Emergency Preparation Advice From Someone Who Learned the Hard Way

I hate to keep posting so many blog posts from other writers rather than writing my own, but I am staying so busy researching and doing my own preparations that it doesn't leave much time for writing blogs. Nor does it seem all that prudent.  I think it's important to keep sharing with people the importance of prepping for emergencies, but I still have to prioritize the prepping I need to do with my family. Besides while I am researching I am coming across so much good information and so many great blog posts.

http://thesurvivalmom.com/2013/04/12/11-lessons-the-joplin-tornadoes-taught-our-family/

Love The Survival Mom!! I think it's one of my favorite sites.  This post was great because she gave her experience and the lessons she learned. This shows that disasters really do affect people here in the US (they were without power for 2 weeks!) and you should have a back up for your back up (they even got stranded away from their kids for a night in the aftermath and she talks about a bug out bag for your car).

Great post and well worth your time. Check it out!

Reasons to Prep

Just to keep things simple today I wanted to share another article with a list of questions that you should be asking your non-prepping friends and family. 

http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/archives/50-shocking-questions-that-you-should-ask-to-anyone-that-is-not-a-prepper-yet

Really these questions are designed to get people thinking for themselves and doing a little digging into what is really going on around us, rather then just blindly believing what we are being fed in the media.  The questions and links to additional articles are thought provoking to say the least.  It really drives home the things that I have already been seeing and what I've been feeling for years.

I have always had a different perspective of politics and government then my peers. I remember even in high school having debates with people over how our system worked and it's flaws. Then I grew up, fell into my own life and became distracted as I raised my children. Now that they are all half grown I am starting to pay more attention. Even several years ago I saw news on tv and told my husband that our rights were under attack. The things our government was doing lead me to believe that our right to choose our religion and our right to free speech were under attack. I also watched as one law (CPSIA) single handedly reduced the number of crafters making a living on ebay and etsy and I said then that it was like they (people in charge, government, lawmakers, how ever you want to describe them) wanted to kill free enterprise in America. It didn't seem logical in the beginning of a recession to make it harder for people to make money when we needed to jump start our economy.  As I am seeing all the pieces come together I think that my instincts have been right all along.  I am not worried about death, I know where I am going. However I do worry about whatever time I have left on this earth and the time my children still have on this earth.

What do you think about the state of the country? Are you encouraging others to think for themselves?

It's been a weird week for me. I am starting to feel like a rubber band...back and forth, this way and that, I have so much going on and so much on my mind.

This stuff with Korea has me just a little on edge, watching the news. I have tried to just focus on my family and my household, getting stuff done.  I have really been stepping up my couponing and making sure to stop into stores whenever I get the chance to pick up freebies or great deals.  I don't intend to waste gas by making special trips out, with the exception of my weekly grocery shopping trip, and so I need to take every opportunity to hit up the stores that are already in the vicinity of errands I am running.  It adds a bit of extra time to my already busy schedule but it pays off with the money I am saving on household supplies and is helping me to build my prepping supplies a little faster.

I also found a dehydrator at a thrift store last week and I have been trying it out. So far I have tried canned pineapple slices and a sliced kiwi. Next I plan to try some apple slices. It seems to be working well but may be getting a little too hot. I need to do some more research on that.

I realize that I haven't given you much to research or work on this week, I thought this article on The Prepper Journal might be of interest to you.  It is a great list to get you started on your prepping. 

http://www.theprepperjournal.com/2013/04/11/25-things-that-you-should-do-to-get-prepared-for-the-coming-economic-collapse/

It helps to have an outline to get you started. Like I have said before, you can choose to prep more or less depending on your comfort level. I love this list because it not only includes physical items you should be buying, but it also includes things you can do and things to be thinking about. Pair this list with my 3 Phase Plan for prepping and you will be well on your way.

Let me know how you are doing with your prepping.

I found this little gem with funny man Mike Rowe while perusing old posts on another blog.  I love his sense of humor and he describes my childhood perfectly when he talks about "forced labor" as we would have called it then, but what was actually a great learning opportunity. I remember helping my father video weddings (one of his many money making ideas), build decks, dig post holes for fences, dig trenches for water and electrical lines, create office partitions and so much more. I learned how to use power tools such as miter saws, skill saws, drill presses, table sanders, etc from a very early age. I was taught the value of doing something yourself versus paying someone to do it.  Now as an adult I don't avoid the difficult tasks but work to find solutions to them.  I love to learn new skills and the sense of accomplishment that comes with success at mastering them. I am thankful for parents who taught me to use my hands and be thankful for the ability to do so.  It is definitely a dying art and most Americans have become dependent on others to do what they should be able to themselves. I hope I pass this tradition on to my children and they on to theirs.

Waste Not, Want Not!

In other blog posts I have talked about the older generation's mentality that when you waste not, you want not.  My Grandparents went through the Great Depression. They had to wash and save foil. They didn't have Ziploc bags to throw away after just one use. Even now my Grandfather saves things that we think he should just toss in the trash like empty pill bottles or paper that still has one side clean. So with that mindset I have been trying to find ways to use food and supplies that we normally throw away and try to stretch my grocery budget even further.

Today's post is specifically about saving and using those ends to your sandwich bread which most of us just throw away. Most members of my family prefer not to use the ends of the bread. I don't care either way and when making a sandwich I will use the ends. However, I rarely eat sandwiches so the ends tend to sit there until they are pretty stale. 

A few years ago I began saving the ends of the bread. Usually I just toss them, bread bag and all into the freezer and then when I have an hour or so to spare, I pull them out and let them thaw. Once thawed mostly, I cut them up into cubes. You can also use old hamburger or hot dog buns or french bread. I have even re-purposed old hamburger buns into garlic bread on spaghetti night and then still used the left overs in my bread crumbs. I never use bread that has already started to mold or soggy bread.

I spray my pan down with a nonstick spray and then spray the top layer of bread cubes down as well. Then I season them. Sometimes I use only garlic powder and sometimes I sprinkle garlic, onion powder, and Italian seasonings on them.

 

Then I use the low broiler setting on my oven and I toast the bread to a pretty golden brown. I usually toss them twice followed by more toasting each time to make sure they are completely dried out. This usually takes about 5 minutes between tossing. The next step is to put these toasted pieces in the food processor. Of course you could hand crush them or even put them in a zip lock bag and use a mallet to crumb them.  I have also stored them whole and used them as croutons.  

 

 

Lastly I packaged them using my Food Saver and labeled the date and the flavor. They should be good in storage for at least a few months.  I also have a bag in my freezer for longer storage.

 

Free bread crumbs using bread ends that usually just get thrown away. I have used them to bread chicken, make a breakfast casserole, and even to top my broccoli rice casserole. Waste Not, Want Not, right?

Can you prep too much? by The Survival Mom

 

Can you prep too much?  Here's a great article about this by The Survival Mom.

http://thesurvivalmom.com/2012/02/27/can-you-prep-too-much/

Great information that should give you some ideas about what to avoid while prepping.  And she even uses lists!  See, I am not the only one!

I let the last week get away from me with the holiday weekend and I will try to get back into my blogging routine tomorrow.

Phase Three: Continuing the Preparation Process and Increasing Your Survival Skill Set

The third phase of your Emergency Preparation is continuing the Preparation Process and Increasing Your Survival Skill Set.  In simpler terms it means continuing to purchase supplies and increasing your knowledge.

I believe that even the best laid plans will fail if you are lacking in the survival skills department. You need to start another list ( I know! I love lists and sometimes go overboard with them but seriously it helps me stay focused) and start writing down what skills you are interested in learning or expanding on. You might even make a list of what skills you have already mastered. I have learned how to preserve food through canning, how to create a pattern and sew clothes, and how to grow a garden, but I want to expand on my food storage and my gardening skills. I also want to learn more about making soaps and candles and other convenient household items that we currently can purchase at a moment's notice. As I mentioned in yesterday's post I also want to expand my knowledge of firearms and practice using them at a firing range.  So I have lots to learn.  Reading anything and everything that I can get my hands on is the way that I increase my knowledge and skill set.

While you are researching and expanding your skills don't forget to keep up your original emergency preparation list. That list should keep changing and evolving as you learn more and more and realize where you need to improve and where you are proficient and prepared.

So my beginning list looked like this:

Set up a first aid kit

Create and store 72 hour kits (I am creating Bug Out Bags with 72 hour kits included)

Purchase and store water (1 gallon per person per day, 3 days worth to start)

Start to store non perishable food items

Now my list looks like this:

·  Set up a first aid kit I have a basic kit completed but I am still adding items (inventoried including expiration dates. I plan to rotate them each daylight savings.)

 

·  72 hour food kits completed (inventoried including expiration dates. I plan to rotate them each daylight savings)

·  Create BOBs or Bug Out Bags, I would say these are only about 40% completed. Still feeling my way around the recommended lists and deciding what to include in mine.

 

·  I currently have 2 gallon containers and 2 full cases of water bottles, plus the water in my 72 hour kits already stored. I also have 2 refillable water reservoirs that will go in mine and my husband's BOBs. My plan was to start with 3 days worth then 1 week, then 1 month and so on. If we can bug in we also have a 12 person hot tub full of water that we can use for washing clothes and flushing toilets.

 ·  I have purchased mylar bags as well as a new foodsaver with canning jar attachment and plan to store food using a combination of both methods. I have been increasing the volume of food in my pantry and storage areas for a few years now and perfecting my organization and rotating methods. I would say I already have about 2 weeks of food stored at all times (in addition to our regular grocery items purchased each week), maybe more. I am concentrating on dry storage right now with items like beans, rice, and salt.

 ·  Obtain a concealed weapons permit and purchase a firearm and the ammunition.

·  Need to research and add water filtration to my emergency prepping.

·  Copy and store all important documents (birth cert., passports etc) in a water tight container

·  Build an emergency cash stash at home in small bills.
 

·  Continue to print and add skills, recipes and plans to your emergency prepping binder that I mentioned in Phase One. That way if you don’t have internet access or power to turn on your computer you will still have a resource available to you.

See what I mean about the list evolving?  I have realized that having a weeks worth of food and water for each member of my family should automatically be the norm for every household in the US.  I have also realized that I could go on and on with prepping. The list will likely never end. As long as I rotate my stored food and I am wasting nothing then I don’t see the harm in being prepared.

Like I mentioned before, there is such peace in knowing that I have something put away in case there was some type of disaster or emergency tomorrow. I have something to keep us going though I know I need to work on much more. How is your list coming?

Firearms for Beginners; from the RoadWarrior

I know I have been kind of scarce the last several days and only re-posting links to others' blog posts. I have been doing lots of research into things and continuing to work on my own emergency preparation. I am working on my next blog post which is the final step and then I will begin to break down some of the components of emergency preparation. I am a newbie at this too and I am sharing my tips and hints as I go along so that you will hear from someone who has the same questions and struggles.

One of the things my husband and I have been discussing, but not yet decided on, is whether we want to own firearms to protect ourselves. It's been something on our mind for several years. We have never owned a gun because we believed the risk was too great before with small children in our house (not that it's wrong to own them if you have children, we just chose not to take the risk.) Now that our children are 18, 15, and 13 things are a little different. We believe we should have the right to bear arms and since that right is currently under scrutiny and danger of being taken away we also believe that it is time to exercise that right. It's kind of like a silent vote. If most people don't use the right then it is more likely to be taken away.

However purchasing a gun is anything but simple. If you have never been around guns and don't have any knowledge to go on then it is a daunting task to be sure. We really have no idea where to start. Today I came across a blog post geared directly toward the beginner. Great information!  Already I am forming an idea of which guns we may want to start with and what calibers are most popular.

http://www.shtfblog.com/firearms-for-beginners-part-one-ammunition/

This is to be only Part 1 in a series so make sure to keep checking back for further blog posts. I am looking forward to the next post and I am searching for a copy of Cartridges of the World as I type for further research.

Check out the Snoman's sites

We had a great but cold and rainy weekend.  Stayed very busy with the hubby. We did some shopping on Saturday. He was looking for more inventory for his online video game store so we were browsing flea markets and thrift shops. Sunday we attended church and then hung out at home. I added all my new supplies to my BOBs (bug out bags), made an inventory of my first aid kit, and even put together two emergency car kits. It was a productive yet oddly relaxing day for me.

As you research and start purchasing your supplies I wanted to share this website that I found several weeks ago.  I have watched several of his videos on youtube and read many of his blog posts/articles. He's very informative and covers a wide array of material.

http://www.survivalnewsonline.com/

On Youtube his name is SNOmultimedia  and he also goes by Snoman. 

Check out his site and information. I am sure there is some great information in there that you can use.

Perspective

It's been a crazy week here in my household.  The fridge decided to go out on Monday and that created a little chaos as we had to move it's contents, put it on ice to keep from losing food, and then replace it.  Major purchases should never be made on the fly and in an emergency, but what can you do?

So in order to keep things simple this week, I have chosen to share a few blog posts from others with you instead of writing my own posts.

Today I am sharing a blog that helps to keep things in perspective with her motto; "Prepare Locally, Pray Globally". This pretty much puts into words my thoughts on emergency prepping. She also gives you some things to think about with her lists of things she's prepping. 

Check out Mom with a Prep:

http://momwithaprep.wordpress.com/2013/01/06/prepping-prepare-locally-pray-globally/?preview=true&preview_id=27&preview_nonce=e3dd8778fa

Great blog and great perspective!