Amazing Discovery at Schnucks

Grocery shopping since we've gotten back has been a rude awakening to me. Having to completely restock pantry items and household necessities really adds up and I was having a bit of sticker shock to how much prices have gone up on items in the US. Now granted I've really probably been spending the same amount of $US the whole time I was in England but the prices look so much better in GBP. Since I didn't look at the US credit card bills I didn't really see how much we were paying in dollars, but now I'm freaking out! Since we were living on the west side of Peoria, my closest grocery store was actual the Walmart on Allen Road so I have gone there a couple of times. I soon found out that while some things at Walmart are obviously cheaper the things that I thought were pretty important like fruits and veg were much more expensive.

So I started checking out the other grocery stores in town to remember what they were all like and it was just mind boggling trying to get re-acquainted with their layouts and products. Kevin and I made a trip to Hy-Vee which was amazing because we LOVED Hy-Vee all throughout our college days in Ames and Hy-Vee is an Iowa based company so of course we love it! Then the kids and I made a trip to Schnucks and we hit the jackpot for finding some very special things that had been near and dear to our hearts for the past 4 years....British foods!!!! Yes, in the international cheeses section we found Red Leicester cheese but for the same sized packet that I would pay 2 GBP for in England was priced at $7.50 here. After winding through the store I saw a sign that said "International" then there it was the "British Foods" section!!!!!! I felt like I was back at Tesco. I saw McVities Digestives, Heinz Baked Beans, Spotted Dick, Lyle's Golden Syrup, Jaffa Cakes, Ribena Black Current juice, and Robinson's Orange Squash. I was sooo excited but then I looked at the prices and about died. The litre of squash like I would buy in the UK for 1 GBP cost $5.39!

Yikes, guess that would be a special treat for the kiddos if I bought some, but they were so used to drinking it like it was a daily staple that I decided against getting anything right now. I will return though to stock up on a few favorites, but when I know we are going to do something special. I know now that we have reversed the tables from what we had in the UK when US items were expensive and hard to get, but very much cherished. But for now I am still struggling to find a few items that I don't think I'll ever be able to find replacements for over here....crispy duck pancakes, Double Cream, and Tesco pork sausages. Silly, I know, but they were regular items at our dinner table.