Lowes Foods To Go

There are so many tasks to do each day, and we each have to decide which tasks are important and which can be pushed aside. We have to decide how much our time is worth and allot it as we see fit. Over a year ago, I was sick. Mark had gone to work, and I had stayed home. We were in desperate need of groceries, but I was in no shape to go shopping. Mark just wanted to get home to me, so he made a decision, one that I still feel to this day. He ordered groceries online from Lowes Foods, and it was an awesome decision!

Yes, I took a picture of my monitor.

What of it??

Let's address the negative aspects to online grocery shopping with Lowe's Foods:

1. You can't always find the item you want on the website.

     They have the best bacon in the meat case. I love that I can get just four slices, should I so choose. Mark and I just do not go through a full package of bacon in a timely manner. With the meat case bacon, I can order just enough for breakfast on Sunday. There is no waste! However, I cannot find that particular bacon choice through the online service. I usually have to choose some random brand of bacon and add a note saying what I really want.

2. People look at you like you're super lazy.

     I really have no response to this. Before I discovered Lowes Foods To Go, I would have judged any other person the same way. I would have judged you as lazy for not going and getting your own darned groceries. I actually had the cashier tell me one night that she thought only old people used it.

3. You're taking a chance on quality.

     If I go into the store and want to pick up a pineapple, I can judge that the pineapples all look nasty and pass on them. When someone else is picking out your produce, they may not have the same standards. You may not get the quality you expect.

4. It is addicting.

     We only did it that one time because it was convenient due to my illness. Now, I use it at least once a week. I pull up the website, pick out my store, and shop away. You get to choose your pickup time and date.

5. It can be expensive.

     You pay to use the Lowes Food to Go service. It's $5.95 for each order. You can sign up for a month or a year at a potentially lower price, however. We have the annual service, which is $99 a year. If you use it once a week, that ends up being about $1.90 for each order.

Now, let's get real and talk about why it is a life-changing, super amazing service:

1. You get all that time back.

     Consider how much time it takes you to run into the grocery store. If I go in over lunch to get just five things, I'm in there for at least twenty minutes. To get a whole week's worth of groceries, I'm probably going to waste close to an hour. Could I trim that time? Yes, but I usually won't. I'm not a good speed shopper. I get one hour back each week for less than $2.

2. You get all the best produce.

     Yeah, you take a chance when you let someone else pick out your produce, but I have not really had any issues with fresh produce when I used the service to get it. I have actually received calls before where they told me the tangerines in the store did not look great. They actually checked to see if I still wanted them. They actually care that you get the best.

3. You don't have to wander around looking for odd grocery items.

     Once, I was looking for some weird coconut derivative. I spent literally twenty five minutes trying to find a single item. I asked three different associates to help me and still struggled. Sometimes, you need something weird for a recipe, and it is so much better to let someone else find it.

4. There are less impulse buys.

     If I head into the grocery store, you can bet your first born that I'm going to spend almost $20 extra on random items I don't need. Candy bars are on sale? Better grab three! I should also grab a cold soda. Huh...there are new flavored pretzels. Let's try those. It goes on and on. I can keep throwing items in the cart that I don't need. My willpower falters when presented with sales and shiny packaging. For less than $2 an order, I avoid spending $20 on impulse items.

5. You are less likely to forget an item you need.

     You can double check what is on hand and what you need. I can run downstairs to verify if my milk is still good. At the store, I would just guess and end up with an extra gallon of milk that I don't need. I can shop off the circular too, so if ketchup is on sale, I can go check the pantry to see if I already have an extra bottle. There is less guesswork.*

Excellent. There is plenty of corn in the pantry

for corn pancakes. :)

6. The annual subscription makes forgotten items a breeze.

     I found a recipe for orange chicken on the Pioneer Woman website. I ordered all the items I needed, save one. I was pretty sure I had a whole container of unopened oil. I was so sure that I didn't bother running downstairs to check. The next day, when I was going to make that recipe, I realized that I did not have enough oil. Since I have the annual subscription, which does not limit the number of times I can order, I just placed a quick order. I have placed orders on my lunch hour to pick up after work to make for dinner. It's so easy!

7. The staff is amazing.

     There are note sections for each item you order, as well as a large order note. For example, I needed fresh oranges with pretty peels for my turkey brine at Thanksgiving. I typed that out on there, and they made sure I had sexy oranges. Seriously, that is a weird request, and they take it in stride. If you can't find the item you want, you can just make a note. They'll take care of you.

See? Note sections!

8. They aim to make it right when there is an issue.

     This week, we ordered a bag of chips. When pulling it out of the bag, I realized an inch space at the bottom had come open. We called, and they were glad to replace it next time we were by the store, no receipt needed. I had another error with an order where I did not receive all of my items. They gave us two bags that went with someone else's order instead of ours. In an effort to fix the mistake, they let us keep the incorrect bags and brought the two missing bags to our house. It was a fifteen minute drive, but they believe in great customer service.

Lowes Foods plastic grocery bags 

make excellent litter bags!

9. You can get groceries in your pajamas without being judged for your My Little Pony sleep pants.

     You can place the order in your boxers, and when you go to pick it up, you don't even have to get out of the car. There is a speaker box at the locations offering Lowes Food to Go. You press the button, wait for a response, then give them your name. They'll gather your order up and bring it out to your car. If your trunk is clean, you'll even get a compliment. They put everything in the car for you and take your payment right there.

In today's day and age, there are a lot of modern conveniences. I can watch most television shows and movies right through the PS4. I don't have to go to the video store to rent a movie; I can download it. Life keeps giving us more and more ways to be lazy. That's not necessarily bad, as long as you keep up with the important things. For me, wandering the grocery store for an hour is not something I am going to miss.** For me, it is Lowes Food to Go all the way.

*I know some of you are super organized and have your ducks in a row. (Angie) I, however, do not have that problem. I only have an organized grocery list once a year, and that is for Thanksgiving.

**Every once in a while, Mark and I will got the grocery store together. Now, it's a fun outing, as opposed to a chore that holds us back from doing what we want.