Learning as we go

This preparation process can be very daunting, if you have not been a creature of this habit for years now. But don't fret every step we take today; is a learning experience, and one step closer to self reliance.

There are a few things that we really need to put thought into. Like diversification of our investment portfolios (or what is left of them anyway) we need to do the same for our preparations.

For example for the food storage you don't want to place all your eggs in one basket. Here is what I have done.


For the short term:

• Bought fresh fruit and veggies flash froze and vacuum bagged. They will be good for one year.
• Bought twice my normal amount of pasta, rice, flour, sugar, instant milk, and protein powder. Also used the food saver and vacuum packed.

For the Emergency without power:

• Canned meats as I could, this included chicken, albacore, tuna, salmon, corned beef hash, beef stew, chicken and dumplings,
  
• Case of canned corn, peas, broths, potatoes, and canned milk
  
• Used the food saver again for sugar, cornmeal, cereal, cake mix, pancake mix, pasta, beans, dried peas and instant milk
  
• Spices, Coffee, tea, hot chocolate
• Extra canola oil and other cooking provisions
  
• LABELED each box with what was in it and when it expires.

For the long term plan:

• Years worth of #10 cans of veggies
• A starter pack of # 10 can entrees
• Live animals to breed and have organic meats.
• A special #10 can of seeds that we can plant in the garden.

I plan to add to each of these three plans as I can, but i think it is a great start. So you may be wondering, what about non food items?

These are things we want to ensure for not just good hygiene and safety but there is only so much roughing it that is feasible. So I am starting my list for non foods items to include:

• Toilet paper a couple of cases
• Extra paper and cloth kitchen towels
• Paper plates and utensils
• Bleach
• White Vinegar
• Borax
  
• Case of Ivory Soap Bars (for cleaning body and making cleaner with)
• Washcloths
• Stock up on underwear and socks for every household member
• Disposable and cloth diapers
• Rubbing Alcohol & Hydrogen peroxide
• First Aid Kit essentials (I will save that for another blog but I put my own together)
• Toothbrushes, Toothpaste, Ambosol and Dent u temp.
• Deodorant, shampoo, and conditioner if you cant live without it.
• Feminine Products and spare contraceptives (not sure about the expiration date on the last one but I would hate for someone to be in a bad situation in bad times, and not able to purchase birth control
• Vitamins, Herbal remedies
• Spiral notebooks and Pens
• Learning materials in case your children are housebound! Workbooks are fantastic
  

As I write this blog I see lots of areas I will go into more detail, but this is a start! Naturally people with limited space, or living in an urban location would expand in some areas and not others that is really up to the individual but the important thing is to make it feasible to attain, and happily live. Make it a fun learning experience for the whole family. Not only is learning self reliance fun, but it is a skill that you can pass down to the generations. Especially if you write a diary of your journey and make binders of your new learned skills!