"That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed." Titus 2:4-5

Friday, January 20, 2012

Some Preparedness Tips...

Our humble home in the snowy woods.

I am currently in a preparedness situation!  We have been snowed in for days, with no power and no water.  There are many things that I did ahead of time that I'm thankful for, and there are some things that were neglected that I've added to my future preparedness plans.  Actually, most of the neglected items were on my list to "to dos", but didn't get done because we just haven't had any money lately.  Anyway, I thought I would share what I've learned during this time.

Ways I was prepared:

  • A house full of food, including a pantry of canned goods
  • Stored drinking water (phew!!)
  • Stored washing/flushing water
  • A working generator with gas stored (it wasn't enough, but thankfully we were able to obtain more)
  • Laundry had been completely done before the power/water disappeared, so we haven't ran out of clothes (so far).
  • I stocked up on diapers and bought baby wipes (I don't always have wipes, when we're broke I just used a wash cloth.  That would have been tough with no water!)
  • A full bottle of hand sanitizer (very handy! stock up on it!) 
  • Stored matches and candles

What I wish I would have done to prepare:
  • Stored more drinking water
  • Big one:  I wish I would have stocked up on paper plates, bowls, plastic utensils, and cups!  Yikes--I have a pile of dishes I can't wash!  Well, I've washed some, but it's tough, so mostly they're just sitting there waiting for running water.  Do this!
  • Stored more fuel for generator
  • Stocked up on more canned meats: salmon, chicken, beef, etc.

I'm anticipating a few more days of this, but hopefully it will be less.  However, if this were an earthquake situation, which is very much a probable happening around here, it would likely be a lot longer period of time that we would be on our own.  So, as much as I can, I am stepping up my preparedness efforts in order to make sure we are prepared for such a happening.

God bless you as you prepare and care for your families!

7 comments:

  1. So glad you were prepared! Great tips! We have a ton of snow here, but didn't lose power, as it's usual to get these storms here.

    However, we must never neglect the need for being ready when things DO happen! This sort of thing cannot be predicted in many cases, and likely many more grave ones in our futures.

    My oven ignitor went out (hardly a crisis, but a challenge when I daily use my oven) and the part is on order..it will likely take a couple of weeks. I'm thankful I have prepared meals I've made in our freezer, along with the bread I make weekly. This way, we can keep eating the usual, and the frozen meals can be heated up in their containers in the microwave.

    Thanks for awesome tips, and I hope your power and water are restored soon!

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  2. What a beautiful picture. I am stuck in a neighborhood where all the homes look the same and I am dreaming of a little land. Here in Southern Oregon there is alot of it, just praying for some to fall in my lap! Way to be prepared for your storm! No snow here, just lots of rain. But I am going to work on preparedness, you never know.

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  3. I love the picture of your house! It looks like something out of a magazine....so cute and cozy!
    -Alyssa

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  4. You rock!
    And your house looks beautiful in the snow :)

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  5. Experience is an excellent teacher! Just think of all you've learned through this time without electricity and water. Hope all goes well until the power is on and you're all nice and warm!
    Thanks for linking up!

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  6. GREAT TIPS! AND WHAT A BEAUTIFUL HOME YOU HAVE :)

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  7. Hello,
    I was ready your post. We live without Electic, have a sprng for water. That is 30 feet from the house. In the winter there is allways snow to melt for doing the dishes, then use the water to flush.
    Life is allways learning..... Alene

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