It's that fall nesting thing.

I am in stock-up mode. I am in full-on, list-making, let's get this place organized and ready for winter mode.

This fall nesting thing is two-fold for me.

One, I want to be prepared. If we get a crazy wicked snow or ice storm and can't get out to get to the grocery store for a couple of days, I don't want to run out of toilet paper or basic food staples. Hence, this time of year I take some extra time to study sale ads and pair them up with coupons to stock my pantry (which is really a set of sturdy shelves in my laundry room) as cheaply as possible.

Here's a glimpse at how it looks today:

I also buy items in bulk at Sam's Club to stock up for the kids' school lunches. It's like ripping off a Band-Aid; it hurts big time, but only temporarily, and then I'm not eating up my grocery budget buying juice boxes and fruit cups every week.

Also along the lines of being prepared, I like to have enough in the cupboards that if we invite someone over for dinner last-minute, or a friend is injured and can't get around the kitchen, or whatever other instance might call for sharing some comfort food, I can whip something together without having to run to the store.

And then there is the remaining sting, however faint, of months of joblessness last year and the concern over whether we would be able to pay all the bills from week to week. We did not worry as much about whether we would eat because we had taken the time to stock up. I don't need any more experiences like that to show me this is a good idea for us.

The other main reason I do this nesting and stocking up thing is because it helps me stay organized, and when I'm organized the mornings and evenings with my children run much more smoothly. Lunches can be almost completely packed before the kids go to bed at night. When they ask me in the evening what we're having for dinner, I have an answer. When they get off the school bus in the afternoon I can have snacks waiting for them so they're not rifling through the cupboards.

I am willing to sacrifice a couple of hours on the weekends to plan our menus and my grocery trips if it means I'll have a little more time for doing other things during the week.

Now if I could just convince the kids that just because we have 12 boxes of cereal doesn't mean we need to have them all open, life would be sweet indeed.