Week 27

If you have not already completed your household inventory make that your goal this week and get it checked off your list. It is one of the most important things you can do. If you were to lose your home an inventory can save you time, money and regrets. In most cases if you fail to list any items as being lost, with the insurance company, it is too late later to be reimbursed for the items.
1. This week we are going to begin our Car Kits.  Can you imagine being stuck in the car for many hours! Wouldn’t it be nice to have something to eat and drink, something to provide a little light, or a whistle to attract help if you should have a health emergency.  When traveling long distances a Car Kit can be a real life saver.  If you need to put on tire chains a bright orange vest may save your life as people can see you from a distance. Mylar blankets can protect you from the desert sun and provide warmth during a snow storm. This week find an old back pack or purchase one so you are ready to begin adding items next week.
2. Add a hammer to your Grab and Go Kit
3. Practice building a fire. If you have a fire pit in your yard use that. Practice starting a fire with items that you may have on hand if you are stranded on the road. Use a pair of eye glasses to light the fire.  Collect some pine needles, dried leaves or small sticks and use them as kindling. Try starting a fire using a battery and steel wool. Get a 9 volt battery and a small piece of steel wool. Wrap the steel wool in a little paper, tissue or other flammable material. Leave a little of the steel wool exposed. Gently rub the steel wool against the battery connection. This will cause sparks so be careful. Blow to increase the flames and drop onto your prepared kindling. Gently blow to keep the fire going until the kindling catches.
4. Learn a new skill. Ask a friend to teach you to can or make freezer jam. Learn to change a tire. Invite a friend to teach your family to build that fire if it is all a mystery to you. Take a CPR class. Learn to sew or jump your car battery.
5. Add a cooking pot to your Grab and Go Kit. I like a Dutch Oven because they are so versatile, they hold a lot, you can use them directly in a fire and they can take lots of abuse.
6 . Purchase milk for your food storage.
7. Practice your new skill you have learned in #4 above

Week 26

1. Place a pot in your grab and go pile. Make sure the pot is heavy as you will probably be using in on an open fire, camp stove, or barbecue grill. You will only be adding one pot as during an emergency you won’t want to be carrying more than that. A lid for the pot is also important and with limited water you may need to reuse any water you have used to cook your food and you definitely don’t want water evaporating.
2. It time to think shelter. If you have a small 3 man tent they are great and light weight. Tube tents are not the best. They are flimsy, small, open at both ends and easily carried away in a wind. If you purchased a 72 hour kit with one please don’t count on that for an emergency. Tarps are good. Added rope to your GGK (Grab and Go Kit) and with the addition of a tarp or two you can make a much bigger and more  sturdy shelter. Tarps can be used as a tent, lean to, dining cover, ground cover, to temporarily repair a leaky roof and even to haul debris. They are much less expensive than a tent and much easier to carry. If you have a large  family add a few tarps and extra rope.
3. Clear a ten foot area around your propane tank and your barbecue grill. We often hear about clearing a defensible space around our homes but most of us think we are safe because we don’t live in a wooded area. Propane tanks and barbecue grills can be very dangerous. Tanks can and will explode during a weather emergency and barbecue grill can easily create a grease fire with dangerous flame. Grills have also been know to tip over and catch lawns and lawn furniture on fire. Give yourself plenty of space away from your house so you have time to put out the fire before it can cause major damage.
4. Purchase one can or container of protein per family member. This may include; tuna and other fish, meats, peanut butter or beans. This is not the only time we will add protein to our food storage so check the sales this week and add items that are on sale.
5. Move heavy items to bottom shelves. This is especially important during a tornado or earthquake. You do not want heavy items falling out of shelves on to family members. Anything that is heavy or with sharp edges should be on bottom shelves.
6. Check you garage and area around heaters and water heaters and move any items that are flammable away from heat sources. If you have a shed store propane bottles, cleaners, lawn mowers (they are flammable) in the shed. Also move any weed killers and pesticides away from heat sources. They can become deadly if they are exposed to a fire.
7. Draw a floor plan or your home. Using markers or colored pencils mark at least two escape routes from each room in case of a fire. Spend time this week walking through those options with your family. Practice good fire safety techniques, low to the ground, feel the door before opening and always practice meeting at your designated meeting place.

week 25

1. Add cleaning supplies to your preparedness and your Grab and Go Kit. Add a bucket, a small bottle of bleach and rags to your kit. Be sure this is separate from the bucket and rags you have in your home. If you need to evacuate for a fire, hurricane, tornado, flood, or earthquake you may come home to a home that is no longer intact. You will need cleaning supplies. Be sure you have a good push broom and a good mop. It is not feasible to take these in a Grab n Go Kit but not all emergencies will destroy your home.
2. Get online and print off a copy of your credit reports. Be sure to check all three credit reporting agencies ,Trans Union, Equifax, and Experian. If you find anything that is incorrect change it now. Don’t be caught off guard. Fix any mistakes now!
3. Add clothes pins to your Grab and Go Kit (GGK). Last week we added rope. With the addition of clothes pins we are now ready to dry clothing, photos, important papers, and even build a shelter. We will talk more about all their uses in coming weeks.
4. Add an ax to you GGK.
5. Gather, count and clean all sleeping bags. If you don’t have one per family member this may make a good gift.
6. Add 1 bottle of juice per family member to your food storage. Remember only 100% juice counts as a fruit so make it 100% juice.
7. Copy your tax returns for at least the last 2 years and add them to your adult 72 hour kits and add to the envelope to mail to your contact person. If you don’t want to share this info with your out of state contact place them in a sealed envelope before mailing them off.
We are to the point now where you are developing quite a good food storage.

We have the opportunity to buy pears form the LDs Medford Pear Orchard They are 42 lbs boxes for $19.00.
The deadline to order and turn in your money is July 28th we will not be able to accept any order after that date.  We have been told to include neighbors and friends in this. There will be Plenty.  I have included a link if you are intrested in viewing information on the pears.
http://www.thepearguy.com

Week 24

This week a Grab and Go Kit. A Grab and Go Kit (GGK) differs from a 72 hour kits because it contains supplies that you may need following a disaster, however each family member will not need each item. One will be adequate for the whole family. You will keep you GGK with your 72 hour kit and when told to evacuate you will “grab” this and “go”. We will begin to purchase or gather items for the kit and then when we have our items and know exactly how bulky they are, you will purchase an appropriate carrier.  Kits will be of different sizes depending on the size of your family.
1. Begin your GGK by gathering or purchasing one large roll of duct tape and a rope at least 75 feet long.*
2. Add 10 $1.00 bills to adult 72 hour kits. Next, check the sofa and chair cushions, under the sofa and chairs, the floor in the car, the bottom of your purse and coat pockets, for change. Place all the change you find in a zip lock bag in your adult 72 hour kits.
3. Add a toy for your pet to their kit.
4. Learn to use the manual release on the garage door. In case of a power outage you want to be able to get the car out of the garage if you need to evacuate.
5. Make a family uniform  If all you can do for now is purchase a yard or two of a crazy fabric and make bandannas, do it. You can always add shirts later. Remember you will need something for three days.**
6. Add baby needs to an adult 72 hour kit. Don’t spend any money on this one. You have these items around the house if you have small children. Add a pacifier, bibs, bottle, spoon, toy, and a hat.
7. Try a new recipe made from food storage. Remember we are storing a 3 month supply of things we eat so this recipe should include the items in your 3 month supply and only those items.

Week 23

We are getting so close to having our 72 hour kits complete. This week and the next few weeks we will concentrate on completing those and building supplies for our cars and a kit to “grab and go” in case of an evacuation. Don’t forget about food storage. Now is the
time of the year to get great buys on fresh foods and to preserve them. With rising food prices take advantage of any and every opportunity to store food. If that means putting off some of the steps from our Seven Steps just highlight the ones you need to go back and catch up on later Only you know which areas of preparedness you need to prioritize.

1. Add a comb and brush to all 72 hour kits. You can probably find enough of these
around the house if you search through drawers. If you need to buy a few try a dollar store.

2. Purchase a 3 month supply of pancake syrup. This may sound like a lot but by now you should have a good idea how much you actually use, since it is an item you should have dated when we began.

3. Begin a Grab and Go Evacuation kit by purchasing a port-a-potty. You don’t need to spend lots of money on this. Potty seats are not very expensive and can be used on any 5 gallon bucket lined with a plastic bag, preferably a bio-hazard bag. You can purchase chemical toilets for about $50.00 but it is not necessary to spend that much money unless you are doing lots of camping and will use it for occasions other than emergencies.

4. Add pet medications to their 72 hour kits.

5. Add travel games, crossword puzzle books or other fun items which will help pass the time during an emergency evacuation, to your 72 hour kits.

6. Add one can of fruit and one can of vegetables per person, to your food storage.

7. Prepare to add a “family uniform” to your 72 hour kits. During evacuations it is not uncommon for children to be separated from parents, or even for parents to become separated from the family. Having unique clothing can make your search much easier. Spend time this week formulating a plan. You may consider purchasing plain t shirts and embellishing them. If you do this, do not pick a white, black or grey shirt. They are too common. Choose a bright color. Hold a family competition and design a shirt. Use fabric pens or fabric crayons and make matching shirts. If you want to purchase unique shirts consider tie dye. During the evacuation of Louisiana there were many families separated. Think what a difference it would make to be able to ask people if they had seen a child or a family all wearing the same shirt you are wearing. People will notice and remember a wild shirt far more easily than “just another” 5 year old, wearing jeans, who has brown hair and brown eyes. There could be dozens of them, but only one wearing your funky shirt.This is also a great tip when vacationing at an amusement park. Distinctive clothing will get your child noticed more quickly if you are separated. Never, never, put a child’s name or your family name on a shirt. Predators love having this information.
If you are a grandparent consider ordering matching shirts for your grandchildren and their parents for gift. Then if there is an emergency and you are trying to find them you can describe the shirts to relief workers.

week 22

1. This week add pet food to your pet’s 72 hour kit. Food should be canned as opposed to dry for the first few days. You need to consider your pet’s needs as we would your own. There will be little water available the first few days, at least, after most emergencies. Dry food will increase a pet’s thirst so store canned foods. If you have older MREs they would be great as pet food. MREs have been government tested and found to be safe after 20 years. The taste may change a little but they are still safe for pets even if they are not very appealing to adults anymore. You can often find MREs on sale as they near expiration dates which is a great time to pick up a few. They are lighter weight and easier to open and use than canned food.
2. Purchase 5 pounds of flour.
3. Purchase 5 pounds of rice or pasta or a combination of both. You should be storing grains based on your 10 favorite meals. In other words, if those meals rely more on pasta than rice, store more pasta than rice.
4. Purchase masks. N95 medical masks are great. These can be used not only when cleaning up after an earthquake, tornado or other disaster but also can be used when caring for those who are ill during a pandemic. These masks will filter out smaller dust particles and also air born particles such as those released when we cough.
5. Practice splinting an arm, leg, finger, or ankle. Get out the slings you made a few weeks ago and use those to practice applying a sling.
6. Purchase a prepaid phone card for your 72 hour kit. Often after a disaster cell phones are of no use. Cell towers are down and ironically only land lines are working. Get a phone card, just in case. It doesn’t need to have more than an hour or two on it as you can always have a contact return your call but you will want to be prepared to communicate, by any means, if the opportunity should present itself.
7. Share this information with at least  5 friends and family. Corn prices are 4 times higher today than they were two years ago and more than twice last year’s prices. This is a global problem, not just a concern in the United States. Flooding, drought, cyclones, earthquakes, tornadoes, are occurring world wide. Please share what you are learning and how you are preparing with everyone you know. “If you fail to plan you plan to fail”