My newest favorite things!

So, I am not the best at being disciplined about doing things to conserve resources or save the earth....I used disposable diapers...we use paper towels for napkins at dinner, and I will buy paper plates if I am having people over. I don't catch my rain water to water anything, and will buy plastic bottles of water when its on sale. I don't claim to be an avid recycler. We have put bins on our back deck, but since they are all full we haven't been the best to get the stuff out to recycle and start over. BUT....there is one trend that I finally gave in to, and I am SO glad that I did!

I LOVE recyclable shopping bags! I could say that I am doing this to do my part to stop waste of the plastic bags, but I can't really do that and be truthful. I actually DID recycle the plastic ones at least once by using them again at home...I think most people actually do that, so is it SO bad to get the plastic bags? Don't really know, but the real reason I love these reusable bags is because they truly are better than getting plastic bags!!!!

I can get my entire grocery trip into 5 reusable canvas bags and with one trip my husband and I have all the groceries in! No more bags ripping on the way in, no more making 3 trips to the car because your fingers are going to rip off if you try to tuck one more plastic bag in your hand! These canvas bags are AWESOME! They fit completely over your shoulder, so you can get about 3 on each shoulder if you need to. PLUS, each bag will hold a TON of groceries! That is, IF the bag person knows how to pack them. I did have a kid at Kroger haphazardly throw groceries in my bags and I was able to completely condense and empty one of his bags into the others, but for the most part I have found that when you have these canvas bags, the bag people will actually take more time to bag the groceries properly and carefully...Unlike many times when I would and up with 12 bags of groceries with 2-3 things in each bag...ANNOYING! Also, when I get home from the store, all my groceries are still packed neatly and safely away in the bags where they were when I put them in the trunk...no more escaped canned goods or produce!

At first, when I started seeing the reusable bags for sale, I thought, "why would I spend .89-$1 for a bag when I can get the other ones for free?" Well, I still envisioned having to buy like 10-12 bags to ever have enough. I was SO wrong! MOST of the time for a run-in to Wal-Mart or the grocery store, one bag will hold whatever I need...I have gotten $40 worth of stuff in one bag before, and because of the way they are made, the stuff doesn't get smushed or ruined on the way home, the sides are supported by the stuff you bought so it stays neat. Second of all, I have only ever used at the most 6 bags, that is for a week's worth of groceries for a family with 2 kids! About $100-$130 worth of groceries in 6 bags!

All the bags I bought were less than $1 each too, so for less than $6 I have more convenient and durable bags, plus I get BETTER service with the way my groceries are bagged!

That is really a good deal in my opinion.

AND, you get to feel all earth-friendly and trendy when you check out at the grocery store! ha ha!

Get yourself some bags! And, for the record, they will use whatever canvas bags you bring in. I have 1 Food Lion bag, 3 Kroger bags, and 2 Wal-Mart bags. I use whichever one I happen to have with me.

Don't worry about forgetting to bring it with you! After you have used these once to get your groceries, you will love it so much you will NOT forget to bring them with you the next time you go out!