was I so upset?! It was just a frozen pizza, after all! We were both hungry and tired, and it was a simple solution. 

Eventually, I came to a realization: 

I had a serious case of Internet Envy, and it was causing me to think horrible things about myself.

You see, I have a tendency to immerse myself in social media. Being so busy at work and so tired when I get home doesn't allow me to go out often, so I love seeing other peoples' pictures on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. I don't obsess, but I do check them frequently during my down time. I am also an avid fan of Pinterest. I could spend hours and hours browsing Pinterest and hardly notice the time passing!

On these social media sites, I see people sharing their best pictures. Their best moments. Their best experiences. I see annoying selfies, home-cooked meals, DIY projects, cute outfits, and lots of other wonderful things. But... you don't see people posting pictures of the frozen pizzas that they bought and threw into the oven. You just don't. When I compared myself to these people, I came up short... really short. 

(Insert short joke here.)

At that moment, sitting in a dark room alone, I had to remind myself to not compare myself (and my current situation) to those people online who I may or may not even know! 

I had to tell myself that nobody is perfect, regardless of how their Instagram pictures look. Everyone's life looks better in heavily-filtered pictures.

I had to realize that, even though my Pinterest home page is overflowing with healthy recipes, people are still serving and eating quick meals like frozen pizzas. 

I had to understand that I was not a bad wife for popping a frozen meal into the oven for one night.

So, Thomas and I ate frozen pizza that night. (Well, okay. We cooked it first!) And, do you know what? It was delicious. I was glad that I didn't have to cook, and I was even more glad that I didn't have to clean up the kitchen after cooking! And, while I don't plan on making frozen dinners a habit, I was just fine with it.

**Please note that I have a tendency to be very over dramatic when I am tired and/or hungry.**