I used to enjoy grocery shopping and cooking but somewhere along the journey, I lost that lovin feeling for my culinary chores. I suspect the fun turned to drudgery around the same time the children started to embrace 5-6 PM as the time of day when they are least likable. Food shopping and prep became less appealing still when the kids become vocal about the six and a half foods that they like this week which I dutifully stock up on only to find that by next week they have fallen out of favor.

But since I don’t seem to have any volunteers to take over the job of chief grocery shopper and cook, I have developed some dinner time coping strategies that I am going to generously share with others who may share my plight.

1. Mr. Food rocks. I’ve tried lots of food prep places. There are some good ones out there but no one so far has compared with Mr. Food for service and taste. I’m a working mother of three. I’m kinda over the assembly part of the gig. I order online and pick up. Chip (the owner) doesn’t let me down.

2. Trader Joe’s is a great place for a quick shop and non-traditional fare. You can be in and out in 15 minutes with a kid or two in tow. The service is spectacular and they have tasty frozen entrees, organic produce and lots of heat and eat options that do not sport the Chef Boy’Adee logo. One caveat: The South Charlotte location has the world’s worst parking lot. Suck it up. It’s worth the hassle.

3. Costco – The rotisserie chicken is must-have. Buy two (they are the only thing in the store that you don’t buy in a case pack by the way). You can serve one for dinner and cut the other one up for chicken salad, quesadillas, chicken tacos, soup, or a host of other yummy, easy recipes. (psst…even the kids like it at our house).

4. Grill. It’s the secret to sanity once the weather is nice in Charlotte. You can grill a different item for every picky eater in the family if you need to and you can do it all while standing on your back porch sipping a glass of wine and watching the kids wear themselves out running in the yard. Beats the heck out of them clinging to you leg in the kitchen.

5. Kraft Foods web site. I know, I know. I have quite possibly fallen victim to a clever marketing ploy by those keen minds at Kraft. I’m going to tell you straight. I don’t care. They have a great database of easy to make recipes complete with feedback and reviews from other time-crunched people like me. They make it easy to maintain a virtual recipe box and once I select my recipes for the week, they make my shopping list for me. The list is just the way I like it too, organized by aisles in the grocery.

So there you have it. Five ways that I survive the grocery/cooking heartache. Add yours!

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