I have been trying to upload pictures all morning, but have managed to mess up the formatting in my SD card (running linux and clueless) and can’t seem to get it figured out today, so pictures will follow.
Speaking of deliveries, yes, I’m still very pregnant. 40 weeks + 3 days. I have a head cold, and my voice is gone, and for some reason I am feeling inspired to write about my walmart.ca grocery shopping experience, so that’s what I’m doing. We did an ultrasound yesterday and the baby is great, approximately 7lbs 8 oz, and no concerns to make them induce… So I’m just waiting around. My gestational diabetes seems to have disappeared after a few days of Dr. Mark Hyman (Blood sugar solution) style eating. I was doing Dr. Mcdougall (Starch solution) managing my numbers just fine, eating lots of whole food carbs, but having to be careful of any cheating on sugar or fat. I am now basically just eating whatever I feel like (only a tiny bit of junk) with no measuring or counting carbs or fats and my blood sugar numbers are completely non-diabetic. Go figure. I’ll have to do more a separate blog post later on this. I just posted an active clean up vlog on youtube with some ramblings about it if you are interested.
So what’s the deal with Walmart? Walmart.ca will now deliver non-perishable groceries to your door for free with a $50 minimum order. I am going to share what kinds of things I normally buy and and some of the things I have learned so far to help you make the most of this system.
Things to keep in mind:
Their packages usually come to me by Canada Post, (predictably by 11 am at my house) within 1-3 business days, but occasionally another courier us used, and sometimes part of the order will be delayed. The order may be split in 2 or 3 parts, and may or may not arrive on the same day by the same courier. Tracking is great, and you can always look back on your previous orders.
Don’t wait until you are out of things before ordering. I have made this mistake a couple of times, and it’s inevitable that the one thing you need most will come the latest all by itself. I did this with Toilet paper in my first order, thinking it would arrive in 2 days, but everything else came first and the toilet paper came along a few days later, and by then we had already panicked and bought a small pack at the local store. Also note that some items are only available for in-store pickup, even though they are dry goods, and there will be little symbols in your cart to indicate this.
When you shop, avoid going to the Grocery section of the website, so you don’t end up being asked to book a time slot or delete things. You can of course book a time slot and pick up your groceries (for free) if you prefer, so it’s a nice option too, but make a plan to start with and remember that you can go to walmart for produce after online shopping/getting delivered and still save time.
Shopping online for this stuff can free you up to shop for specific things like produce and kosher meat at more specific stores, rather than spending a long time in a bigger store or having to go to several places all the time.
Other things to note:
Most items are pictured accurately with ingredients listed, kosher symbol visible. Zoom in to verify each item the first time. Remember, you can always return items to a local walmart at any time if you make a mistake.
By creating an account, you can load your cart as you think of things. I have my cart going all month long. Once I complete an order, I start a new one with the things that I inevitably forgot and things that I regularly need. Over time, you start realizing how many of which items it takes to get you through a month or so, and there is nothing wrong with having 3 months worth of any item you use on a regular bases. You can also have it save your credit card for super quick checkout.
The following is my basic recommendation list. I will put an asterisk next to items I generally prefer to get somewhere else, but are certainly worth getting delivered if you can’t get to the other stores.
Pantry things to buy:
- Dry and canned beans,
- Lentils, chickpeas, split peas, barley etc
- Canned Tuna and Salmon
- Pasta (spaghetti, lasagna, macaroni, rotini, gluten-free or whole grain options etc),
- Ramen Noodles
- Quinoa *
- Rice
- Salt crackers, graham crackers etc
- Cookies
- Chips
- Granola bars, snack bars etc
- Fruit cups, applesauce,
- Nuts and seeds * (I usually get mine at costco, but Walmart prices and quality are pretty close 2nd)
- Pasta sauce, canned diced tomatoes, tomato paste etc
- Salt
- Sugar
- Brown Sugar
- Baking Powder,
- Baking Soda
- Oatmeal, steel cut oats, oatmeal packets
- Cold cereal
- Almond milk in tetra-paks for pantry (The Great Value brand is organic and actually pretty good) and the price is good.
- Ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise
NON-Food items:
- Dishwasher Soap, dish soap, sponges etc
- Shampoo, toothpaste, shaving cream, razors, lotion etc.
- Toilet paper (Yes, the giant pack is virtually identical in quality and price with Kirkland and Presidents Choice).
- Paper Towels *(Kirkland includes more per roll, and rolls are individually wrapped, but the price is $2 more so it’s about the same cost. They are the SAME paper towels).
- Huggies or Pampers Diapers and wipes are worth subscribing to, because you can save 20%. * I am already subscribed for diapers on Amazon prime, but the price is almost exactly the same. I also prefer Kirkland wipes, which I pick up in store because it’s always a few dollars cheaper than having them delivered, but costco does deliver.
- Ziplocks/Great value zipper seal bags
- Cleaning supplies, toilet cleaner, lysol or great value spray etc
There are more things I could add, and I may do an edit later or another post, but for now I am going to put this up there.
It’s worth mentioning that you can also get household items, appliances, kitchen items etc.
If you like my post, please comment and let me know if you want to see more like it.