A Month of Gratitude: #1

Throughout the month, I will be posting something that I am grateful for each day in November.
Today, I am thankful for the counsel my church gives to keep a food storage and a 72 hour kit. When facing a "super storm" such as Hurricane Sandy, it was a relief to me to know that we would have food, water, and light, should we need them. The counsel is even more important to heed when you have a family that relies on you. So, today, I am grateful for my food storage and emergency preparations.

Mother Earth News Fair

I spent two extremely jam packed days at the Mother Earth News Fair in Seven Springs, Pa. Mother Earth News is a magazine chock full of useful knowledge for those who are interested in a more sustainable lifestyle. They have an event full of seminars, workshops, and vendors who are focused on helping others fulfill their goals to become more self reliant. I attended classes on homesteading, cooking with homegrown foods, family nutrition, etc. I also attended a seminar with Jenna Woginrich, a fantabulously awesome gal who left her desk job to pursue a life writing and homesteading. She even signed two books for me. I highly recommend attending this event next year if you can. I was so encouraged in my endeavors to pursue a more provident, sustainable life. If you wanna read Jenna's blog, go to http://coldantlerfarm.blogspot.com
Wanna check out the event? http://www.motherearthnewsfair.com

I'm SO There....

If you live in the Mid-Atlantic states, you should consider going to the Mother Earth News Fair in Seven Springs, Pa.  It is a HUGE event chock-full of vendors and exhibits encouraging self-reliance, a DIY attitude, organic and natural living, emergency preparedness, and so forth.  Plus, they will have amazing speakers, like Joel Salatin and the beyond inspiring Temple Grandin, animal rights activist and spokesperson for autism awareness (she is autistic herself).  (I linked the miniseries based on her life.)  I'm not able to make the fair on the day she is speaking, but if I did, I'm pretty sure I'd pass out at her feet from the exposure to sheer awesomeness and inspiration.  :)  There will be kids' activities, too, and loads of yummy, healthy food vendors and products for sale.
The fair page can be found here. 

Little of This, Little of That...

A lot of random thoughts are brewing today...we'll see where they take me.
Animals.  I've had animals on the brain a lot of late.  We still have our foster kitty, renamed Sunflower (or Sunny, for short).  I renamed her something more positive than Crybaby was, and I swear her personality has brightened under the name change.  She has a propensity for searching out sunbeams and laying in their path, and since I call her "my little sunflower," she started answering to that, and it stuck.  We've dealt with a few minor health issues along the way, but she is adjusting quite well to our family.  Even the dog plays well with her (most of the time).
As I've mentioned, I volunteer at a local animal shelter.  Our main mission is to save as many lives as we can, so we can match adoptable animals to potential forever homes.  However, as with anything in life, there is occasional loss.  During my shift yesterday, I spent some time helping with some sick kittens in our kitten nursery.  Our shelter director was called out on an emergency, and we were unable to euthanize a very ill kitten, and a volunteer was holding it and attempting to comfort it as much as she could.  I felt compelled to take a turn with the kitten.  I wasn't sure why, but it made my heart ache, so I took over the duties with this little kitten.  It was not easy.  The kitten was in respiratory distress and suffocating on fluid.  I held it in a blanket, as close to my chest as possible, up against my heart, as I caressed its fur, tiny head, and ears, and attempted to make it as comfortable as possible.  It passed away snuggled against my breast.  I spent a lot of the evening angry--angry at pet owners who refuse to care for their animals, who don't spay and neuter--and I tried to figure out why it was so important to take a turn with this kitten.  It dawned on me.  As hard as it was, it was easier to give something of myself, even if a little, than to walk away.  It made me sick to think that the kitten was there, and I had to give something.  It would have hurt more to walk away.  I have dealt with dying animals before, but this one affected me so much more. It was one of the most difficult and yet moving experiences of my life.

On to more positive subjects.  Lately, due to some questions I have about things, life, and whatnot, I have been investigating alternative means to peace and health in my life.  We have been eating healthier foods, less meat, and less dairy.  I have been doing extensive research into natural remedies, homeopathy, herbal cures, etc. for minor health concerns.  When my church stopped funding for our counseling sessions, I started looking for different ways to reflect, meditate, and to find peace in our lives.  We have been spending more time outside, taking in the natural world around us.  I also experienced my first reiki treatment.  (A good source for information on reiki can be found here.)  I am blessed to have a friend who provided this service to me.  It was a wonderful time for me to reflect and to ponder about my goals, my concerns, and so forth.  I had this image that I was shedding this skin of negativity as I listened to the music in the background.  When the session was finished, my friend asked me a lot of questions about my life that were spot on--she noted that I am often too hard on myself and that I have my expectations too high when it comes to where I feel I should be, and she said that she felt the need to express to me to work toward balance and being fair and kind to myself.  She also noted that my healing colors were purple and green, which I have found myself drawn to of late before my session.  It was a great experience, and I'm not sure I have ever so deeply meditated in my life.  My friend also shares a similar religious background and understood where I was coming from when I expressed a weakness in my testimony lately, and was so willing to listen to how I felt, while supporting me in my questions and needs, as well as my desire to reconnect to my spiritual foundations while staying true to myself and my heart and what I feel is right.
So, what else have we been into?  I've been enjoying the summer spending time with my family before I go back to the grind of teaching.  We've been playing a lot in sand, and in water, reading stories together and watching movies.  I admit to a growing frustration with my teething infant's lack of desire when it comes to sleeping, but we're managing.  I'm preparing for a course redesign this semester, mandated by my department--I, along with two other adjuncts, will be testing out a new design for our freshman composition courses, and in some ways, I'm grateful because I felt I was starting to develop a rut when it came to my teaching/curriculum.  The hubby received his HAM radio license, and I've enjoyed seeing him get so excited about this new hobby in his life.  It especially proved valuable as a radio service during a massive storm in the area which did extensive damage to the region and has left tens of thousands without power (called a "super derecho," a violent and destructive wind and thunderstorm that was in a arc shape that spanned several states).  The radio enabled us to stay connected to weather service updates during moments of unreliable power, as well as emergency updates, thanks to diligent amateur radio broadcasters.  The storm was so bad that it took the neighbors' staked, full sized trampoline out of the ground, down the hill through our driveway (and over our car--sigh), and across our street into the next neighbors' yard.  (Our car is OK--nothing a trip to the body shop won't fix.  I will show a pic of the trampoline's landing spot.)
Well, that's about everything that I can think of.  Now, if you'll excuse me, this sleep-deprived mama is going to search for rest.  Good night.  (Also, planning on getting back into our "What We Store" series soon.  Keep an eye out.)

BTW, we need to mow our lawn.

My Latest Discovery: Coconut Oil

I have been hearing about all of the possibilities/potential uses for coconut oil, and my interest was piqued. Luckily, I managed to find a large tub of it on clearance at a local bulk foods store, so I decided to do some research to see if it is as versatile as people claim.

-Coconut oils works as a moisturizer and aftershave, according to several sources. Also can be used alone or as an ingredient in homemade deodorant. I have also heard rumors that it can be a handy lubricant for, um, personal use.
-Can be used for cradle cap, in place of baby oil, to loosen flakes.
-Some sources claim it can be used as a diaper salve.
-Using a one cup to one cup ratio, it can be used in cooking as a lard/oil/butter replacement, especially when it comes to greasing pans and the like.
-Can be used in cooking and baking as other oils.
-Some sources claim it can be a stress reliever if rubbed into the skin as a calming facial on a hard day.
-Can be used as a conditioner for a flaky scalp (makes sense, with the cradle cap usage and all).
-Coconut oil and baking soda can be mixed and used as a toothpaste.
-Massage oil........I'm already swooning.
-Mix coconut oil and sugar for a body scrub.
-Melt and add to smoothies. Yummy!
-You can mix coconut oil with peppermint oil extract and rub it all over exposed skin in place of insect repellant.
-Handy to use when your kids get chewing gum caught in their hair (and every kid does at some point).

What a versatile addition to food storage! I'm way excited to try it out!

What We Store and How We Prep: Meats

I am such a guilty carnivore. A fair amount of my friends are either vegetarians/vegans, due to the fact that we all like volunteering our time for animal causes/rescue (pets), but I struggle giving up meat products, mainly due to personal beliefs and preferences.
My in-laws bought us a freezer a few years ago, and at the time, we didn't buy much meat because it was essentially two of us eating (our oldest was no more than a few months old at the time, and on formula), and we felt that meat was very expensive, let alone having somewhere to store it. Between the new freezer, and finding a local butcher where the meat was high quality, locally grown, and grain fed for less money, we ran out of excuses.
Now, I consider meat a vital part of our family's three month supply of foods. We keep on hand at a time (these are averages):
-10-15 pounds of ground beef
-10-20 pounds of chicken (boneless)
-about another 10-15 pounds of various chicken parts or fryer chickens (bone in)
-about 5 pounds of ground turkey
-10-15 pounds of various sausage products
-5-10 pounds of bacon
-10 pounds of roasts (about two of them)
-10 pounds of hot dogs
-5-10 pounds of fish (this can fluctuate, sometimes more, sometimes less, depending on sales)
-a few pounds worth of ham steaks (I usually try to keep 4 or 5 ham steaks on hand)
-10 pounds of various other meat products, like an occasional rack of ribs, steaks, pork tenderloin, pork chops, and the like
The main worry I have with this aspect of our food storage is that it is very electricity dependent. If the power goes out for several days (we've lost it for two days before), then what? This is something we are still working on figuring out. We have started looking into canned meats and meat alternatives. We have a few cans of tuna (the hubby really doesn't like it, so we don't buy it much), have started keeping canned chicken (several pounds worth), and are venturing into using textured vegetable protein, a soy based meat alternative, that you can get in various forms, like bacon flavored, chicken flavored, beef flavored, and even taco beef, but we only have 2 #10 cans of this, with plans to buy more in the future.
Any experience with canned meats? Self canning meat? Ideas how to preserve freezer items when the power goes out? Good recipes using TVP?

At Long Last....

After a few years, and several attempts at reorganization, I finally have my modest food storage organized and shelved the way I like it. The hubby would like for me to move it into the basement, but I really appreciate having it handy upstairs because it is more easily rotated, and I can see it better. The pics really don't do it justice. I'm so, so pleased with the work. It's still a work in progress, but the organization is getting better--finally.

38 Principles of Self-Sufficiency, Part Two

Earlier today, I posted a link to a list of 38 principles to self-sufficiency, that I found on The Survival Mom, and I wanted to do a self-assessment of where I am at, and where I need to be.

38 Principles of Self-Sufficiency

by Don McAlvany

This list contains some challenging, provocative thoughts and some real pearls of wisdom. Leave a comment and let me know which principles hit home with you and if you have any to add to this list.

1. Change the way you look at everything. Rethink your entire lifestyle. I am such an emotional shopper--really, I'm just an emotional person. In addition to this, I have a bad habit of comparing myself to others and their possessions, and I also am trying to learn how to "save for a rainy day," which is hard because I don't tend to save $$, period. So, my foray into this is taking my newfound passion for food storage and emergency preparedness, starting there, and using it to then build up to other things, like monetary savings, home improvements, and the big ticket items. I am a creature of habit and routines, and trying to change how I look at things and reconsidering my entire lifestyle is something that I am working on (a couple years ago, I didn't really have food storage, and I laughed at 72 hour kits), but is very hard for me, as well.
   
2. Develop discernment about people. I tend to have a decent intuition when it comes to allowing people into our lives, or whether to avoid certain individuals, but I do make mistakes, and I need to make better assessments so our family can be surrounded by people who will support us, love us, and lift us up, rather than bring us down.
   
3. When you invest, invest first in the right people. For a long time, I have always enjoyed spending time with people who were right along with me--shop-a-holics, people drowning in debt, like we are (though we're working to get out of it), and I am finding now that I am miserable around some of those individuals. I also am hurt that some make fun of our goals. If you can't accept me at my worst, you certainly don't deserve me at my best.
   
4. Look at yourself honestly. What are your strengths and weaknesses? Strengths: I can be good at judging situations. I feel I am good with words. I am a champion bargain huntress. I am passionate about developing a self-reliant attitude. I have a fun sense of humor. I try to share my mistakes so that others learn from them. Weaknesses: Impatience. An inability to see the big picture at times. A short fuse/temper. I'm a world class procrastinator. I get discouraged easily. I sometimes struggle putting others' needs ahead of my own.
   
5. Seek the counsel of others you trust. I think I am doing a good job, or at least a better one, when it comes to this area.
   
6. Find like-minded people who can be part of a mutual support group and who you can cooperate with. I feel like I sometimes struggle finding people with the same goals and passions. I do have them, but I also feel like some in my life are poking fun at our goals, or think we're being too cautious or silly. I would love to find people as interested in "prepping" and self-reliance, particularly in our own age group.
   
7. Find alternate methods for doing everything. Very difficult for someone who loves routines and falls back on habits. But, I am attempting to remedy this, and I have loved ones who are helping me, especially my husband.
   
8. Develop an instinct for what doesn’t feel right. No matter how good something looks or sounds on the surface, go with your gut feeling, your instinct, your intuition. I trust my intuition, and I feel I am doing well with this principle.
   
9. Eliminate non-essentials from your life. Eliminate all time wasters and money wasters, and things you don’t need, i.e. clothes, furniture, junk, etc. Eliminate television from your life. What do you mean I need to give up my T.V. and my Facebook? I don't know if this is something that necessarily needs eliminated from our lives, but I definitely wonder sometimes if I spend too much time on the computer, and might have what is termed a "computer addiction" because I sometimes feel like I HAVE to check my mail or my Facebook account, even when I don't really have anything new to see. We are working on purging out things we do not want anymore.
   
10. Simplify your lifestyle. Learn to say no to things or activities which do not make you self-sufficient. Doing this. It's a struggle. I am worried I am losing friendships as a result, but my family and our goals come first.
    
11. Develop physical, mental, and spiritual discipline. When it comes to physical discipline...well, let's just say I had a goal to exercise three times a week starting this year. I have purposefully done one exercise session. I am also a snacker and need more control in this area. Mentally, I am working on this, but it is hard. I have needed to seek outside help. Spiritual discipline is a hard one for me because I feel sometimes as though I am so different from my fellow church members when it comes to my views on life, politics, current events, etc, and I find that it can keep me from church at times, which certainly doesn't help me develop spiritual discipline when I am struggling in my relationship with my God and my Savior. I need to work on this.
    
12. Learn to treat everything as if it were irreplaceable. Working on this.
    
13. Buy things that will last, even if they cost more. We started doing this with our first child, when we realized we were buying cheap items over and over again. Spend more on something nicer, and you don't have to buy it again.
    
14. Acquire tools that do not depend on electric power. I don't know where to begin on this goal. I need to do some research.
    
15. Learn to spend time alone with yourself in total silence. Think, reflect, reminisce and plan (or strategize) in silence. Doing this. I am learning to love my quiet moments of meditation and reflection, especially when you work part-time and have two children...these moments are sacred.
    
16. Learn to spend time with your family without any superficial entertainment and distractions. Need to work on this. I constantly feel like we have to "do" something in order to have quality time together.
    
17. Learn something from every situation you are in. Everything you hear, see, touch or feel has a lesson in it. Learn a principle from every mistake you make and from everyday life situations. I do try to live by this principle.
    
18. Make sure your trust is in the Lord and not your own preparedness. Pattern your preparedness according to the guidance of the Lord. Listen to what He puts in your heart. Don’t use only your reasoning power. I do trust the Lord and his guidance and plan for my life. I might struggle sometimes feeling a spiritual connection or peace, but I know He has me in His care.
    
19. Learn to enjoy simple pleasures from the smallest things. Have a measure of joy and happiness that doesn’t come from creature comforts or entertainment. I am trying to do this. I watch my children and see the joy they derive from such simple pleasures. They are an example to me.
    
20. Store up memories for times of isolation or separation from your loved ones. Doing this via blogging, Facebook, photos, etc.
    
21. Establish priorities for all areas of your life, including relationships and current and future needs. Set goals for areas to become proficient or self-sufficient in. Set a schedule or a timeline to reach those goals based on the money and time you have available. We are trying to do this as a family. We struggle at times, but we are trying.
    
22. Examine the concept of civil disobedience from Bible times throughout history. At what point should the people of Egypt have said no to killing the male babies in Moses’ day? At what point should the people of colonial America have said no to King George? At what point should the people of Germany have said no to Hitler? At what point do we say no to the despots of our day when they take over our money,property, guns, our children and our freedom? Decide what is your choke point. When do you move toward civil disobedience? For many throughout history it was when evil leaders handed down edicts that were directly contrary to God’s Word or commands. Don’t set your choke point too early or too quickly, too late or never. Think through and calculate a strategy. Then never look back. This is such a personal question. What might be important to me might be contrary to someone else's beliefs. I try to follow my heart and the guidance of the Spirit, and I rely on my conscience and strive to think about my loved ones in all that I consider when it comes to the world around me.
    
23. Learn to ask the right questions in every situation. I'm great at asking questions and getting the answers I need, so this is a strength of mine.
    
24. Bring orderliness into your life. If you live in disorder, it will pull you down and break your focus. Think focus vs. distraction. Eliminate the distractions from your life. Working on this, but at times, I feel my life is so chaotic with everything that we try to accomplish. I need to keep trying.
    
25. Self-sufficiency or survival principles are learned on a day-to-day basis and must be practical. I spend time every day researching ways that we can accomplish our goal to become self-reliant.
    
26. Always have more than one way to escape, more than one way to do something. Have a plan B and a plan C. This is a concept we are just starting to put into practice. I recently attended a fire safety class, and the local fire chief admonished us to plan two exits out of every room in the event of a fire. I think that is applicable to life as well. In every situation, try to have a back-up plan. It also would help to eliminate discouragement when things don't quite go your way at first--you have a fall-back plan.
    
27. Every day life, and especially life during a crisis, requires up-front systems and back-up systems if the first line of defense, or the up-front system, fails. Researching this, on so many levels. Hence, our passion for preparedness at this point in our lives.
    
28. Real education only takes place when change occurs in our attitudes, actions, and way of life. How very true. Dave Ramsey allows people to share their experiences in his debt-reduction books, and I remember a woman talking about bankruptcy, and how the first time was hard, and the second bankruptcy was a bit easier, and then the third, and it was the fourth bankruptcy that made them realize that this wasn't a grand fix. They needed to completely change their attitudes, their habits, their way of life, and their goals. Once they did that, they completely got out of debt and no longer rely on credit. But, THEY had to completely change EVERYTHING.
    
29. Wisdom is making practical applications of what you know. It is not enough to know everything you need to know. It will only serve you and others if practical application is made of that knowledge. It's like the hubby says about shooting--you won't know how to shoot that gun and handle it safely if you only go out with it once a year. You gotta keep up the skill level, so safety and correctness become habit.
    
30. Fix in your own mind the truth about your capabilities. In a crisis situation, this will keep you from being too cocky and will provide you with confidence. I'm pretty sure I won't be feeling too cocky in the event of a crisis. I actually worry about the opposite problem--being too panicked and unsure of myself.
    
31. Decide ahead of time, before a crisis arrives, how you will react in a given situation so that you are not swayed by the circumstances, the situation or your emotions. That is why we are working on these goals--so we won't be swayed by emotion and can think rationally in an emergency.
    
32. Beware of being spread too thin in your life. Decide on the few things in life that you must do and then do them well. Think focus versus distraction. Make sure that unimportant, non-essential distractions don’t keep you from achieving your important objectives. I need to work on this.
    
33. Learn to quit wasting things. Be a good steward of all that God provides. I can be so wasteful. I need to value and take care of all that we have.
    
34. Buy an extra of everything you use regularly and set that extra one aside for the time when such items may be difficult or impossible to obtain. Doing this. Yay!
    
35. In every situation, train yourself to look for what doesn’t fit, what’s out of place, and what doesn’t look right. I think women excel in this capacity, don't you?
    
36. Teach your children, and learn this yourself, that you are not obligated to give information to a stranger. You don’t have to answer questions that are none of their business, not even to government officials. AMEN!! I need to stop being so willing to give up my info for freebies, though.
    
37. Sell or give away things you don’t use or need. Consider giving away or selling half of your stuff, the non-essentials. Simplify and streamline your life, lifestyle, and possessions. We are working harder to give, rather than toss our unwanted items.
    
38. Find someone who lived through the Great Depression and learn from them. Find out how the became self-sufficient, how they made do with very little, and how they found joy and contentment in the midst of hard times. Will do!
    

What We Store and How We Prep: Personal Hygiene/Toiletry Items

One of the many things that we store in the event of an emergency/financial downturn (in our home) are personal hygiene and toiletry items. I do this for several reasons:
1) I have tricks to scoring them in bulk, for minimal cost.
2) Generally speaking, a lot of this stuff doesn't expire. (I ask you, have YOU ever had a box of tampons "go bad"?)
3) In an emergency, maybe, for example, deodorant isn't something that will save your life, but if you are already sacrificing a lot of comfort, maybe not being stinky will make you feel better. I remember someone saying that they would pack a razor because smooth legs would be comforting to them. If it makes you feel good in a time of crisis, why not?
We stockpile toothbrushes/toothpaste, deodorant, hand and bar soaps, body washes, shampoos, razors, lotions, tampons/pads, and toilet paper. I'm sure I might be forgetting something, but you get the general idea. Sometimes, I'm not as good with keeping up with a stockpile of pads and such, but I try to keep at least some excess around the house.
So, what are the tricks to getting these items for little $$?

• Utilizing warehouse stores. You can find stuff like deodorant for really inexpensive prices. For the amount of two bars of it at a normal store, you can snag four at a warehouse club. And they do carry name brands, like Secret, Dove, and Degree. Warehouse stores are also excellent for toilet paper, feminine hygiene products, body washes, shampoo, razors, toothbrushes/toothpaste, soap, etc. If you're not much of a couponer, you can still get great deals using this method.
• Shopping sales. The weekly circular of your local grocery store is key here. A lot of grocery chains will post their ads on their websites (I know mine does), if you don't wanna pay for a newspaper (I know I don't). A lot of times, stores will have "stock-up" sales, which are where you will be able to find these items for less. For example, at my local grocery store, I picked up Dial hand soaps for $1 a piece. 8 hand soaps for $8 is pretty good. Items like toothbrushes and toothpaste can be good deals going this route, as well.
• Coupons. I am NOT a coupon sort of gal, but I do use them on a few items, and this is one aspect of my storage where I am known to use them on occasion. I can get low-cost, swanky razors this way, along with pads/tampons, lotions and shower gels, shampoos...the coupon market seems to love this subsection of the grocery store. And, once again, you can find many coupons online, or have a friend save the circulars out of his or her newspaper, if you can.
  

To give you some rough figures, we have 11 bottles of hand soap, 24 bars of "normal" soap, about 6 9-roll packs of toilet paper, more body washes and shampoos than I can count, same with lotions, two large pump bottles of baby wash (and I mean LARGE), four large bottles of kid-friendly shampoo, about a dozen (plus) toothbrushes, three full sized, unopened things of toothpaste, plus numerous sample sized ones (we also like hoarding sample sized products when we can get them)...I say this not to brag (OK, maybe I am a little), but to show that getting a good stockpile is POSSIBLE on a LOW budget. We have a grocery budget right now of about $300-500 a month, which includes all food, emergency prep items, long term food storage, extra for our short term food storage, personal hygiene stockpile, cleaning supplies, kitchen utensils and small appliances/supplies, AND our children's clothing budget and formula/diaper budget. With the right tools, you too can do this. If my terrible-at-finances self can do it, I promise you...YOU CAN, TOO!! Get motivated, and start stockpiling/preparing for a rainy day!

What We Store and How We Prep: 72 Hour Kits

(Our 72 hour kit is growing...I think we need a second tote!!)

I have posted about this subject recently, but one of the ways in which we are attempting to become more "prepared" is by creating a 72 hour kit. My husband has been wanting to work on this project for a while as a family, and I kept stalling because I thought it would be too time-consuming, too expensive, unnecessary, yadda yadda. I made up a lot of excuses.
But, thanks to a few minor emergencies, and the realization that I have more to care about than simply myself, I managed to get inspired after doing some searches on Pinterest, and found a post that encouraged me to get started. I modified the list a bit, since we have an infant in the house, as well as a dog, and I tweaked some amounts to work for our own family, but the premise is still very much the same.
Our kit isn't complete, not by a long shot, but we're getting there. I still need to pack food for the baby and the dog. We need to add in some lists of important information, phone numbers, etc, as well as adding in some money and change. I need a few more various supplies, like a spare leash for the dog, a copy of his rabies certificate (in the event a shelter requires one), matches, bug spray...you get the idea. There are some small gaps to fill.
But the thing that intrigued me the most is how much of the stuff we already had on hand, since we believe in buying in bulk and stockpiling. And I think that preparing our 72 hour kit has inspired me to stockpile even more. Last night, I managed to snag 8 hand soaps and 10 boxes of bandaids to stockpile, and we went to Sam's Club to get things like regular soap and toothbrushes. The hubby wants to get some MREs to put in so we can have meals that are more filling. I think that, with any kit, there are always things you can keep adding. We have added a lot since my last post on this concept. And there's still plenty more that can be done.
We also have an unfulfilled goal to create a kit for each car. We have a semblance of one in one of our cars, but it's a bit pitiful. Our idea list is:

In addition to two car roadside emergency kits with jumper cables and such—

-a small first aid kit for each car

-spare shoes for me

-a blanket or space blankets

-clothing for kids (pj’s) and pants for me

-diapers/wipes/underwear for Goob

-a couple portable baby food containers, granola bars, and a baby spoon

-four bottles of water per car

-flashlight per car

-very basic tool kit

-duffel as containers

We contemplated getting premade 72 hour kits for both the home and the car, but at the end of the day, we actually felt it was cheaper to raid our stockpile first and make our own, than to add to an already created kit. The kits for the cars are our next priority, and we need to get started on them.

What do you have in your 72 hour kits, if you have them?

What We Store and How We Prep: Sugars/Sweeteners

I find that, with the downturn in the economy and as I grow into my role as wife and mother, I have developed a real passion for food storage and emergency preparedness (in case you haven't gleaned this from my previous posts).
But, much like my goals when it comes to my marriage, parenting, finances, etc, storing food and preparing for "what-ifs" are a work in progress. Our food storage and our emergency kits are NOWHERE near complete; please don't get me wrong about this. But, I do have a developing love for this subject, and I figured it would be helpful for me and my readers to follow me on my journey to self-reliance. So, I decided to start a series in my blog on what we have chosen to store in our household, the ways we "prep," and also, our progress (are we meeting our goals, how have our goals/aspirations changed, and so forth).
In my introductory entry, I think I want to talk about one of my favorite things as a sugar junkie: sweeteners. In my opinion, if an emergency ever takes place, or if we need to rely on our food storage for a time, I don't want my food to be boring and bland.
The obvious solution to this would be to have sugar on hand, which we do. We currently have several #10 cans of white sugar, a 5 gallon bucket of the stuff, two 7 pound bags of brown sugar, and a very small amount of powdered sugar (which, admittedly, I don't use very often, and don't keep in good supply). We buy our sugar at warehouse clubs, mainly. I like buying the 25 lbs. bags of white sugar and placing the contents in a bucket you can buy at Lowe's or other home improvement stores. Admittedly, I don't buy food grade buckets (and I should), but we use the stuff so fast that I'm not overly concerned about anything leaching out from the plastic. We also buy our brown sugar at warehouse clubs, and brown sugar freezes WONDERFULLY. It thaws in about a half an hour on a table, if that, and you're good to go. Dump it into a big Tupperware container or something comparable that is air tight, and you're set. I probably should buy some more powdered sugar, but am not sure of a good way to store it, so if anyone has suggestions, I'm all ears. In terms of shelf life, sugar can last for years, if stored correctly.
An alternative sweetener is honey, which we buy locally and in bulk. We are lucky to have resources available to us in our area to buy inexpensive, local, pure honey, and I typically buy it in 3 lb. or more jars. It doesn't go bad easily, though it does crystallize, which you can remedy by placing a jar under warm/hot water for a bit. Honey also has a lengthy shelf life.
We also buy Karo corn syrup. I'm not sure why there is so much hatred of corn syrup, but I have yet to buy into all of the ire, so we keep some on hand. We just buy small bottles of the light and the dark both to keep on hand--we do use it, but not often enough for me to want to keep more than maybe 4 jars on hand at any given time. Also stores well.
Molasses...I keep a jar of this on hand, but don't use it very much. I have heard that the shelf life is poor, so that is a deterrent for me, though I haven't researched it much because, well, we don't really use it.
Agave nectar--just bought our first jar of it, and have not tried it, but have heard that a little goes a long way, and that a small amount can replace sugar in some recipes. If anyone has any information to share about this, please feel free to comment.
Maple syrup is a sweetener that I absolutely adore. I'm talking real deal, pure maple syrup, and this is something that I just recently started using. I use it in lots of applications, but most often, as a glaze for meat, oddly enough. Has a shelf life of a year or two on the shelf, and about six months to a year in the fridge, judging from the research I have done. I have been told that occasionally a harmless mold can grow on the syrup, but you can boil the syrup, skim the skin, and replace it into the bottle, and you've fixed the issue.
I do also store other syrups, like commercial artificial maple syrup (like Mrs. Butterworth, for example), and fruit syrups that we have come across on sale at discount stores in our town.
Jams and jellies are an easy sweetener alternative. They are inexpensive, come in all sorts of varieties, and have a lengthy shelf life. Plus, you can make your own if you're canning inclined or like making freezer jam. Between our jams and jellies, as well as our fruit butters that we have on hand, I would say we have easily a dozen to a dozen and a half jars on our food storage shelves. I canned homemade apple butter with a friend a couple years ago, and it turned out OK, but the majority of our jams are commercially produced, or made locally by a small producer. I really like what preserves have to offer in the way of variety and shelf life, and they can be a very appealing option when looking to add to your food storage without breaking the budget.
I think my goals would be to 1) widen our repertoire of sweeteners and know how to use and store them (like molasses and powdered sugar), 2) to not go overboard in this category seeing as I love jam, for example, and could buy unlimited quantities if given the option, and 3) I would still like to have more white sugar on hand, as well as a better means to store it--maybe keeping some in actual food grade buckets, buying more #10 cans of it, etc.
So, what do you do to make your kitchen/food storage a bit "sweeter?"

Is It Me, Or Am I Starting to Sound Like a PSA?

I feel like I'm starting to sound like a public service announcement lately, with all of my posts on preparedness and self reliance.
I've got a couple things to say tonight, so this entry might feel just a touch random, so bear with me....
Our area is known for having a lot of older homes, and in the recent months, there have been several fatal home fires, including one that took the lives of two very small children. It made me sick to hear that two beautiful, innocent little children were taken in such an awful, painful way, and what made it even worse is that the apartment building lacked smoke detectors.
My husband and I made it a goal to add more smoke detectors to our home, but we were unsure as to how we wanted to do them--do we hardwire them so when one goes off, they all go, or do we do battery powered, etc--and it didn't get done, and didn't get done. It took another (non-fatal) house fire, literally a block away from our former rental home, to make me realize we needed to do this and do this NOW--we can improve them later. Something is better than nothing.
So, we bought two more smoke detectors, and also another fire extinguisher, bringing our total to three smoke detectors and two extinguishers. I feel like a huge load is off of my mind. That is perhaps my worst nightmare--losing my family--and I encourage you all to check your smoke detectors, or buy them if you don't have them. The picture of those two now-dead girls from our town still haunts me and makes me sick inside.
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On another subject, my rockin' friend Tara posted a fabulous blog entry about accepting your children as they are, and I have been doing a lot of thinking about this lately. I struggle sometimes accepting it when my children aren't following what *my* plan for them is--if they aren't pottytrained fast enough, or sitting up soon enough, or crawling, or writing their names...whatever. It can bring me such anxiety worrying about each and every little thing, and stressing about whether or not they can do this or that. And the thing is--it's totally selfish of me. I am focusing on MY time table, and not what they need. If I could just relinquish my expectations and accept them for who they are, we all would be less stressed and on edge sometimes. Sure, it's OK to make sure they are developing correctly--that we know--but there is a difference between concern and impatience. I really, really, desperately need to work on this, on improving my relationship with them, on developing patience, and loving them as they are. I do love them, obviously, but I need to be less selfish.
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UPDATE: This week in "fail": While re-organizing my kitchen this morning (2/20/12), I found an unopened smoke detector, probably at least three years old, on the top of my fridge, which I hadn't cleaned in, oh, three years or more. So much for good intentions three years back... At least I have them up and functioning now.

My Evening Soapbox--Why I Feel Food Storage and Emergency Preparedness is So Very Necessary

I am not normally someone who feels prompted or compelled to speak on something, but I have this nagging need to share my thoughts and feelings on food storage and emergency preparedness in detail.
In case you don't know, my church counsels us to be prepared for potential small term emergencies or challenges that face our families. Contrary to popular opinion, it's not a Doomsday Prepper sort of thing, but rather, they encourage us to have provisions on hand for the smaller crises that do happen in life. Power outages happen. Natural disasters do happen. People are laid off from jobs. Prices go up. We get snowed in. Stuff happens. And that is what we are admonished to prepare for, not for the end of the world, so to speak.
When I was a kid, when I heard the term "food storage" (for example), I cringed. I had this vision of women sitting around at a church meeting discussing the 230,000,000 things you can do with 800 year old wheat. We were advised to store a year's worth of food, and my small mind saw a house with #10 cans flowing out of the windows. I was JUST. NOT. INTERESTED.
And I carried that view with me into my marriage. When I was married and was a new mom, I was kinda interested in food storage and emergency preparedness, but didn't really know where to begin. To me, it was a lot like setting up a house when you're newly married--you know you need a lot of stuff, but you'll never have it all at once, so you become overwhelmed. Everyone tells you to do things a little bit at a time, but you think, "Oh, it'll never get accomplished that way." But, someday, you have a decent supply of goods in your house, enough to live and enjoy life, and you look back on those early days with nostalgia and a lesson learned.
That is what happened with me and food storage and emergency preparedness. Upon the birth of our second child, I started to really feel inspired to make it a priority for our family. And since then (maybe even a little before that), we have been buying a little here and a little there. I want to work up to a year's worth of food, and a decent supply of emergency supplies (a full week's worth, even two, would be such an accomplishment, down to alternative heating, etc.) We're not there yet, but we're getting there. Much like a lot we do in our lives, be it setting up a home, or paying down debt, or teaching children, it's a step at a time. I have been so pleased at how much progress "a little at a time" has made when it comes to our goals.
I was talking with a friend who is older and is very much into food storage, and she was talking to me about how surprised she was that, being "young," I was so into the concept of it and emergency preparedness, particularly since she had noticed that my generation doesn't seem to be as into it, that she knows people my age who buy nothing for the future, even members of my church, and who pass up opportunities to buy a bit here, and a bit there. On the one hand, it really made me sad to realize that a lot of young parents like us aren't doing it, but on the other hand, I totally get it. It is such a completely overwhelming idea. It really is. When I first started, I remember calling my mother in law panicked over all of this stuff I felt I needed to do RIGHT THIS SECOND. I still get that feeling sometimes.
I'm sharing this with you because I hope to inspire you to squirrel away a little food, to make an evacuation plan in case of fire, to update your smoke detectors (we NEED to do this...the ones we have up work, but we took a couple down and never put them back up), to prepare 72 hour kits--do SOMETHING. It's not as difficult as you think, and even a little can go a long way.

After Five Long Years...

After five years of my hubby encouraging me to do this, I finally began work on our family's 72 hour kit this morning. It's not completed, and there's a lot of work to do, but since we buy loads of stuff in bulk and stockpile, I was amazed at how much we already had that was usable.
A 72 hour kit, or "bug out bag," is a container with preparations in the event your family needs to seek alternative shelter. Will you likely use these emergency supplies? Maybe, maybe not. But, in the event of a natural disaster/emergency, I love the idea that our family will be prepared. This would be great even for the small problems in life, like lengthy power outages (which we have a lot around here).
I put off doing this for years, feeling like it was too daunting a task, too expensive, etc., etc. But, thanks to Pinterest, I found some inspiration and loads of great ideas to get started. Some are not comprehensive--some don't mention clothing, or pet preparation, etc., but you can fill in the gaps as needed for your family.
I really encourage you to do this for your family. It's not much, doesn't mean you are prepping for doomsday...this is just for a short term emergency. I hope you never need it, but if you do, you will be ready to face the challenge ahead. It never hurts to work on becoming more self-reliant, and your family will be grateful.
Some helpful links:
One Item a Week 72 Hour Kits
72 Hour Kit List
72 Hour Kits for Babies

On Doomsday Preppers....

Apparently, there is a new show on the National Geographic Channel called Doomsday Preppers, documenting the lives of "preppers" who take emergency preparation to societal extremes.
I admit, I have not watched the show (yet). But it has garnered a lot of attention, particularly now that our country has experienced several natural disasters (like Hurricane Katrina, tornadoes, flooding...), and the assertion that Rand Paul made a while back stating that the government supposedly finds a few months' food storage to be terroristic activity (I'm not buying it, but he said it, and it caused an uproar).
I am not, in any way, shape, or form, prepared for a catastrophe. I don't even have completed 72 hour kits. We don't have a back-up heat source. In the event of a tornado, we would likely become, to use the academic term, screwed. For a long time, I laughed at the ladies of my church who pushed food storage and at the time found it to be antiquated knowledge from a bunch of women who were running scared and living still in the Great Depression.
And then, I became a wife. And a mom.
I didn't grow up with traditional "food storage" in my home. Preparing for, buying, and maintaining a food storage is hard on a tight budget, and our family home was very small. But, that motivated me to start one of our own, and it has become my passion. I'm not the type to keep tons of wheat on hand. If we had to rely on wheat, we'd die. Simple as that. But, we do have some on hand that we are learning how to grind into flour. We keep several months worth of canned goods, pastas, meat, flours, sugars, and baking mixes on hand. We have #10 cans of staple items around for some semblance of a long term food storage (it's meager, but would be good for a couple months, I would think). In the event of an emergency, knowing I could feed my family is something that is priceless to me.
I will never be the type to hoard ammo, or build a fall out shelter, or cry and wail in the streets waiting for doomsday. That's not me. But, we do occasionally go without power here in the sticks for a few days, and we have been snowed in for a week...small things happen. And that is what I want to prepare for, for those moments where we don't want to leave our home and want to hunker down. I am hoping to dedicate myself to my husband's goals of creating 72 hour kits and carrying emergency ready-to-eat meals if we need to leave our home for whatever reason.
On some level, I am discovering a passion for being a (small scale) prepper.
Maybe those featured on the show are extreme. I haven't seen it, so I can't judge. But, I don't get the ridicule of those who have food storage, or water for an emergency, or things "just in case." Even I have been made fun of for our small provisions. My thing is, in the event of an emergency, even if someone chooses to live in a fall out shelter, if they are one less mouth/family to feed and for the government to worry about, what is so bad about that? I hope I can dedicate myself and learn to cultivate this passion I have for being prepared.
Some interesting info I found today:
Emergency Food for Babies
Freezer Bag Meals
One Year Food Supply for One Adult
Stocking Food for Small Spaces and Budgets