Food Storage, Emergency Preparedness and Monthly Assignment (Week of February 1st)

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

Happy Valentines Day to all! 

This is the month when we celebrate those we love. Why not show your family how much you love them by being better prepared for what may come your way?

Shelter in Place . . .

What does "Shelter in Place" mean to you? 

Could you "Shelter in Place" if the need arose?

"Shelter in Place" means there is a chemical spill or leakage and you cannot leave your home which can last for several hours. You have to stay right where you are with what you have. A pandemic or civil unrest could also cause you to have lo "shelter in place" for days or weeks.

Would you be able to take care of yourself and your family with what you currently have in your home?

Would you have enough food and drinking water to provide for your family if you had to stay in for several hours?
What if there was a pandemic, civil unrest or Martial Law, would you have enough supplies to "shelter in place" for days or weeks?

Would you have the right supplies if you had to seal up all your windows, doors and vents to avoid toxins or germs coming into your home?
Do you have a room in your house designated for this type of event?

What would you do if you lost power, running water, sanitation and someone needed emergency medical help?

What would you do?

Once again I am amazed at folks when they are told to hunker down for a storm that is fast approaching and they could loose power for several days, like the folks on the East Coast with the Nor Easter.  How many of them were scrambling to the stores for food, drinking water, batteries for flashlights, flashlights, candles, etc? Why do we not just have these supplies on hand all the time so as not to have to panic and rush to our local stores for supplies? Why? How much easier life would be and how much less we would fear the coming storm.Why not be prepared ahead of the storms or disasters in our life?

We all need to be prepared, be aware and be ready with our surroundings and circumstances at all times. We need to be prepared for the unexpected, for emergencies that can happen at a moments notice, like loosing our electricity for several hours or days. We need to be prepared to "shelter in place"or evacuate  when the moment arises.

New Monthly Assignment

February Monthly Assignments: 

Canned and Dehydrated Meats & Fish . . .

This can be one of the more expensive items to add to your food storage.Watch for sales and check out the prices at big box stores like Costco and Sam's Club.  If you are a vegetarian then add more beans and other vegetarian canned foods to your food storage. Decide on your goal, 2 weeks, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, a year. Work towards your goal. If you cannot achieve it in a month, then continue to add to your meat, chicken, turkey, pork, ham and fish food storage, a little at a time is better than not at all. 

Remember, the success of any food storage is keep all food items in a cook, dry, dark place with the temperature below 70 degrees. The higher the temperature the less storage time you have and the nutritional value starts to diminish. Also, rotate, rotate, rotate your food storage. Most canned foods are alright for a few months after the expiration date as long as the can is not bubbled, dented and has been properly stored.
 
Add only those types of meat products your family will eat, beef, pork, chicken, turkey, ham, tuna, Salmon, etc. I purchase canned chicken, roast beef and tuna at Costco. The chicken and roast beef come with 6 cans, 12.5 oz cans packed in water. The tuna comes with 12 cans, 7 oz cans packed in water. I rotate these products by making chicken, roast beef and tuna sandwiches, casseroles and soup (not the tuna) from them . Do not forget canned chili (without or with beans) and stews.

Another way to store meats and fish for long term storage is to purchase dehydrated meats and fish. These are more expensive but worth having some for your long term storage. Watch for sales. I find emergencyessenitals.com has the best prices, especially when on sale. They have chicken, turkey, beef and pork in the ground form or small pieces. They also have fish products. Just remember, when you store dehydrated or freeze-dried products you need to store extra water to rehydrate them.

I have not tried this yet but I have seen it done and really want to try it. You will need a pressure canner. The beef, chicken and turkey are placed in the Mason Jars raw and cooked in the pressure canner. Rotate by  using in your daily cooking. Remember, keep in a cool, dry, dark place where the temperature is less than 70 degrees. Ball has a great website that shows different types of canning and answers to most of your questions. Click here to view their website. Click on the videos below to watch the demonstrations. It may be better to watch the second one first.



 

February Monthly Emergency Preparedness Assignment

Inventorying, Organizing, Assessing, Replacing, and Purchasing Emergency Equipment and Supplies . . .

This is a great time of the year to inventory all your emergency equipment and supplies, organize them into groups (like lighting, cooking equipment and fuel, shelter, etc.), assessing what you have and what you still need, replacing and repairing any broken items, and purchasing items you still need. Make sure all cooking fuels are not leaking, stored safely and replace as needed.You should have at least one item in each emergency preparedness category. Keep a notebook of your supplies, what needs replaced or repaired and what you still need. Set goals to accomplish the needed task. Set up certain areas in your garage, attic, basement or backyard storage shed and organize your supplies together. This is a great family weekend project.

Emergency Preparedness Ideas

What things do you need to "Shelter in Place"?




Click here and here to learn more about "Sheltering in Place" from Homeland Security and CDC Emergency Preparedness. Other websites may give you more information.




Comments: We love to hear from you. We all learn from each others experiences and knowledge. Please share your comments below. Thank you.

Food Storage, Emergency Preparedness and Monthly Assignments (Week of January 25th)

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

O Be Wise and Focus on the Important Things  

What are you focused on?

Family, home, health, job, world and local events? Family is the most important thing in the world. Protecting and providing for them is our responsibility alone, no one else. Emergency preparedness should be one of our focuses. So many of us focus on the end result and become overwhelmed when it comes to emergency preparedness. We need to simplify things. We should never go to extremes and become in debt for our food storage and emergency supplies. We need to make goals, small ones, to get to the final goal. When it comes to food storage and emergency preparedness we are never done. It is an on going process. We have been working on our food storage and emergency supplies for 40 years and we still have much to do. Do not get discouraged. Decide what your goals are for you and your family when it comes to emergency preparedness. Make a plan to reach those goals.

This blog will help you accomplish your goals without feeling overwhelmed at trying to do it all at once. Each month I give you monthly assignments, sometimes weekly, to help you accomplish your goals. Decide what you want for you and your family. Is it acquiring 1-Month, 2-Months, 3-Months, 6-Months or a years supply of food? Then focus on that one step at a time. Work on getting one type of emergency equipment in each area, cooking, heating, lighting, shelter, sanitation, etc. Then you can work towards more after that is accomplished. 

 

One of our daughters has a saying on her kitchen counter, "Be Wise". This can apply to all our choices in life. Be wise in your choices and include emergency preparedness as a part of them.

While listening to the news this morning I was starting to feel a little over whelmed and concerned. I turned off the television. Yes, we need to be aware of what is going on in our local area, county and the world, but we do not need to inundate ourselves with it. If we have the basics things like some food storage, water storage, emergency medical supplies, are spiritually and physically prepared and at least one item in each of the areas mentioned above we will have peace of mind knowing we are prepared. Once we have the basics we can continue to add to them.

Personal Experience from a Viewer . . .

Our daughter in Huntington Beach shared this interesting experience they had, and their neighbors, when the electricity went out for almost 3 hours. They live in a large apartment complex. It was evening, around 

dinner time, it was dark and her husband was not home from work yet. This affected about 4,200 people in their area.

When the electricity went out she told her boys to go get the flashlights. The boys were excited because they knew when the lights went out they would play board games by flashlights and candles. Being it was dinner time and our daughter had not started dinner she asked the boys, "What can we eat when the power goes out?". One son said we can make toast. Mom reminded him they had no electricity. The ideas went on until they realized it took electricity to make most of the things they suggested, they have an electric stove. After a few minutes it was determined they could make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, eat cold soup or canned vegetables, and fruit. They even came up with the idea of making a fire outside to cook on.

Many of their neighbors were unprepared. They had no flashlight or in some cases working flashlights. One woman said they had them in the garage but it was dark in there and she would wait for her husband to get home so he could get them. She was willing to sit in the dark until he was home. Another neighbor remembered they had their 72 Hour Emergency Kits and there were flashlights in them. It amazed our daughter how unprepared her neighbors were.

What if this extended into days, weeks, months. What would you do? Could you take care of your family's
needs? How many of us forget about our 72 Hour Emergency Kits and have not checked them in months, years? We all need to be prepared ahead of time, not wait until the emergency is upon us, then it is to late as her neighbors found out very quickly. It does not take a disaster or a major emergency to need your emergency supplies. We all need to strive to be bettered prepared, especially for the little emergency in our life.

You will not want to miss this event.

Bi-Stake (Torrance Stake and Torrance North Stake) Emergency Preparedness Fair

Saturday, October 24, 2015

9:00am - 1:00pm

2000 Artesia Blvd, Torrance, California 

Over 30 booths and activities for the whole family.

Continue to work on your January Monthly Food Storage and Emergency Preparedness Assignments 

January Monthly Assignment: 
   Food Storage . . . Soups, Broths and Chili

This month we are going to add soups, broths and chili to our food storage. This is a great time of the year to add them to your Food Storage since most of these items are on sale due to the winter months. Some people like to make their soup from scratch, including us, but it is always a good idea to have canned soups on hand in case of an emergency situation or disaster when you do not have the resources or time to cook from scratch. I also make soups, broths and chili up ahead of time and freeze them in plastic freezer zip lock bags (doubled) or freezer type plastic containers. Make sure you date them.

You can store soup, broths and chili in a variety of ways; commercially canned, small dehydrated packages like Lipton Onion Soup or Chicken Noodle Soup, large commercially #10 cans of dehydrated/freeze dried soups, broths and chili and frozen. You can purchase soups, broths and chili from your local grocery store, big box stores like Costco and Sam's Club and emergency preparedness online websites like emergencyessentials.com or other online companies. Remember as in all canned and packaged food storage, store in a cool dry dark place like your pantry, under beds, in closets, etc. The garage is too hot! Watch the expiration dates when you purchase them, especially if purchasing them from a discount store.

Figure out how many cans of soup and chili your family eats in a month and then multiply by the number of months you have set your food storage goal towards. Remember to include soups like creamed soups you use in casseroles and other dishes you make.

January Month Assignment: Emergency  Preparedness . . . 
      Preparing for a Disaster, What to Do and  
         What to Do and Not Do During a Disaster

What type of disaster do you have where you live? Be aware of your surroundings and prepare for those types of disasters. Example: If you live where there are seasonal hurricanes you should have stored all year long wood, nails and a hammer for boarding up windows and doors, drinking water, canned foods, lighting (flashlights, lanterns, candles), medical supplies, etc. If you live where there are earthquakes you should have your home earthquake proofed as much as possible; book shelves strapped to the walls, TV and electronic equipment secured, know where to go during the earthquake, how to shut off the gas if necessary, etc. Check the postings on the right under "Postings"-- "What to Do and Not Do During a Disaster" and "Before, During and After an Earthquake". Check your local community and government websites for life saving information on what to do before, during and after a disaster in your area. Sit down as a family and make a family plan for your type of disasters. Discuss them often so your family knows what to do when it happens.

Emergency Preparedness Ideas

Citrus Fruit Trees . . .  

     

This is the time of year, especially in California and other states, where your citrus trees are full of fruit. What to do with all that citrus fruit? Well, you can give the fruit away or save the juice for another time when your citrus fruit trees are no longer producing fruit. There are two ways to save the citrus fruit juice, freeze the juice in cupcake pans or plastic freezer zip lock bags. To freeze in cupcake pans, line each one with plastic wrap, pour in the citrus juice about half way up, then place in your freeze, do not fold the remaining plastic wrap over them yet. Once they are frozen, pull them out, wrap with the remaining plastic wrap and place them in a large plastic freezer zip lock bag, mark the date on them. This size makes them convenient for cooking. Or, you can put 1-2 cups of citrus juice in a medium size plastic freezer zip lock bag, lay the bag flat in your freezer, then freeze the juice. Make the date and amount on the bag. The fruit juice will keep about 1-2 years. 

Meals in a Jar . . .

Update: Last week I mentioned how you can put together meals in a mason jar. Make sure you seal the jar by using a FoodSaver. Go back to the January 11, 2015 posting to watch the video on how to do this. If you do not get the moisture out they will not last as long. You can also place an oxygen absorber in the jar to help remove the moisture. If the lid will no longer spring up and down it is sealed. Remember: Moisture is not a friend to dehydrated or freeze dried foods, in fact any food storage. You want to keep all food storage in a cool, dry, dark place. 

Comments: Please share your comments, suggestions and experiences below. We all learn from each
other. We love to hear from you.
  

Food Storage, Emergency Preparedness and Monthly Assignments (Week of Juanuary 18th)

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

What happens when an emergency strikes?

You are usually left on your own!

Would you be able to feed yourself, your family? 

Would you be able to provide safe drinking water for yourself, your family?

Would you have a 72 Hour Emergency Preparedness Bag (or Bug-out-bag) for each family member if you needed to evacuate?  

Would you be able to shelter down right where you are living?

Would you have a way to cook your canned and dehydrated food storage? How about without using a flame, there may be gas leaks?

Would you have shelter if you could not stay in your home?

Would you have light if there was no electricity?

Would you have a way to stay warm, heat if needed?

Would you have sanitation if you could not use your plumbing or your toilet?
Would you be able to shut off leaking gas and your water at the main valve? 

Would you have medical supplies to take care of injuries?

Would you have basic first-aid skills to take care of others?

Food and drinking water are priorities in emergency situations, they are the main necessities of life. If you do not have extra food and drinking water on hand for emergency, why not? If no, the best time is to start right now! Yes, the other things above are important too, but we all need food and drinking water to survive!

A few mornings ago I woke up with a warning from the Holy Ghost--

"You need more food storage!" What? We need more? I am so grateful for the Holy Ghost and that we are spiritually prepared enough to receive and heed this warning. Being spiritually prepared is just as important as temporal preparation, if not more so. We can and will be guided by the spirit to know what we need to do to protect our self, our family and our loved ones.

Many of us think about emergency preparedness in regards to natural or man made disasters. It is much more! There are also economical disasters, loss of a job and income. There are local and world events that effect us directly, causing civil unrest, rioting and looting. There are personal health issues that effect us economically, physically and spiritually. In our day there seems to be cyber attacks happening daily which can effect us in so many ways. 

We need to be prepared with extra food and drinking water, cash in small bills and change on hand, keep important documents together and easily accessible, and emergency and medical supplies on hand.

Many say they have faith that their needs will be taken care of and do nothing to prepare for tomorrow. What do the scriptures say, "Faith without works is dead" (James 2: 20 & 26). We need to prepare ourselves, not rely on others. It is our responsibility to take care of our self and our own family. "But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel" (1 Timothy 5:8).

Peace comes from being prepared. "If ye are prepared, ye shall not fear" (Doctrine and Covenants 38:30).

Continue to work on your January Monthly Food Storage and Emergency Preparedness Assignments 

January Monthly Assignment: 
   Food Storage . . . Soups, Broths and Chili

This month we are going to add soups, broths and chili to our food storage. This is a great time of the year to add them to your Food Storage since most of these items are on sale due to the winter months. Some people like to make their soup from scratch, including us, but it is always a good idea to have canned soups on hand in case of an emergency situation or disaster when you do not have the resources or time to cook from scratch. I also make soups, broths and chili up ahead of time and freeze them in plastic freezer zip lock bags (doubled) or freezer type plastic containers. Make sure you date them.

You can store soup, broths and chili in a variety of ways; commercially canned, small dehydrated packages like Lipton Onion Soup or Chicken Noodle Soup, large commercially #10 cans of dehydrated/freeze dried soups, broths and chili and frozen. You can purchase soups, broths and chili from your local grocery store, big box stores like Costco and Sam's Club and emergency preparedness online websites like emergencyessentials.com or other online companies. Remember as in all canned and packaged food storage, store in a cool dry dark place like your pantry, under beds, in closets, etc. The garage is too hot! Watch the expiration dates when you purchase them, especially if purchasing them from a discount store.

Figure out how many cans of soup and chili your family eats in a month and then multiply by the number of months you have set your food storage goal towards. Remember to include soups like creamed soups you use in casseroles and other dishes you make.

January Month Assignment: Emergency  Preparedness . . . 
      Preparing for a Disaster, What to Do and  
         What to Do and Not Do During a Disaster

What type of disaster do you have where you live? Be aware of your surroundings and prepare for those types of disasters. Example: If you live where there are seasonal hurricanes you should have stored all year long wood, nails and a hammer for boarding up windows and doors, drinking water, canned foods, lighting (flashlights, lanterns, candles), medical supplies, etc. If you live where there are earthquakes you should have your home earthquake proofed as much as possible; book shelves strapped to the walls, TV and electronic equipment secured, know where to go during the earthquake, how to shut off the gas if necessary, etc. Check the postings on the right under "Postings"-- "What to Do and Not Do During a Disaster" and "Before, During and After an Earthquake". Check your local community and government websites for life saving information on what to do before, during and after a disaster in your area. Sit down as a family and make a family plan for your type of disasters. Discuss them often so your family knows what to do when it happens.

Emergency Preparedness Ideas  

Meals in a Jar . . .

This is a great way to put together a meal by placing all the dehydrated and freeze-dried ingredients in a sealed Mason jar for future use. It makes meal planning easy. Click here to learn how to prepared this"Meals in a Jar".

How to create a food storage for $5 a week . . .

This a great way to create your food storage on a weekly budget. This system may not work for all, it is based on a two person family. You would need to multiply it by ever two people in your family. Just thought I would share more ideas and ways to create and add to your food storage. Click here to learn how this accomplished.

Emergency Preparedness Goals and Dos and Don'ts of Food Storage from EmergencyEssentials.com . . . .

Click here to find some great ideas on how to prepare for an emergency or disaster.

Click here to learn about 12 Dos and Don'ts of Food Storage. 

Comments: Please share your comments below. We all learn from each others experiences and skills. We love to here from you.