In Plain Sight

Despite trying to keep my preps on the down-low, I'm wondering how to handle one particular dilemma.

Since our home has no basement, we keep the majority of supplies in our laundry room. The problem? Our washing machine broke and someone (a stranger) is coming to repair it today. I feel strange that someone I don't know will be able to see our stash.

In an effort to maintain at least some privacy, I quickly strung up a makeshift curtain:

Our water bottle supply was discovered a few months ago when our a/c unit needed to be replaced ... but I figure that collection looked more Odd than Organized.

I'd love to hear your thoughts/suggestions about how much of your prepping supplies are visible to others.

How To Work A Deal

This week's Randall's ad boasted the following special:

Basically, it's buy 2 12-packs of Diet Coke ... get 2 12-packs FREE *and* 2 boxes of Wheat Thins, also free!

I ruffled through my coupon binder (perhaps when I'm feeling a little flirty I'll share it with you) and gathered these coupons:

Just a quick digression here. I look at saving money as a treasure hunt. I'm sure there are a million ways to Get Free Stuff ... so I make it my mission to discover those ways. As I mentioned in my previous post, SwagBucks are a great resource. I also collect those little codes printed under the lids of my favorite soda. (And I promise you, one of these days I will actually have a post that doesn't reference Diet Coke. But not today ...) So, I collect the lids and periodically enter them here. I recently received two coupons for free 12-packs! I filed them away, scanning the weekly ads for deals. Sure enough, this week's special appeared and I was ready to pounce.

But not before I included this little gem:

So let's review. I received this ...

... and paid ... well, actually I *received* one dollar!

Yes, you read that correctly!

I gathered my booty, handed over the 2 free 12-pack coupons and the $1.00 off 2 boxes of crackers ... then had $1.00 in credit to spend on something else for our food storage (canned soup, also on sale and also combined with coupons).

I had never been a coupon clipper ... until I hopped aboard the Prepping Train. After learning about the importance of prepping, I realized that coupon clipping has allowed me to combine the thrill of the hunt with the security that a stocked pantry offers ... without sacrificing any of my financial goals.

Stash-Building Tips

All this ... for 29 cents?!?!

Now that I have become a Coupon Goddess, I look at the world in a whole new way! Retail prices have become dares, challenging me to find creative ways to get more for less.

In the upcoming days I am going to share a few of my super-special scores, along with details about how I was able to add to my food storage without breaking my budget.

I have become a loyal SwagBucks user. (Follow the link at the top of my sidebar to check it out.) Basically, SwagBucks is a powerful Web search engine. Every time you search the Web, you can earn "bucks". Collect the bucks, then trade them in for rewards. For example, I recently traded in 450 bucks for a $5 gift card at Amazon.com.

Truly, there are no strings attached. You'll never pay a fee for searching, you'll never pay any hidden costs when collecting your rewards. SwagBucks makes it easy to collect small amounts of bucks when searching, but also offers opportunities to earn more bucks by printing out coupons, purchasing Groupons, etc.

Amazon.com listed the 4 containers of arborio rice for $24.33 ($0.17/ounce). I noticed that if I used the Subscribe and Save option, the price reduced to $20.68 ($0.14/ounce). After applying 4 SwagBucks gift cards, I was able to have these containers of arborio delivered to my home ... for only $0.29 total cash-out-of-pocket!

Although I live in a suburban area with limitless shopping options, I know that many preppers choose a more rural lifestyle. The combo of SwagBucks and Amazon.com would enable anyone to get amazing bargains, regardless of nearby retailers.

Check out SwagBucks for yourself ... and let me know if you have any questions. I'm happy to help!

I promise that I am in no way compensated by SwagBucks! In fact, they don't even know I'm writing this post! I found a way to frugally increase my food storage and just wanted to share.

For Your Eyes Only! Top Secret! Destroy After Reading!

As the owner of an ever-increasing food storage supply, I worry about keeping my supplies both private and secure. In addition to The Unprepared thinking that we're whacked-out zombie-obsessed fools, there's the risk of those same people returning to our doorstep if TSHTF.

I tell only select friends and family members about our supplies. In reality, I would certainly help those same people in times of a crisis, so I don't really mind them knowing about my wheat supplies. By the same token, my extreme extroversion causes me to want to spread the word about the joys and comfort that prepping has provided my family. I'm thrilled that my open discussions have led several close friends to begin implementing their own food storage plan.

However.

There is one thing aspect of my storage that is so vital, so personal, so sacred that I will only show the 3 other members of my household. Its revelation is so potentially devastating that I will even lie to cover up evidence of its existence.

But you, my Internet friends, can be trusted, right? Right?!?!

Come with me, please.

Do you see it? Check behind Drawer #1:

This, my friends, is a sneak-peek into my super-secret Decadent Drawer of Deliciousness.

And today, thanks to the combination of post-holiday sales and coupon wizardry, the entire contents cost me ... nothing. Zero. Zilch Zippo.

As the kids and I were returning home with our bags o' booty, I experienced a heart-warming moment beyond compare. My daughter (13) piped up while peering into our stash, "You know, Mom, this means that we should probably rotate our Halloween candy!" What a thrill that my discussions about proper Food Storage Rotation have been internalized so well! Oh, what a proud mama am I. And now, with pride, I'm off to rotate some York Peppermint Patties ...