Today I dried 2 batches of vegetables, prepared a couple gallons for freezing, baked bread, pitted cherries, shelled favas. Surely that counts for something.
Oh did I mention I also ran and went to the gym to lift and to the park with my kids? The only down time I had was 20 minutes when they both had swim lessons. Sheesh.
Cooking definitely counts! So does washing dishes, housecleaning, and shopping! They have categories for all those types of activities on this calories burned calculator.