Has anyone lived off their pantry for any length of time?

**homesteadmamma** · 01-20-2003, 11:42 PM

Because of our finances, we've been living off our pantry (and stockpile) for a number of months now and I've now gotten to the point where I'm going to have to take a serious look at re-filling it again.

Have you lived off your pantry for any length of time for financial purposes? Did you run out of any one specific item?

**ophelia** · 01-21-2003, 01:46 AM

Because of our finances, we lived off our pantry for almost all of December. Luckily, some dear friends gave us a ham and other treats for Christmas, and I had a little money stashed for that too. But for the most part, we ate from the pantry, which wasn't even that well stocked.
That's what has really prompted me to make some lifestyle changes. I decided that next time, I'll be prepared!

I started having problems when I began running out of flour, sugar, shortening, and other baking supplies. I was making all our bread, baked goods, etc, so that was a problem. I'm now working on re-stocking those things first. My goal is to have enough flour, sugar, yeast, baking powder, etc. to last at least six months at a time.

**halo475** · 01-21-2003, 06:18 AM

Because I REFUSE to go out in the madness from Thanksgiving to after Christmas, we lived off our pantry during that time. This was not originally planned, but a store near me closed down and the only other store (that I can afford to shop at) is about 35 miles away and they are terribly busy during that time.

So I learned, that I need to stock up more on frozen vegies and canned fruit. We ran out of fresh produce fairly quickly, and did not have much in the way of fuits and vegies for the month of December other than potatoes.

We were pretty good on everything else. I buy beef by the side once a year, so we always have meat.

I also ran out of eggs, and had to have my Mom pick some of those up, as I do not have any substitute for those. But I have heard you can use soy flour and water for a substitute, but did not think of that at the time.

**justjenn** · 01-21-2003, 06:22 AM

No, and it's a good thing we haven't had to, because my pantry hasn't ever been as full as it should be!

**Strawberry** · 01-21-2003, 11:35 AM

Well we're in that boat right now. The last normal grocery shop I did was early November. The week before Christmas I did a very small shop to pick up a few things for Christmas and for the company we had staying with us for a week. So since the small shop just before Christmas, I have only spent $32 on groceries and I am starting to get antsy because too many things are running low.

On the postive side, I have learned that we can make due with much less than what we thought. My dh and dks are quite happy because it means mom is baking more muffins, bread, cookies and other treats. I learned I need to stock up more on toilet paper, canned & frozen fruit, frozen veggies, powdered milk, peanut butter, eggs(freeze them), and maybe freeze some extra grated cheese. Other than that I can I think we could make another month or two if need be.

Even though I am getting a bit nervous because I can see some holes in my pantry, I am very happy and blessed that we had the food to begin with.

**graci42** · 01-21-2003, 03:21 PM

My last normal Grocery Order was the second week of Dec. I will have to start restocking this Friday.

I had a 2 week shutdown at work so this month is really tight. I'm starting to get low on meats. Still have plenty of flour.

Things I've run out of and had to replace...bread, milk, eggs, sugar.

I just checked my calendar...Last shopping trip was 12/13/02 and today is the 21st of Jan. : 5 weeks...Not bad.

When I restock I'm going to work on more frozen veggies for a bit of variety and I think my entire family needs to lower their sugar intake. We go thru 10 lbs a month. ugh!

**guest2** · 01-21-2003, 03:56 PM

We live off of our pantry and freezer for a good part of each month (and our garden during the harvest months). I try to keep my pantry well stocked and replace items as they go on sale or when they run low. I buy flour, powdered milk, sugar, rice, spices, quick oats and regular rolled oats, cornmeal, etc. in bulk and store them in buckets that I get from the bakery. Right now we have cases of fruit, tuna, salmon, juices, vegis, instant mashed potatoes, and beef stew stored in my bedroom because we have run out of room in the pantry (very small converted clothes closet and an additional area in the laundry room). My freezer is full of reduced priced meats, fish my kids, neighbor and I caught, fruits and vegis that are homegrown, assorted breads, frozen juices and a few meals that I cooked in bulk and froze. We also have cartons of frozen eggs and lunchmeats in the small freezer in the extra fridge in the garage.
I buy fresh produce when it is on sale and we eat all of that we can before going to the canned fruits. Right now my sons are eating fresh salad like mad because I was able to find it on sale and combined it with a coupon to make it really cheap. We try to eat seasonally, so this time of year we eat lots of cabbage, oranges, carrots, tangerines, celery, green onions, squash, etc. It saves money and is good for you too!

Blessings,
Debbie

**Missy** · 01-21-2003, 06:10 PM

We are doing pretty good with the pantry, the last big time grocery shopping we did was in early dec. I have the baking necessities that i can use, and we are doing ok on meats. We need to think ahead next time on a few items, like t.p., and pet stuffs, but other than that we havent gone shopping for groceries in a long while. we have canned veggies and fruits. And this year I want to learn canning to make use of what i hope to grow in a garden. and i want to learn effective ways to freeze fresh veggies too that i grow. I hope this will be the year i can change our spending habits and to hopefully get pantry savy.

**Shell** · 01-21-2003, 06:46 PM

I lived off my pantry for months other then buying fresh produce. When I was off work sick it was a great relief to me that I didn't need to buy pasta, rice, flour, sugar, tp, papertowels, shampoo etc. My freezer was also full. Always try to be prepared for a rainy day!

**mommyto5** · 01-21-2003, 07:29 PM

I need help in this area because it seems like we eat the food faster than I can put in the cabinets around here. December and January have been very tight and we are stretching it and I am cooking from scratch like mad. I can't remember the last time we ate out. It seems I can't get the extra money to stock the pantry because somebody is always eating. ( I have 4 kids and one on the way with a hungry dh to boot) Any suggestions would be great. Thanks in advance. Amy

**Lori Biever-Launder** · 01-21-2003, 10:09 PM

I normally go to the store only once every three weeks. However, when I had Andrew (DS#!) our income had dropped by 40%. I had NO extra money for such "frivilous" stuff like food, electricity, ect.. We ate for an extended period of time on our pantry. During October of '92, I spent $17.35 for the ENTIRE month.

**i.m.cheap** · 01-21-2003, 10:59 PM

I think the best way to get started on a pantry (for beginners) is to start stocking up on loss leaders. This week for me, that was peanut butter 18 oz. for .99, paper towels for .30, canned fruit 50% off, canned veggies .30 each, and large cans of coffee (39 oz. size) for $2.99. I am hoping for a sale on ground beef soon, as I have one pound left from the last sale. I wish I had a seperate freezer! All we have is the litttle one on the fridge.

Deb

**QuilterMom** · 11-15-2004, 11:59 AM

**Michelle** · 11-15-2004, 12:10 PM

Originally posted by justjenn
No, and it's a good thing we haven't had to, because my pantry hasn't ever been as full as it should be!

We never seem to have the extra money to fill it up so that this is possible at a later date.

**pkellyc** · 11-15-2004, 01:30 PM

I don't know about my pantry, but we do try eat out our freezer in the months of July and December. This way I don't have to worry about freezer burn or rotating my meat, and it gives us extra spending money for Christmas and vacation. But I do remember a time when money was really tight, and everthing bought in a week was eaten in a week. No pantry then, one shelf just about covered everthing. I remember years ago getting our tax return and hitting the grocery stores with coupons and sales flyers. The stockpiling had started, and what a good feeling it was. It has carried us through many unexpected emergencies over the years, including furlough for my dh one year.