May has certainly been a packed month so far. As you know, I’ve been in the process of moving this blog and Contest Corner to my own host, and it’s been an all-consuming project. In light of the technical difficulties I’ve encountered during Contest Corner’s move, I have been spending a great deal of time researching the answers to these issues so that Super Coupon Girl’s transition to WordPress will be as easy as possible. With all this going on, I haven’t done any grocery shopping, save for picking up a gallon of milk or two – instead, I’ve been using what we already have on hand. That’s why I thought it would be a good time to declare this “Eat from the Stockpile” week here on Super Coupon Girl. Obviously, I’ll need to pick up the odd perishable item to supplement what we have, but the vast majority of the food which I prepare this week will come straight from my cupboards. This frees my time and attention up to focus on getting this site transfer done ASAP – and eating out of the larder is a good thing to do every once in a while anyway, no matter what you have going on. Here’s my top four reasons why eating out of the pantry is a great thing to do periodically:

1. Eating from your stockpile saves you time and money.

Smart couponing is all about getting the most value out of your time. You might use coupons and shop sales most of the time; but when in a time crunch, find yourself paying a lot of money for groceries or eating out. Or you might try to fit couponing into an overcrammed schedule by staying up late and rushing around like a madwoman clipping coupons – then give up in exhaustion, saying that it just isn’t possible because you’re too busy. Trust me, we’ve all been there! The key is to use your time carefully – and by stocking up on necessities when you can get them for free or steeply discounted, you’ll have things on hand to use when you’re short on time, which will help you avoid paying a lot for groceries when rushed.

2. Eating from your stockpile frees up space for future sales.

I’ve gotten into a good rhythm when it comes to buying essentials like meat – I purchase it in large quantities when it’s on a great sale (Like the recent deals on ham & beef) and pack my freezer full. Then I don’t have to buy meat for a long time while I use up what I have; this helps me avoid paying full price when there’s no good deals going. And by the time I’ve cleared out some space in my freezer, I can take advantage of the next good sale!

3. Eating from your stockpile reduces waste.

I hate wasting food, for a lot of obvious reasons. Letting food go bad is a waste of money and resources – I feel very lucky to have food when so many go hungry, so it’s sad to squander it. By eating from the pantry, I can use up what I have before it goes off; this goes hand in hand with pantry organization. I have some pasta and rice that needs to be used up soon, so this is the perfect opportunity to do so!

4. Eating from your stockpile can help you through a crisis.

If you need to cut back on your budget for the month, having food on hand is a great help. If you get sick or have a similar emergency, it can be comforting to have food available so that you don’t have to worry about shopping.

This week I’ll be sharing tips on how to best use what you have, as well as recipes and pictures of what we’re eating. So tell me, readers: How has your stockpile helped you out?

This is a question I get asked a lot. And it’s no surprise – when people see me pushing a shopping cart entirely filled with bottles of Sprite, they wonder what on earth I’m going to do with it. So what do my cupboards look like? Are they bursting at the seams?

Pasta, Ragu and Rice-a-Roni! I’m glad to have a little stockpile of these things, since they’re practical pantry staples to have on hand.

Plenty of meat marinade, drinks, and power bars.

I’m in the middle of a huge remodel, so my stockpile isn’t quite as organized as I’d like it to be, because the cabinets are still under construction! My boyfriend built this one just a few days ago, which is why it doesn’t have a door yet.

Mmm, peanuts!

Why yes, those are boxes of Kleenex next to the frosting. The bathroom is taking the brunt of the remodeling at the moment, and most of the bathroom stuff has been shuffled into other rooms in the meantime. I didn’t have anywhere else to put it, but trust me, you can’t have too much Kleenex around here.

Canned stuff. Tuna is another staple, so I’m glad to have a lot of it.

The truth is, I’m not a packrat, although it may sometimes appear that way. I don’t want to buy things simply for the sake of having more stuff – I hate clutter! I am big on stockpiling, but only if it’s actually useful to me. A pantry full of food is useful. 60 bottles of Windex? Not so much. That being said, if I’m going to get overage on an item, I’ll take as much as I can haul away. If the Windex is going to pay for my produce, I’d be a fool not to take it.

So the question is, what do you do with the excess? I’m planning on selling as much of the surplus as I can, either at a yard sale, an auction on Hot Coupon World, or even Ebay. It’s worth a try, and at the very worst, I can give it all away and will still have made a profit in the groceries that it paid for. In fact, I do plan on giving some of it away – to you, my readers! Next week, I’m going to start a series of blog giveaways. Each week will feature different, brand new items from my stockpile, along with a coordinating set of coupons. So keep checking back, you won’t want to miss it!