How I Quit Running Errands : Part 1 - Target

As part of my eliminate all the things that don't bring you joy goals of 2017, I decided to stop running errands.

Yup.....I just stopped doing all of it.

All that precious weekend-time wasted doing things like meal-planning, grocery shopping, toiletry shopping, checking labels, cutting coupons, looking for deals, driving all over Hell and back, loading up the loot, schlepping all the bags up the porch stairs, unpacking the loot, and dropping into a pile of exhausted confusion.

I eliminated. All of it.

Here's how:

Our situation
Mark and I are both full-time, working professionals outside the home. We are both very lucky to have steady jobs we don't hate. No, we are not rich. Far from it in fact.
But, I have always been a pro at managing money and we know when to splurge and when to save.
We have one cat and one dog and zero children.
*We hope to change the zero children stat by paying out the ass via IVF.

We value our evenings and weekends together like every other working professional.
We live for free-time, for down-time, for day-drinking, for parties, for date-nights, for movie-nights, for stay-cations, for make-it-at-home dinner dates, for friends, family, and FUN.

My Issue
When you subtract all the time and effort it takes for our careers, making dinners, cleaning the house, caring for the pets, sleeping, etc, we are left with roughly 40 hours of free time for the entire week.

And because of this, I have drawn a line in the sand.
I don't want to spend any more of those precious hours doing shit I absolutely hate.

The Solution
We live in an amazing time of technology. With a little "heavy lifting" on the front-end, I have researched and set-up delivery services for ALL. OF. IT.

On the line, people!

Am I sure I am saving every penny I can?
Nope.

So, now you're spending MORE money?
Nope.

Am I still coupon clipping and jumping around to ten different stores for the best deal?
Fuck no.

Am I HAPPIER now because I simplified my life?
YES. And this is really the only point that matters.

Can you do it too?
You bet your sweet ass.

The Details
I get weekly deliveries from three stores/sites: Target, Hello Fresh, and Peapod

Today, we'll focus on Target Home Delivery.

I use Target.com to buy household staples including toiletries and groceries that don't require refrigeration.

Think cleaning supplies, drug-store make-up, paper towels, condiments, baking supplies, coffee, light bulbs, vitamins, skin care, etc.

You get the same low prices and deals as you would in stores.

If you qualify for, say, a $5 Target Giftcard. It's emailed to you when the order ships, and you can use it on the next order!

Currently, Cartwheel isn't applicable for most online shopping.
I hope they change that soon because it probably saved me a few extra bucks every time I went into a store.
However, I justify this small loss with the fact that I'm not actually driving to the store, therefore, saving gas money. #winning

PREP FOR SUCCESS: This is the "heavy lifting" I was talking about earlier, but once you get it set up, choosing the items you use most to add to your cart for check-out becomes a breeze!

MAKE A LIST: I made a hand-written list of all the stuff I would buy at Target.
Yup, all of it.
I included Brand name or "Up and Up" Target brand pending what I use.

LOGIN AND LOVE IT: When you login to your Target account, and search for an item, you will see a little heart icon next to it. By clicking the heart icon, you are creating a list of "loves" that are saved for the future.

I did this for nearly every single item I would buy now or in the future.
I currently have 77 items in my saved list, and I'm sure I'll be adding more items to the pile in the future.

Each weekend, I jot down items I am running low on and every Tuesday during my lunch break, I order what I need. 99% of all my shipments arrive by Friday.

I "shop" from the saved list moving forward, instead of typing in each individual item on Target's main page.

My address is saved.
I apply any promotional coupons to my check-out screen, enter my CC and BOOM..shopping is done.

I can't tell you how awesome it is to have those huge paper towel and toilet paper bundles delivered right to my doorstep. I HATE how much space they took up in the cart!

Best part? All orders $35 and over ship FREE and are typically delivered to your front door within 4 business days.

So what do you think? Would you use Target Home Delivery for home staples?
I am happy to answer any questions that you may have.

Stay tuned next week for how I made week-night dinners easier with Hello Fresh!

Thanks for reading! XO