Friday, June 27, 2014

Food Storage, Emergency Preparedness & Weekly/Monthly Assignments (Week of June 29th)

Lots to blog about this week!

Physical Preparation an important part of Emergency Preparedness


How many of you could walk 5-20 miles if you had too?
How many of you could go without your prescription medications for more than 1-3 days, 1-3 months?
How many of you are dependent on a special diet?
How many of you have health issues?

Last weekend while visiting our daughter and we got to talking about why physically fitness and good health is an important part of emergency preparedness. Recently I read a book, in a fiction setting but the information is factual as to what might happen if an EMP (Electro Magnetic Pulse Bomb) hit the United States (or any country).  After several days many had to walk long distances away from the city to find food and water in the country side. Due to health issues many of them could not survive the long strenuous walking. Many died from not having access to their prescription medications. Many of us in the United States are not very health, we are out of shape, we rely on prescription medications to keep us functioning. For the most part our diets are not healthy! This could happen with any type of disaster or emergency situation.

For some of us our health is great, we strive to eat good diets full of vegetables, fruits, good proteins, low carbohydrates, and exercise daily. We are also spiritual prepared because we read our scriptures daily, pray daily and attend church on a regular bases.

In the 1940-1950 came all the junk food, convenience/pre-processed foods and fast food places with their high calorie, high sugar, high carbohydrates and high fructose corn syrup (found in almost everything these days). Women and men, stopped cooking wholesome foods from scratch and families started eating out more or eating convenience foods with high calories and preservatives. Note: Did you know that high fructose corn syrup came about during WWII? There was a shortage on sugar and due to its high cost the industry came up with a cheaper way to produce a sugary substance to cook with and put into drinks.

Those who have healthy lives will last longer in an emergency situation or disaster. It is important for all of us to make this a part of our emergency preparedness. Prescription medications will become unavailable and people will die. We need to eat healthier, get more exercise and try to get off our prescription medications. I know a man who was a diabetic, had high blood pressure, high cholesterol, could hardly walk a few steps and was in very poor health. Once he changed his diet, started exercising daily and lost several pounds he is no longer diabetic, no longer has high blood pressure or high cholesterol and is off all his prescription medications. Yes, it takes hard work and dedication.We as a nation need to make better and healthy food choices.

This past year the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints published a couple of articles in the 2014 February Ensign magazine encouraging all of us to strive to eat better, make wiser choices in our food choices and get some exercise. To read these article click on the titles "Nourishing Our Bodies and Our Spirits" and "A Principle with Promises".  The church also has a website, providentliving.org, that tells about the importance of good physical health. Click here to read the information. As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (and the world) we also have the "Word of Wisdom" found in the Doctrine and Covenants, Section 89, giving us guidance on how to eat and take care of our bodies.

Food Storage and Emergency Preparedness . . . 
It's not that difficult

Many of us become overwhelmed when we think about food storage and emergency preparedness. Our church leaders have urged us again and again to "prepare now". Just like the sparrow, "The Lord did not fill the sparrow's nest with food, but He gave them food to find and eat". Our church leaders have given us an "exact formula for us to follow" in providentliving.org. If we follow this formula and take it one step at a time, before we know it we will have a 3-Months Food Supply, Water Storage and emergency supplies, may be even a years supply.

In Philippians 4:13 we read, "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me".  In Romans 8:28 we read, "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, ...". Heavenly Father will provide a way if you go to Him with a honest sincere prayer, with a specific prayer of what you need. He will give you guidance and help.

You can do it! This blog is here to help you and to make it as easy as I can. Just follow the steps under the topics on the right under "Postings" and each blog posting.

Weekly Assignment: Family Emergency Medical Kits
 
Many of us have some sort of medical supplies in our homes like band-aids, alcohol, peroxide, anti-infection creams, pain killers, etc.. Some of us have limited first-aid kits in our cars and home that we probably have not checked in months, years. Medications do expire!

If there was a major disaster or emergency situation would you have the proper emergency medical supplies to take care of you, your family and help your neighbors. I would say most of us do not! Right?

The next few weeks we are going to work on our Family Emergency Medical Kit. We have done this before but I am sure there are some of you who did not do it, never completed it and some things need to be replaced due to expiration dates.  Some of these items can be found at discount stores and drug stores. Make sure you check the expiration dates before purchasing them, you want them to last for at least a year or more.

Note: Make sure you keep this out of the reach of your young children and explain to the family is your Family Emergency Medical Kit/Supplies. If you need to use an items from it, make sure you replace it right away!
This week add the following: (You can purchase these at discount, department and drug stores, but what the expiration dates at the discount stores)
1) Thermometer (for adult and infant/child)   


2) Sterile gauze pads (various sizes) 

So far you should have the following: Large plastic non-see through container with a a lid to keep the items in, band-aids (assorted sizes), box of antiseptic/alcohol wipes,2 hand sanitizer bottles, topical antibiotic ointment, hydrogen peroxide, petroleum jelly, a thermometer, sterile gauze pads (various sized). How much you store of each depends on the size of your family and emergency needs. Go back to June 1st, June 8th, June 15th and June 22nd to see postings about the items we have added so far.
Last week for the June Monthly Assignment
June Monthly Assignment: Paper Supplies

This is a great time to work on storing paper supplies since most stores have them on sale due to the many holiday and summer activities, Memorial Day, Fourth of July, Graduations, Summer BBQ, Labor Day, etc..

Figure out how many paper products you will need for your family for 3 months, 6 months or a year. Remember, there are 3 meals, breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. Most of us use large paper plates, small paper plates, paper bowls, paper cups for hot and cold drinks, plastic silverware and napkins. You can also include paper towels. 

Here is an example: Lets say you are going to store enough large paper plates for 6 months. That would be about 183 large paper plates per person. If you have 5 people in your family, you would need to store 915 large paper plates for 6 months. But remember, that is only for one meal, breakfast, lunch or dinner. Multiply the number of meals a day you would use the large paper plates. Do the same thing for the other paper products you need to store.

Watch for sales. Sometimes the sales at regular grocery stores and department stores like Walmart are better than the big box stores. Compare the prices and save!

This week add the following: 

1) Review the weeks for June, June 1st, June 8th, June 15th and June 22nd to see what items to add to your paper supplies. Continue this week to add them.  

Emergency Preparedness Ideas

Blessings of a vegetable garden . . .


What a blessing to have a home vegetable garden. I love being able to go out to my vegetable garden and harvest lettuce, green onions, carrots and tomatoes for our salad. No pesticides, no preservatives, no GMO, all organic. We are so blessed living in Southern California, we can grow vegetables all year long, different one at different seasons. We also have the opportunity to can or freeze them for future use. I just used the last of our carrots we grew last year and froze and the new ones are ready to harvest. We are still using our canned and frozen tomatoes and other vegetables. What a blessing and a savings. Doing this each year adds to our food storage and blesses our family in so many ways. Check out the posting on the right under "Postings" under "Vegetable Gardening" to see how you to can grow a vegetable garden, even if it just a small one or in containers.

Planting fruit trees . . . Another great way to store food

Watch this great video from Armstrong Garden regarding how to plant and take care of citrus trees. Of course, you do not have to use the products they suggest in the video, there are many great products out there you can find at your local garden home center. There are also other great videos on You Tube showing how to plant and care for fruit trees. Check them out too.



Storing citrus fruit . . . You cannot freeze citrus fruit whole. What we do is squeeze out the juice, place the juice from one lemon, orange, grapefruit, etc. into a saran wrap line cupcake pan, pour in the juice and freeze. I place the wrapped discs of juice in a large plastic zip lock bag and freeze for future use. Or, you can freeze 1 or 2 cups of citrus fruit juice in a freezer plastic zip lock bag for future use. For other fruits like apples, peaches, pears, etc., you will need to can them by pressure cooking canning to store them for a longer period of time in Mason canning jars. You can freeze strawberries and berries by slicing them, covering them with a little sugar and then freezing them in freezer plastic zip lock bags. It is a good way to save money while these types of fruits are in season and to have them all year long.
Comments: Please post your comments below. Share your personal experiences with food and water storage and emergency preparedness. We can all learn from each other.

Thursday, June 19, 2014

Food Storage. Emergency Preparedness & Weekly/Monthly Assignments (Week of June 22nd)

I am proud to be an American . . .


Not the usual topic for my emergency preparedness blog but for some reason this past week it has hit me hard. May be because it was Father's Day last Sunday and my Dad was an American Hero. I was brought up by my parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles to love this country, the United States of America, to be patriotic, to respect it, to honor it and to protect and stand up for the freedoms we enjoy. I am grateful for a father, my father-in-law, grandfathers, uncles and a husband who have given of their lives and sacrificed their time to protect this wonderful free country by serving in the military. Our grandparents and we have taught our children and grandchildren to be patriotic and to love this country. To fly the American flag with honor and pride. Each day for 43 years we have flown the American flag in front of our home (except when it rains) to honor those who have fought for freedom, given of their lives and to remind us and others of the freedoms we enjoy daily. Each of us need to teach our children about those who have fought to defend our freedom and others, let them not forget the sacrifices that have been made so they can enjoy freedom and the right to vote and speak up, to respect and honor this great country, to be patriotic, and to fly the American flag proudly.

Recently I came across a video regarding a young 13 year old boy who tried to show his love and respect for this country by flying the American flag on his bike. What happened to him was a shock and a shame! But those who came forward and stood up for what he did we honor. I love this young man and what his parents have taught him. Please take time to view this video and teach your children and grandchildren that it is an honor to say with pride, "I Am American".



For those of you from other countries who view this blog,  teach your children to be proud of their country and the freedoms they enjoy today. Many enjoy freedom today throughout the world because Americans stood up and defended freedom around the world by fighting for it and sacrificing their lives.

When you come across a Veteran, please thank them for their service, their sacrifice and the freedoms we enjoy today! Teach your children to thank them also. Let us not forget them!

We should feel so blessed to live in a country where we can store extra food and water for emergency situations. Many countries they cannot do this, or they are limited.

Weekly Assignment: Family Emergency Medical Kits
 
Many of us have some sort of medical supplies in our homes like band-aids, alcohol, peroxide, anti-infection creams, pain killers, etc.. Some of us have limited first-aid kits in our cars and home that we probably have not checked in months, years. Medications do expire!

If there was a major disaster or emergency situation would you have the proper emergency medical supplies to take care of you, your family and help your neighbors. I would say most of us do not! Right?

The next few weeks we are going to work on our Family Emergency Medical Kit. We have done this before but I am sure there are some of you who did not do it, never completed it and some things need to be replaced due to expiration dates.  Some of these items can be found at discount stores and drug stores. Make sure you check the expiration dates before purchasing them, you want them to last for at least a year or more.

Note: Make sure you keep this out of the reach of your young children and explain to the family is your Family Emergency Medical Kit/Supplies. If you need to use an items from it, make sure you replace it right away!
This week add the following: (You can purchase these at discount, department and drug stores, but what the expiration dates at the discount stores)
                                                    
 


1) Topical antibiotic ointment






 



2) Petroleum jelly





 



3) Sunscreen--purchase the right type for your family needs






So far you should have the following in your Emergency Family Medical Kit: Assorted sizes of band-aids, antiseptic/alcohol wipes, hand sanitizer (2), hydrogen peroxide, topical antibiotic ointment, Petroleum jelly, and sunscreen. Go back to the beginning of June 1st to see the items we have added so far.

June Monthly Assignment: Paper Supplies


This is a great time to work on storing paper supplies since most stores have them on sale due to the many holiday and summer activities, Memorial Day, Fourth of July, Graduations, Summer BBQ, Labor Day, etc..

Figure out how many paper products you will need for your family for 3 months, 6 months or a year. Remember, there are 3 meals, breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. Most of us use large paper plates, small paper plates, paper bowls, paper cups for hot and cold drinks, plastic silverware and napkins. You can also include paper towels. 

Here is an example: Lets say you are going to store enough large paper plates for 6 months. That would be about 183 large paper plates per person. If you have 5 people in your family, you would need to store 915 large paper plates for 6 months. But remember, that is only for one meal, breakfast, lunch or dinner. Multiply the number of meals a day you would use the large paper plates. Do the same thing for the other paper products you need to store.

Watch for sales. Sometimes the sales at regular grocery stores and department stores like Walmart are better than the big box stores. Compare the prices and save!

This week add the following: 


1) Napkins/paper towels (As many as you will need for your family for the number of months you are working towards; 3 months, 6 months or 1 year. You can store one or the other or both.)

You should have paper plates, paper bowls, paper cups, plastic silverware, and napkins/paper towels.  



Note:  One blog follower said it is better to store paper and not Styrofoam plates, bowls and cups because they burn easier and give off better heat. You may want to store some Styrofoam cups for hot drinks.

Emergency Preparedness Ideas

Finding Water in the Wild--Emergency Essentials (as you know one of favorite websites for food storage and emergency supplies) posted a great article on their blog about "Water". Click here to read this article. Great information on finding water in the wild, how to tell if drinkable, how to filter and purify, and 5 ways to collect water.

Hand tools in an emergency situation/disaster . . . 

We are so use to being able to plug in or use our rechargeable batteries for our electrical power tools, like drills, chain saws (some are gas), circular saws, all types of saws, electrical grinders to sharpen our tools and other electrical power tools. Imagine there is no electricity, what would you do? Could you function without your electrical power tools?


Everyone should have some non-electrical hand tools to help out in a disaster situation; hand drill, hand saws (different types), hand-crank grinder, crowbar, axe, chisels, whet stone, hammer, shovel, etc. If you had a gas or solar generator you could use your power tools, but most people cannot afford them nor have a place to store lots of gas. Plus, you want to save your gas generator for the more important things like light and keeping the refrigerator going.


Think back to what our parents, grandparents used before electric power tools. Make sure you have some regular old hand tools to help remove fallen trees, rescue someone that is trapped, build a shelter for your family, and for what ever else you might need. Think about the types of hand tools you might need and work on storing them and learn how to use them before you need them.

Comments: Please post your comments below. Share your personal experiences with food and water storage and emergency preparedness. We can all learn from each other.

Friday, June 13, 2014

Food Storage, Emergency Preparedness and Weekly/Monthly Assignment (Week of June 15th)


Happy Father's Day to all the Dad's throughout the world. Heavenly Father has blessed me with an Eternal Father, a great father, a fantastic Dad, grandfather and the father of our children. Any man can be a "Father", but it takes a special man to be a "Dad". 

I am grateful for my knowledge that I have an eternal Father in Heaven who loves me unconditionally, who is always aware of me, who gave me an opportunity to come to earth to gain a body, who gave me agency and an opportunity to return and live with him again for eternity. 

I was not blessed to know my father growing up but after high school we developed a very special relationship I will always cherish. My Dad was always there for me from the time I was 4 years old, providing for me, teaching me, defending my honor, protecting me, giving me his great big Dad hugs and comforting me when I was sad or hurt. He was the most humble man I have ever known. He holds a special place in my heart. My grandfather helped raise me when I was very young while my mother worked. He took me fishing with him, played with me, made me things using his carpentry skills, and just loved me for who I was. I have been greatly blessed having a husband who loves his children and grandchildren more than himself and cherishes every moment with them. He has taught them skills, the gospel, the importance of respect, honor and to be humble. He helped them with homework, scout projects, took them to daddy daughter activities and so many other things. He has been there in difficult times and fun times.

Thank you to all the fathers and may your day be a very special and peaceful relaxing one!

A Tribute to Fathers . . .


  
Please, Please, Please . . .


Be ready for what may come your way by having emergency food storage and water storage! It only takes a second for things to change!

I know from personal experience and my children's lives each of our lives are filled with so many things and you feel overwhelmed, family responsibilities, up keep of our homes, friends, caring for loved ones, jobs, church callings, daily personal and family scripture reading, health and health issues, bills, world events and much more. (Oops! Sorry if I just made you feel overwhelmed.) I know you are thinking, all we need is one more thing to worry about. But food and water storage is one of those things that should be at the top of our priorities. Yes, it takes some time and thought but I can promise you it is worth it.


Some say I cannot afford it, but I say you cannot afford not too. If you just purchase a few extra cans or packages or containers of items on sale that your family will eat while grocery shopping, before you know it you will have a month supply, 3 months supply, 6 months supply of food storage. Cut back on things that you really do not need, that are not healthy for your family, like sodas when you go out to eat, or chips and junk food when you go grocery shopping. Take
that money and apply it towards extra cans, packages or containers of food for your food storage. Have a chance jar, when ever you have chance at the end of the day, drop into a jar marked "Food Storage". Use that money when you go grocery shopping to purchase extra food. There are many ways to find money for a few extra cans, packages or containers of food!

 

Some say I have no room. I know families you have food storage tucked in places all over their house (under beds, in closets, in cupboards, in side lamp and coffee tables), some keep it in their garage (which is not a good idea, too hot and the food life shelve dismisses faster), some have their food storage tucked under the space/closet under their stairs, and some have special food storage rooms in their basements (love this). If storage is limited, at least store some food and water. Some is better than nothing. Be creative!

 





 



Store short term food storage first, canned, packaged or container foods. They are less expensive. Once you have your desired amount, one month three months, six months, then move onto the longer food storage, dehydrated and freeze-dried foods. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints use to say store the basics first, still a good idea. You can live on them, but it does get a little boring. They say store wheat, whole grains, oats, legumes, beans, and sugar. Also store some multivitamins. Realizing this may be hard for some families, now the church encourages us to store canned, packaged and container foods our family eats, and water. You should still store the basics. store.lds.org has great prices and starter kits on the basics and other items for longer term storage.

Get the whole family involved. Make food and water storage a family event. Sit down as a family and make a plan, Family Home Evening is a great time to do this. Decide what you need to store and set a goal. When you go grocery shopping take one of the children with you, watch for sales on things your family likes and purchase a few extra cans, packagers or containers of that food. Let the children contribute some of their change to the "Food Storage" change jar. As a family collect plastic and glass bottles, aluminum cans, etc. to recycle and add that money to the change jar. Make this a fun activity for the whole family.


I would rather have food and water storage and not need it, 
than have no food and water storage and need it!

NEW NEW NEW WEEKLY ASSIGNMENT

Weekly Assignment: Family Emergency Medical Kits
 
Many of us have some sort of medical supplies in our homes like band-aids, alcohol, peroxide, anti-infection creams, pain killers, etc.. Some of us have limited first-aid kits in our cars and home that we probably have not checked in months, years. Medications do expire!

If there was a major disaster or emergency situation would you have the proper emergency medical supplies to take care of you, your family and help your neighbors. I would say most of us do not! Right?

The next few weeks we are going to work on our Family Emergency Medical Kit. We have done this before but I am sure there are some of you who did not do it, never completed it and some things need to be replaced due to expiration dates.  Some of these items can be found at discount stores and drug stores. Make sure you check the expiration dates before purchasing them, you want them to last for at least a year or more.

Note: Make sure you keep this out of the reach of your young children and explain to the family is your Family Emergency Medical Kit/Supplies. If you need to use an items from it, make sure you replace it right away!

This week add the following:





 1) Antiseptic alcohol wipes (1-2 boxes_
 









2) Hand sanitizer (2 bottles) 





 
You should now have the following in your Emergency Family Medical Kit: Band-aids (many assorted sizes), hydrogen peroxide, antiseptic/alcohol wipes, 2 bottles of hand sanitizer. Go to the previous June 1st and June 8th postings to see these items we have added.

June Monthly Assignment: Paper Supplies



This is a great time to work on storing paper supplies since most stores have them on sale due to the many holiday and summer activities, Memorial Day, Fourth of July, Graduations, Summer BBQ, Labor Day, etc..

Figure out how many paper products you will need for your family for 3 months, 6 months or a year. Remember, there are 3 meals, breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. Most of us use large paper plates, small paper plates, paper bowls, paper cups for hot and cold drinks, plastic silverware and napkins. You can also include paper towels. 

Here is an example: Lets say you are going to store enough large paper plates for 6 months. That would be about 183 large paper plates per person. If you have 5 people in your family, you would need to store 915 large paper plates for 6 months. But remember, that is only for one meal, breakfast, lunch or dinner. Multiply the number of meals a day you would use the large paper plates. Do the same thing for the other paper products you need to store.

Watch for sales. Sometimes the sales at regular grocery stores and department stores like Walmart are better than the big box stores. Compare the prices and save!

This week add the following:

1) Plastic silverware (forks, spoons and knives)--The best place to purchase this is at the big box stores. I find the regular grocery stores are too expensive unless they are on sale during holidays. When we get take out food, like El Pollo or Wendy's chili, we save the plastic silverware they give us and use our regular silverware. We take their plastic silverware and put it in our emergency paper supplies. I have been amazed at how fast this has added up. I keep them in an extra large plastic zip lock bag in a plastic storage container. Remember to store what you will need for each meal for each family member for the number of months you are working towards. 

So far you should have paper plates, paper bowls, paper cups and plastic silverware.

Emergency Preparedness Ideas: 

 A Surprising Use For Freeze-dried Fruits

Click here to learn some great easy ways to use your freeze-dried fruits in cupcakes, cakes and cookies. 

Great reasons on why grinding your own wheat and other grains is good. Click here.

Mark your calenders, coming soon!

Carson Ward Emergency Preparedness Fair
Saturday, September 6th
9:00 am to 12:00 pm
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
22721 Main Street, Carson, California USA
  
Comments: Please post you comments below. We love to hear about your experiences with emergency preparedness and food storage. We all learn from each other. Thank you for your comments.

Thursday, June 5, 2014

Food Storage, Emergency Preparedness and Weekly/Monthly Assignment (Week of June 8th)

Hi Carson Ward Family, Torrance Stake Family, Family and Friends,


A great quote and a blessing from an apostle

Orson F. Whitney (an Apostle of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles) stated, "No pain that we suffer, no trail that we experience is wasted. It ministers to our education, to the development of such qualities as patience, faith, fortitude and humility. All that we suffer and all that we endure, especially when we endure it patiently, builds up our characters, purifies our hearts, expands our souls, and makes us  more tender and charitable, more worthy to be called the children of God . . . and it is through sorrow and suffering, toil and tribulation, that we gain the education that we come here to acquire and which will make us more like our Father and Mother in heaven."

This past Sunday we had a special Stake Conference for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Torrance Stake, California USA. We were blessed to have Elder M. Russell Ballard, Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, come speak to us. He stated, "How do I feed my spirit as well as I take care of my body? By pulling up to the spiritually table three times a day (feasting on) prayer, family prayer, studying the scriptures, service, and listen to the last General Conference. It is so simple, it is spiritual." Before he closed his beautiful spiritual and uplifting talk he left an Apostleship blessing on our Stake members that there will be peace in our homes, anything we need to do we will do it with courage, to repent, our hearts will be filled with the love of the Lord so we can build the kingdom of God and he blessed us with the righteous desires of our hearts.

I am grateful for my membership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, all it has taught me and why it is important to be prepared both spiritually and temporally. If you would like to know more about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-days Saints click on lds.org or mormon.org

Why Food Storage and Water Storage???

We as Americans take our food for granted! We are used to going to the grocery store and big box stores to purchase what we need when we need it. How do you feel when you go there and they are out of the item you need? Think about that, what if you went there and the shelves were empty? Would you be scared and worried? How would you feed your family? Why not have food and water stored for those times when food is not available or times are difficult? Listed below are some reason why you should have food storage and water storage.

Some reasons for Food and Water Storage . . .

1) Natural Disasters--Natural disasters happen throughout the world. Many times it takes local and federal governments to bring in food and drinking water days, weeks and even months. Every house hold should have extra food, water and emergency supplies stored. Our daughter had many friends and church members who were effected by the Joplin, Missouri USA tornado. Many lost everything. Those with food storage where able to help others and those effected by the tornado where grateful they had stored food and water in their basements.

 

2) Loss of Income/Jobs--Several years ago my husband was seriously hurt in an accident while working. He was on Medical Disability for 3-4 months. Because we had 6 months supply of food and other items we were able to feed our family without having to ask for assistance and were able to pay our other bills.





3) Contamination of Water--Several times throughout this year in the United States we have heard on the news of communities whose main water source was contaminated due to chemicals spilling in the water or other reasons. Just recently Portland, Oregon, USA, effecting 670,000 people, was told to boil their water before using it due to a possible animal contaminating their main water source. A few years ago when I went to turn on the faucet in the kitchen there was just a trickle of water. We called our water company and found out after some research, the lake by our house was being treated, which we were somehow attached to, and the water would be off for several hours. There was no prior notice of this event. Luckily we had water stored.
 
 
4) Higher food prices caused by drought, natural disasters, the economy--We are being warned that food
prices many rocket due to the drought in the Western and Midwest states of the United States. When this happens we can rely on our food storage to get us through these difficult times. Read the articles listed below regarding the drought in California, Oklahoma, Texas and Kansas USA.


  
 

5) Most important . . . We have been admonished by our church general authorities since 1936 to store food (and water)--Click here to hear and read a great article, "Prepare for the Days of Tribulation" by Ezra Taft Benson, regarding why we need food storage. If a year's supply seems overwhelming as mentioned in the article, work towards 1 month, 3 months or 6 months, and continue to increase until you have a years supply. Those of us you who live in countries, like the United States of American, are blessed to be able to store food and water. In some countries they are not allow to store food.



Drought in California, Oklahoma, Texas and Kansas . . .

The Effects of California's Driest Year

Dust Bowl Conditions Have Returned to Kansas, Oklahoma and Northern Texas

NEW NEW NEW WEEKLY ASSIGNMENT

Weekly Assignment: Family Emergency Medical Kits
 
Many of us have some sort of medical supplies in our homes like band-aids, alcohol, peroxide, anti-infection creams, pain killers, etc.. Some of us have limited first-aid kits in our cars and home that we probably have not checked in months, years. Medications do expire!

If there was a major disaster or emergency situation would you have the proper emergency medical supplies to take care of you, your family and help your neighbors. I would say most of us do not! Right?

The next few weeks we are going to work on our Family Emergency Medical Kit. We have done this before but I am sure there are some of you who did not do it, never completed it and some things need to be replaced due to expiration dates.  Some of these items can be found at discount stores and drug stores. Make sure you check the expiration dates before purchasing them, you want them to last for at least a year or more.

Note: Make sure you keep this out of the reach of your young children and explain to the family is your Family Emergency Medical Kit/Supplies. If you need to use an items from it, make sure you replace it right away!

This week add the following:

1)  Band-aids (several boxes, many assorted sizes)--When ever I find these at estate sales for garage sales I usually purchase them as long as they are clean and appear to not be old. Discount stores are great for these too, but sometimes I find they do not work as well as others.

 


2) 2-3 bottles of Hydrogen peroxide






Note: See last week's blog posting, June 1st, to see the items added last week.

June Monthly Assignment: Paper Supplies



This is a great time to work on storing paper supplies since most stores have them on sale due to the many holiday and summer activities, Memorial Day, Fourth of July, Graduations, Summer BBQ, Labor Day, etc..

Figure out how many paper products you will need for your family for 3 months, 6 months or a year. Remember, there are 3 meals, breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. Most of us use large paper plates, small paper plates, paper bowls, paper cups for hot and cold drinks, plastic silverware and napkins. You can also include paper towels. 

Here is an example: Lets say you are going to store enough large paper plates for 6 months. That would be about 183 large paper plates per person. If you have 5 people in your family, you would need to store 915 large paper plates for 6 months. But remember, that is only for one meal, breakfast, lunch or dinner. Multiply the number of meals a day you would use the large paper plates. Do the same thing for the other paper products you need to store.

Watch for sales. Sometimes the sales at regular grocery stores and department stores like Walmart are better than the big box stores. Compare the prices and save!

This week add the following:

1) Paper bowls--figure out how many you will need for the number of months you are going to store for them. See the example above. You many need different types, hot and cold foods.

2) Paper cups--for hot and cold drinks. Figure out how many you will need for the number of month you are going to store for them. 





Note: See last week's blog posting, June 1st, to see what items we added last week.



Emergency Preparedness Ideas 

Mark your calenders, coming soon!

Carson Ward Emergency Preparedness Fair
Saturday, September 6th
9:00 am to 12:00 pm
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
22721 Main Street, Carson, California USA  
Comments: Please post you comments below. We love to hear about your experiences with emergency preparedness and food storage. We all learn from each other. Thank you for your comments.