Un-stuffing Freezers and Pantries

Article submitted by Vickie Dellaquila, owner of Organization Rules, Inc.
For more information, she can be reached at 412-913-0554 or by e-mail: vickie@OrganizationRules.com, or visit her website: www.OrganizationRules.com.

Do you have enough food in your pantry and or freezer to feed a small town for six months to a year? This article may be just for you! Many seniors have overstuffed pantries and freezers. How many of you while out grocery shopping found a great deal of canned vegetables or frozen bread dough and buy a bunch of it, because after all what a deal! You go home and stuff your freezer or kitchen pantry with your frugal find. You think to yourself "Wow, did I find a bargain!" A year later you go down to the freezer or pantry to retrieve something and that bargain item is still sitting on the shelf. Was it really bargain?

Finding food items on sale and stocking up on them is a great idea, however if you do not use them or have space for them, why buy them? So many people fall into this trap of trying to save money, stock up, and have it on hand. It can work only if you use what you bought. Our lives change and so should our shopping habits. When my daughters were little, we bought a lot of cereal (on sale, with coupons and stocked up-sometimes 15 boxes at a time!). I kept shopping this way as my kids grew up and notice I had more cereal sitting on the shelves for longer amounts of time. I forgot to adjust my shopping habits to fit the needs of my growing and changing family. Now I do not buy nearly as much cereal as I use too. Many people forget to make this adjustment, especially seniors. Maybe you had a large family-six kids. Now the kids are all grown and on their own and there is just the two of you- maybe you need to adjust your purchasing habits.

Food goes bad after awhile. The freezer foods only stay good for so long. Next time you clean out your freezer and have to throw out your bargains-think about it in terms of dollars. For example, you paid $5 for that frozen bread dough and now you need to throw it away because it is freezer burnt. You are not just throwing the frozen bread dough in the garbage, you are throwing $5 in the garbage and wasting food.

As far as the pantry goes, do really want to open up and eat a can of soup that has an expiration date of 02/05/89? Think about it.

If you really found some great bargains and cannot pass them up-great stock up. Keep some for yourself that you will use, and pass the rest onto your local food pantry. You are helping out someone in need. You may want to consider going through your food monthly and giving food to the pantry on a regular basis.

Remember think before you buy and change your shopping habits as your lifestyle changes.