Momster

Keeping food in my house — with two teenagers — has become a challenge. There was a time when the kids limited themselves to boring, easy-to-grab foods and leftovers. That meant that goods like Feta cheese, eggs, flour, baking powder, and frozen fruit were easy to keep stocked. But these days, I have no idea what they will use next. They bake cakes, make omelets, blend frozen coffee drinks, pan fry steaks, and whip up stove-top mac and cheese. Just last night, my son asked where the waffle iron was. There was no cream for my coffee this morning because of a Sunday afternoon blended coffee event my daughter held with friends. I have bought more meat since my son learned to pan fry than I have in years. And my coffee maker can no longer keep up. Worst of all, though, I can no longer rely on memory and written notes for my shopping list.

So I decided if my gang is going to cook, they need to learn to replenish. I remember my mother posted a shopping list to the door of the fridge when my siblings and I were teens. But this is 2012. So I invited my crew to ZipList. I already use the Web site to plan meals – when I’m feeling organized. It lets me browse recipes from all over the Web and click to add the ingredients to my shopping list. So I told my husband and teens that whenever they use something up or need something for a recipe they have to add it to our grocery list at (free) ZipList. They can send the item to the list by text or email, type it in on the Web, or – with a smart phone — scan the barcode on the item or type it onto the list. That way I can access an up-to-the-second list by email, text, or smartphone app when I’m in the store. What they can’t do, is complain to me when I fail to buy milk or deodorant if they didn’t add to the list.

Christina Tynan-Wood writes the Family Tech column for Family Circle, and is the author of “How to Be a Geek Goddess.” You can find her at GeekGirlfriends.com, as well as here on Momster.com.

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