Some of my suggestions could get you life. Just quit buying stuff. And make a point of it.

We shop at Costco too. We buy what we know we are going to use on a regular basis or go through a lot of. Like certain vitamins we take. Or laundry detergent, toilet paper, cat little, salsa (god can my wife go through salsa). But we don't buy just for the sake of buying because it looks good or might be on special.

 

it sounds to me like she's just looking for excused to buy something you really dont need, good luck winning that argument

 

At least this is different than the 'my spouse doesn't want to stock up' thread.

Get a generator to handle your two/three freezers, plus fridge and store enough gas so you can eat your way though them before the gas runs out.

 

Make sure she's not hungry when she goes. That'll cut down a lot.

 

I don't see the problem; sounds to me like your wife is a prepper and is laying in food stocks.

 

But she isn't a prepper in the sense that she makes good food purchases. I buy most of the long term foods.

Is there any realistic answer other than "Yes, dear"

No, not really.

With all the problems you seem to have with her. I'd find someone else.

I could simply go with the "it's cheaper to keep her" concept. But I like to point out things she does that irk me. In many ways, we have a decent relationship.

 

I have an idea that will result in a win-win situation for you.

Explain to the wife that if you lose power all that food will go bad. So before she buys any more food, you need to come up with a way to preserve it if you lose power.

Make a plan to power the freezers with solar power. And go ahead and include the fridge in the plan, and size the system so you can add another freezer if needed and any other critical equipment (ham radios?). You'll need panels, charge controller, inverter, batteries and many small items.

Come up with a price tag. Convince the wife to agree to pay for the small solar power system before buying any more food!

It's a win-win because if the wife won't agree to the plan you'll have a valid argument against buying more food. But if she goes for it, you'll have some sustainable off grid capability, plus you'll get your feet wet in the solar power arena, and who knows how much you may decide to expand it after that?

.

 

Do you have an agreed upon prep limit on food items?

My personal limit on food items is six months. No more than a six month supply of beef, chicken, pork, butter, canned fruits, canned vegetable, etc..

 

Is there any realistic answer other than "Yes, dear"

 

My bil was complaining about all the food in the house. I just told him be glad she doesn't buy jewelry.
Having that much freezer space its easy to get disorganised and have a bunch of old stuff you wouldnt want to eat build up. Maybe you can clean things up and organize, label and date stuff. Lets you know what you have so you can plan on using it. Like i have a bunch of frozen berries now, so i move a bag to the inside freezer where its convenient to making smoothies, syrup, fruit bread and freezer jam.

 

Some women have a problem with buying shoes or clothes but yours has a problem with food. Same problem, different item.

Time for an allowance?

 

I hear overbuying is common for many who shop there.
We have never shopped in one.

 

costco is worth the shop...but not necessarily for food. this fall i bought 12 pair of wool sox at 24.00 bucks. i flea market as a vendor all year long so i bought ski bibs, thermals and knock off suade uggs boots for cheap (30 bucks). replacement wiper blades (michelin) for 6 bucks each...well worth the cost of the membership card to me.


every once in a while i do treat myself to something more expensive...duck breast was on the menu this past fall...they also have great freshly baked bread. but im single so not all that interested at buying 36 burgers at a time...

 

With all the problems you seem to have with her. I'd find someone else.

 

I go to Sam's every week for work, seldom buy personal things.

I have the fridge/freezer unit and that is it. If I want something frozen, than something in the freezer has to go.

Most of our local SHTF events involve loss of power so it doesn't make sense to have a big freezer.

Now, pantry items are a different story.

 

Do what I did. get her studying long term storage. LDS has a great resource ( you'll need to dig a bit) or just look around here, about the proper 5lb bucket + ;id, O2 absorbers, + mylar bags,
get her really into it, then go buy 40lb bags of rice, beans, sugar, flour ect.
reminds me I need to check on my preps from 5 yrs ago in the crawlspace.
she went nuts back then. YAY costco and LDS site. lolol focus that energy she has.

 

I wouldn't buy another freezer, especially with no back up plan to make sure the contents are safe if you lose power.

I know it's a novel idea, but talk with her. Explain your concerns and the lack of space for anymore frozen items. Discuss with her other items she could be buying that don't require electricity to store...like canned goods.

Or explain to her that you will no longer be able to afford to buy anything unless it's to replace what you've already used.

 

We both hate shopping so she does shopping at the local grocery stores and I do our grocery shopping at Costco. Our freezer is packed which limits what frozen food I can buy. The freezer needs defrosting anyway so I guess I’ll throw out the old stuff this Spring and alleviate the problem. I sure wouldn’t buy a second freezer though.

 

If you are going to freeze meats, vacuum seal them. No freezer burn after years in my experience. Some packaged frozen items can eventually degrade.

My relatives' freezer is full of elk, moose, buffalo and deer. Looking to try the buffalo burger soon.

 

We were having the same problem. Both freezers were full. We made a resolution not to buy frozen stuff until the freezers are near empty. We now have 6-8" of room in one freezer and the one in the barn is down to 3/4. My wife is frugal so disposing food that is freezer burnt bothers her. I did go a little overboard on 99 cent chicken thighs and pork last summer so we are set for a while. Who know what we will find at the bottom of the freezer. And each needs defrosting

 

I lucked out. She bought a lot but dropped most of it at the VFW for the dinner they are having on Sat. The only frozen thing she brought home was some ice cream. So I dodged a bullet this time.

 

Help do an inventory. One that works for both of you. It may surprise you what your wife knows as to what is in the freezers. Or not. If food is not going to waste, I would not worry about it.

I have three freezers. Very little is purchased food. There is going to be half a beefer in there by next week as the steer is going. If the power goes out long term, the meat gets canned, which reminds me, my store of empty jars is low. The veggies, too. Fruit like strawberries, not so much. Cheese and butter could be canned as well. It would be a LOT of work.

 

This was a major battle when we went to sell my MIL's house and have her move in with us. She grew up poor in the Philippines so throwing away food is a serious trigger. She had freezers full of decade+ old food that she would not give up and gave to her friends (lucky them, puke).

After a few months of living with us she has learned that buying fresh, high quality ingredients is better than hoarding the food she buys in bulk or clearance. When something she buys expires or rots without being opened or used, I throw it away in front of her. Not because the food is bad, but to show her that she should not have bought it in the first place.

Now she equates impulse buys and hoarding with the knowledge it will get thrown in the trash. It is working.

 

My wife does the same and forgets whats in the freezer.

 

That gives me an idea. We use a small magnetic dry=erase board on the side of the fridge with the week's meals. I think I should get another one to keep a log of what proteins are in the freezer to prevent double-buying.

 

My wife went to COSTCO again.
Help me. I can’t convince her she is wrong! But I can't get through to her. What to do with a wife like mine?

Maybe she should do what my daughter did for a few years, she shopped for other people that hated or didn't want to do there own shopping. She kind of specialized in special occasions like birthdays and weddings but also did weekly grocery shopping. It might work now it might not with wallworld pick up service and the net but who knows?:thumb:

 

Maybe your wife and my wife are related! She make the almost 7 hour round trip pilgrimage to Costco about once every 4-5 weeks even if she doesn’t need to. Unless your able to convince her like Sarco suggests, I see only one option for you. Fortunately for me only two freezers can fit in my cellar, and one is full of moose meat and salmon.

 

Maybe your wife and my wife are related! She make the almost 7 hour round trip pilgrimage to Costco about once every 4-5 weeks even if she doesn’t need to.

Now that there is a Costco in Fairbanks I plan to visit that one some day.

 

You have to take charge of the freezer(s).
My wife is forbidden to go into the freezer. She has free reign of the freezer part of the refrigerator and that's it.
If you saw what her small area looks like and in contrast, what my downstairs freezer looks like, it would be apparent who should be in control.