Catch up on the rest of this series here.
By the way…I think this post holds the record for being the absolute longest I’ve ever written. Maybe? Well, brace yourself.
It’s field trip day again! If you you were absent the day we went on our other field trip to meet my favorite cow, you can check it out here.
Today, I want to take you with me while I pick up my food co-op order.
I live in a smallish town that has two nice grocery stores and a Super Walmart. If I wanted to go to a Whole Foods store or something like it, I’d have to drive almost two hours one way. Therefore, I order most of the food we can’t grow or get from local farmers from Azure Standard .
I usually place my order online and I almost always order in bulk. It’s less expensive for us to buy in bulk…I have enough room in my kitchen to store bulk groceries…and there are six of us so we eat…a lot.
Ready? Field trip time…
The delivery truck meets us in the Walmart parking lot. And don’t think I didn’t feel a little bit silly taking these pictures because I did. Who else whips out the camera to take pictures of people getting boxes of food off of a truck but the Heavenly Homemaker? Ah, but I did it for you anyway…and my Azure Standard friends just smiled and nodded like they would expect nothing less from me than to take pictures of this fine activity.
That long of a truck can hold a LOT of yummy food!
Thank you, Mr. Nice Truck Driver.
Here are our nice piles starting to form while we wait for everyone to show up and take their food home. The whole process only takes about ten minutes. And…many of us squeal a little bit when our pretty boxes of apples come off of the truck. Mr. Nice Truck Driver just looks smug because he has what it takes to make grown women squeal.
Then, as all of you know…I bring it home and unload it onto the counter so that I can stare at it for several minutes. Looking at my groceries (and thinking about how I’ll make the food into yummy meals for my family) makes we very happy. All that you see here cost me $168, by the way.
Then, I take many of the bulk foods (honey in the case of this picture) and break them down into small containers for easy use and storage.
Thank you to everyone who is still reading this post and has not fallen out of your chair from boredom. (And if you DID fall out of your chair, I’m sorry to say that you need to get up and sit down again because the post isn’t done yet.)
I KNOW not everyone has the luxury of Azure Standard delivering in your area (like say…my readers from Turkey). I’m sorry that I just went on and on about something that is not relevant to you…I just have a lot of other readers (like say…my readers from the 17 states that A.S. does deliver to) who have been asking about this.
There are other food co-ops to check into. Try United Buying Clubs. Or…take a look at this Coop Directory Service. (Again, that won’t help you folks in Turkey.) :( If you’re from Canada you can do what Stephanie does and order from Spud.
(If there isn’t a co-op nearby…you CAN get one started as long as there’s a company that delivers to your area. Azure Standard didn’t deliver in my town until I made a phone call three years ago. Now, there’s about 20 of us who are a part of this group.)
And also…if you have absolutely no way of ordering some of these fabulous foods from any of the above mentioned places…try Amazon. (Does Amazon deliver to Turkey?) I am amazed by what you can order from Amazon and often you can even qualify for free shipping which is so cool. (Psst…if you’re gonna order from Amazon and you want to do it by clicking on the little Amazon button in the right hand column of my blog, that would be very nice of you.)
Since you managed to read through to the end of this and live to tell about it, the least I can do is listen to you tell me where you find most of your groceries! Do you have cool grocery stores where you live? Are there some neat markets where you shop? Are you a part of a food co-op? How many of you really are from Turkey?
and last but not least…
DID any of you fall out of your chairs while reading this?
More Frugal Friday posts here.
I didn’t fall out of my chai- In fact I read with grest intrest!!! I get most grocery things form Whole Foods or health food store (1 Hr away) it is a 2x month trip. I get my bulk sucanat and wheat berries and organic rasins and such from a mennonite market that does bulk food (and makes tasty goodies) I go there about 3-4x year.(45 minutes away) I just started getting my RAW milk/eggs from a local farmer thru a herd share program- I will drive 25 minutes to meet him once a week. I do order some things online- mostly speciality things b/c I cook a lot of ethnic foods( none are turkish though)
I order food from Angel Food Ministries check their website angelfoodministries.com they deliver to a lot of areas. Anyways I can get a box of food to feed a family of four for a week for $30.00 And we have been ordering for about 1.5 years. It is a really good program in my opinion.
I’m actually lounging in bed, so I didn’t fall off a chair! BUT, I was very excited to see this as I will be ordering from AS for the first time next week…still trying to figure it all out! =)
Thank you!!
What’s in the bottom right corner of your food picture? Thanks
I was really interested in your post because I will be making my first order from Azure Standard next week. It kind of helped me know a little of what to expect.
Is that Sucanat I see? Azure stand doesn’t deliver here :(
I try to buy bulk whole wheat and sucanat when I go to C/O Springs. There is a local farmer that I get honey from. Other than that it’s the regular grocery store for my family.
Lol–I made it through without falling out of my chair!
We live about 30 minutes away from Whole Foods, and they have alll kinds of yummy organic produce, grass-fed beef, wild caught fish…and on and on. I could spend hours upon hours there. It is pricey so I don’t go as often as I’d like. I hope to one day be able to afford more whole foods though. This summer I think I’m going to try to go to some local farmer’s markets for my veggies. Once again, a great post!
I also have an award for you so come on by and pick it up!
-Kari
YOU HAVE MY BUTTER!!!!! lol :) It was the one thing that they didn’t have for my order this month, I was so bummed! Hmmmph. I hope you put it to good use for me! Something with chocolate just for me? Please? :)
Yippeee!
I loved that field trip!
I really loved the pic of your table/food!
I would love to know what all was there, cuz I’m just really nosey that way…
Thanks Laura!
I can’t wait ’til the next field trip!
No, I didn’t fall out of my chair, but for some reason I am up and it is midnight here. So, if I fall out of my chair while typing this, please forgive me. It really had nothing to do with you… Ok, I love A.S. too, but alas, I am about to move to a state where they do not deliver. I’m hoping the other sites you mentioned may be of help to me. Thanks for the info!
No chair falling here. I have called Azure. Their shipping prices were outrageous since they dont ship to Michigan. My daughter is checking out a food coop she found so hopefully that will help. I loved the post Laura, as always.
Jill
Well, I didn’t fall out of my chair but I am totally coveting your A.S. deliveries and living vicariously thru you right now. I’m not in Turkey – I’m in Japan. *sniffle* So I don’t have Whole Foods or Trader Joes or Walgreens or Target any more and I can’t get Azure Standard either. *more sniffling*
A friend of mine orders from them and when we get out of the military we hope to move to the same area they are moving to this year…. you can bet we’ll be setting up an A.S. pick up point in our town then!!! lol
Laura,
I love your sense of humor! Thanks for a fun post. Your blog is a little daily blessing in my life. – an avid Indianapolis reader
Mmm, love it! I always like to stare at my groceries, too. I don’t know why, but staring at other people’s fascinates me as well. lol
Aww, I feel so honored that you would highlight my country not once, not twice but 3 times! Yes, I am with Melonie, “coveting” (but not sinfully so) :-) your deliveries in bulk. Our apt here in Turkey doesn’t even have much to speak of in the way of storage or freezer space, so buying a lot is is not an option. HOWEVER. yes, I guess I never thought about Amazon. But at any rate, I have learned so much about eating more healthfully from you and have really been excited when trying different recipes of yours. Also, being from rural KS, I’m enjoying living vicariously through you. As if I were still there! Oh, and I ALSO LOVE your sense of humor, and with two boys of my own, I’m watching you and taking notes! ;-)
Thanks for the great info! A.S. doesn’t come down to my neck of the woods, but I did just find a local farm for organic meats and milk! Thanks for all the inspiration!!!
I am still in my chair… woo hoo! Seriously I love my co-op too. We live in D.C. and use Quail Cove Farms. They deliver in VA, MD, WV and OH (I think). Anyway it is a great way to get good food at a discount and in bulk. I don’t have as much storage as you do, but I still stock up on things I have room for.
Toni
Great post; thanks for taking the time (and being brave enough!) to take pictures for us! We currently do most of our grocery shopping at farmers’ markets and grocery stores, but would like to explore what options we have in our area as far as co-ops. We do have two local meat markets that are competitively priced and have good products.
I checked into Azure when it seemed that ALL the blogs talked about it – but delivery to Maryland was too pricey for me! But I did just recently find someone at my church that orders from Quail Cove Farms – I’ve gotten three or four orders from them and I love it!
And, BTW – I have to say – I love reading your blog -you are just too funny!
I definitely did NOT fall out of my chair reading this! I love this series that you are doing. I buy almost all of my groceries from Wal-Mart and some of them from Kroger. They are close to us and cheap. Since I live near Dallas, there are several Whole Foods and a few Central Markets around, just not close by. Plus they are pricey. But your order from AS didn’t seem too costly considering all that came in your order. I’m always afraid to order from something like AS or get in a food co-op for fear of not using what I bought. For some reason it seems less atrocious if I waste or don’t use something I bought from Wal-Mart. But your posts are really helpful and I’m going to look into it more because I want to buy organic, somewhat local food and I want to support farmers in this country. Thanks for sharing with us how you buy your food!!!
I am so happy that you wrote about this because Eric and I have been looking into ordering from there. I still have some questions, so I may send you a lengthier e-mail! Thanks for posting on this!!
Really interesting post. I live just south of Turkey and only recently did we get a real grocery store. Now I am going to your Amazon button and check this out. Thanks
Roberta Anne
Great post! Not boring at all. :)
We don’t get Azure Standard here either. I belong to a co-op through Country Life Natural Foods. There are about 20 families involved. It’s been a great resource.
Wow. Loving your field trips! :-)
I am going to look into Azure right now, I’ve read so much about it on all the nourishing-mama’s websites….
I really enjoy ready you, you are so inspiring and helpful, thanks.
I always love your posts. Not only did I not fall out of my chair but I couldn’t read fast enough! When I first heard about Azure Standard, I was so excited. Unfortunately, they don’t come to GA but thank you, THANK YOU for recommending some other companies. Maybe one of these will work. One question. When you did the tour of your kitchen I noticed you had a Nutrimill grain mill. Where did you get yours? I’d like to order one but am not sure which website to use. Any advice??
I loved your post. AS is not delivered to OK but found a co-op through our home school group with United Buying Clubs. I ordered from there this week for the first time, and I ordered my nutrimill (through your button) yesterday. I am so excited!!! and a little scared with all this changing (my children don’t know quite what to think either)but i want us to be healthier and that is very important.
Thank you for sharing with all of us. You are such an encouragement and a good teacher.
My tookus was able to remain firmly in my chair throughout. =) And I get most of my food at WinCo during the winter, and as much as I can at farmer’s markets when they’re open. There’s a great club on campus called organic growers that does a sale every friday from april until early november, and their prices are excellent. (The only problem being smaller selection).
Thank you for sharing, until I stumbled on your blog, I didn’t even know people could still eat this way!
I DID fall out of my chair! I have a nice little lump on my head now…thanks for that!! However, once I came too, I finished the post and loved it! I actually had just placed my first order from Azure this morning, before reading your post. I can’t wait to look at all my groceries too. (Isn’t it amazing what facinates women who stay home for a living…food on a counter…wooohooo!). Thanks for sharing, I enjoy reading!
PS. I didn’t really fall out of my chair, and it wasn’t that long of a post, I just got tired of reading about how everyone stayed in their chair and started imagining that I did fall out of my chair and how that would affect my day. Sorry….I digress…
Thanks for the laugh!
I’m in No. VA, so another that AS doesn’t deliver here – but I saw the comments from the other D.C. area ladies, so I’ll look into Quail farms!
I found your post quite interesting…and wasn’t aware that you could get groceries on amazon.com. I must say I didn’t fall out of my chair during the post, but once I saw the wheat flour prices on amazon I did. thanks so much for the hint.
We do our shopping at Aldi’s and super wal-mart. As a two person family in a soon to be condo buying in bulk is not a wise choice. I do enjoy reading your post and I didn’t fall out of my chair. :)
I certainly didn’t fall out of my chair, I’ve been saving this post for days to read as I knew it would be good and wanted to give it the attention it deserves.
And now I might be onto the award for the longest comment ever, but I’m sure you’ll understand ;-)
I live in Australia, and in a fairly remote part of Australia. I don’t mean some dusty town with a gas station and pub, but a thriving little community with two major supermarkets that just happens to be so far from anywhere that it qualify’s as remote. I recently ranted about how our food gets to us in light of the recent flooding that has played havoc with our deliveries on my blog.
So in addition to our two supermarkets we have…. nothing else. Even our health food shop has recently closed. For fresh fruit & vegetables there is a tourist market on Saturdays, but it’s very hit and miss with what you get (a lot of seconds that can’t be sold to supermarkets, and private growers). But alas, if it rains, or the roads are flooded, or it’s too windy, or the construction at the adjacent site is noisy the markets get cancelled. That’s if I can drag myself out of bed to get down there early enough anyway.
And having said all of that I don’t have a huge amount of storage space, so the one time I bought in bulk it was an abysmal failure.
Now, in 3 weeks I’m moving to, if not a city, then a really large series of towns within 40 minutes of the state capital.
Where they have, like, fruit shops and stuff. And online deliveries of foodstuffs. And butchers. And health food shops. Not just a choice of two dodgy supermarkets.
I know it’s sad that I’m excited about all this. But I just can’t wait.
Thank you for sharing your food supply!
The Lord is blessing so many through you. Thanks for taking pictures and sharing your life with us. And laughter does the heart good, so praise God for that too!
Azure has been great for our family over the past couple of years here in AZ, but we are soon moving to Alaska. Anyone from AK know if Azure is worth it after shipping costs?
Such a fun post! Blessings!
I love Azure Standard! I just got my order on Monday and our truck looks exactly the same. Our comes to a Kmart parking lot, and it’s really funny when the police come around acting interested in the crowd standing behind a semi-truck handing the driver cash. :-)
Carrie Smyth- My niece lives in Alaska and orders from Azure also. I am pretty sure that she gets it in a group too. You should ask them (Azure) if there is a delivery near where you are moving.
Must be a small town thing. We have a truck that comes to a local grocery store parking lot various times through the summer and fall to bring fresh produce to our wee northern village. People line up for hours and chat with the person in front of them or behind them. Then they tell the Apple Guy (yes that’s what he’s called) what they want mass quantities of from his truck. Might be apples, might be tomatoes…
I think I called Azure Standard once but the drop locations are a little too far away for me – I’m really not motivated to fight traffic to get to the nearest drop points. And because I work full time I don’t have time to coordinate a drop point. Fortunately, I have several good health food stores close by and I can get most of what I need for OK-prices there.
I didn’t fall off my chair, not even close!! I enjoyed the field trip day! :D Thank you for taking us along with you!!
Oh, how I wish I could get Azure Standard out here! The prices are so amazing compared to anything I can find here. I keep telling Dave, “Yes, but at Azure Standard, I could get it for. . . “And he says, “Would you just forget about Azure Standard?”
remained seated!
I do order from United Buying Clubs, being in PA, don’t think Azure delivers that far??
I don’t think UBC has as many “local” good items for good prices like Azure. But it works for dry goods. I love Trader Joes and get stuff from there when I’m near one (closest one is over 1 hour away). My local food co-op ordering lady also orders organic produce from another co-op which I sometimes order from. Our local food store isn’t too pricey with organics. And I have a tiny garden and get my eggs and raw dairy from local farms, much cheaper than the store. I LOVE living in PA. There is so much available to me. More than in other states that I have lived in (NJ and CT)
I’m also in PA just outside Philly. Do you have any suggestions for me?
Re: “Does Amazon deliver to Turkey?”
Try to use this gadget http://amazon-ship-to.blogspot.com to check if Amazon item could be shipped to your country.