To Costco or Not to Costco

We're hitting that point. With baby #4 on the imminent horizon and the mountain of diapers looming before us, with five mouths to feed and a stand-alone freezer that functions well, The Hub and I are starting to wonder if it's time to switch back to the Bastion of Bulk known as Costco.

Thanks to my two new favorite sites (A Year of Slow Cooking and freezerdinner.com, in case you missed it), I know that cooking in bulk for easier prep later is in my future. We consume more milk, more cheese, more meat, more rice and pasta than I ever thought we could. At least the produce is fresh weekly through our co-op (bountifulbaskets.org for locations in your area), so we don't have to worry about that. And with three (soon four! Did you forget? I'm trying not to) kids in tow, one-stop shopping has become a necessity rather than a convenience. We've tried shopping separately, but when we aren't there to check each other, Mat and I are terribly prone to impulse shopping. TERRIBLY. Plus, everything I know about bargain shopping I learned by observation. Therefore, that's how my kids will learn.

But will it be worth the annual fee? Will it be worth the monthly 17-mile trek? Because if we do start to shop there, we will ONLY go once a month. What's been your experience, friends? Is it time for us to take the plunge? Are we way overdue for the plunge? I'd love to hear what you have to say.

Stream of Conciousness

Cute sister picture, isn't it? It's from last November, when we had our family portrait done. I still like it.



This is the newest sister's leg. I can't find the CD with the other sonogram stills on it, and my only other option was the still that showed she's a girl. And, really, that doesn't need to be preserved for posterity.

Speaking of posterity, I should be recording our family history in this blog, right? Right. And yet, every time I open the "new post" window, I can't think of a thing to write. Today I decided to just start writing and see if what came out was post-worthy. I'll post it no matter what, so it's not like I'm being discriminating here.

My trip to Utah was excellent. I was SO glad to see old friends, not as nervous as I thought I'd be to present my paper, and all in all, I had a wonderful time. Just before I left for my trip, I gave the whole family haircuts, then neglected to take pictures. Suffice it to say that when I got home, no one looked like themselves anymore! That'll teach me to be bored before a major trip.

Ummmmmm. I've been busy around the house--that whole nesting instinct that kicks in around the second trimester has me in its grips. That's probably another excuse for not posting. I've been sorting through all our STUFF, eliminating excess and organizing the rest. It's been liberating, really.

You know, I shouldn't even be on here right now. The kids are watching TV, waiting for me to make lunch (not that they aren't perfectly capable of making their own), I should be getting dinner into the crockpot, and a million other things are demanding my attention. My goodness, I must be a grown-up! Moreover, a grown-up in charge of small beings! My time is rarely my own any more.

The other difficulty I run into is that since I strive to post a Facebook status daily, everything I write here seems redundant. Curse you, Facebook, for stealing my creativity! Also, bless Facebook for keeping me in better touch with my friends than I would be doing on my own.

Off to cook now. Check out these sites when you have time:
freezerdinner.com
crockpot365.blogspot.com

The crockpot one features gluten-free recipes too, for those of my reading audience of five who would find that helpful.

The end.