This week Lil’ Red’s “class” (parent/child playgroup) went to a local Pumpkin Patch for hayride, corn maze, and weiner roast. It was a free event paid for by the group and ALL OF MY CHILDREN could attend and pick out a pumpkin. Now that’s what I call a super duper event for this frugal family!
…
This list is a simple way for our family to prepare for an emergency and start our 72 hr. kits. I have thought about it many times and keep putting it off due to cost, space, or the fact that relatives nearby had extra clothes for my kids. Since the kids have grown and the relatives no longer have those extra sets of clothes I thought it best to really get prepared for our selves. We live in the Midwest so power outages, gas leaks, or being snowbound would be most likely the type of emergency we would encounter.
…
It’s near the end of Hurricane season (although Sandy is going strong) and we are heading into colder weather which means snow and ice storms. Are you prepared for power outages or for roads to be closed due to the weather? Have you thought I’ll get ready tomorrow? Today is YOUR tomorrow! Get ready today and save yourself some headaches later!
Maybe you aren’t even sure where to begin or what to do to “Be Ready.” First you need to decide what type of emergency you need to prepare for: hurricane/evacuation, earthquake, snowstorm, windstorm/power outages.
Will you be traveling or most likely at home? Do you have small children or pets to be concerned about? Do you have anyone on special medication that requires electricity or refrigeration? How will you provide the electricity or refrigeration? solar power or back-up generator? Does your neighbor have an alternate heat or power source you can use?
If you were without power for 24 hours, could you “survive” with temps in the 40’s? What about 48 hours or more? Do you own a can opener that DOES NOT require electric? Do you know how to make a simple cook stove from things around your house? Does your gas grill have gas? Does your charcoal grill have charcoal and lighter fluid?
The first thing I would do is take a quick stock of what you DO HAVE and make a shopping list from there.
Photos of entire family together or each family member separately (easier to locate)
Toilet paper, soap, shampoo, toothpaste, baby wipes, feminine products
Baby food, pet food, specialty diet foods
Heat Source and alternative heat source
Foods that can be easily prepared with little or no heat
Cooking Source- gas grill, backyard firepit, fireplace, hobo stove, or homemade alternatives
Water- lots and lots of water (buckets filled for your toilets and baths)
Flashlights, batteries, candles, matches, canned heat (Sterno), firestarters
Layers of clothing, blankets/sleeping bags
Waterproof place for important documents or copies of documents (SS, ID’s, insurance)
Car Chargers for cell phones
Soups-Ramen Noodles, Chunky Campbell’s
Peanut Butter and Crackers
Nuts, Canned Fruit, Fruit Leathers, Dried fruit, Jerky
There are 24 hr. kits, First Aid Kits, Mini Car Kits, and 72 hr. kits. I found tons on the web and will share some of my favorites that I found and pinned onto pinterest.
ACTIVITY KIT or Busy Bags to keep the kids occupied in an emergency!
BABY 72 HR. KIT– be sure to stock up on diapers, wipes, and baby meds.
10 DAY CAR SURVIVAL KIT- this is for one person or 2 days for family of 5.
I really like this 10 day survival pack for the car since it is all contained in a hard cased cooler and will fit into most small car trunks with a few blankets or a tent!
The list of supplies in this emergency kit are very doable if you add a couple of things to your grocery list a week or keep an eye out for sales and coupons. You can substitute similar items from his list and still have a very usable kit in the car.
FAVORITE 24 Hr. KIT
SURVIVAL SKILLS YOUR CHILD SHOULD KNOW
Many more miscellaneous Emergency Ideas like emergency stretcher, pocket-sized survival kit, free printable lists, emergency binder ideas and other first aid kit ideas are all on my Emergency Preparedness board!
Wow, going through all these ideas and kits makes me realize how unprepared we are. YIKES! I think we will be working on some of this in our homeschool over the next few weeks. I will try to add some of our own pictures of what we come up with to help you get some more ideas.
Hope you have learned a little and it gets you excited to get ready and not scared! Maybe I’m one for the adventure and like all the campy/backwoods ideas:) I was a Girl Scout growing up and we made Buddy Burner stoves with large coffee cans and tuna cans. Was sad to find out my parents had recycled them. Finding real 10# cans is getting more and more difficult!
Those of you who know me and read this know I am not a cutesy voices type of person. I do not read books with characters very well. I can do high and low and maybe a little sing songy, but just not character cutesy! I’m not one very parentese, haha.
UNTIL LAST NIGHT when Lil’ Red refused to brush his teeth allow mom to brush his teeth. He wanted to “do myself” and “I do, I do!” Well, me being the mom that I am decided that just isn’t good enough when all he does is suck off the toothpaste and doesn’t really move the toothbrush around.
(Yep, all my kids have done it, but we were able to stay on top of the others pretty well. This little guy is a different story. He was super great about letting us brush his teeth or help brush his teeth until sometime this year. Some nights we let it go so a major fight/meltdown did not ensue waking him up and keeping him wired for an extra 30-60 minutes.)
Back to last night, Lil’ Red had his Elmo toothbrush and did the clamped lip routine. I held him on my lap and laid him across trying to hold his arms and gently wiggle the toothbrush in. Then I thought I might as well capitalize on his love of Elmo.
I TALKED IN A SQUEAKY little ELMO VOICE!! and it WORKED! He opened his mouth so Elmo and mommy could clean his teeth. I only had to talk a few more times like Elmo letting him know which area of his mouth needed cleaned next.
Just one simple way to give your marriage a boost is to cook or bake recipes that your husband likes. Now I’m a gal that likes to try new recipes and likes to experiment with tweaking a recipe now and again. But when I want to show my hubby how much I love him then I can cook him something he requests or I know is his favorite!
…
