Eating from the pantry

During January, I did some reading on one of the money-saving blogs I follow and thought I would try out one of the ideas. It's so simple...I wonder why I had to read about it instead of thinking of it on my own. However, I think it's something we all tend to do. When I find a good deal at a store and I have coupons to boot, I tend to stock up. What happens after I stock and stock and stock? I forget about what I have on those shelves, items get pushed to the back and I end up not spending money wisely even though my intentions are good. This particular blogger had designated January as "Eat from the pantry" month at their house. The idea was to make a grocery list based on what was IN the pantry and then purchase only the additional items needed and other fresh foods. (fruit, veggies, dairy, etc.) She was quite amazed at how many meals she was able to put together using only those items and therefore saved a huge amount on groceries for the month.

Now, I'm not as big of a stocker as some out there, but I do have a considerable amount of food on shelves in the basement. So, I then and there decided to make February our month. (Of course, we were out of town for a week, but we didn't buy snacks on the road. Everything we had I had taken from the pantry.) I may extend this a bit as February is such a short month. I must admit, it's tough for me to pass up a good deal so I've just been trying not to look at any sale adds! :)