Well ... this week I decided we ought to revisit and revamp the 72-hour kits. Last time we went through them, we never quite restocked with all the goods. And sad to say that Mr. Max has no kit at all.But never fear - hopefully this week will change all that. I headed to VF factory outlet today to stock up on their $5 Jansport backpacks for the tots. I even got one for new babe coming since I highly doubt I'll have it up and running the day he/she is born.
I also, upon the recommendation of some friends, headed to Food Storage Made Easy to read their tips on 72-hour kits and also to download their Excel File for a full Emergency Preparedness Plan.
It gave me some nice ideas. One being the $4 Stove so you can warm foods or cook oatmeal. I think the food is the biggest dilemma for us... finding stuff that lasts for 6 months in the kit... or that we would actually eat. With that stove we can include oatmeal packets, hot chocolate, soups to be warmed.
The other dilemma is thinking about honestly having to use it and survive for 3 days with little ones, especially a babe. You can't possibly fit even everything you would NEED in small spaces. "Here Max - just slip on this backpack with a gallon of water and 20 diapers in it". Hopefully we won't have to really carry it all!
Mostly - I just keep having nightmares ... with me running around my house trying to gather things that we would need because there is some disaster - war of emergency situation - where we really have to evacuate our house. That type of dream does NOT make for a restful sleep. Having a semi-functional 72-hr kit will hopefully at least put my mind at ease that we are doing what we can.
Tonight we had an FHE explaining why we need to be prepared and such. It seemed to open up a million concerns and questions from the kids about all the possible disasters that could happen. If anyone has a super FHE plan about Emergency Preparedness, let me know.
This song to Yankee Doodle I found on SugarDoodle was a clever one about being prepared. Was the author from Sugar City with the Teton Dam? I know not.
And last of all... our family loves this video/song by the bewitched goat from the movie Hoodwinked. It pretty much makes me laugh - really hard.
It is said that someone once asked Robert Baden-Powell, the founder of Scouting, "be prepared for what?" To which he answered, "why, for any old thing." Powell further said, "the real way to get happiness is by giving out happiness to other people. Try and leave this world a little better than you found it and when your turn comes to die, you can die happy in feeling that at any rate you have not wasted your time but have done your best. 'Be Prepared' in this way, to live happy and to die happy."
2 comments:
I agree with you about those heavy 72 hour kits. I worry with my kids and they are big. There is peace of mind when you have those kits done, even when you wonder how you will move with them. :) Love your creative post.
I've learned to not stress out too much about the 72 hour kits. What is the probability that you will really have to carry them? If that really happens, we are going to need a lot more help because how can we realistically carry all of our children and the supplies that we have prepared for? It's virtually impossible. We just have to have faith that if we follow council, we will be taken care of when the time arises for us to need it.
I just re-vamped my 72 hour kits 2 weeks ago. Here are some food ideas I did. I decided to leave it totally prepared food (no cooking involved). I did cans of chili, beef stew, spaghettios, etc. I did lots of granola bars and crystal light mixes. I did crackers and peanut butter and canned chicken. I did some candy too. Remember, if you really come to point when you have to use them, nobody is going to be complaining too much about WHAT there is to eat, they will just be happy to have SOMETHING to eat.
I stacked all of our stuff together on some garage shelves. I put an extra pair of tennis shoes for all of us on the shelf too. I also got a 5 gallon bucket and filled it with the first aid kit, duct tape and a bunch of other "maintenance type" things. I got a toilet seat too and we could use the bucket as our potty if we had too.
Just follow council. Showing that you are obedient is the best thing you can do to be worthy of getting the help you need when you need it! Good luck!
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