I've got the Desire but no Energy

Lately I've been wanting to cook more. It's just not easy with the little man requiring all my attention. And not just any cooking, cause I know there are crockpot meals and freezer meals I can do super easily. I want to cook food that requires learning new skills and preparation. But here's the problem....

1) It's no fun cooking and making a mess for one person.
2) As I said earlier, it's hard to do complex dishes with my little one taking up a bunch of my time.
3) I want to already have the skills to do the recipes without having to learn them lol...I'm not the best cook.

I have all these great cookbooks to try out the recipes in. So I think I'm gonna have to make a plan, once a week or so go to someone's house and cook while they babysit. Good exchange right? I just hope they don't mind overcooked or burnt food sometimes haha.