Emergency Preparedness, Food Storage and Monthly Assignments (Week of November 20th)

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

The past few weeks I have been filled with lots of thoughts. I have been jotting down quotes and other things I have heard. I am going to try and express them in this blog posting. 

"Know ye that the Lord he is God: . . . . Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name."  (Psalms 100: 3-4)

"Sing unto the Lord with thanksgiving; ...." (Psalms 147:7)

"Thou shalt thank the Lord thy God in all things." (Doctrine and Covenants 59:7)

"... and that ye live in thanksgiving daily, for the many mercies and blessings which he doth bestow upon you." (Book of Mormon, Alma 34:38)

"A grateful heart ... comes through expressing gratitude to our Heavenly Father for His blessings and to those around us for all that they bring into our lives." (Thomas S. Monson, President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)

This is the time of year when we think about those things we are grateful for! Why not take the time daily to reflect on these things? It can be simple things like a drink of clean cool water, a beautiful flower, the smile of someone walking towards you, the laugh of a child, the birds singing, the voice of a loved one. Take the time each day to be grateful for all your blessings, large and small. Give praises to our Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ for your blessings.

I know many of you are struggling with life's trails and challenges and the county's and worlds uneasiness and events. All you need to be told is that you should be working on one more things, like food storage and emergency preparedness. All I can say is what Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, Quorum of the Twelve Apostles says, "Don't you give up, don't you quit, you keep walking, you keep trying".

That is all any of us can do, keep trying! If you have food storage and emergency preparedness goals set, just keep trying to meet them, don't give up. It takes time to build it up, but one step at a time, one can of food at a time, you will do it. The more you become prepared, the more peace of mind you will have.

It is not just about food storage and emergency preparedness, it is about spiritual, emotional and physical preparedness too. As long as you keep trying Heavenly Father will bless you and guide you and help you along the way. Trust Him, believe in Him.

Thomas S Monson stated, "The past is behind, learn from it. The future is ahead, prepared for it, The present is here, live it."  Take each day and do the best you can, keep on walking, keep on trying.

Emotional Preparedness

A part of emergency preparedness is Emotional Preparedness. There seems to be so much hate and unkindness in the world today. May we each take into consideration what President Thomas S. Monson stated above. For our emotional preparedness may we each give more love and kindness to others. Take the time to smile at one another, open a door for the elderly, respect and say thank you to our military and policemen and policewomen, be patient with one another, show respect one to another no matter our race, cultural or color, say thank you and please more often and take the time to being loving and kind to one another.

November Monthly Assignments

Food Storage . . . Meats, Poultry and Fish

   Vegans or Vegetarians . . . Add more canned and dried
                   Beans and Rice 

Canned meats, poultry and fish are one of the more expensive items to add to your food storage. I do not store as much as I do of other food items. Meats, poultry and fish can be added to staples like rice, noodles, pastas, soups, stews, casseroles. etc. to extend the dish. There are a variety of meats, poultry and fish and ways you can store these items. You can store them in commercially canned products, freezing, home canning  and freeze-dried. It is good to store these items in a variety of ways, short term and long term storage. Remember, only store what your family will eat. Watch for sales and stock up then. Big box stores like Costco and Sam's Club have great prices. Store all commercially canned, home canned and freeze-dried in a cool, dry, dark place. Below 70 degrees if possible.

Home canning meats, poultry and fish: Wendy Dewitt is great at this. It does not look so pretty in the canning jars but it is cost effective. Click here to watch a YouTube video from Wendy Dewitt. It takes a regular pressure cooker to do it, you cannot do it in a water bath canner. There are newer much easier pressure cookers on the market now called a "Power Pressure Cooker XL". They come in several different sizes now, 6 quart, 8 quart and 10 quart. I use the 6 quart one and can can 4 pint canning jars at once. It is great because you do not have to worry about the pressure and watching the gauges like the old fashioned pressure canner. And it cost less. I purchased mine and Bed Bath and Beyond for $89 (6 qt.) using their 20% off discount coupon. It is great for many other things too.

Meats: Roast beef, ground beef, sloppy joes, corned beef, Vienna Sausage, Underwood spreads (beef, chicken, ham), chili with meat, soups with meat or chicken, stews, etc.. Watch the expiration dates, they can vary on different types of meats. I purchase canned roast beef at Costco for a good price. I use it in casseroles, soups, stews, enchiladas, etc.

Poultry: Chicken, turkey, duck, etc. I purchased canned chicken at Costco for a good price. I use it in casseroles, soups, salads, enchiladas, etc.

Fish: Tuna, wild pink salmon, crab, oysters, sardines, etc. You can purchase them at big box stores and your local grocery stores.

Long Term Freeze-dried meats, poultry and fish: The store, if stored at 70 degrees or less, for about 25 years. It is great to have a couple of #10 cans of meat, poultry and fish. But only store what your family will eat and you will need to store extra water to rehydrate them. They are more expensive. I would just store the commercially canned or home canned varieties as long as you rotate them as needed.

Emergency Preparedness . . .

Christmas is a great time to give emergency preparedness items as gifts. See the last blog posting for great ideas.

Emergency Preparedness Ideas 

DIY--Great way to make your own cell phone charger . . .



Thank you to one of our blog readers for sharing this with us. Love great DIY projects like this that can help us in emergency situations. Keep them coming.

EmergencyEssentials.com always has some great blog postings on things that can help us. Here are  a few I thought you might enjoy. Just click on the links below.

Physical Preparedness: Click here

Emergency Oil Lamp: Love this one. Click here

Emergency Showers: Click here

Comments and Questions: Please share your comments and questions below. We love hearing from you. We all learn from each others experiences and knowledge. I love when you share ideas you find like above. Thank you for sharing.