Not What I Thought

Recipes for Creativity

I haven’t seen Revolutionary Road yet, but it’s on my Netflix queue…I hope I like it!

I had a Sam’s club membership years ago when I wasn’t the healthy eater I am now, so I don’t really know how they are with high quality produce, which is probably where you would spend the bulk (no pun intended!) of your money. I think they let you get a guest pass and walk around, so definitely check it out first!

Stephanie

I liked Revolutionary Road, well as much as you could like an extremely depressing film.

I would recommend joining Sam’s! I wouldn’t worry about it only being just the two of you. If you go through food quickly, then it is definitely a good idea.

Oh yeah, you have totally motivated to not only to try, but to make pea soup. I’ve never had it and your recipe is so simple and it looks delicious. Who could pass it up?

Maggie

I hate wasting things too. Love the shirt 🙂
Bobby and I have a membership to Costco but we’re going to cancel after this year. If you shop sales at normal groceries you can *always* beat their prices. We also ended up buying a lot of things that we probably wouldn’t have bought otherwise, just cuz they were cheap. And I don’t think they have that great a selection… I don’t know, I don’t think it’s worth it. The thing I might miss is the $5 rotisserie chicken though.

Tracy

Hey Jenna, I eat pretty similar to the way you do and think Sam’s is definitely worth the membership. A giant tub of organic spinach that would be $7 – $8 at Publix or Kroger is $3.50! Some of the stuff is kind of excessive but their organic fruits and veggies alone will save you money. Plus their wine is really cheap!

diana

Love the blog!
I just had to say that I felt the same way about that movie.
I think the book might have been very good, but the movie was just terrible – I actually skipped through some scenes just for it to be over!
Happy 4th of July!

Cassie

I have a BJ’s membership and I think that Ive saved a TON of money buying produce there and theres only 2 of us here too. The only downfall is that the selection isnt as good as Wegmans or Whole Foods but I can get my tubs of organic spinach for 3.99 which is cheaper than anywhere Ive seen. Bananas are a good buy there too! I think that its a GREAT idea for you to get a membership especially since your a smoothie lover like me!

Lauren (Runandrejoice)

Costco is definitely better if you have one in your area! Things Sam’s is good for are produce that you eat regularly if not daily, cereal, vitamins, and paper goods! It’s just sooooo hard not to fall in to their marketing schemes! The one in my area has like zero healthy options, but I know that they differ regionally.

kailey

well leftovers for three days sounds delicious to me!! that soup looks so comforting and creamy! yum!

Darcie

I watched Revolutionary Road on a 5-hour flight from New York, so maybe that explains my lack of disappointment (anything is better than rereading SkyMall for the 100th time), but it DID manage to make me throw up. And I’m usually fine on planes! I had to pause it and run to the lavatory because of that scene in the bathroom… UGH. Just thinking about it now gets me all light-headed!

I think Sam’s Club is worth it, at least for produce. I live with two other girls and we’re all vegetarians, so we go through the fresh stuff pretty fast (it seems like you do too). It’s good for non-perishables as well though. Huge jars of almond butter for like $6 and tons of frozen goodies for cheap. We love it!

Kyle

I HIGHLY reccomend a membership to Costco or Sam’s. Me and my mom (2 people!!!) buy produce there, and we save a TON. We once added up our expenses and it turned out to be about 5-6 dollars per person, per day. That’s cheap.

We go through their huge bag of spinach (3 dollars!) in a week.

Alison

Hi Jenna,

I’ve never posted before, but I love reading your blog. We used to belong to Sam’s Club but have since moved to an area devoid of Sam’s. My family is small: husband, 7yr old daughter and me. Even so, I feel like the membership price was worth it. We only bought things that we knew were a better price than what we would pay at the grocery store. The produce, namely the huge tubs of spring greens and spinach for $3.50(!), made it especially worth the trip. I also remember buying a bag of six red bell peppers for about $3.
It’s quite true that the warehouse clubs offer all sorts of junk, but there are some good healthy hidden treasures as well.

fifi

If you can do Costco, I would highly recommend it. I had a membership even when I was living by myself – you can get great deals on produce there (I just got a HUGE bag of baby peppers there for $3.99). They also send out coupon mailings every month so you can save even more. I had storage space, so I always stocked up paper towels, tp, etc. as well.

Katherine

my husband and i have a Costco membership and it’s wonderful! in addition to household items, we get great deals on produce, as well as fresh meat and poultry, which we freeze and my husband uses for weeknight dinners when i’m having a veggie meal. it’s absolutely worth it!

Tina

We belong to Sam’s & Costco, but I prefer Costco. I agree with everything everyone else said. I buy a ton of books there for much cheaper than anywhere else. I also just bought my Blendtec there and it came with extended warranties since I bought it at Costco. We have also bought TV’s, couches, brand name clothing, and I just got my sister a really nice wood mantel for her fireplace! I also buy a lot of my organic dry goods there. It really is worth the membership, I even upgraded and now I get money back at the end of the year!

Kelsey

i saw your picture on the AG site, very cute!
i love that my family has a costco membership because the bulk sized produce is the perfect size for everyone. and it is usually priced much better than the normal grocery stores. i say go for it! 😀

whitney

I highly recommend sams club or costco card! I have a costco card and my parents have sams club. I only buy food for myself and I still buy fruit and fresh produce at costco. The prices are better and I go through fruit like its my job.

Jenn

Sam’s Club ROCKS! I get the huge tub of organic spinach there. They have lots of produce, but, of course, you’d have to check where the veggies come from. They have eggs (for your cravings)! I don’t think it has to be just for super large purchases. Plus they even have cool workout clothes sometimes, books, and all sorts of stuff. You might get your membership worth in spinach!! Have a great evening in:)
Jenn

MMiller

I used to belong to Sam’s club and now belong to Costco! We are down to just the 2 of us and we go often! It is definitely worth the cost of membership! Ours has Gass also! The savings on the gas alone was worth the membership fee! You won’t be disappointed!

Rebeca

Mmm hard boiled eggs make everything better!

I love those wholesale clubs- for someone who juices/GMs most days it’s worth it just for me. I know my parents’ Sam’s club has Chobani ctrs for 4.99 for 32oz. My supermarket has the 16oz for 3.19. If you eat one ctr of it a week, you’ll have made your money back in savings halfway through your year membership. Not bad, plus they have Morningstar, cheese, fruit and veg, kashi cereal, etc. As long as you only buy what you’ll actually use since it’s easy to get caught up, you can really save. (If you have BJs it’s marginally better because they take coupons).

Can you tell I’m the biggest bargain hunter around?

Danielle C.

My husband and I belong to Costco, we preferred them over Sam’s because they are ‘local’ to us with their headquarters in Issaquah, WA. Plus there aren’t many Sam’s around here (and about a billion Costco). Anyways, it’s just the two of us and we buy our produce there…sometimes we get meats because the prices are killer. We get the staples like kitty litter and stuff that we go through and the prices are so much better.

Lynn

The one thing about Sams that my husband and I love is CHEAPER gas!!!!!!!!!!! and of course bulk items like toilet paper, etc!

Sam

Oh too bad about the vita muffins! congrats on the amazing grass website! i posted on your last post about the coconut shampoo, well i would love to see another beauty post if you have the time!

polly

hey girl!

D, Abbers, and I are SAM’s club members. (free with hubby’s job) and love it! Besides getting Egglands Best eggs, organic spinach, organic raspberries, bananas, sometimes chicken/salmon, big ol’ things of dishwasher soap, shaving cream, and other odds and ends… we LOVE the book section!! So many wonderful novels for like $7 bucks or less. Gotta love it! I bet you and Ryan would love it, no need for a big family, as long as you have BIG eaters. 😉 That fits you guys and us guys quite well. 😛

XOXO

Kathleen

Yes, worth it in my opinion. A pound of organic spinach was $3.86 two weeks ago! We also buy skim milk there (no antibiotics in it), organic eggs occasionally, some meats (much cheaper than the supermarket but we have an issue with freezer space), some cereals (the do have nature’s path granola but it’s too high in calories imo), crushed tomato cans, large container of grapes at times or strawberries (the husband doesn’t eat either one so it would be just me eating them), portabello mushrooms at times, pineapple (was 2.99 dollars last week), water bottles (I need to buy a reusable container but I drink so much water it’s ridiculous), and soap? We still need to shop at the supermarket but we save a lot on the above items so it’s worth it.

KatieF

A Sam’s Club membership is probably worth it if you have an idea of what you will buy there. My husband and I have a BJ’s membership (very similar to Sam’s Club, and we’re a household of 2 humans + 1 dog) and we use it for very particular items. Examples include natural peanut butter, Greek yogurt, nuts (almonds, walnuts), frozen fruits and veggies, toothpaste, paper towels, tissues, some Kashi products and hormone-free meats. I would suggest going in there and seeing if you can look around without a membership and see if there are things you will actually buy and if those things are a good deal (and if you will use them before they go bad). Good luck!

Danielle W.

I am a member at Sam’s, and it’s only my husband and I in the household. For us, it’s worth the yearly charge because the produce is such a great deal. I can get a 2lb tub of strawberries for $3 and a HUGE tub of spinach for like $5. I don’t really but anything else but produce for both of us, and chicken for my husband. I would totally recommend it.

Julie

Hi Jenna, regarding SAM’S – I think you would definitely benefit from joining!!!! I’m single and live alone and I absolutely love Sam’s. I mainly buy produce, veggie burgers, and a few other things since some of the bulk sizes are too much for just me. But just for the produce alone, it’s totally worth it if you eat a lot of fruit and veggies. Their prices are amazing and excellent quality too!

Low

I felt the same way about Revolutionary Road! My friends make fun of me because I always rent depressing movies (and love them!) but I just didn’t enjoy that movie, for much the same reasons that you described.

I used to be a Sam’s member but I let it expire. I’ve been wishing lately that I still had it for bananas, spinach reasons.

Whole Body Love

Wow! After reading some of the other comments, I think maybe our Sam’s Club is just slacking in the natural food dept.! It seems like the others carry much more.

Rebecca

Your cat is adorable. I felt like laying under a blanket all day too! I’m sorry you didn’t like the movie. My boyfriend and I did a 3 month trial for a BJ’s membership and ended up never going there.

Bev

I agree about Revolutionary Road. I love both of them but that was way to depressing.

Jenny

I looooooove costco and think it is so worth it. Coincidentally on my most recent trip to Costco I discovered that mine has started to carry Deep Chocolate Vitamuffin tops- at quite a reduced price compared to online/other stores. I jumped up and down in the aisle when I saw them!

Leah

I agree w/ you about Revolutionary Road… Sadly.

Also, about Sam’s Club – GO FOR IT! We save SO much money by shopping wholesale! (Costco!) Check out my blog, I have a shopping list of stuff I get at Costco w/ prices (may vary w/ region, etc). It’s amazing what you can get. We get 90% of our fresh produce there too. HUGE bags of spinach for hella cheap, a bunch of bananas for $1.29, etc. So so so amazing! We have the executive membership where we get money back on all our purchases at the end of the year and it ALWAYS pays for the membership the next year and then some!

Logan

We have a membership at both. I have found that some of the produce items at Costco go bad very quickly though. I am specifically remembering plums and watermelon. But I buy spinach, lettuce, mini cucumbers, grapes and other things that I know we will use quickly. I am dangerous in those stores, though, because they sell such neat stuff. I definitely think it would be worth it for you to check both stores and join one for a year. Our Costco membership was $50. We bought tires there (got a great deal) and a lot of other things too. I love to buy things like toilet paper, paper towels, toothpaste, etc in bulk so we don’t run out!

Jenn Eats Nutritiously Now

My parents belong to BJ’s which is basically the same thing, and it works really well for them since they’re sticking to a budget these days.

Dee

Sam’s Club is so worth the membership fees because you’ll save big bucks buying your spinach and bananas and other produce there at a significant discount. And the spinach and some of the other produce is organic! Plus, cat supplies are really cheap, too. Only drawback is no good nut butters! It works out great for the hubby and me. Go for it!

Shelly

I belong to Sam’s and never go there- but it’s b/c the boyfriend and I don’t have very much space in our kitchen. Well, that and Sam’s is about 20 minutes out of the way. But I do love the store. My parents shop there all the time (b/c theirs is only a 5 minute drive away) and the best thing about the Sam’s store is that some of them have discounted gasoline as well! I had a friend in grad school who always used my car to gas up. Haha.

Heather McD (Heather Eats Almond Butter)

Jenna,
Chris and I do ALL of our shopping at Costco. It literally saves us $1000’s every year. 26 ounces of Maranatha almond butter for $6.25?!? That right there is worth joining! Not sure what all Sam’s carries, but we buy all of our produce, hummus, greens, cheese, eggs, and nuts at Costco. LOVE IT!

Carrie

We’ve had a Costco membership for just a couple of months and have already saved twice what we would have paid for some of the items at the grocery. I’ve been really impressed at some of the good deals we’ve found on some of our regular staples, including a lot of organic goodies.

Kristen

As long as you know your prices. Some things you can get cheaper, and some you can’t. They should let you do a free visit just to look and price out what you would want to buy and determine if you will save money. You just have to be careful and make sure you don’t assume something is a good deal. I belong to Costco and for the most part I eat the same food all the time and so I know what is worth it and what isn’t.

Tay

I couldn’t imagine life without Costco. Going from shopping there as part of a family of 7, to shopping just for me, I see a HUGE difference in that I can’t buy too much there. If you’re shopping for just the two of you, there will be limitations, but if you have the storage space, you can store bulk items, and freeze many things! And it is SOOO worth it for the produce! Fruit and veggies there are ridiculously cheap! $5 for a 4-lb container of strawberries. $7 for 32 oz blueberries! $3 for 3-lb bag of spinach! Amazing!!

Cyndie

Along with many other commenters, I’d suggest joining Costco if possible! My family was members of both Sams and Costco, and I much prefer the latter. I save SO much money because I can buy all of my favorite food for much cheaper! I save money on HUGE boxes of Nature’s Path and Kashi cereal, organic soymilk (they also have rice and almond milk), natural salsa, Sabra’s hummus, organic peanut butter, Arnold’s Sandwhich Thins, organic spinach, organic spring Mix, edamame, veggie burgers, and so much more. I rarely have to go to a regular grocery store now!

Tracey

I love Costco! I go every week and stock up – and I live alone! They have incredible fruits and veggies, great meat and fish, wonderful dinner-type refrigerated and frozen items, and huge boxes of healthy ice cream bars (Healthy Choice Fudge Bars are my drug of choice!) Costco is a must!

Lola

Personally, I think you would be much, much happier with a Costco membership. The products that they offer and the quality of their goods is so above and beyond Sam´s that it is worth the higher membership fee. Also, I don´t know if this will apply to you and Ryan, but if you spend enough money there during the year, you get money back..for us, it is always more than the cost of membership.

Costco has EXCELLENT meats, cheeses, wines, produce, and much much better brands of prepared foods like Kashi cereal, Maranatha PB and AB, and even some things that I couldn´t find in a grocery store. I know you appreciate quality, so I think you would prefer Costco. Just my little Costco spiel. We were Sam´s members for years and I can´t even stand going in there now.

Christie @ Find My Weigh

I would go for a Costco membership for a few reasons, the first being how Sam’s/Walmart treat their employees. They use very unethical business practices and you vote with your dollars. That aside, I would still choose Costco any day of the week. They have a large selection of organics and enviro friendly products. It is just my husband and I and we buy most of our produce there, I go once per week. I buy the spinach, spring mix, tomatoes, english cukes, berries, cherries, frozen fruit and we also buy meat and cheese there. I find that the amount of produce in one package is just enough for two people to get through one week if they eat a lot of produce so we never really waste anything. We have had the experience of salad mix going bad but we didn’t open it until 4 days after buying it so I would try to plan your trip for a day that you are already out.

I know you don’t eat very much meat at all and unless you have a deep freezer, I wouldn’t recommend buying meat there though they do offer organic choices. They also seel Sabre in huge tubs or these boxes with individual containers which are great because I can’t normally get through one of the huge tubs before it goes bad. Their jumbo lump crabmeat is the best deal ever, at least around here, and they offer some wild fish.

Oh, boy, this has turned into quite the book. Costco will let you walk through the store without a membership so you may want to try that.

Erica

How freaking cute is that t shirt? Your split pea soup looks delicious to me…I love the addition of egg (yayy for extra protein). Josh and I belong to Costco and LOVE it. You can get giant bunches of fruit and veggies there and its just the best. I prefer Costco to Sams club but if your Sam’s is much closer- go for it!

Jody

I have a BJ’s membership and even for just the two of us, it’s great…especially for produce. Every week we get a 1 lb. tub of organic spinach, a cantelope, avacados, cucumbers, asparagus, bananas, blackberries, strawberries and grapes! It’s also great for paper products, discounted electronics and meat. We’re working on getting a small chest freezer so that we can store frozen veggies, chicken, and fish.

I would call and see if they do a trial membership–I know BJ’s does.

sirenjess

Sorry you didn’t like the movie. I’ve never seen it but I saw My sister’s keeper and I have to say pass it. It’s nothing like the book and it’s awful. I hate when screenwriters take a book and change the entire story and leave key characters out.

I would get a Costco membership but that’s my suggestion. They carry a lot of organic products.

kilax

I thought that movie was super depressing! I read blogs the whole time we “watched” it. LOL.

Ryan (Chase Daylight)

Evan and I are going to join Sam’s here in Orlando JUST for the prices on organic spinach. A pound container is under $4.00 (it’s between $6.49 and $7.99 at WF or Publix) which we easily go through between green smoothies and salads. They also have the organic mixed greens salad for the same price. Make sure you have some Debbie Meyer Green Bags though!

Quinn

Oh sister, Revolutionary Road is HORRIBLE! My friend Sara brought it over a few weeks ago – and it was awful, just awful. I would not recommend it to anyone. Why it received buzz from the Oscars I will never know. That, and I happen to hate Leo DiCaprio as well. But, that’s neither here nor there.

On another note, I joined Costco last week, and am in love already.

Fitzalan

My husband and I belong to Costco (similar to Sam’s Club) and we don’t go all that often but when we do, we always stock up on the major items–chicken, frozen veggies, yogurt, etc. It is 1 big purchase but it holds us over so our weekly grocery trips are much less.

See if there is anyone else you can go in on a membership with. You could use Eat, Live, Run as your company name and have a few people belong together under this company. It would make it cheaper. I belong under my parent’s “company” (they own a few rental properties) with all my siblings. We all pay for it ourselves to my mom, but it is much cheaper doing it this way.

Happiness Awaits

Cate

I love Costco in Canada. Everything we have is from there. I can always trust that Costco has the best price for appliances, furniture and books, though selection is not the biggest. Meat and produce isn’t as cheap as some grocery stores around here. I also had a membership at Sam’s Club until they closed. I loved it too but I had to drive 30 minutes to get to the nearest one. I’d say that they carry different produce (brands/organic/conventional) vs Costco so you will have to check out which one carries items you would purchase. Definitely split your membership with your parents. In Canada you have to show that you reside at the same address so bring your ID showing your parents address when you join with them. Oh, we have the Executive membership and though it costs $45 more here, the 2% rebate we receive every year has resulted in them paying me to go to Costco (my rebate check is usually $200+ – yeah we buy everything there) so that covers the membership renewal and then some.
Costco’s Kirkland Signature features the Martha Stewart product line. Up here in Canada we can’t get it but I would love to try out her line.

Diane

I saw Revolutionary Road and I also thought it was awful. My sister couldn’t believe I didn’t like it. I thought it was so slow and couldn’t wait for it to be over. I’m with you!!!

Beth @ CrossBorderCravings

In college I thought it would be a GREAT idea to use my parent’s membership at Sam’s Club and stock up my cabinets for a full school year. Oh goodness, I actually had my giant boxes of pasta and rice for OVER A YEAR!! I think there are certainly deals to be had (esp. for 2!) if you buy what you know you use A LOT of – otherwise, it probably is more for families!!

Rhoni

Revolutionary Road is just one of those movies that you have to watch and then absorb. You’ll think about it for days after and just appreciate something more. Even if it’s just that Kate Winslet is a genious. But I hope you’ve seen The Reader! Now that is a very interesting and well-made/acted film!

And now I am going to have to get a Costco membership! Wowza! Those deals sound incredible…you should be their spokesperson if the wine thing doesn’t work out! lol

Chloe

Jenna, I have three words for you: maranatha almond butter. Six dollars. Costco. Go.