Did you underestimate?

[Barbararara]

Just curious how everyone feels their preparations matched up to actual needs. I didn’t put enough thought into how eating habits would change when we are all at home. Or how many cups of coffee dh drinks at work or that I would need so many freezer bags instead of my usual boxes that take up too much space. I didn’t anticipate how much laundry washing I’d have to do - proper hot soapy washes, or that we’d want to shower after every trip out. It never occurred to me that I’d need hand cream, something I’ve barely ever used.

I also wish we'd bought more printer ink and paper.

It's an interesting one. We have managed to track down a greengrocer's and a butcher's to deliver. We already get milk and eggs from a milkman (unremarkable little northern post industrial town not rural idyll). I have lots of shelf stable food preps - including all the stuff people are trying to get like tinned tomatoes, bread flour and yeast . Which I bought last year bit by bit. I also have treats like chocolate.
And dh has a panic that we need to go supermarket shopping.
Fuck that.

It would have been useful to have a second small fridge in which to put things that come in as dh keen to leave things 3 days before touching them. Fresh fruit/ veg not so happy with that plan.

I think we'd have been about right if we'd not had to move just a couple of weeks before lockdown, & leave quite a lot of our stuff in storage. Got most of our food stash sorted just in time, but there's so much we don't have. Spare bedding, kitchen stuff, almost all our DVDs (solved by getting a fire stick & Amazon prime). My exercise equipment. Sewing machine, fabric & other supplies. All my knitting wool. Most of the shoes, including wellies, sandals & a spare pair of trainers I'd bought to replace the ruined pair I'm currently wearing, I only kept them for painting & now they're all I have. All the garden stuff, we have a garden now but nothing to put in it yet as someone is storing all our plants & pots on their allotment. We didn't have a stash of loo roll, but thankfully we'd bought some just before it all went silly.

But, we're set for tinned & dried foods. Got a milkman sorted. There's a local butcher that will deliver, & several restaurant wholesalers that have switched to retail delivery box type setup, for fresh veg, flour, eggs etc. So if we need to SI we'll use them. Managed to get a spade to dig the garden, & have got some vegetables seeds, & starting a compost heap to improve the clay soil.

DH keeps insisting he needs to go to the supermarket every few days though. Makes me really nervous as it's completely unnecessary. Just eat what we've got!

Tinned veg is the only thing I fell down on. I have found out, however, that Tres Semme conditioner is shit, but oh well, stuck with it now.

I have loads of yeast but making bread takes A LOT of flour. I'd rather use it to bake so I've given most of my yeast away.

I prepped for brexit so didn't consider meat and eggs. Other things I wish i had stock piled are hand cream, yeast and strong flour. Other than that still well stocked and not had to repeat and meals as yet

Salt, using lots more than normal now I am baking bread several times week

Washing up liquid .Even though we have dishwasher had fair amount that needs soaking first or can't go in dishwasher

Most of my preps have worked, thankfully.

Flour threw me. My dd likes to do the odd bit of baking and I use it for sauces so plenty enough for that but not for bread and not enough to have bread consistently. Not having enough to see me through irritated me especially as I had got yeast. Flour is available here now in some shops but shelves were empty for a while.

Eggs too, available now but at the start when I went out after week 2 of lockdown there were no eggs at all. Froze some to make sure we'd have enough.

The other thing that bugs me is I got the dog to the groomers but failed to get myself a haircut before lockdown.

I've trimmed my fringe so I can see but with thick hair I'm prone to overheat.

We've done really well and only been to a supermarket once, last week, (I cried to myself, it was so weird) but to the local shop to get milk/bread a bit more often.

I totally underestimated how quickly two teenagers can power through all 'lunch-type' items, they are having to cook pasta now and are not very happy.

I miss hummus quite a bit, I should have found out if it freezes.

Ideally I'd have had a stash of crisps and chocolate but I'd have eaten the lot asap so I didn't bother.

I didn’t think about fresh veg/salad as much and that I’d be happy with tins. I miss the fresh stuff and making it last a lot longer and using sparingly

I didn’t realise how much more I’d have my dishwasher on. Good job I over stocked the tablets.

Hand cream too as I didn’t expect my hands to be so dry.

I didn’t stock enough tinned garden or mushy peas both of which I really like, much more than the stock of tinned carrots I have.

I was hoping DS(14) would expand the food he eats. He has ASD and limited food tolerance. Fat chance of that. Oh well.

I got some seeds in but completely forgot the compost.

Wished I'd frozen some eggs. Really difficult to get hold of them here.
Otherwise pretty good.
But I'm afraid to break the preps too much.
How many weeks/months worth of food are people getting down to before they replenish stocks?

We forgot compost too. We've used the best of our soil.

As for how much we consider the base level before restocking, probably a couple of months. But that depends on which items, as coeliac me tries to have more pasta/flour. Probably just as well as there's currently little gluten free flour to be had.

I'm a coeliac too. Managed to get a spare bag of each type of freee flour but not using a great deal really.
Our prepping was pretty lite. We have 2-3 weeks cupboard stuff now. Need to do a big stock up, can't get hold of a delivery or collection slot so will have to brave the supermarket. Hate it!

Plain flour definitely, not for me but my mother to bake with. Tinned chickpeas, where did they all disappear to. And my DH’s favourite beer, may never be forgiven. Apart from that we are doing pretty well. I agree with underestimating the amount of tea and coffee drinking going on at home. I am still working (NHS) but my son has been furloughed and is ploughing through the cupboards daily hunting for ‘nice’ food to eat.

Yes to hand cream. Soon will be resorting to smelly unwanted gift sets.
Hoping I've got enough food, should be enough for a couple months but very basic.

Should have tried harder to get a new washing machine before lockdown. Mine is broken, it's not landlords it's mine so they won't do anything. Was using laundrette machine but you have to go in garage and get change for it. Not doing that so a big plastic tub in the bath it is.

Only got a tiny tiny freezer. Should have got another one and even kept it in the living room!! Most of my stash is tinned or dried so high in salt. Ugh.

Have managed to get a few deliveries and my sister has helped by getting my click and collect order. Hopefully that will continue to be an option.

Focussed more on basics and forgot about treats, although have some.

Very little bread left cause no freezer space for it. Just lots of rice, limited pasta, limited potatoes, limited cous cous, and a few packets of crackers..

And hand soap and hand gel. Thought i had loads. We did wash our hands regularly before, but nowhere near as much as this. Breaking out the aforementioned smelly gift sets shower held and managed to get one hand soap in a delivery.

Ive done ok but I was supposed to stock up my medicine cupboard and vitamins in April in the UK (miles cheaper than where I live) so now my parents have loads of paracetamol etc waiting for me (they bought over several months as usual for me) and I can't visit to collect! Paracetamol is 2 euros50 for 16 tabs here so not keen on stocking up here.

Very early in lockdown I bought some new clothes for DS2, his birthday presents for May and a printer.

I will be making sure I have Christmas sorted very early this year in case lockdown is reapplied.

Ironically I had also just decided to stop buying so many clothes for the DC ahead of time and just buy as and when they need it (so Indont end up with some unworn stuff) but I will prep ahead for winter this year.

Maybe you can try making hummus? It needs tahini, chickpeas, lemons and garlic all of which stores well.

We‘ve been pretty happy with our prepping. Where I am the stores were initially out of toilet paper, and are still missing dried pulses and flour. Next time I would stock more pulses since they keep for years and currently it is not clear when we will get the chance to replenish.

We manage with a tiny freezer compartment in the fridge and wouldn’t need a freezer since we don’t eat much meat or processed stuff. IMO not having an extra freezer is better for the climate and it is not failsafe as it depends on having uninterrupted power.

Since recently we have 5 chicken. They are great fun and will start laying eggs next month. These will be expensive eggs since we had to get coop and run etc.

I‘ve ordered an oximeter which arrived today.

@DaffodilsDaffodils my vacuum cleaner broke down a fortnight ago and I managed to replace it via argos. I opted for click & collect at Sainsbury's as I had to do a food shop. Argos is still delivering though I don't know what the lead times are. Maybe you could try Argos or John Lewis as they do their own warranty on top of the manufacturers guarantee.

Pasta
Hand Cream
Cheese

But I prepared for four weeks at a time not a proper prepper and we could have lasted longer but my cats look like they could eat me without their dreamies,