I'm not hoarding!!

@luke O got shit from a cashier for buying 8 boxes of oatmeal. Each box has 10 packets. I go through 7 packets a day. So it's not even 2 weeks worth
 
@luke The crazy thing is, everyone I see seems to have a stocked pantry on the regular and I don't understand that. Besides some baking things, I don't have much of a pantry, which is totally changing after all this nonsense. I wish folks would just mind their own business. I only had 2 kids and people were telling me all the time that I have my hands full. I don't mind if this social distancing thing continues while we're at the grocery store.
 
@luke I only have 3 kids, but we are a big family. Was 2 seniors, 5 adults, and 3 kids. Now 4 adults, 3 kids, as we moved with our brother and sister. So it's still pretty big. I try to only go twice a month, as we are limited on storage space. I'm about to get a big bookshelf or armoir and add more shelves, just so I can buy bulk sale items. I don't like buying snacks, condiments, etc unless they're BOGO. I usually have a day I'm going to like 3 grocery stores, to hit up deals, or buy whatever usually cheaper at each store. Now I'm only going to the closest store as they have the best sanitation practices.

Thankfully our state is maxing out EBT benefits per number in your family. So that's really helping out. I'm not as freaked out about not buying something on sale or the absolute lowest price, which has lessened the stress on me. Plus brother and sister are disabled and can't work, ones epileptic, the other has fibromyalgia and can't leave the house or be seen on camera due to her anxiety, so getting them on disability is hard. Brother has been denied twice, has tried to work, and is appealing again. It also takes 6 months to a year until he can get another court date. So they both applied and were granted food stamps until Aug.
 
@luke Totally. We were at BJs doing a regular shipping (one cart!) and the lady was like "wow, really stocking up, huh?". When I told her we have 4 kids between the ages of 4-8 her eyes got real wide and she was just like "bless you"
 
@luke Seriously, including my sister in law and my niece and nephews, we now have a total of 16 people in this house, and I’m buying stuff for my brother and his husband because they are trying to quarantine themselves away from everyone as they are frontline hospital workers, we actually had a good amount of food stocked up just because we’re good at making sure the house is filled with food, but heading out to stores to keep up with all these people is stressful as shit now
 
@luke We are trying to limit shopping to once every two weeks if we can. Quantity limits have made that almost impossible though. Like 2 canned food products might last us one dinner.

I did a crazy huge shopping trip at our local club store the third week of February, when the news was making me nervous. By then soap, paper products, and cleaning products were already sold out. I decided to focus on food, purchasing near $500 worth of frozen veggies, meats, and canned goods. I also got an enormous pack of diapers.

Over the last 3 weeks, finding meat has been difficult. So has stuff like pasta and spaghetti sauce. Any kind of baking products are sold out.

Since we shop for six and once every 2 weeks, we are spending about $300-400 at each store trip. It's killing our budget factoring in breakfast and lunch for 4 kids that usually got that at school. We are too far from where they give out meals to take advantage of free breakfast and lunch programs (20+ min drive one way). Going to the store is interesting because I literally fill a whole cart, sometimes 2 depending on what we need. I get a lot of dirty looks.
 
@luke We have 9 kids. Most stores are limiting milk to 2 a person. So either I have to explain to the cashier that we actually go through 4 litres a day or stop at a couple stores. I’m trying to be careful with food but it’s honestly kind of gross how much food we go through.
 
@luke I buy for three households. 12 people, only 2 are kids. I buy a LOT. And I get a lot of looks. But ...what else am I going to do? Tell every person who gives me a look my life story? Meh, it's their fault for assuming .
 
@luke It sucks that you're going through this, people are idiots. I only have 3 kids, and got some weird looks for my normal biweekly shop for them.
 
@luke I’m sorry this is happening. I have one baby and I still feel judged. Shopping cart shaming is so common nowadays. Do people not realize how much food even a family of 4 need for a week!?
 
@luke My husband and I both went to the store yesterday to split up to get what we needed for more than a week. I usually only go once a month, but due to limits, have been going almost every week. It’s driving me insane...and I’m having to risk exposure 3x more than normal 😖 I wish I could just bring birth certificates to prove I’m shopping for a large family and not hoarding.
 
@bayerski I live in a small town so I get the privilege of having the cashiers know me and my family but just in case they have a new person or i have to go somewhere else I have family pictures with me in a ziploc bag so germs don't get on it haha
 
@bayerski Maybe you could do just that? Email your store and tell them your dilemma and that you're willing to provide proof. It can't be that you're having to shop so often.
 
@gken There is a very well known family in my area who has 16 kids. They have tried showing proof of how many people they need to feed and were told their hands were tied. They are now forced to shop at multiple stores multiple times a day just to feed their family for that day. The limits here are very strict, 2 packets of pasta, 2 bread products, 2 cans- doesnt matter if you are buying 1 each of 4 different things you can only have 2. It is impossible to feed a family on those limits let alone a large one.
 
@davidstotler 16 kids - give each kid a cart and have them individually check out at different lanes. ;) at least the bigger ones. Sally takes 2 loaves of bread on checkout 2, Johnny takes 2 loaves of bread on checkout 3, Mary 2 loaves on checkout 5....
 
@luke Right? And we're supposed to limit our trips outside as much as possible, but at the same time not hoard. But if you're shopping for several people for a month's worth of stuff it definitely looks like hoarding.
 
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