I love to peruse other peoples shopping carts. I know it is judgmental but I can't help it. Well actually I can help it, I just choose not to. I don't follow people around the store I just peek when they are in front of me in line.
This woman looked to be in the medical profession. She had on scrubs and a scrub coat. She was obviously a busy professional. Her husband was with her and he was a laborer of some kind, ( probably the paper mill. They were just a nice looking couple of people and obviously had a good income.
The grocery cart was heaped full of convenience lunch things. Box after box of pudding snacks, uncrustables, (so gross)Stouffers individual lasagna, mac n cheese cups, applesauce pouches, chips, cut up fruit. 4 kinds of sugar soda. (I drink soda diet, so room to talk here) Most of the cart was geared toward lunches and individual serving items.
In my minds I mentally make the food at home. You can take white bread (yuck) and spread peanut butter and jelly on it and cut off the crust. You can bake those cookies. You can make a large pan of lasagna and cut out individual servings and freeze. I know time is precious, but my money is more precious.That cut up container of apple slices and pineapple? You can't do that your self? I know people are busy but her total came to $220.00. That would have been way over my entire food budget for my family of 5. Plus the food isn't even that good for you. But I feel this is how America shops now. Every thing is convenience. Convenience is nice. I am just not willing to pay for it on a large scale.
My cart on the other hand, had tide detergent, cat litter, a floss of embroidery, and 6 large sweet potatoes.I had gone in for the detergent, and litter and the floss, but saw that sweet potatoes were marked down to .33 a lb so I bought several. My cart was boring.
So my question is? How much do you shop for convenience foods? What do you buy? Why?
I have to sew today and get the guest room bed cleaned off. Daughter is coming down with baby Will. Luckily I really straightened the house last night and caught up on the laundry. But as I am sitting here in my pj's I need to get moving.
Lil sis is home and at work. She has been gone for 9 days. I need a mom break now that her shindig is over she is in brat mode. I am tired of catering.
Have a great and productive day staying positive while you are in the negative.
Kim
I do buy some convenience foods, but mainly for school lunches: Bottled water, sliced bread, peanut butter, lunch meats (usually turkey), and sometimes packs of individual cookies for when I haven't baked anything. (Animal crackers are a favorite.) I also keep a supply of granola bars and frozen waffles on hand for snacks, or really quick breakfasts. Finally, I buy tubes of crescent roll dough when they are less than $1 apiece to make quick crescents in the morning--chocolate, raspberry, or even ham and cheese.
ReplyDeleteI figure at $3/lunch, even these convenience foods are cheaper than my kids buying a lunch at school. Moreover, the school charges $1.00 per bottle of water. I can get a case of 24 for $2.00, if not cheaper. I could make them fill up a reusable bottle at the water fountain, but I do allow this splurge, especially since some teachers are sticklers for insisting on a clear water bottle.
I don't think convenience foods save me all that much time, actually. I also never figured out working crazy hours, only to blow my earnings on convenience foods and eating out, (and daycare, and work clothes, and, and, and...) But, to each his own, I suppose.
I would certainly buy bottled water if they charge 1.00 a bottle. All of us use some convenience foods. I mean who is going to make homemade pudding and then put it in a container and hope it gets back home?
DeleteI buy very few convenience foods, but there are a few things I purchase at Trader Joe. I buy their fridge biscuits in a tube to make my quick black bean/chicken mini pizzas. (I do bulk cook the black beans though!) I also sometimes buy their frozen sweet potato fries and the frozen battered cod squares Occasionally, I really feel like a knock-off fish sandwich like MacDonalds. Other than that, I am pretty much a from scratch cook at all times here.
ReplyDeleteI think some convenience things are great. You really want to buy fish and bread it for a sandwich? Not me.
DeleteHubby travels for work so its just me most days/nights. No interest in cooking for just myself so I have a lot of convenience or I will just eat PB Crackers. TV dinners, frozen pizza, frozen breakfasts and snacks. On occasion I will heat up fish and veggies.
ReplyDeleteI'm in the same position, but with being also being gluten-free, I do more cooking than I'd like! If not for that, I'm pretty sure I'd be eating a lot more convenience foods too! What has helped me out is making bigger meals and then freezing them in invidual size portions.
DeleteHey I will eat cold cereal if hub's is gone and I don't have to cook. I am also a big cheese and cracker eater. I don't make my own crackers.
DeleteI rarely buy convenience food. I do sometimes buy hummus. Or, if I find a great deal on something for the kids (they like goldfish crackers), I'll pick some up. But generally, we make most things. It's just too expensive & unhealthy otherwise.
ReplyDeleteYou are right. I am not a health nut but I do cringe at most convenience foods.
DeleteI never check anyone's cart unless they are in line in front of me, or in the next lane, or my way is blocked by other carts, or the cart is pure junk food. Hey, it sounds like I have a problem here.
ReplyDeleteWhen I see so much junk and convenience foods, I am very judgmental. I think two things--what a waste of money and what poor nutrition. Then, I become ashamed of my attitude and try to make excuses. Maybe this is for a camp group, all the be eaten on one occasion. Maybe this mother is stressed. Maybe this will last a month or three. Maybe these people only buy this and intend it to last for six months because they live 100 miles from a grocery store and they grow all their own fruits and vegetables. I try to be generous. But, it is hard.
Finally, I conclude the person has spent an inordinate amount of money and gotten few items that are nutritious and way too many calories and bad ingredients. But, in my mind, at least at first, I try to be compassionate. I think I waste my compassion on the wrong people. I feel sorry for the kids.
Sometimes, I am not surprised to find out this person is using food stamps and just wasting this asset. ugh. I do use food stamps,too, but not for a cart full of junk. Actually, I get $29/month and that will buy a family pack of boneless, skinless chicken breasts, two half gallons of milk that will not bother my allergies, four apples, bag of oranges, six bananas, lettuce of some kind.
Occasionally, I do buy convenience foods. About twice a year, I buy a can of biscuits on sale. I buy chicken broth on sale when allergies and sinuses have problems. I bought Stove Top Stuffing on sale because dressing is always on the menu when I feel my worst. Plus, now I cannot lift the pan from the oven.
I don't raise, pick or can my own green beans, peaches, applesauce, or diced tomatoes. So, I suppose those could be called convenience foods.
I know I feel bad when I judge. but I just think of cost and nutrition. We all eat poorly sometimes, but every day?
DeleteHubby travels for a living and unless he is flying back and forth from home (he often drives), I do buy him shelf stable convenience foods. While it isn't all junk (tuna, etc) much of it is more expensive that what I could prepare at home. Lately, Hubs is on a rice-a-roni kick. Still cheaper to heat up a couple of these or a can of soup in his hotel room than to eat out. We are also fortunate in that he does receive a daily per diem added to his check.
ReplyDeleteI personally love rice a roni. I know it is high in salt but it is nummy and you are right cheaper than eating out.
DeleteI think it depends on your lifestyle. For some people, time is more important than money (and often, if you are relatively wealthy, your career involves a lot of travel and/or hours) and sometimes parents would rather spend the money on convenience foods to have more time with their families.
ReplyDeleteYou are right, I just never had the money for groceries of that kind, so I am in awe of people who can shop like that.
DeleteWhen I am cooking, I am with my family. In fact, I can't seem to keep them out of the kitchen when I'm in there. Sometimes, they even cook the meals with me. Occasionally, it's because they wanted to try a recipe, and other times, they are on KP because they complained about the previous night's meal.
DeleteI probably buy more convenience items than some would approve of but then there are other items that I don't buy the convenience item of. I do this because my time is precious and with my busy schedule it is what it is; also there are certain items that my family prefers convenience versus homemade. This includes buying boxed brownie mix. Now I have over the years switched out some things. I make cakes from scratch, most cookies are made from scratch, I do buy biscuits and crescents in a can as that is what my family prefers. I buy fish sticks, frozen pizzas and pizza rolls sometimes for Friday night dinners. I homecook meals though most nights. My shopping style has changed as I have gotten older and as we are trying to fight debt... I will buy canned fruits in water at times but separated them into my own little cups to make individual servings for the kids' lunches. I buy canned and frozen veggies as I don't have a yard to garden and I have a black thumb when it comes to growing plants. For me, I do tend to buy more convenience items when our schedules are super busy or I am super stressed-- which happens a lot lately. I do try to balance it and some weeks are better than others. It is all a balance and if I am trying my best than I am okay with some weeks buying more convenience items than other weeks. At this season of life, with 2 demanding part time jobs, 3 kids involved in extra curriculars, a husband who works 70+ hours a week, I do the best I can.
ReplyDeleteEveryone does this. I don't think eating convenience things is bad if it is just not done for every meal. When you are running with scissors, chicken nuggets are the way to go.
ReplyDeleteI'm a snoop-I admit it. I buy a lot of convenience ingredients like pasta sauce, some rice mixes, condensed soups,snack items though we prefer homemade, but rarely premade ready meals. Sodium us too high in many foods so I watch. My time is valuable too and if I can cut a few corners and mostly cook wholesome meals, I'm good.
ReplyDeleteI love to stock up on little convenience packages of things at Grocery Outlet. It is always a gamble when I go there--there may be nothing I like, or can afford, or I may walk out of there with boxes of gummy snacks or Rick Krispie treats for 50c/box. They come in useful when I pack food. The other day, I grabbed several items like this from past trips, sliced some cheddar cheese, and grabbed a few drinks and threw it all in a cooler to take with us when we needed to be gone over lunch time, and had absolutely no time to grab fast food. The girls and I ate from those "snacks" and were fine. They were probably more expensive than packaging up all home-made foods, but much cheaper than fast food. So...balance. It's what I'm always striving for and the time vs. money balance is a hard one to strike!
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ReplyDeleteOh, my! I read this post before I went grocery shopping, yesterday! And all the while I was adding items to my cart (pre-made croissants, ice cream and whipped topping, boxes of cold cereal, cold cuts) I kept wondering, what would Kim think if she saw my grocery cart?! :D
ReplyDeleteWhat types of convenience foods do I buy and why? Usually things that I can't be bothered to make from scratch and because it is convenient to do so; because I don't have the time or, even more important than time, for me, the energy to make certain things from scratch, anymore; because pre-made convenience items make my life easier. The savings in time and energy more than makes up for the added costs, for me (my monthly grocery budget is $75 for myself, for food items only).
Hey, may I use the cart image on Twitter?
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