BY HEATHER PROPS

I hate cooking. That is what I always told people. Sure, I could do it, but I never enjoyed it. I cooked for my kids and my husband out of obligation. But, if I only had to feed myself, I would be happy with canned soup, a protein shake or a few cashews for dinner. But why did I hate to cook so much? My mom was a great cook! Growing up, she cooked for us every night. I loved her food and I loved the family time we spent around the table sharing laughs about our days. So why did I hate cooking? Did that personality trait skip a generation?

Well, there is one thing I hate more than cooking, and that is grocery shopping. UGH!! Just the thought of it makes me anxious. I am never quite prepared for a proper grocery shop.

I never take the time to inventory my pantry or refrigerator.
I never make a detailed list.
I never know what to make for dinner.
I never remember to bring a recipe with me.
And now, in California, I always forget my reuseable bags!!

I am actually a very organized person and I know that I sound like a total baby right now, but I am just being honest. Every week, I put off going to the grocery store until it was absolutely necessary. I'm talking 3 dried out carrots left in the bag, an old onion rolling around in the drawer and a swallow of milk left in the jug. I mean Mother Hubbard had nothing on me. I felt bad about it, but I still tried to avoid the grocery store at all costs. I even tried the grocery delivery service from our local store. In the past, used the service two or three times, but I was not happy with it. The store’s website was hard to navigate, it was hard to get a delivery time that worked for my schedule, I had to be home to greet the driver and then he brought everything into my house in a million wasted plastic bags. The whole process was just awkward, so that was not an option. To the grocery store I went.

Until the day Deana told me how Amazon Fresh was revolutionizing dinnertime in her house. Being that I am already an avid Amazon Prime customer, I was interested to hear about this new service they were offering. Deana told me that she loved the service and that the food was really fresh and came the very next day! She emphasized how easy the entire process was... an easy to navigate website, food delivered within 24 hours, and insulated bags welcoming you at your door when you wake up in the morning (or any other convenient time of the day). There is a $14.99 monthly fee for delivery, but you can try out the service for 30 days for FREE! She also told me that even with the delivery fee, she ends up saving money every month because prices tend to be cheaper and she is not wandering around the store picking up random items that she doesn’t need or already has.

That same day, I came home and sat down at my computer at 5:00 pm. I pulled up two easy recipes on Pinterest that I had been wanting to try. In another browser tab, I pulled up Amazon Fresh. It was so easy to toggle back and forth between websites as I added each item from the recipe into my cart. Within 2 minutes, I had selected everything I needed to make two delicious dinners for my family. Then, to appease my guilty feelings, I also pulled up the website for our local grocery store to compare prices. With my fingers crossed, I was delighted to find that the Amazon Fresh prices were actually CHEAPER! Hallelujah! I was sold. I was elated. I wanted to do a back flip! My days of wandering-the-grocery-store-aisles-aimlessly-looking-for-one-ingredient-but-putting-6-other-impulse-items-in-my-cart were over. 

But then the big test came. . . . when would these amazing groceries be delivered? How long would my bare refrigerator have to wait? I clicked on the link to select a delivery time. To my surprise, every single delivery slot was available for next day delivery. Even the magical one that said, “Before 7:00 AM." What?! Could this be true? This meant that the “grocery fairy” would visit me during the wee hours of the morning and deliver everything I needed to fill my fridge before I even woke up! This meant I would be able to make my kids exactly what they wanted breakfast, pack them their favorite school lunches, and even be able to knock their socks off with a new dinner recipe tonight. All this with a few clicks on my keyboard? It felt too good to be true.

With a leap of faith, I hit the submit button and the next morning my dream became reality! The grocery fairy DID visit my house in the wee hours. I woke up to sparkly insulated green bags of fresh food waiting for me on my doorstep. Each bag was carefully packed with either reusable ice packs or dry ice. Frozen food stayed frozen and boxed food was packed separated without a dent. The apples were red and the lettuce was fresh and crispy. My kids left for school that morning with full bellies and yummy lunches, and my husband even had a tasty bagel with his coffee. I even enjoyed making my family a new and delicious meal that night that welcomed rave reviews. I felt like a new woman. I felt like a cook. 
The grocery delivery service from Amazon Fresh was just as wonderful as I had been told and it lived up to every one of my expectations. The only thing that I didn’t count on was how much I actually enjoyed cooking for my family. I could relax in the kitchen because I knew I had every ingredient that I needed. I could take my time to lovingly prepare the food because I wasn’t rushing in from the grocery store trying to whip something together in a flash. We got to sit down as a family to savor a meal together and special time sharing about our days. It was amazing and life-changing. I realized that I didn’t hate to cook after all. All this time, I just needed a grocery fairy. So thank you Amazon Fresh for helping me be a better cook!

Signed, Chef Heather (aka, Anchored Press Social Media/Stylist Extraordinaire)