Shopping Day

One of the greatest tips I can give is to have a designated shopping day. Mine are either Monday or Tuesday mornings. 

I do mine in the morning after I have dropped my 9-year old off at school. I usually have my 4-year old in tow and by now he knows that he has to help momma with the shopping. I chose the mornings because there is usually only me and senior citizens out there. Seniors are much more patient and relaxed and to be very honest I like vibe-ing off their relaxed energy! Nothing makes grocery shopping more hectic than tense people running through the aisles!!

The night before my shopping I look at my weekly and if possible bi-weekly (sometimes monthly) cooking calendar. I make sure that I have all the ingredients either stowed in a freezer or pantry and if I don't, then on to the list it goes. I also check lunch supplies - the one meal that I glean over all too often as my boys are old enough to pack their lunches. I also make sure that my  "staples" are always in stock. I will get into that list later. 

I have varied levels of OCD with how I run my house and specifically my kitchen - however one of the most intense is my grocery list. It has become second nature in me to create the list in order of how my stores are stocked. Example in my bulk- items store (a certain Wal-Mart affiliate) I know the first items I run into will be cleaners, then snacks, meats, deli, produce, etc. At my regular grocery store I know I do produce first and toiletries last. This is how my list is based. I make two columns one for the bulk store and the other for the regular one. I use to make two separate lists, but then started running into an issue of too many lists, and inevitably losing one of them in during my outings. It may seem like too much work - but it really isn't.

So why build lists like this? Isn't that going beyond OCD? Perhaps - but one of my greatest daily challenges is "getting it all done - each day". The saying "Time is of the Essence" has never been more true than since I have become a mom. These hyper-organized lists keep me from weaving in and out of aisles, having to back track and I build these lists thoroughly so I don't have to guess at what else I need (or pick up junk food that would never make it on my list!)

If you don't have a shopping day, I challenge you to try it. Start with planning a week's meals - even if you just do dinners, then build your shopping list and give it a whirl!