We’re still navigating all the new stores and options here in Tennessee. And we’re still finding our groove… but each week it gets better!
We are trying to find a good source for farm-fresh eggs and milk. We were spoiled in Kansas since our grocery store sold glass-bottled, cream top milk from a local farm and my family had chickens.
We tried out Whole Foods for milk and eggs this week to see what we thought. Well, we loved the eggs and milk we bought. But we didn’t necessarily love the prices as they sort of killed our budget this week. So we’re still looking into options to maybe buy from a local farm here (anyone have any recommendations?).
Here’s what we bought:
Whole Foods Shopping Trip
2 bottles of Whole Milk — $3.99 each
3 dozen eggs — $3.79 per dozen
Total with tax: $21.11
ALDI Shopping Trip
Asparagus — $1.99
Bananas ($0.44/lb) — $3.18
Cheddar cheese — $1.99
Bag of Pinto Beans — $1.89
Cream cheese — $1.29
1 bag of chicken breasts — $5.99
Bag of Fuji apples — $3.49
Sour cream — $1.29
Cottage cheese — $2.29
2 cartons of blueberries — $1.69 each
Ground Sirloin ($3.99/lb.) — $9.94
Strawberries — $1.59
Carrots — $0.99
5-lb. potatoes — $2.99
3 packs of sweet corn — $1.29 each
Onions — $1.89
Total with tax — $52.62
And the pasta pictured came from Amazon — thanks to a gift card earned through Swagbucks!
Since we went “over-budget” this week (we budget $50/week in cash to spend on groceries but we take it out on a monthly basis so that we can have stock-up weeks like this, if need be), that means we’ll make this last as long as we can and then I’ll plan our menu next week mostly based on what we already have on hand so that we don’t have to buy much at the store.
Or at least that’s what I’m planning to do. I’ll let you know how it all shake out. 
I spent the last 24 hours mostly offline because I was just soaking up some quiet, refreshing time with my family and dear friends here. After my bone tired week last week, a little time offline with life-giving family and friends was exactly what I needed.
But I still somewhat followed my new morning routine. Here’s how Day 7 went for me:
6:43 a.m. — I wake up and head downstairs to clean up the kitchen. I unload and reload the dishwasher.
7:06 a.m. — I make some coffee, do a quick clean up of our bedroom, and gather the laundry from the bedroom hampers and start a load in the washer. I also empty the trashes and take out the kitchen trash to the dumpster in the garage.
7:22 a.m. — I sit down and read my Bible, write in my Blessings journal, and read a chapter from Pursue the Intentional Life.
7:41 a.m. — I take one of the items out of washer that I need to wear today and stick it in the dryer (shh! don’t tell anyone it wasn’t all the way finished going through the wash cycle!). I head upstairs, put on my running shoes, take a few minutes to chat with Jesse, and quickly post two posts on my blog and schedule a few posts on Facebook. Then I head down to the garage for a really quick run.
8:18 a.m. — I hop in the shower, get dressed, and leave to meet a friend for coffee in town.
Why My Morning Routine Didn’t Work Well
So I’ve been analyzing why I’ve struggled with my morning routine this week. It’s not like the days were awful. By being intentional about my mornings, I got a lot more done in the mornings than I would probably have otherwise. I also did a much better job of not getting on the computer until after the essentials were done in the morning.
However, my morning routines this week have been a far cry from what I want them to be. I’ve gotten up quite a bit later than I wanted to every morning and that stems from the fact that I’m not going to bed early.
I know, so very earth shattering. Ahem.
But truly, if I could just go to bed earlier, I’m pretty sure that would have a big impact on my mornings. I wouldn’t struggle to get up when my alarm clock goes off. I wouldn’t hit snooze. And I’d probably actually get up on time.
Yup, I gotta just stop knowing this in my head. And actually, you know, DO IT. {Truth be told, this would fix most of our issues and problems, wouldn’t it — if we just stopped thinking about it, knowing it, and talking about it, and actually DID IT!}
So anyway, I’m making a public commitment to you all that this coming week I’ll be in bed, lights out by 11 p.m. every single night. I’d really like to move that back to 10 p.m. eventually. But you have to start small and set realistic goals. So we’re going with 11 p.m. for this coming week.
And to help me follow through with this commitment, I’m going to keep a log of what time I go to bed each night start Sunday evening and I’ll post this on my blog next Saturday.
How did you do on your morning routines this week? What are you going to change next week? What have you learned? Let us know in the comments!
