Food Storage, Emergency Preparedness and Weekly/Monthly Assignments (Week of April 13th)

Hi Carson Ward Family, Family and Friends,

184th Annual General Conference--The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

For those of you who watched or listened to General Conference this past weekend, wasn't if fabulous, so uplifting and spiritual. Every talk was filled with so much to help us prepare both spiritually and temporally lds.org and read or listen to the talks. All the talks will come out in the May Ensign issue next month. If you would like to order the May Ensign issue go to store.lds.org.  Click on "current issue" and order. It will not be available until sometime in May. You can order as many as you would like to share with friends.
and stand strong with courage and faith. If you did not get a chance to watch it, click here on

Emergency Preparedness is about being wise and setting priorities...

In the Sunday morning of the 184th General Conference Gary E. Stevensen stated, "Run the race that you may obtain the prize." I love this quote! Emergency preparedness is running a race of preparedness to obtain the prize of peace of mind knowing you and your family will be alright when a disaster or emergency situation hit you because you strove to be prepared.



Emergency preparedness is about taking little steps, baby steps to get where you are going.




I also enjoyed Michael John U. Teh (Of the Seventy) General Conference talk given Sunday afternoon. He shared a story about a woman who was in the typhoon in the Philippines and how she over came her loss, everything was sweep away and she had lost family members. She was living in temporary housing, grateful for what she had and had received. She was in good spirits besides her great loss. She had faith in Jesus Christ and knew everything would work out for good. She learned that material things to do not matter, all that matters in family and family relationships.

Elder Teh goes on to say we need to recognize what is necessary and what we can do without. It is good to recognize when we have enough. We should not spend money on that which is of no worth. He referenced Matthew 6:19-21. We read, "Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon the earth, where month and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal; For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."


So many of us today have a lot of things. We all need to be wise and set priorities in what is most important to us. We waste a lot of money on things and eating out a lot. There are so many things we could do without so we have money to purchased the things we will need in a disaster or emergency situation. Think about it, discuss it with your family, make a plan. What could you do without and take that money and save it until you can purchase food storage and emergency preparedness supplies. As you go to the grocery store each time purchase some extra cans or packages of food.

There is a Latter-day Saint hymn I have always enjoyed...

Put your Shoulder to the Wheel (LDS Hymn Book, #252, v. 1 & 3)

The world has need of willing men Who wear the workers seal.
Come, help the good work move along; Put your shoulder to the wheel.

Then work and watch and fight and pray With all your might and zeal.
Push every worthy work a long; Put your shoulder to the wheel.

Chorus:

Put your shoulder to the wheel; push along,
Do your duty with a heart full of song,
We all have work; let no one shirk.
Put your shoulder to the wheel.

Lets put our shoulders to the wheel and be better prepared both temporally and spiritually for what may come our way. Does it take hard work and planning? You bet it does! Can you do it? You bet you can! Is it worth it? You bet it is! Will you have peace of mind and safety? You bet you will!

Weekly Assignment: Emergency Cleaning Bucket


Have you ever thought about needing emergency cleaning supplies? For the next few weeks we are going to work on setting up an Emergency Cleaning Bucket. Each week we will add 1-3 items. Most of these items can be found for a dollar each at a discount store (99 Cent Store, Dollar Tree, Dollar General, Family Dollar, etc.). You want to purchase small-medium bottles so all of it will fit in one bucket. Watch the video on the March 16th posting on how to fit everything into the bucket. As we add each item place it into the bucket. Mark the bucket with a permanent marker--Emergency Cleaning Bucket. You can keep this in your garage or home storage shed.

This week add the following item: 

1) 18-20 clean reusable towels/wipes (blue ones). You can purchase these at auto parts stores and in auto and cleaning department sections of WalMart and other stores. The "Handy Wipe" as pictured come in a count of 20. Sometimes they tend to come in large quantities and are not cheap. This may be one items you want to go in with another family or friend.

New New New

April Monthly Assignment: Shelter

Each family will need some type of shelter in case you cannot stay in your home after a disaster and/or damage to your home. We also keep a small tent (3 person), and a large tarp with # 3-5 below, in our truck in case we might need shelter if a disaster strikes while away from home. 

 

This month add the following to your Emergency Supplies:
 

1) Tent to accommodate the size of your family (or several small to medium size ones)

2) Large tarps (2-4)

3) 100 feet of rope 

4) Duct tape

5) Clothes pens or heave clips 

6) Hammer with nails

Numbers 2-6 will help you to construct a shelter. Keep all these items together in your garage or home storage shed. 

Click here to read more information about shelter or go to the right of this blog under "Postings". The Boy Scout Handbook and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Young Woman Camp Manual also has some treat tips on constructing different types of shelters. 

I find Big 5 in Southern California USA have great sales prices on tents this time of year and after the summer. Other sporting goods stores and department stores with a sporting goods department will too. There are also great companies and Amazon.com on the Internet. 

Important: If you have never put a tent together and purchase one put it together before you need it to make sure you know how and all the pieces are there and working properly.

Emergency Preparedness Ideas

 
Cool idea...

If you want to learn how to make this emergency improvised tent lamp click here.

 
Things You Should Know...

1) What would you do if there was an attack on our power grid? What does it mean to us? How would it effect you? You you be able to survive?
 

Almost everything we do in the world today relies on electricity!  Click here to ready a great article on what to be aware of and how to prepare.


 

2) What if there was an EMP (electromagnetic pulse) weapon as they keep talking about?  What does it mean to us? How would it effect you? You you be able to survive? 

We hear so much in the news about EMP weapons and how they could effect us. Do we really understand it? Are we prepared to go back hundreds of years? Will you be able to survive?  

These are the things we would be without...
No electricity
No phone (landlines or cell phones or texting)
No running water (takes pumps and electricity)
No heating (takes the gas and electric company electricity to run the plant)
No hot water
No televisions or radios to listen to for emergency instructions (stations take electricity)
No emergency response teams (the fire station and truck use computers/electricity to work)
No medicines (those with medical conditions that require prescription medications will probably die) 
No running cars (cars after the 1980 use electrical and computers to run them. Cars before that will run until you run out of gas, no gas stations to get gas)
No way to use your debit or credit cards (no electricity at banks or stores) 
No food or drinking water (stores will run out immediately, no delivery trucks running)
No sanitation (cannot flush your toilets)
No city trash pickup (trucks do not run)
Hospitals and nursing homes will not be able to function (no electricity)
Air planes will fall from the sky
Thousands will die (creating mass burials)
There will be civil unrest, Martial Law will be called (do you know what that means?)
And so much more! 

Everything we know of as today will cease to exist, we will go back 300-400 years!

Will you have the skills and ability to survive? 

Listen for the things you will need to survive...




Faraday Cage...To see how to make with a garbage can click on the link at the beginning of the video...This protects your electronic and other electrical devices from the EMP.




3) First-aid...Difference Between a Burn and a Scald
 
Many of us are not aware of the difference and importance of a 1st, 2nd and 3rd degree burn. Click here to learn how to recognize the difference and treat the different degrees of burns. Click on the links within the article to learn more about how to treat burns.




These are things we need to think about and strive to prepare for the best we can. 

Comments: Please post a comment.  All your comments, ideas, suggestions and experiences are welcome! We all learn from each other. Thank you for your comments.