We’re continuing our series on reducing our mental labor. For the next couple of weeks, we’ll focus on shopping and meal planning.
Groceries. Personal hygiene items. Pet food. Prescriptions. Clothing. These items are necessary for most households, but they don’t magically appear when we need them. (Darn it!)
For groceries and most personal items, you can always go the delivery or pick-up route.
In central Indiana, I’ve used Shipt, a service that delivers things from local stores. Of course, there are other options, but this is the one I’m most familiar with.
With Shipt, you simply select what you need online using an app or visiting their website. You pay an annual fee of $99 or $10.99 a month. Prices on some items are slightly higher than what you would find in the store, although they have many things on sale each week. And you should tip your shopper.
This all may sound too expensive, but if you are often guilty of making impulse buys, you could come out even. I know I’m not the only one who runs to Target to buy a few things and ends up coming home with 20!
Grocery pick-up services are also convenient and not as costly. I use Kroger’s free grocery pick up (for orders $35 or over). Other stores charge around $5 per order or a little more for expedited pick up. Most of these services are similar. You place your order online and select a future pick-up time. Then at that designated time you pull into the parking lot and slip into one of the marked spots. From what I’ve seen, you are not expected to tip these shoppers.
I think these services are brilliant for many situations. When you’re sick, it’s wonderful to be able to stay home and rest, or at least just drive up to the store and sit inside your vehicle versus dragging your nearly lifeless body inside the grocery. And your fellow shoppers are probably grateful that you’re not sharing your icky germs.
If either of these services had been available when my kids were little, I would’ve taken advantage of them! My nephew’s wife had a baby right before Christmas years ago. She posted on Facebook about how relieved she was to be able to use Shipt and not worry about exposing her precious little girl to a bunch of germs. I hadn’t thought of this benefit, but it sure made sense.
Once again, I know many people might be reluctant to try this service. When I first started to use Shipt, some of my friends wondered if the shoppers would be as particular about selections as I would be. Wouldn’t they also make some errors? But I’ve found that most shoppers are as picky as I am, especially with produce. And if they ever are in doubt about something, they typically text me.
They do make mistakes occasionally. I’ll never forget the time I ordered a five-pound bag of rice and ended up with a 20-pound one. At least we didn’t run out of rice for six months! But shoppers are human and most of these errors are not the end of the world.
Amy Shankland is a writer and fundraising professional living in Noblesville with her husband John, two sons, two dogs and a cat. You can reach her via email at amys@greenavenue.info.