Been to Costco lately?

Hi Friends!  Long time, no see posts…I know, I KNOW! So sorry.

I have a million excuses for why you haven’t heard from me and could dedicate an entire post to all each of them {the last week of school, graduations, end of year parties, my new smart phone, a 2nd dog to take care of, daily swimming lessons, oh and did I forget to mention, a TON of work spent on my master bedroom!}  But I won’t bore you with all the details…or maybe I will, another day.

But my question for you today is…

Have you been to Costco lately?

Costco used to be my home away from home.  In fact, at one time, I lived within a mile of Costco!  I used to go 3 times a week, just to browse the aisles, taste the samples, and pick up one or two things {this was before I had kids!!} Now that I live 20 minutes from Costco, have 3 kids in tow, and waaaaay less storage space than my last house, I don’t find myself at Costco nearly as much {well that and I live a mile from Trader Joe’s now!  Guess I can’t complain much!}

Anyways, I found myself near Costco the other day {after one of the graduations I mentioned before} and popped in just to see what’s new.  WOW!  Was I a happy girl!!

Oh yeah, that reminds me of why this post came to mind….did you see the newest list of the dirty dozen?  That’s the list of the 12 fruits/veggies that you really should try to buy organic cause they have been found to contain the most pesticide residue.  You can try to memorize the list, print it out, or {my latest addiction} download the app on your smart phone {I did mention I got one of those nifty little phones for my birthday, didn’t I?  It’s a big reason I’ve not been on the computer and blogging this last week or so…}  At any rate, here is the dirty dozen if you don’t feel like clicking on the link:

Buy these organic:

Apples, Celery,  Strawberries, Peaches, Spinach, Nectarines {imported}, Grapes {imported},  Sweet Bell Peppers, Potatoes, Blueberries {domestic}, Lettuce, Kale/Collard Greens.

So back to my shopping trip!  Look at all the organics you can buy at Costco:

Organic Grapes {they had red too}, Organic Blueberries, but unfortunately the strawberries are not organic.  So I use Trader Joe’s Fruit and Veggie wash on those.  Just let –em soak for a minute, agitate and rinse.  I do see organic strawberries at Costco from time to time, so check back often!

Certified Pesticide free tomatoes {not quite organic but good enough for me}.  They also carry other varieties of tomatoes that are pesticide free.

So the pineapple and bananas are not organic, but lucky for me they are on the “Clean 15” list…those are the ones that you really don’t need to worry about containing pesticide residue. {Pineapple is the #3 cleanest and bananas are actually #20, not quite making it on the clean 15 list, but good enough for me.  Not much is getting through that skin!}

Frozen peaches and blueberries, both organic!  Love our smoothies!

I love having these frozen veggies on hand: Organic Corn, Beans, Carrots and Edamame {I only buy corn and soy organic…JUST SAY NO to Monsanto’s GMO “Round-Up” products on your dinner table.}  They are great any night of the week…just steam –em or splurge on the crowd pleaser: cook them for 15 min. on the stovetop over med/low heat with about 2-3 TBS olive oil and sprinkle with coarse sea salt before serving.  YUM!

Organic Milk!!  Say yes to milk without hormones, puss, blood, ok, sorry.  But seriously, milk is a good one to buy organic, or at least hormone free.  At $4.99/gallon, you can’t beat Costco’s price. 

Also in the dairy case, the next best thing to having your own chickens…organic eggs at just $3.25/dozen.  I’ve been buying these eggs for quite a while now.  I think I’ll hold off a little longer on my chicken coop.

Which came first, the chicken or the egg?  Who cares when you can get them both organic at Costco!  Organic chicken thighs {and breasts} are a Costco staple for us.  At $3.99 a pound, you can’t go wrong!

Still at the meat counter, they also have organic ground beef.  Again, their price can’t be beat…just under $4.50/pound.  A couple months ago they had AMAZING organic rib-eyes, but I haven’t seen them in a while…BOO!

No trip to Costco is complete without a paper product stock up.  We also use their paper towels under the same label.  Come on ladies, it’s not too bad on the tush…and saves the Earth, too.  Just think, you aren’t wiping those sensitive areas with chlorine bleach 6 times a day.

Sheeesh, who knew Costco had so many organic products these days?  And by no means is that all!!  It’s just all I happened to buy the other day.  {I’ve seen organic apples, fresh peaches, lots in the dry foods aisles, hormone free cheese, etc.} But I am so excited they are stocking up with more and more organics and also “green” products. As always with Costco, you gotta buy buy buy to make sure they keep the products you love!  So get out there and shop peeps!

By the way, in case you were wondering, my master bedroom is FINALLY done!! Yay!!  My husband and I worked tirelessly day and night and finally got to spend the night in there a couple of days ago.  Ahhhhhhhh.  Nothing like moving back into your own room after sleeping the playroom with the streetlight in your face for a few weeks.  I actually just about reached my breaking point during this project, so you’ll have to forgive the lack of blog updates.  The break from blogging was a much needed one!  But I’ll be here soon to give you all the pics of our new master bedroom! 

 

Alright, I had to give you a little teaser for my loyal readers who have been so patient with my hiatus.  Smile!!

What foods do you try to buy organic?