Krystle's Saving Series Part 2: The Stockpile- Essential for Any Super Saver

So you know how to coupon, but now you want to take you savings even further. That is where the stockpile comes into play. The stockpile and couponing go hand in hand. In fact if you build up your stockpile enough, there will be actual weeks where the only things you will need to the market for fresh would be fruit/veggies and dairy. I can't even begin to describe how awesome my stockpile has been to my family. DEPLOYMENT is what primarily springs to mind. Most military couples can tell you that the first month or so of a service member's deployment can be trying financially. All that overseas/combat pay hasn't kicked in yet, but it doesn't negate the fact that the service member still needs stuff on top of the regular expenses the family still bears. There's the $100 for internet (which is a necessity! Although more and more bases are starting to offer free wi-fi, the smaller bases do not and the $100 is a monthly fee), care packages (shipped at a discounted rate if you use a flat rate box at the post office, although most of us usually spend about $50-$100 filling up that box), and of course whatever incidental expenditures that the service member needs to make. SO....when the budget was getting a bit tight, I was able to rely on my stockpile to cut food expenses,  take care of any toiletry expenses, keep my kid in pull ups at night as he learns to "hold it," and give an selection of things for me to send to my husband (he has also used the stockpile to send things to his friends when they were overseas as well). Not to mention the great feeling of being able to donate food to the local food pantries without breaking your own bank account.

The main food stockpile- my pantry.

FIND YOUR STOCKPILE LOCATION(S)

Where are you going to put your stuff? When you start stockpiling- it can take over your house! I have about  6 different locations in my house. In my kitchen in the main food stockpile in our pantry as well as an additional kitchen cabinet that is used for overflow from that stockpile (it does happen!)

Then there are two in the cabinets under the sinks in the master bath. The one under my sink is shampoo/conditioner/face wash/ face lotion and then all the girl toiletries (make up, razors, tampons, pads, body wash etc.)

 Then there is the cabinet under the husband's sink- guy toiletries, sample sized toiletries, toothpaste, tooth brushes and mouth wash

The overflow from these is in the guest bathroom (no picture) and I put all the toilet paper, paper towels, diapers, baby wipes, bottled water, and smelly stuff (candles, sprays for the house and all those smelly "are they decor or are they fragrance things?" that glade/airwick/lysol like to come out with every other week) in a closet at the end of the hall.

Keeping the stockpile divided like this helps it to not take over our house by being stuck in one location. Plus  they are in practical locations. Toiletries should be in the bathroom, food should be in the kitchen. Of course, MY stockpile is not YOUR stockpile. You have to live with it, so make sure it's how and where you want it to be.

INVEST IN A DEEP FREEZER

Once my stockpiling started to really take off, Kiel and I waited for a good deal on a deep freezer to keep in our garage. We found eventually found at Target and pounced on it. While all the dry foods and toiletries are the bulk of my stockpile- we can't leave out meats and frozen foods. I LOVE those steamer bags with broccoli and when they are on sale I buy them up! Plus I very rarely buy meat every time I go to the store. It's more so every 4-6 weeks to be honest. I'm VERY picky about the meat I buy so when it is on sale- I BUY IT UP, divide it in freezer bags with the date written on it and thrown in the the freezer, The freezer in the kitchen is pretty tiny so having a second freezer has been a godsend. PLUS what about all the fun frozen items? Like ice cream?! Last week Albertson's was having a great sale on ice cream and popsicles so I bought about 5 of 'em and keep the ones that we haven't opened yet, in the deep freezer.

Warning: MAKE SURE TO DEFROST IT EVERY FEW MONTHS!!! Kiel and I learned this the hard way. The frost built up had broken the seal and we ended up losing hot dogs, chicken, veggies and (GASP!) two corned beef briskets I had bought when on sale around St. Paddy's Day. Thankfully I paid less than $20 for everything in there, but it was a shot to my frugal heart.

Now on to building the stockpile...

This is where the hints from the previous blog come in to play. Look for sales, prepare your coupons. But there are a few things to remember when it comes to the stockpile-

IT'S NOT ABOUT WHAT YOU NEED RIGHT NOW- IT'S ABOUT WHAT YOU NEED...PERIOD

If I have a pantry full of Campbell's tomato soup- am I hurting for more of them? No. But that doesn't mean in a few more months I won't need them. Did I really need to do 5 multiple transactions at Walgreen's for diapers when I already had 5 packages of them at home. YES. Because I was able to buy those diapers for $3 a pack! And I have no idea if a similar sale would be going when I actually run out of diapers. So I pay $3 now and that means I won't have to run out and pay $10 for them later.

Every time we buy a new tube of toothpaste it makes us chuckle because we already have a lot of it. But I'm able to get that toothpaste for either pennies, for free or with an overage (when I'm basically paid to take it out of the store). So what's the point if we add another to the pile? It's not like I'm not ever NOT going to need toothpaste.

MAXIMIZE YOUR SAVINGS!

I know it sounds crazy paying money for coupons, but sometimes a coupon clipping service really is the way to go. I recommend The Coupon Clippers, because their prices are decent and the coupons will get to you quick.  They have a great selection of coupons, but if you are looking for which kinds to bulk up on, go for toiletries, dry pantry items (like chef boyardee, or barilla pasta), condiments, cleaners and paper items (like toilet paper and paper towels). You can also see about having some of your non coupons buddies giving you their coupons (when I was on the campaign trail, Joe Hogan, one of the Assembly members I was the CM for, used to give me the coupons he didn't use. Better he give them to me than to the recycling bin, right?)

RAIN CHECKS! DON'T BE AFRAID TO ASK!

When certain stockpile items go on sale, don't think you will be the only person that is going to notice. You may walk into that store with your hand full of coupons and clean car ready to be packed full of goodies, just to notice the shelf has been cleared out. Ask the staff when they will get their next delivery. If it will be after the sale, ask for a rain check. A rain check is a piece of paper they will give you guaranteeing the sale price at a later date so you can come back and buy what you wanted at the sale price even if the sale is over. I also go to nearby stores and check if they have what I want to because some stores run out before other stores.

DON'T BE AFRAID TO ADMIRE YOUR STOCKPILE

I do it all the time :)