Food Storage

I remember my mother, as did many old-time farm folk, always had a canning closet full of food that had been prepared during the summer (a time of plenty) to be eaten during the winter (a time of scarcity). Before the convenience of a market as close as your car will take you, folks routinely canned and preserved food for winter usage. In these uncertain times a lot of us are wisely trying to keep more food, fuel and emergency supplies on hand. My DIL wrote this guest post about food storage. (If you missed her post on couponing you can read that here. And check out her blog for ongoing coupons, deals, and more ways to save.)

Food Storage.
Also called stockpiling.

Chances are you either know what that means, or you couldn't care less.

So today I want to talk about:
What it is
How to get it
And why some people don't.

Food Storage is security.

Basically by building a stock pile of foods and goods that your family uses on a regular basis-you are preparing for the future. Kind of like the Biblical principle of the Egyptians storing away 1/5th of their grain in the "FAT" years. (Genesis 47:24) Then if one of those "rainy days" comes along and you have less pay then expected or NO job at all-you'll still eat. If you need to pay an unexpected bill-you can stop buying groceries and put that $ towards the bill.

Stockpiling food actually saves $ too. If I stock up on tuna when it's .25 a can and buy enough till the next sale-I don't end up paying $1 a can. That's just an example from 1 item. I try to do this with everything;)

How to store Food:

Simply one can or box at a time. That's the secret. Just get started. Before you know you'll have a nice little stash of goods. No one is saying to go stock the garage with a silo's worth of wheat! But if you see a sale on your brand of Peanut Butter for the week-by all means grab an extra one or 2 and tuck them away.

Most of the items in a food storage will have a long shelf life such as canned veggies, tuna, dry milk etc. There are plenty of commercial food storage sites on the net available to buy #10 cans of food from. While I have some of those, most of our food in storage comes from the good ol' grocery stores where I buy things in multiples, when they go on sale -with coupons of course:)

I find there are only really a few reasons people don't build a food storage.
Maybe 3.

1. They don't want to offend God.
2. They worry where they'll put it.
3. They're barely getting by now, so afraid they can't afford it.

#1: I don't know how many times I have heard someone say that they don't need Food storage because "God will provide". This is true. All that we have comes from Him. He is our great provider. But I can tell you I have never felt He is mad at me because I have had an extra case or 2, OK 5, of Hormel chili laying around. In fact I think He has been very happy when hard times have hit people like my Brother when he lost his job, or our neighbor's daughter and I was able to give them a good load of food and toiletries because I had a stockpile.

Trust me, we do not offend Him by taking some thought to be a little prepared. I mean really if our children do a little more then expected do we get mad? Why would food, an every day basic need, anger Him? Especially if there are children at home...He doesn't want us to wait for Manna, He wants us to get prepared for some of the things He's already told us will come: famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in divers places. (Matthew 24:7)

I have a feeling those will affect the food chain...

#2: Some of my first Food storage used to be in the cardboard cases I brought them home in and then tucked them under a bed. I now keep 5 Gallon buckets under another bed filled with Oatmeal, rice, wheat, dry milk, pastas etc. that we buy in bulk. Mac n cheeses, crackers, cereals, puddings etc. go on shelving. (We don't have a basement, so if we can do it-YOU can too:) Sugar is kept in galvanized trash cans with lids that I just throw the packages in that I bought for that reason alone, with flour in another as well.

#3: Might be the only excusable reason for not starting a stock pile. Most times though it can be just a mismanagement of one's $ that leaves them without even a dollar or 2 to put towards Food storage each week. I myself have had to ask if my kids really needed another $20 toy that would break in 2 days or should I buy 5 cases of canned Food at Aldi for that?


I put the toy back-I'll let them splurge at the yard sales...
Or better yet wait for Grandma to visit! :)

Really, in this uncertain economical time we live in, being prepared will be a blessing to your family. Please consider getting started today it only takes an extra can or box and you're on your way!

For more articles on Food Storage visit these great sites:
Prepared LDS Family GREAT! pics. of a food storage (much neater then mine;)
Safely Gathered In Food storage ideas,recipes, and Emergency Preparedness
Everyday Food Storage-great recipes to use your food storage with.

Coupon Queening 101

My daughter-in-law is a fantastic couponer. The stores pay her to shop there. She many times comes away with paying nothing, to having money handed to her after she shops. I've never been very good at couponing so I asked her to write this guest post to teach me, and you, how she does this. And I don't know how she finds time to do all this while managing a large family AND maintaining a fantastic blog all about being frugal at All Things Frugal 4-U And Me

History of Coupons?

The stigma used to be that only Poor people used coupons.
Coupons have been used in America since the 1800's.
C.W. Post really kicked off the use of coupons when he began to offer costumers .01 off their Grape Nuts cereal in the early 1900's.
Coupons are used as a way of advertising and to market a product.**

Coupons are also a bit of a confession that a company's product is over priced if you need a coupon to begin with. With today's economy Coupon stigmas are long gone. It is so HIP to be frugal these days;)

Where to get coupons:
*Sunday papers obviously (although I don't have a subscription to it:)
*In Magazines (the Wal-mart Mag ALL YOU is a great one. It can also be ordered as a subscription from Amazon)
*In grocery store flyers-many are Manufacturer coupons & can be redeemed ANYWHERE
*Contact companies and get on their mailing lists
*Order them from a coupon service Thecouponclippers.com This site has the Sunday coupons ready to buy up on Sat. morning
*Recycling centers can have the coupons left in the papers (get permission first)
*Ask paper boys you might know if they have left over inserts.
*Tell your neighbors to save them for you.
*Hold a Coupon party and swap some-Yes! they do that.
*Start a coupon train, you put what you don't need into a envelope and pass it on to be added to or taken from.
*Start a basket at a school or library like the penny jars. Have a coupon drop it off. Need one take it.

Printable coupons from the Internet (a few of them)
coupons.com
Coupon Bug
Coupons Inc.
Smart Source
Mommy $aves Big
also just Google search "printable coupon for _______________"

Most of the printable coupons on the Internet that you'll find are called "Bricks" coupons. Bricks means the Manufacturers have put up a brick wall;) A block so you can't print the coupon endlessly. Most of the Bricks will print twice from every computer you have access to, as long as no one's already printed the coupon from that computer-they keep track with codes. Some bricks coupons will reset each month or later in a promotional run.

Coupons.com and the other sites listed above are also bricks coded so you can print each coupon twice from them as well.

Some stores are leery of accepting printed coupons, others just won't. Every store is entitled to their own Coupon Policy.

DO NOT EVER PHOTO COPY A PRINTED COUPON-THAT IS FRAUD! There are special markings on a printed coupon that disappear when photo copied. After you print a coupon you'll notice in the background in the center of the coupon is a blurry rectangle image or logo-that's a watermark. That's proof it's a legit coupon. Also under the doted bar code usually in the upper right, the numbers under it change with each print. (Just a couple of things to point out if a cashier doesn't want to take your coupon because she thinks it's a copied version)

If you come across a printable "too good to be true" coupon-it probably is. Recently there have been FREE multi-packs of Bounty coupons out. So BEWARE, there ARE fraudulent coupons to print out on the Internet. Most of these will come from Blogs or personal sites.


How to organize Coupons now that you've got some?

At first an envelope in your purse will work. Then you might go to the Accordion folder style or a recipe type box. If you become really serious you'll want the Granddaddy of them all-the Coupon Binder:)

Read how to organize him here. Or see more photos here.

How to use coupons:

*Best way is to wait for a sale, then combine it with a coupon of multiples! If you like Skippy Peanut Butter you could use your .50 off that $1.79 jar and pay $1.29. But why do that if you can wait till it's on sale for .99 and then snag it for .49?

*Most coupons usually come out about 3+ weeks before there will be a sale on the product. They want you to go blow that coupon-don't a sale most likely IS coming.

*You can combine Manufacturers coupons WITH Store coupons.

*If you get a lot of coupons tear the inserts apart so you have all of the same page. Then cut them with a paper cutter-NOT SCISSORS:) You'll be there forever.

*Don't get flustered at the check out! It's OK. Cashiers get grouchy cause they're tired not because you hand them a coupon. (And if they do- then hey sorry for them) I usually just lightly say "it all helps these days huh?" as I hand them 40+ coupons LOL! I'm a regular and they don't even bat an eye... Being nice goes a long way too. Remember they're going to be working their entire shift no matter if your in their line. 6 hours is still 6 whether coupons are involved or not. They have a job because you help pay their paycheck... Don't let them be rude to you.

*If there's a sale that's B1G1F (buy one get one free) you can mix that with a coupon for even more savings. Then the first one you buy is cheaper.

*If you have a coupon for something and it would be free get it! Even if it isn't your brand think Food Pantry, Homeless Shelter, etc. If you don't coupon, start for that reason alone.

*Check those clearance bins! Plenty of goodies have been found there to be used with a coupon. Sometimes you'll get paid to buy things if they cost less then the coupon deduction or you may just snag some free stuff because the store chooses to price down the coupon.

*Coupons are the same as cash. It's a form of tender for a bill. The stores have to wait a little bit to get reimbursed but they make .08 per coupon back for it. In the end they're making $ to take your coupon.

*Don't forget to get your rain checks if a product is out. Then hit up some coupons!

*You can buy something for a rebate with a coupon. However, some Companies are starting to deduct the coupon amount from the rebate check you'll get. Some, just so you know.

*I love this last tidbit.
Did you know that most Millionaires use coupons or are married to someone who does? From the book The Millionaire Next Door
LOVE IT!


There you go, a crash course in Coupon Queening 101

HaPpY SaViNgS Ya'll:)!!!!!!!!!!