Make life easier by shopping online for your groceries!
By Jodie Lynn

Question: I recently broke my leg and have three children under the age of seven at home. We do not have relatives nearby to help. I have heard of people buying groceries online and then having them delivered. Which nationwide grocery stores are rated best for quality, service and price by other moms? I think this might help my family if I were able to know which one to choose.

Parents Respond:
We have been using America Grocer for a good while now and find them to be highly dependable. During the summer, our household schedule gets almost as hectic as during a school year. Finding a responsible online grocery store that is well-stocked and quality should not be that hard. However, after trying several different ones, we have to give America Grocer five stars. It is best to order early during the week as ground shipments take from two to five business days. See www.americagrocer.com for more information. Do not place orders on the weekends, especially if you are ordering something to be shipped internationally. They could possibly sit in a warehouse over the entire weekend. - Bonita V. El Paso, TX

Due to an overwhelming abundance of allergies, we have switched to organically grown food only. The best place to shop online for this type of food, fresh and otherwise, is Planet Organic. Just remember, they mostly deliver in the California area, but will ship orders elsewhere. For example, we now give organic food as gifts and the store has shipped most of these for us. - Elisa Jones in San Francisco, CA

We use Peapod, but they only deliver in the DC area. Since I am not sure where you live, check their site for details on shipping to other areas. They have an awesome online store with several hundred-food items to choose. The delivery is fast and the food has always been fresh so far. See www.peapod.com for more information. - G. T. in Port Angeles, WA

FROM JODIE: There is a wide array of online grocery shopping sites and some even include specialty foods. It is extremely important to get familiar with delivery areas and whether or not they offer fresh or frozen food items. Some of the sites have plenty to get excited about, especially online tips, recipes and even tools to help customers to stay on budget or find a sale. Many accept coupons and if you go to www.local.com, you can check to see which local grocery stores will deliver food right to your door. In fact, Amazon.com has also branched into the online grocery shopping experience. Check out www.amazon.com/grocery for additional details. Getting an account set up for the first time is about the hardest part in the online grocery shopping experience and for the most part seems to be pretty easy. You can even shop for the same or similar items as earlier orders once you have an account.

CAN YOU HELP?

My 17-year-old daughter is trying to earn extra money for college and started selling things on eBay. Somehow, and believe me, we have searched high and low through their online information for the reason, they are actually bullying her. How is this possible? The number one thing that I have noticed in my personal research is that their rules and regulations change frequently. As a parent, I think eBay has gotten very out of hand. I would really like to hear some great "DO" and "DON'T DO" tricks of the trade.

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To share parenting tips or submit questions, write to: Parent to Parent, 2464 Taylor Road, Suite 131, Wildwood, Mo. 63040, or, to direct2contact@parenttoparent.com via e-mail. If you are reading the column online, please use our secure CONTACT Form. Submissions must include writer's first and last names or initials as well as their city and state. Lynn's website is www.parenttoparent.com. Her latest book is "Mom CEO (Chief Everything Officer) - Having, Doing, and Surviving It All!" (Stacey Kannenberg Unlimited, an imprint of Cedar Valley Publishing, $14.95).