Starting a Pantry Stockpile on a Budget 

I appreciate your calm and rational approach to making these emergency preparations. I laughed to myself with the thought of "If Hilary is prepping, we all better start prepping." LOL In all seriousness, it is wise to have a reasonable amount stocked and a plan to avoid letting it go to waste. A few years ago we cleared out a family members stockpile and it broke my heart to see the bags and bags of expired beyond safe to use foods, from rusted cans to a stand up freezer full of desiccated freezer burned meats. So, please everyone, cycle through your stock piles, donate to a food pantry any items you know will expire before you could use them up. Now, I'm off to make a shopping list for hubby and myself.

Hi Hilary....congratulations on starting a family pantry back up! A word of caution though that I learned from personal experience.....be SURE to have at least one extra MANUAL CAN OPENER on the shelves with your canned goods. Once many years ago we were caught in a several day long snow event....stores were closed....roads were closed, etc. We had a fairly substantial pantry back up only to discover that we had no manual can opener! Our power was off for a couple of days but fortunately my husband at that time carried a Swiss Army Knife which had a can piercer on it. Otherwise we would have been much less comfortable :P Now our pantry has two rotary type openers stored and we no longer use an electric can opener at all.

My husband reminded me that we also need to keep an emergency supply of food for our pets.

When buying pantry items, I've also found it helpful to write the expiration date with a marker, nice and big, on the top. No more expired food surprises!

When we were first married I shopped week to week. It was just the 2 of us and then 4 in what seemed like overnight, lol. We lived in an area that had many stores and if need be we could walk to them. Then the trifecta hit us - 3rd baby, move across the country to a small town 45 minutes from a bigger grocery store in an area with harsh winters, job layoff. All within a year. I was not prepared, in fact I was clueless. I called my very opinionated outspoken mother, I will never forget her words “Nothing is guaranteed. Jobs, health, economy, weather, none of it…. Always have extra.” My mom shopped the sales, gardened, always had enough to be generous to others in need and ALWAYS had an extra serving or two of whatever she was cooking to feed anyone who stopped by. She was an amazing cook but kept things pretty simple. I never, ever thought much of it growing up or early in my marriage but I sure do now. 27 years of marriage and mothering have taught me life is really good at throwing curve balls always have a little extra. I’ve also learned that being the mom who always has an extra serving or two of dinner is an amazing thing. We almost always had one of my teenagers friends with us for various reasons and I loved being someone they were and are comfortable with.

What's old is new again!! This is how my Grandmother and Mother and now myself have always Incorporated in all our home's . We all have been fortunate enough that all our home's have had a basement cold storage room , my grandmother calls it her fruit cellar ! Full of home canned goods , everything from relishes, sauces, fruits ,vegetables, pickles and then canned items from the grocery store with a couple of cases of water. Potatoes and onions are stored in wire bins that keep fresh for many weeks and a deep freeze with different types of meat, bread and frozen fruit and vegetables pretty much completes the inventory.😊🍁

I would like to suggest an extra can opener, the hand held type, batteries and flashlights for power failures, candles also. Paper plates and plastic forks etc. I don't have a basement, so I have a small cabinet in my bedroom which has almost all the same items you showed on your shelfs. You did a nice job. Thanks for sharing. I am 80 and live alone, so I feel I am prepared. And yes I still need the feminine napkins for incontinence, so I keep 3 months supply on hand. We are never too old for some things! Hope this is not TMI. LOL 💙😊

I'm glad to see this. I was one of the people who left a comment when you said you didn't store food as I am old enough to have seen bare store shelves several times in my life. There are so many benefits and you have a lovely storage area and are such an organized person. Thank you for saying you made a change due to your viewers. As a senior living in a cold climate I really stock up garden produce in the summer (canning), then staples from August to October. Then during the cold winter months I don't need to buy much. Another benefit is once you have a bunch stored you fewer items at a time and grocery shopping is quick. I buy all my baking supplies twice a year, I am not always putting things on my list. I usually focus on one category when I shop.

I love the stockpile paper guide from the blog. That’s a great idea. I suggest anyone stocking paper products. Put them high. I never had water issues but one day the sump pump broke and we caught it just in time. This helps it not get damaged just in case. Enjoy the day

This is a very good idea. It’s just my husband and I but we always keep a small stockpile of of essentials and things that would be good in a emergency. We’ve just had a bad storm here in the UK and our water was out for three days so we were pleased to have plenty of bottled water on hand.

I do try not to stress out about using food up. Before it expires I give it to the local food bank. But long term food storage is a goal to shoot for. Buy a good water purifier.

Having grown up in a culture of gardening to can and freeze for the winter, this "emergency backup" is all I've ever known. I love the freedom to shop my home and not need to go to the store every week. When I do go to town, it's so fun to be able to shop the sales exclusively... somehow it thrills me to not pay full price for items we use all the time. One thing to remember when shopping sales/ clearance is to check the exp date! Also rotate by exp date, not by when you buy the food. Having made an international move a couple months ago, I'm still in the building up the supply stage... but it's fun using sales to your advantage.

Great idea! You might want to consider having an alternate method of cooking (rocket stove, grill ,etc) and heating your home, as well as candles and batteries. A tornado took out our electricity for almost a week several years ago and there are things you just don't think about until you are in that situation.

Been practicing this over 35 years. I keep a list of everything on hand in the pantry, and freezer etc. and I do keep a certain amount of cans, such as 12 cans of beans (that way when I look at my stockpile, even before I check my list, I can see I need to buy 3 cans that week. We rotate the items so that way nothing is expired. Basically, we shop from our stockpile each week and just add to it as the month goes along. We do have canned ground beef and beef as well as milk that set on the shelf for longer storage. We also have emergency backpacks for each family member in case of tornado or hurricane etc. And a stockpile has helped us help others as well. Well done on getting started.

I am so glad you decided to have some food storage. I have thought about your limited food supply before. You have the perfect place in your storage area of your basement. Whoever inspired you to start, thank you. A couple of tips when I grocery shop...before I place my items in my pantry, I use a permanent marker to write the month and year on the item...I place the new item in the back and bring some older items forward. Great storage containers to keep out bugs or rodents are the tin popcorn cans that are so popular at Christmas. I keep bags of flour and sugar in those. Of course, it will not keep out weevils in flour if it gets too old. Keep up the good work. God bless.

When we were raising our family my husband worked construction and would get laid off almost every winter. I would stock up throughout the year on staples that would get us through the winter. I would get canned goods dried pasta and beans, flour, sugar, coffee. Plenty of paper goods, soaps, shampoo, laundry and dish detergent etc. I would just shop for fresh food and not have to worry about the rest for several months. Yes don’t buy things that you wouldn’t normally use and rotate what you have so everything is used within their time. I was grateful to be able to do that and not have to worry about it. 😊

I’ve been married for 22 years, both my husband and my family had this growing up, so it was natural for us to do it as well. Same as your set up, just the foods we normally eat. Thank you sharing! ♥️

I really liked this video! I haven't read every comment, but I thought I'd add mine just in case two points weren't made yet. It's not as neat and orderly, but my suggestion is to sort the products by expiration date rather than category. That's what I've done and it's made organization so much easier. I know that items on a specific shelf are my "nearer date" items so I make intentional decisions about those first, and then whatever I use, I repurchase and put on the shelf that's for further-dated items. It's made management of expiration dates very easy. Again, not as orderly looking like a store, but certainly more manageable as the stockpile grows. The "nearer date" shelf is often my inspiration for planning meals or larger baking sessions if the items are dry goods. Also, a tip for flour, sugar, yeast, rice or anything else in a bag: Perhaps put those sealed bags in a bin with nice-fitting lid. Even if we think our homes are dry and pest-free, both moisture and a sneaky pest can wreak havoc on your stock of those items. I think you're off to a great start! I was surprised at the change in your way of doing things, but it's nice to have enough on hand, even just for convenience.

I just recently started doing the same thing. I bought about $75 worth of food and some water storage on Amazon. Now I'm just adding as I go. Love your very common sense/non panic approach!

When I lived in Florida, I did this at the start of hurricane season each year to avoid the mad rush at the store only to find empty shelves. Now that I’m in Texas, I do the same for the ice storm season.

I got a 5 sectioned note book from the dollar tree. I list anything in my stock pile in various sections i.e. canned veggies, canned fruits, grains, freezer etc to include the expiration dates. When I use something I scratch it out and on a separate sheet list what I need to replace next trip to the store. Also the book works great because there are lots of pages in each section so I can continue to keep track easily.

This whole concept has been weighing on my heart lately. Thank you for all the ideas 💡

Yes, we have done this for years, because you never know when it may be something you have to depend on, but it has also saved us money since we watched for sales and took advantage of those. It has been so handy to go to this inventory instead of having to buy those items every week.

Glad you decided to build an extra working pantry. I have the same setup in my basement and the grandkids call it 'nana's little store' 🤗They like to take a bag and 'go shopping' for me down there with a list and everything. It is a good feeling to have a little extra. I have to be careful to only buy things we actually use and eat so nothing gets wasted. I also keep a large supply of firewood in case the power goes out. Good video and good tips! I really like the $5 a week method that's a great idea, it can seem overwhelming to look at one of those big lists and the cost associated with purchasing so much at once. Have a nice weekend!

I am so happy to hear that you have started a stockpile for your family. I have prepped for 10 years. Now, more than ever Americans should be aware of what is going on. People worldwide are prepping and moving Off Grid. Long shelf items should be key items to stockpile.

This is so balanced. Thank you. I think it was Katherine from Do It On a Dime that talked about her 72 HR bags and checking replenishing them 2x a year when she replaces her batteries in her smoke detectors. I love this idea. I am intimidated by an inventory sheet to keep track of expiration dates etc. I love your set up and I don't think it would be too overwhelming to check expiration dates a couple of times a year.

When I was raising my 5 children we always had a stockpile of food. we had a fluctuating income because of sales and tourism type jobs. Always helpful now more than ever.

I love this!! It gives such a since of security knowing you will have those things on hand to feed your sweet family! I was told many years ago “only store what your family will eat“ and that has definitely kept me in line with not just purchasing things to say we have food storage… Everything whether it’s shorter term storage is items we would eat, as well as our legitimate long-term storage!

I just started doing the same thing and it is comforting to have regular items on hand. Thanks for the video. I love your videos!

Great start! I grew up in Australia where basements are not common so we only had a pantry. But now living in Europe we have a small one-room basement, dedicated to long-life goods. It's SO handy! I would find it hard to go back to not having one. It allows us to only shop about once a month, replenishing what is needed. (Fresh produce is bought weekly from a farm). We very rarely have anything expire, as you tend to learn how much you use. We are very careful not to waste anything.

I grew up rural - and in the north so stocking up for winter was a normal expectation. I have carried these habits into adult life. It helps when you just don't feel like going to the store or someone is unwell or life is crazy. One thing I do is I seal things like my extra flour in vacuum seal bags - it's a good idea. Also, I love canning items and canning dried beans, or making your own bone broth or stock and canning it is easy and saves money. just suggestions for anyone who is interested. Instant coffee is good for emergency - but also good if you are cooking chocolate and want to add a bit

Thank you for the great video, Hilary. It's so smart to have a stockpile of food and other items on hand. The world is changing right before our eyes and being someone who takes care of their family is admirable. You are a woman of faith and we know that is the most important thing but it doesn't have to be a one or the other kind of decision. Both are vital. Keep the faith and keep on taking care of your family the way you are. There are a lot of us out here who agree with what you are doing.

Last summer I started putting canned items, paper towels, plates, napkins, and toilet paper along with pastas, rice, peanut butter, pancake mix, dry milk, jelly as well as different types of canned fruit, tuna fish and canned chicken to have on hand during the winter months in case of heavy snow or ice and we cannot get out to go to the store. We are seniors and living on a budget and everything we have stocked is items we use. We also have about 6 gallons of water that my husband uses for his cpap machine at night. We have already used some of the items this winter because of snow storms and they are calling for another one this week end. Unfortunately the only freezer I have is above the refrigerator so I cannot stock up too much on meat but we are doing okay. With prices of groceries going up this is great to fall back on. Next week will be replacing some of the items we used and maybe picking up some more like beans. This great to fall back on in case of job loss, illness or weather. Everyone should be doing this. I've been hearing so much of doing a "prepper pantry" in the last year and that is what got me started. Thanks for the reminder to be prepared. Don't forget your first aid items also. We have an extra month supply at all times of my husband diabetic, blood pressure and heart medicine along with bandages and first aid cream.

It's so nice to have a little extra. When life gets busy and I forget to repurchase an item, then run out of that item, I love knowing that I can grab it from my little stockpile and replace it later.

Sitting here making my prep list :) So happy to see you are doing what we are doing. The world is unstable and we must be prepared but God is in control! Thanks for your lovely channel. My kids are all grown but it makes me happy to see you staying home with your children and still working and contributing to your family with your youtube channel. God bless and Godspeed.

I’m so glad to see you’re stock piling.

So glad to see you stocking up a bit! It brings such a peace of mind knowing there are things on hand. Great video and resources! 😊

I love stock pile videos. Please do more of them. 💖

I was raised in a family where everyone had a stock pile of at least a couple months of pantry staples, so this is just how I did things when I got married. Now I also have a little emergency long term food like dehydrated veggies that are in sealed jars with some oxygen absorbers and same for some legumes, rice, flour, spices, and even household necessities, like detergent and such. Enough to sustain us for a few months. I do rotate them. It gives me some peace of mind and does not take up much space. Just a shelf a little wider than yours.

I would love to see your stockpile now in March, 2023! I’m working on my stockpile and I love that you put this into your content. I watch every video you put out so I saw this one before but it was a great reminder watching it again to get mine going :)

Hi Hilary, I have always done the stock piling thing because I garden and can and now that I'm older and can't do it as much, I always buy extra at the grocery. I use a small corner in a spare bedroom for my shelving units. Having a small stockpile (because I live alone) has helped me many times in the past and I'm ready in case of an emergency in the future.

I live alone at 70 and recently cleaned my pantry and found 12 expired can goods.... I have now written on the top of the can in a sharpie the exp date so I can check every few months. One of my favorite freezer prep meat is the Hillshire Farms kielbasa vacuum sealed sausage. It can be mixed with rice and beans, put in soups, cut up and fried with eggs for breakfast, sausage and pepper hoagies, lots of options and the vacuum seal makes it last for a very long time. BTW , I would suggest tethering that shelving unit to the pole behind it. They are not that stable with little ones around who may be tempted to explore your stash by trying to climb it

I've always kept a couple/ few spares of everything, and I was REALLY glad I had pre-purchased toilet paper when 2020 hit! Lol. I need to stock up on more things, though. I wish we had basements in my part of the country! I really liked a comment that Robin (Faith and Flour YT channel) said after their Texas blizzard last year: she keeps about a 2-3 month supply of food, and said she was glad she had it, plus could share some. But the BEST part was that -- when people COULD get to the stores again -- by having her own food storage, she could delay going to the store, and thereby allow others who hadn't prepped to buy items THEY had run out of, which were (at that point) still in short supply. Another way of helping others.

I have always practiced what I called ‘ one on the shelf,’ meaning I kept, for example, an extra jar of pasta sauce in addition to the one I planned to use that week. I did this with the foods we ate on a regular basis, as well as toilet tissue, toothpaste, etc. This practice relieved the stress of running out of those items we used regularly and, in an apartment where there wasn’t room for more, it was the best I could do. It your stockpile, I would add canned potatoes and one or two boxes of instant potatoes for variety. I would also put the extra bags & boxes of flour, sugar, salt, yeast, etc. in large storage containers to protect from bugs and varmints.

Great video. Love reading everyone's helpful tips. I have been doing this for years & it really saves money in the long run. [Peace of mind also] If something we use goes on sale it's easier to pick up extra without hurting your weekly food budget because you have back up of things that might not be on sale that week. Thanks for all you share with us weekly!

I learned to live with a large food stockpile when we lived on the mission field in Central America, and it was only possible to go to the city and shop maybe once every 2 months or so, but still be prepared to feed unexpected guests at any time. I think this is wisdom, especially considering the volatility in our world today. ~Charlotte

Great idea, Hilary...I am an extreme couponer and have a pretty good stockpile of nonperishable items..body wash, laundry soap, paper towels, etc...I have been building a food stockpile now for about a year. It does take the pressure off...

I am happy that you are preparing! I really love Appalachia's Homestead with Patara. She shares some good ideas as well!

I totally agree with you and I have set up a stock pile Pantry as well. My husband manages a local grocery store in our area and we have definitely seen the shortages in our area. Between living in an area where we have hurricanes, Covid and supply chain shortages it is a very good idea.

Yes, we have always stocked up many items including toilet paper, canned goods, pastas, flour, sugar etc. when the pandemic first hit and people were trying to get toilet paper we didn’t have to be out there struggling to get items that were scarce. I’m in my 70’s and this has been a lifelong strategy. Gas prices are going up so no running to the store last minute if you’ve stockpiled. I also make my own vanilla, we grow garlic and harvest that every year. Also can tomatoes from our garden. We do not have a large yard but it doesn’t take much space to make a big impact. The key is to watch your expiration dates. I love your vlogs, Dan is lucky to have such a hard working, caring wife.

🙌So glad to see you doing this!! Everyone should be doing this!🙌

We have an emergency stockpile also. Sometimes my husband will buy cases of things that I don’t necessarily use in my normal meals. When the items get close to their expiration date I donate those items to a local food pantry.

I started stocking up about a year and a half ago. I grew up on a farm and preserving food was a normal way of life for me. My husband and I are no longer able to garden but that urge to have food at home is still strong. With the insecurity we now face it just makes sense to be as prepared as possible for whatever might happen.

Started my stockpile as the pandemic was hitting. I felt grateful that I had a few extra things to get by has I'm Immunocompromised and i didnt like going out. Watch "She's in her Apron" on RU-vid, IG, and Website. She has a hole slew of awesome ideas and tricks and hacks on this exact subject. Kimmy has been doing this for years. She has her 6 mo and 1 year stockpile. I love her motto "stock what you eat, and eat what you stock". and "buy one, stock one". Best of luck to you all. Happy Stickpiling.

Fortunately in this 75 year old house, I have the luxury of a walk in panty. Pretty good sized, 8' deep & 4 1/2 ' wide by 9" tall. All along the right side there are shelves the entire length to the ceiling. The left side, shelves are only 4' length as the back of the fridge is also into this area. The shelves start 24" off the floor, so plenty of storage for larger items, mostly used for the multiple kinds of 16 lb. cat food I use. When Covid was 1st introduced and there was a shortage on paper products, I decided to get serious about inventory of the panty and not use for so much useless storage. I have built up to a 3 month supply of canned, package foods, oatmeal, coffee, condiments, etc, all organized on the right side. The left side is for cleaning & grooming products, 6 month supply. The top shelf on both sides, I now have stocked with 12 packs of toilet paper, napkins and paper towels. There was such shortage in my area of Florida for paper goods that when they became available again, I decided I was never going to be in a desperate situation again and stocked up. I buy a 12 pk. every time I go to Publix, keeps it stocked. Of course being in Florida, I also keep stocked the recommended supplies for bad storms and hurricanes in case our power goes out. I use plastic storage bins that fit on the shelves that are about 4-5" high so you can see what's in them, sorted by category. NOTE: I had a 1 gal. jug of water break before, it flooded the pantry floor, so now all liquids are in the plastic bins, just in case. I have a large plastic tote on the floor, under the left side shelves for the water storage. I have a dry erase board, magnetic, on the back of the fridge to note anything removed from the pantry for restocking. Wish I could submit photos to share, it's not Pinterest worthy but neat and organized.

I have a 6 month stockpile of food that I could stretch to 9 months if we didn't eat meat everyday & I think it's very smart to do this especially if you have kids to feed. Definitely peace of mind! I also stockpile body/tooth care items, meds, TP/PT, garbage bags etc.... & we rotate things to use up so nothing goes to waste.

We moved from the city to a rural area- I have always had a stockpile pantry. Now I’ve included shelf stable milk. For some reason canned cat food of all things are hard to find. It’s a good idea to make sure you have extra pet food too.

Thanks for making this realistic to you. I think that is something to keep in mind when making your own stockpile.

This is something I’ve been thinking of beginning, and recent world events have pushed me to do so. Looks like you have a great start! I’d also add an extra first aid bin, some hygiene products, matches, etc.

This gives me a lot to think on. It’s nice to have some overflow. Thanks for sharing!

I really liked how you approached this! One thing I would suggest is that you put your flour and any other grains, including pasta, into the freezer for at least 48 hours to kill any possible larva so that you don’t end up with pantry flies. I had a friend that this has happened to her several times, so we do this with our grains that we will be storing for awhile.

Good job starting a stockpile of items that your family using regularly. I like the inventory clipboard with expiration dates. A big prep “item” to have is how to cook from scratch. I realized that I learn to cook based on sight, smell and looking without formal recipes. However, there was a situation where I was away from my home for awhile and I didn’t have recipes written down so I am working on that now. I might just buy a cookbook of recipes from scratch and make adjustments for our family. A couple of tips: 1. Look for food grade storage buckets to protect dry goods like flour and sugar. 2. Invest in metal shelving because the plastic ones can bow.

Awesome ideas, Hilary! I do a small stockpile, too, but only things I know we will absolutely eat. There's no point in buying things we will not use. We also have a travel trailer that has a propane stove, which is great for cooking and a wood burning stove for heat in the event we lose electricity. Living in the PNW can bring some serious winter weather, so a little bit of prepping is a good thing. Be blessed today, friend!💕

Great tips Hilary! And never question your wisdom! You are a wisdom filled young lady and you bring so much inspiration and joy to young Moms ! We always buy 2 or more of many items and as we use them try to restock as we go. My only problem is not having a basement for storage. I keep a pantry shelf in the garage for canned items and of course we have the second fridge but boxed macaroni and things with softer packages I won’t keep in the garage so my space fills quite quickly . I love the space you have set up in your basement ! Thank you for sharing and lots of love to you from our home to yours ! 🏠❤️🏠🇺🇸🥰🙏🏻☕️

Use those coupons! With good planning, you might walk out the store without having pay any money for the food! In store, manufacturers, buy one get one free, and online couponing is a must! Most of us only buy when items are on sale!

The paper products you chose are a great start but my first thought was what about feminine hygiene products? They don't go bad and that's something you really can't be without in the event of an emergency or supply chain shortage. I buy the largest pack that Walmart sells and then keep ahead by at least 3 cycles so I am never caught short. Heather xo

My extended family has made fun of my and my husband for having a "grocery store" in our basement. But 1 don't care. I know exactly what I have, I always "shop" my shelves first. And when sales pop up I stock up as needed. Just today i was able to get Gluten-Free pasta our family eats for $1 a box!!! (Regular price over $3 a box.) You better believe i bought every box they had on clearance!

Great idea to keep inventory, we have a very small pantry. .so I tend to just buy extra here or there...and for our staples, I like to have a spare in pantry, not enough to survive on but still gives me some comfort

🤗 Good thoughts Hilary! Since my children were little I have always kept an extra of the most used items, food or other. Now that I am alone (children on their own and husband passed away) I still do this. As for flour and cornmeal I keep those always in the refrigerator, I live in the south and the bugs love to get in those things.

We have had a stock pile for quite a few years now and we most definitely rotate and eat through it and also restock it. When I buy cans of tomatoes, I buy at least four of each type or pasta or whatever I'm buying like that. Also big bags of rice and beans from Costco and so on and so forth. We also have freeze dried foods we invested in that lasts 25 years sealed up. We like all that we bought so if that 25 years gets close we will just eat through it. I think with having a large family, its so helpful to have all the backup. I have 4 kids too and we go through the food and other staples like crazy. I love these ideas and printables. I think I'll revisit our precess and try to get some other hygiene items to keep stocked too.

Wonderful advice! We have a full pantry, and more shelves in the laundry room. We live out in the country, so it's nice to have stuff on hand all the time, but it gives me peace of mind lately. Don't forget to stock up on pet food as well. And a big bottle of Dawn dish soap, you can wash dishes and floors. Great video Hilary!

Yes, we have started prepping about a year ago. Last week I cleaned off bookcases downstairs and started filling up those shelves. Thanks Hilary. STTB

My mom always uses the oldest expire dates first. Then replace with newer dates in the back. (She rotates her food) She does this every Thursday. It’s always ensured that all the food is used properly, and the freshest date available. When she buys items she pushes the ones on the shelf to the front, and the ones she just bought in the back behind. I hope I’m making sense. She’s methodical. Lol. She was in charge of safety, and worked w the fda, and a planner for the major pharmaceutical, and baby formula company she retired from. She goes through everyone’s refrigerator. Lol.

Yes I’ve always tried to do this because many years ago we lived out in the country and the grocery store was all the way in town so it was a lot easier and it was before food delivery 😊. I learned it from my beautiful mother-in-law.

Hilary!! Thank you so much for sharing my stockpile inventory printables! I'm so glad you found them helpful. And YES I DO KNOW YOU ;) I've been subscribed for years. How fun to see you mention my printables this morning on your video. Thanks again!

I am married 50 years and I have always bought extra food and household goods when things were on sale to save money. Now it is a good idea to have extra because of the problems of stores not having what we need. I have always stocked up on food and especially paper goods in November to make sure I have enough of those things to last the winter in case the weather is bad and we can’t get out. We are supposed to get a Aldi store nearby and I am excited to shop there.

This is great! Just a heads-up...it's very addictive. 😆 You never know what the future holds. Most "preppers" aren't prepping for a zombie apocalypse, they are doing it for personal emergencies.; illness, job loss, lockdown, etc. It's also good to have on hand to help others who may be in need. 👍

So glad to see that you are doing this now! You won’t regret it. Stocking the things you eat is definitely what you need to be putting away. I know you are just starting, but definitely get some oatmeal because I know you use that a lot and also sugar. Just keep getting what your family eats.

Hi Hillary… this is something I have always done and will continue to. My mother who is 94 and lives alone still does this. Old habits die hard. I also freeze containers of fresh milk to avoid those” just have to pop to the shop “moments but I have plenty of room

With the Covid lockdown we had where I live , having the extras helped us greatly so we didn’t have to leave the house as often to shop for food . It’s definitely a good idea to stock up on some foods.

Great video! I would suggest that you also put any bags/boxes of pasta/rice and any flours or sugars inside plastic storage containers. This will keep them fresh and also pest resistant!

One suggestion I have is if you get any critters in your basement, you may want to put the flour, pasta, anything like that in some plastic see through totes or labeled tins. Those tins popcorn come in at Christmas time are handy! And, I agree with the others, manual can opener, and paper products. You can't waste precious water on washing dishes. But, great start!!

I enjoy your videos so much! It’s just my husband and I now (children have grown and have families of their own) But we do a small “extra /emergency” stock up. I’ve begun to do a little more stocking up because food prices are just rising so fast. I feel as in the long run it’ll save some money.as well. The list is really needed to maintain so that’s a great resource! Thank you for your content always so refreshing and so many good ideas!

I usually buy in 3s-4s one for now and a few for later. When I use up one item I buy another and add it to the back of the stack of that product. My grandmother lived through the Great Depression and raised me doing this. I never want to stockpile things we don’t use either. We live in a hurricane zone and always need water stockpiled. It takes up the most space but is a must do.

Hi Hilary, I do not like managing large amounts of inventory, but like you feel it might be a smart thing to do. I have always tried to have one back up of things on hand that we use on a regular basis (shampoo, soap, bread, peanutbutter etc.). I find it more inconvenient to have to make multiple trips to the store if we run out of things and enjoy having the back up on hand. Once I open a back-up item I add it to my list to re-stock. Since the pandemic I have just increased my back up by one or two items for a mini-stockpile. I did find some boxed water that I keep in the car and some in our storage area. It lasts for I believe up to 10 years because it is not in plastic. I thought this was a good item to have on hand. As always, enjoying your channel so much!

Yes we do have a stock pile! It is truly the smart thing to do for our family. God bless

Great ideas. I buy our oatmeal from the bulk bin. As soon as I get home it goes in the freezer, because I keep the container we are currently using in the kitchen. When that container is empty, I always have the extra in the freezer, then replace it. Rice, beans, pasta, PeanutButter, tuna, sugar, flour, oatmeal can go a long way in any emergency. Thanks for sharing.

Great video and information. I will definitely be looking at those resources. I haven’t created a dedicated stock pile, but I have definitely noticed in the past several months I have been trying to buy more each trip than I used to! It really does give me more peace of mind!

We must be on the same wavelength. I was just talking about being prepared yesterday and plan to get started tomorrow. Thank you for the planning tips and lists. Your stockpile looks great and I'm inspired! ❤

I put the rice, and flour(in their natural packaging from the store, in freezer bags) in the freezer, for about 3 to 5 days to help kill any eggs or bugs, and then take them out, let it defrost. Then put in our pantry, in the container they came in the store, but in large Ziploc bags. It helps keep weevils or bugs from contaminating your food. We also place bay leaves in our pantry, to help keep bugs away from our food. I also put our Pasta, sugar in the their natural packaging they came in from the store, but put them into plastic bags with bay leaves inside to help protect them better, as they cant be put into the freezer totreat for bugs. As I use those items, I just reuse the Ziploc bags on new items that I buy. Hope my babbling made sense. 😊

Loved the video. This strategy is a win for several reasons - allows you to be prepared in case of emergency and in case of supply issues, in case you want to bless someone else with a meal and as an added bonus it allows you to save money if you strategically stockpile when there are great sales so the future “cost” of using the stockpiled items is lower. I have been seriously considering starting a stockpile so this video is a huge help. P.S. Loving all the grocery and “meal planning” content lately. Thanks for sharing. Have a lovely day 😊.

We live in the country so we are always well stocked, I would recommend keeping the yeast in a freezer bag in the freezer, I have found they don’t last nearly as long stored on the shelf. Great start to your extended pantry!

Just a suggestion ... You may want to place heavy items on the bottom shelves for safety precautions.

We started a stockpile and bought a larger chest freezer when my kids were born. During 2020 it got us through wonderfully. It does get hard to keep organized. This is good motivation to go through it all and organize by dates.

I purchased a 30 day emergency rations kit and powdered milk for my family of 3 and now I’m definitely thinking about adding to it. Thanks for sharing your system with us. X

Hello Hilary 🌹 Thank you for this video , I started a stockpile pantry during the pandemic and slowly have been adding to it . I was one of those people hoarding tp 😂 This video is a reminder for me to rotate and check on dates. I have stored my flours & sugars in a new pet food storage bin with wheels so I can easily move it around my small garage. Be Well Sweet Friend 💜

Great job Hilary. Also grab some dried beans/ lentils and store in glass jars upside down. You share a lot of wisdom Hilary 💕

Very wise decision, dear; especially with a big family. Have you considered adding shelf stable or dry milk, for the little ones? I love the idea of dedicating just $5 per week to build your stock...it can really make a difference, even after just one month!

I love this approach to stockpiling! When the pandemic first hit I was so afraid that I stockpiled everything just "in case" and found that the stiff I bought wasn't really even things we eat normally. Over the last two years we have really figured out what foods we war on a weekly basis and your approach makes me feel like I could start a stockpile and actually use the items regularly without taking it to the scarcity mindset extreme. Thank you for always sharing such wise content, I absolutely love your channel!

Great video. I love your pantry stockpile ideas. When it comes to storing things like flour, you might want to purchase some food grade buckets and place a few basil leaves inside to keep out bugs or rodents. I have watched many youtube videos on storing flour products. Just a suggestion.