Today I picked up groceries for the first time in 20 days and man, it felt good. Did I get everything on my list? Ha! Of course not. But I have another pick-up scheduled for 12 days from now, enough of the basics to last until then, and enough of everything else to last well beyond. So we're good.
There are several advantages to this arrangement...
1. I am FINALLY emptying stuff out of my fridge and freezer. I'm using up odds and ends and freeing up all kinds of space.
2. Clearing out the fridge and freezer makes it MUCH easier to clean!
3. I have never been so amazing at meal planning. I've tried in the past, but never got very far. But I have now completed 4 full weeks of meal planning, sticking to the plan 100%. I have cooked every single meal. I haven't thrown out any leftovers. No take-out. No cereal for dinner. Taking the time to plan out meals I know we will enjoy, and knowing that what I have is what I have, with no extra shopping trips until the next pick-up, has really made me up my meal plan game.
4. I am getting creative! When I find random forgotten gems in the freezer or in the back of the cupboard, I google a few ingredients that I have on hand and come up with all kinds of new recipes.
For example, tonight we had butternut squash and black bean enchiladas. I used up an old package of black beans, and finished a bottle of chili sauce and some chipotle peppers I found in the fridge. Now, the rest of the family probably feels like they got robbed of a proper taco night, but I absolutely loved it.
5. I'm learning to be flexible! We were supposed to have tourtière tonight to make some more room in the freezer. But when I was unpacking the groceries I noticed that my bag of avocados was perfectly ripe. So instead of Taco Tuesday, it became Enchilada Saturday, and I made a big bowl of guac to go with the enchiladas. I know - I'm like some kind of superhero.
Will I be able to keep up this organizational superpower once it becomes safe to go outside again? I'm hoping that by then meal planning will be second nature, and the feeling of sliding the freezer open with ease and not having to empty out half of the fridge to get to my yogurt will be enough motivation to keep things going. But who knows? At this rate I will probably have fully transitioned to a bread-only diet, so I can probably downsize to a bar fridge for my sourdough starter and a couple of pounds of butter.
Not a bad plan, right?
I am impressed and in awe. 20 days?!? Nice.
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