Are you Buying Ahead?

I had a talk with my MIL last week, and we discussed a phenomena for us- people who go to the store, and buy groceries 'for the week'. This is so foreign to us, we tried to remember the last time we had done this. Yes, we go and need to pick up a few things here and there, and when the mood strikes us we may get a special item.

 For the most part, we always engage in the 'buy ahead' principle. We buy what we will use, when it's on sale, in large quantities.

 Several factors play into this. Expiration dates, budgets, and what's available. Do some of you remember my 20 packages of cream cheese? No, I won't use 20 packages this week, month, or through this calendar year. But with the holidays coming up, birthdays, and the ability of cream cheese to be frozen, I won't be buying cream cheese until May (it expires in april). Now can we live off cream cheese? Of course not. But several of the good buys I've gotten recently (cream cheese, chex, butter, pizza, flour, and more) added together make a frugal pantry that I draw from. We also have beef from a local farmer, so that's not in our weekly grocery budget. Another way we save is growing our own spring mix in every loose planter in winter, and in our cold frame.

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This is a great way to save $$, live semi-organic, and teach the kids about gardening.Buying ahead and small scale growing also is a way to live a more self-sufficient lifestyle. Worst case scenario? Our country will go bankrupt and grocery stores will close chaos will erupt. Then having a small stockpile of food is definitely beneficial. Not a solution, but beneficial. Best case scenario? Nothing will happen, except I don't feel like taking a wild pair of boys to 3 grocery stores. Since I have a frugal pantry, I don't have to.
Another way we stockpile? I often get those 'free samples' online, and coupled with my buy-ahead grocery principle, I'm hoping to stay out of the grocery store in the month of december. Stay inside and toasty, sipping hot chocolate, and a built in savings for presents!
What do you do to save $$?