Favorite Finds at Trader Joe's

With the little guy and all (plus the extremely cold, yucky weather), we're not getting out much these days.  It means very little to post about without boring the pants off everyone.  

One place I do go to quite regularly - TRADER JOE'S.  There is a TJ's only 2 miles from our house, and I had been neglecting it for far too long.  It's now a little escape for me, where I can spend oodles of time wandering the aisles and tasting everything they have out for samples.  It's where I've been getting my kicks lately while James and JB have their guy time back at the house.  

For our sibling Christmas gift exchange, I drew my Should-be-Sister-in-Law's name.  (This is how I choose to refer to Shawntel, because it's more appropriate than "brother's girlfriend".  My brother doesn't read the blog, so I can get away with this...)  Because she has everything, I had a hard time coming up with something fun.  Then I remembered what they don't have in Waco, Texas* - TRADER JOE'S!  This sparked my fun idea for a gift: a basket I called "Jennie's Favorite Finds at Trader Joe's"

(*Note: I know most of my Texas friends and family don't have Trader Joe's, but you'll get zero sympathy from me about this.  You have HEB and Central Market, so please consider yourselves the luckiest grocery shoppers on the planet and quit your whining about the fact you can't go to TJ's.)  :)

In case you are one of the folks who has a Trader Joe's in your town, I thought I would share with you what I put in her gift basket (and what always winds up in my reusable grocery bag).

1. Lavendar Salt Scrub.  It took me a while to include the household and personal items aisle on my normal path, but I'm glad I did.  I love this scrub!  It has a great scent, feels wonderful, and is nourishing enough I don't even use lotion on my dry, winter skin.  It's also very affordable, at around $5 a pop.  The ingredient list is very short, without chemicals, parabens, or other stuff we're supposed to be worried about now.  

2. Charles Shaw Red Wine.  "Two Buck Chuck", everyone knows about this great stuff.   This was their upscale table wine so I paid around $3.95.  A splurge!

3. TJ's Reusable Bag. The Atlanta one is particularly festive, with lots of peaches and bright colors. I had to include one of these bad boys.  (Side note: I always bring my own bag and get to put a raffle ticket in the "thanks for being a friend of the environment" pot.  However, I have never won. Boooo!)

4. Dark Chocolate Covered Mini Pretzels.  As soon as I get home, I cut off the top part so that I can, first, have easier access to the pretzels, and, second, remove the serving size from my view.  This way, I can fool myself into thinking that one package = one serving (because that's usually how quickly I choose to consume them.)  These. Are. Fantastic.

5. Jacques' (get it?) French Liquid Soap.  It's made with orange blossom honey (which has antibacterial properties) and feels so great on the hands!  Smells good, too.  It's quickly replacing all the Meyer's soap bottles in our house.

6. TJ's Omega Trek Mix.  I love this cranberry and nut mixture, plus the fact that it comes in single serving packages that I throw in my purse or the car.  Since Shawntel goes to bootcamp at 5AM (God bless her), I thought these would be perfect.

7. Variety Mustard Pack.  This was a fairly recent buy for me, but I am loving the different mustards!  The basil one is my favorite, and has a little pesto flavor kick.  I don't know why, but we have approximately 10 different types of mustard in our fridge right now.  I can't stand French's yellow mustard (James' personal favorite), but the upscale mustards are more to my liking (read, I'm a food snob.)

8. TJ's  Seasoning Mixes.  I love the fact there are built in grinders so I can feel all fancy when I'm cooking. And, the fact that these have whole spices that you only grind up when you're putting in/on your food - genius!  The flavor is intense! 

All this stuff, and can you believe that I stayed within our $30 gift limit?  Another reason I love Trader Joe's!  If you have one near you, may I suggest you take my word on these above items and go shopping?  Enjoy!