Life’s better when you’re prepared, so I tend to try to have the cupboards stocked up. When I don’t we end up eating interesting things like chocolate beet muffins (actually not bad!) or quinoa salad with whichever random veggies are left in the fridge…makes you creative! However, especially on these chilly fall days, it’s nice and comforting to know you have many nice things to feed your sweeties, and that you can stay safe and sound at home in your hobbit hole.

Keeping the cupboards stocked for a family of seven isn’t as expensive as you might think, especially when they are so little, but without a car it is a bit of a logistical adventure. Such shopping adventures have some benefits: you meet interesting people and you keep fit.

A few weeks ago I hauled a massive amount of groceries home in the double stroller. My baby rode on top of a blanket-covered mountain of groceries, and my bigger girls took turns holding my three year old’s hands while crossing roads. My toddler was napping at home with my helpful neighbour. Happily we live only about four blocks from the store.

It was a big shop, so about half way through passing up and down each isle in the store my exasperated 5 year old exclaimed, “Are we going to live here?!”

In the last isle, milk and frozen goods, a friendly older gent asked how many days a week I’d trade my kids for his red 78 Chevey pickup… I told him it sounded like a pretty good deal. I could use a truck to get our groceries home! He got my daughter to approve his purchase of a frozen chocolate cake: Christie’s I think.

“My favorite when I was little!” I said.
“I’m becoming little again,” he replied.
“Good idea.”

Near the checkout we were blocking the top of an isle with the double stroller. A lady pushing her little kid in a buggy turned to back up but I maneuvered the stroller out of the way and moved two of my girls with their mini shopping buggies. The lady turned the corner only to have my three year old pop out from behind the bread and step in her way.

“You’re ambushed!” I joked.
“A good ambush,” she said.

I could have hugged her. It’s nice to hear something other than, “Gosh, are they all
yours? Or are you running a daycare?”

We get do fun comments, too, by some familiar staff. “Brought out the whole army today?” a friendly grocer asked once as we paraded about the store with three mini shopping carts and the double stroller. “In full force,” I smiled, “Now let’s hope we don’t run over any little old ladies…”

You can see why we try to do a big shop, so that this Olympic expedition isn’t too frequent….this is my toddler after another shopping trip:

Pretty much sums it up!