When it comes toself-careor me-time, Id take wandering around a grocery store over a bubble bath any day.
For years, I made weekly grocery shopping a priority.
It was practicalId stock our kitchen for the week aheadand it provided much-needed respite.
Paige Fowler
As a stay-at-home/work-from-home mom with a baby and a toddler, alone time was a pretty elusive thing.
Id scour the store for our goods.
Id return home around 10 A.M., unpack and put away our groceries, and rejoin my family.
Paige Fowler
But a few months ago, something shifted.
When weekend grocery shopping started feeling like another chore, I experimented with some possible solutions.
For a few weeks, I had our groceries delivered.
Paige Fowler
He takes care of numerous other household tasks.)
My greatest reservation was whether we could continue eating healthy,home-cooked mealswith plenty offresh ingredientsall month long.
Despite my hesitations, I decided to give it a shot.
Paige Fowler
It’s been four months.
We joined a CSA, which delivers fresh fruits and vegetables weekly.
Im certain theres nothing magical about what Im doing.
Paige Fowler
With trial and error, Ive learned and continue to learn tricks that make it possible.
At the end of the month I add anything else we need.
), meats (chicken thighs,ground beef, etc.
Paige Fowler
), frozen items (frozen fruit and vegetables, wild salmon, shrimp, waffles, etc.
and cross them off as I shop.
I quickly realized I had no idea how much we consume in a month.
I bought one gallon of milk and discovered that we needed three.
I bought two-dozen eggs and found that we needed four.
), but this is what my monthly haul looks like these days.
I have a deep freezer that I stock with meat, veggies, and other ingredients.
As soon as I get home from the store, the majority of our meat goes into our freezer.
We have a deep freezer in our basement, which affords us the extra space to store our food.
I learned that you could totally roast most veggies from frozen just like you would fresh produce.
My weekly CSA haul is insurance that we always have plenty of fruits and veggies in the house.
We take a family outing to the farmers market each week.
I also signed up for a CSA.
One month I ran out of chili powder and cumin, yet I still made tacos twice.
Seriously, its everything.
At the beginning of the month, our refrigerator looks pretty intimidating packed with a months worth of food.
Meal prep saves me.
(For my favorite meal-prep inspo, check out@theleangreenbeanand@shutterbeanon Instagram.)
Now I do those tasks once a month instead of once a week.
I can accomplish a huge amount of meal prep in 60 minutes or less.
What I never imagined was how much personal fulfillment this little experiment would bring.
I found a way to still get the job done without compromising on my own happiness.
Thankfully, the store sells wine, too.
