The Major Things I am Doing Now To Up My Preparedness

Food Storage for Preparedness

In the last month, I have stepped up my preparedness efforts in a major way. I have always been well prepared. I keep a nice stock of many things. From Food, Water, Medicine, and other items. Below are the major things I am doing now to up my preparedness for my family.

Here is what I did to increase my efforts:

I purchased several more food grade storage containers (doubling what I already had – plus one). I use them to store rice and beans. This allows to me have close to a two-year supply for my family. NOTE: I actively use this food and rotate my stock in these containers.

I more than doubled my supplies of Freeze-Dried food stocks. Previously we had a 30 day supply of full meals including breakfast, lunch, and dinner. To that, I have added #10 cans of supplemental foods that I know my kids like and eat as well as additional fruits and vegetables to add to our food for more balanced meals and to have variety. I’ve also added #10 cans of Freeze-Dried meats, butter, whole eggs, scrambled eggs, and more. Each of these has a shelflife of 10 years or more.

I’ve added canned goods including various beans, vegetables, mushrooms, and soups. For these, I usually go off-brand or store brand for the lowest possible price. As an example, I was able to get Target brand canned beans at $0.49 a can. Also added was canned evaporated and sweetened condensed milk.

I purchased enough powdered whole milk for my youngest son to get through 3 months should he need it. He should be switching to less or no milk soon. We usually make homemade fresh juice as well. Currently, we have enough on hand for about one month but I will be adding to that (we use both fresh and frozen).

Things I am looking into:

Growing more produce and fruit at home. We have some fruit trees (Lemon, Lime) I want to add orange, avocado, and maybe something else. I will be growing potatoes, peppers, zucchini, peas, string beans, broccoli, and tomatoes. I will be trying this through a hydroponic system and potentially an aquaponic system. I usually grow the potatoes in the ground but I am going to attempt to grow them in a big container and increase the amount I produce with each crop.

Since I am lucky enough to live in San Diego, we should be able to produce almost year-round. I will have to let you know in future posts.

I am looking into purchasing a whole or half cow, pig, and goat. I have known about this for a long time but have never done it before. In the end, it is cheaper than buying meat at the store, I know the farm and animal it comes from, and provides me with a reliable meat source should there be supply chain disruptions or spikes in meat prices.

All of these steps combine to provide my immediate family, plus some extended family food for over one year during a major crisis or disruption.

What Are You Doing to Prepare?

I’d love to hear what you’re doing to prepare for yourself or your family. Share in the comments below no matter how small or big the steps you are taking are. What are you stocking? How are you storing them? How do you plan to cook or prepare the meals?

WHY YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE A THREE DAY SUPPLY OF WATER

Water is Life by Williami5 via Flicker

Having water is essential for survival. This we know. Over the years however a massive campaign was launched to get ALL Americans to have At Least three days of water stored for emergencies. This then become 72 hours. Over time the message of At Least three days seems to have become lost.

In fact over the last year I have seen some messages put out by local Emergency Management Offices around the country change this message to a week or a months worth of water. This is a good thing.

Though, I have written about this before as a Disaster Tip of the Week as, Is 72 Hours Enough To Prepare For Disaster this message of storing water for emergencies, has still become lost.

Basically, the PR campaign for three days worth of water was so effective that people "hear" they only need three days of water and end up not storing any. Thinking they can get by for three days or it is such a small amount they really do not need it.

So. How much water do you really need? Well. That is a great question. It is normally stated that you NEED 1 gallon of water per person in your home per day. This amount is supposed to take care of all your needs. From sanitation to drinking. Have you ever tried to get by using only 1 gallon of water per day? This amount also does not account for pets and other needs. So, you will need extra for them.

If you live in a warmer climate, plan on being active, have medical or special needs, you are going to require an increased amount for drinking.

Though I will consult people to have greater amounts on an individual basis. As a general rule, I believe 3 gallons per person/ plus 1 gallon per pet, extra activity per day for one week is a good water storage plan.

Yes. That is a lot of water to store. However, when your tap stops flowing you wont regret the "extra" you have on hand. See also Treating Water.

To Be More Self-Sufficient and Frugal Learn To Cook Like They Did In the Great Depression

Recently I was poking around the internet for some good recipes that would be good in a survival situation or any situation in which you have to make due with a limited amount of food.

This search lead me to a youtube channel called Depression Cooking in which Clara, a 94 year old woman from Chicago prepares recipes from the great depression that her mother made.

The video that I happened to come across first was for Depression Breakfast which I have included below.

Clara, also has her own website called Great Depression Cooking with Clara where you can find out more about her and even purchase her DVD.

My grandparents lived through the great depression and I learned quite a lot from them, but they are no longer around.  I think that what Clara is doing is great, and we can learn a lot from people like her.

I plan on trying some of her recipes, I hope you will too.