a penny-filled pantry

I have always been somewhat frugal and I think this comes from my upbringing. I was taught to work hard and to take care of what God entrusted me to have. I know that money doesn't grow on trees, although I've often suggested this idea to God, but I also know that I was blessed with health and a drive to do well (aka "achiever" for those of you who speak "Strengths-talk"). So I find it funny that I'd never used a coupon before in my life until this year. I mean, I remember my mom using coupons when I was growing up and I'd use the occasional coupon at the mall, but I never thought about using coupons for groceries until this year. I went on a girls weekend trip with my college roommates early this year and while we were there, one of my roommates, Whitney, was telling me about how she uses coupons to get a lot of her toiletries for free. That was it. I was hooked. I went home and googled everything I could about coupons and how to get groceries for free. Its like a game. And it definately has a high. I mean, you go in, get a bunch of stuff, watch your total go up to like $75 dollars, feel your stomach knot up, have the cashier scan the coupons and turn to you and ask you for something like 45 cents!! Bam, you're high! And, on a rare occasion, I've had cashiers look up from the screen with a puzzled look and say "I don't know if I'm allowed to do this or not, but its telling me I owe YOU money, so here it is!" The most I've ever "made" grocery shopping is a little over $2. I actually have a cashier "friend" at one of the grocery stores I go to and she pretty much cheers me on at the register! How fun is that?! She will ask the bagger and I to guess what the total will be before she rings up the last coupon and she will make a big production of it (drum roll noises, a little dance, etc) and then scan the last coupon and all I can do is grin (because remember, at this point I'm high) and laugh and take my mostly free groceries out the door. I learned all the coupon policies at all the different stores, learned the lingo and what works and what doesn't, who "stacks" coupons, what "ExtraBucks" are, and when triple coupon days are. Brandon and I started using a budget for the first time this year on a regular basis and we set our grocery budget each week at $15 and I don't ever go over that. We can honestly feed ourselves and have enough toiletries and other household items for under $15 a week. This spring when we learned that I was going to have to take a pay cut and we were losing some of our support (when we moved to plant the church we had to raise our own support like missionaries) I was so worried. And so wrong to doubt God. This is what my pantry looks like today...

Ask me if I can squeeze one more thing in there... ok, no I can't! And I have several cabinets just as full! God took me by the shoulders and gave me one big shake one day and said "Hello! Don't you see I will always provide for you? Can't you trust me by now? When have I ever let you go hungry?" And I was humbled and in awe. My awesome God had shown me that I didn't need to worry about the money we would be without, in fact, we don't even miss it! We have more food than we ever had before the paycut and my cup overfloweth! How sweet it is to know that I am taken care of by the ultimate Provider.

Here's a little something I like to call my "free closet" not because I got the closet for free, but because everything in the closet was free!!

I have enough toothpaste, dish detergent, aluminum foil, paper plates, etc, to last us a lifetime! God is so good to provide all this!!

Here is my most recent triple coupon trip to Harris Teeter. I got all of this plus a 1.5lb pack of chicken and a frozen pizza (not pictured) for $4.76.
In case you can't tell, that's 10 cans of carnation evaporated milk, 2 bags of No Yolks pasta, 1 bag of Wacky Mac pasta, 3 packs of Starkist tuna, 1 pack of Ortega tortillas, 2 cans of sweetened condensed milk, 1 roll of Viva papertowels, 1 bottle of Heinz katsup, 2 cans of Scrubbing Bubbles, 3 cans of Swansons chicken broth, 2 seasoning packs, 1 pack of yeast, 1 jar of relish, 4 muffin packages, a box of spaghetti, a box of macaroni noodles, tic tacs, and poptarts! Yay for free groceries! Let me know if you are hungry or need toothpaste because I've got it!