Yep, I've been absent a bit.

School started and i was just so busy!  I'm back now.

Just want to quickly review what we've done so far and I think I'm going to add it at the end of everypost.

We've made copies of all important documents and put them in a binder for easy access in case of a fire.
We've also given a copy of said items to a friend or family member, in case something happens and you can't get yours at your house.

We have a list of items that we need to start buying to put in a tote.  Of course we are also buying water.

We have learned how important water is.  At least I have.

Today I want us to make a quick plan, listing everything that we think would be the most important in an emergency situation.  I have to think long and hard on this one.  There are so many things that could be a priority.  Where to start is confusing and can be overwhelming.  So let's do it now.

Another Water Update!

Last Saturday we took the kids to Marineland!  It was fun!  It was awesome!  A great time was had by all!

What I did find out was this:  WATER WATER WATER!  was needed.  There was nine of us....Four adults and 5 children - all under the age of five and do you know how much fluid we went through???  18 liters of water and 12 540ml of juice.  There were also three bought cups of Pepsi.

It was hot!  It was humid!

Couldn't believe how much water the kids consumed.  I couldn't believe how much water I consumed!

Am I worried about water?  You betcha!

Need Backpacks now...to start those 72 hour kits

So, now it's time to start our 72 hour kits.  I'm going to call these bug out bags....BOBs.  

We need to find backpacks.  One for each family member.  Thrift stores, salvation armies, are all great places to get used, cheap ones, that are in pretty good shape.  

You can also wait until school supplies go on sale and pick up the bags then.  You may actually already have them laying around the house.  

I've seen people put their 72 hour kits in milk jugs, in boxes, in totes.  I think the backpacks are the best idea, especially if you get the kind that buckles across the chest.  Easier to carry, leave your hands free and harder for someone to take.  

For the kids, this is a great idea as well, if it's on their backs it's easier for them.

Water On Sale At Zellers!

4 Litre bottles of water are on sale at Zellers this week.  .99$

Remember you need 4L Per Day Per Person!  So if you are preparing for 72 hours, you need 3x the number of people in your family.  Just in case you can't do the math yourself.  LOL

While I'm at it.

I just picked up some stuff at the dollar store.  They had camping stuff....end of their stuff.  I got emergency blankets for a buck, little emergency cook stoves, some compressed towels...etc. All to put in our emergency packs.

Much cheaper than anywhere else...

Disappointing Results.....

Yep...that's what I got after carefully combing every single flyer a couple times this past couple days.  Not a single thing on my list for sale.

Crazy!

So when I went shopping today, I bought lentils.  I bought a 1 kg bag  of green lentils for $1.97.  They also had a small bag of a variety of dry lentils and barley used to make soup, thought I would buy it and try to make it using the thermos.  It was $.97.

So I guess I have made a little progress.

How goes yours?

So To Date: We have....

Made a binder containing all our important documents and have pictures of our beloved family members with all their stats on them.  

We printed out lists of what's in a 72 hour kit, and maybe even a few others that I have posted.  My favourite being the 2 week list.

We've also bought a supply of water.

On top of that we have learnt all kinds of things.  Like how to grow sprouts, one of the most nutritional, easy to grow things around.  How to grow yeast, and all about where to get water from.

I also posted the list of the top 100 things that disappear first in an emergency.  Something you may want to take into consideration since you may want some of the things on the top of the list first.  

This week we will be moving on.  I have every intention of starting to follow the flyers and buying what we need on our list that is on sale.   I have also been in contact with a few places to see where is the cheapest places to find seeds.  They seem to be on the expensive side if you buy them at the health food stores.  

Alright!  So if you haven't done any of these things...get to them!

I found someone who has a list of guides..and a list of 100 things that disappear off shelves first

I found this website.

It has a list of all kinds of guides, including how to find medicinal plants, I thought it was too cool not to share.

http://2012forum.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=10

It's a pretty amazing site if you want to go and take a gander.  Remember to take it with the seriousness you want to put in this.

I also found this:

http://standeyo.com/News_Files/INFO_Files/100.items.html

This is a list of the 100 top items that disappear off shelves first when people get scared.  Maybe this is something you would like to take into consideration.

Micro Greens and Sprouting

Did you know that with a single cup of seeds you can get 5 lbs of a sprouting vegetable matter that is not only high in protein but worth it's weight in gold-uhm, I mean weight in a nutritional power???

Yep....it's true.

So I am putting some in my two week kit.  No access to fresh food if there is no electricity, this would be nice to have.  Even if they take
4-6 days to sprout, it will be something to look forward to and something for the kids to participate in.

I have actually already started growing some.  Picked them up at market organics in ottawa.  I've always enjoyed sprouts and of course I want to be sure I know how to grow them before I have to know I have to grow them!

Growing Yeast For Bread

So I have been looking into growing yeast for bread.

No grocery stores for bread, means we'll need to make our own....what happens if you don't have any yeast on hand??

Here you go:

http://www.ehow.com/how_5860081_grow-bread-yeast.html

Print it out and put it in your binder....pick a little bit of the ingredients to have on  hand....

Less Than 48 Hours of camping...Guess what our Water consumption was?

So we took the kids camping this weekend.  Guess what....I tracked our water usage.  I didn't hold back the water at all...I just kept track.  Boy!  Was I surpised!

We always camp with no electricity, no water.  So we took a 1.5 litter refillable water bag to fill for miscellaneous stuff, i.e.: dishes, washing hands, filling water balloons, yada yada....We refilled this 5 times. Almost 2 gallons for the american folk.

We also took a 8 Litre bottle of spring water for drinking and cooking with.  A full 2 gallons of water.  We did bring some of this home with us, maybe a litre.

I was actually surprised by how much we used, though I have to admit I did nothing to tone this down.  We also drank other things, juice, beer, coke....

They recommend that you must have 4 litres a day to survive.  So, yeah, they are almost bang on.  Next trip I intend on tailoring our needs to meet this exactly...that will be a challenge!

Less Than 48 Hours of camping...Guess what our Water consumption was?

So we took the kids camping this weekend.  Guess what....I tracked our water usage.  I didn't hold back the water at all...I just kept track.  Boy!  Was I surpised!

We always camp with no electricity, no water.  So we took a 1.5 litter refillable water bag to fill for miscellaneous stuff, i.e.: dishes, washing hands, filling water balloons, yada yada....We refilled this 5 times. Almost 2 gallons for the american folk.

We also took a 8 Litre bottle of spring water for drinking and cooking with.  

Your First List

So the deal is that there is so much information and so many different ideas as to what you should have and should do.

I am not saying you have to do exactly what I do and remember that everything should be tailored to meet your needs and the needs of your family.

I have three websites to share with you, I'm doing different kinds of things.  You should do what you need to do.

http://www.town.newmarket.on.ca/en/services/emergencysurvivalchecklist.asp

I really, really like this one: http://urbansurvivalsite.com/?s=where+to+begin&search=Search

and this one is very fascinating if you want to take it to the extreme:

http://foodstoragemadeeasy.net/

Go check them out and take a look.  Print off what you want to do and it add it to your binder.

Today is the day we start buying stuff to put in our stash!

Go to the grocery store and buy 4 4 litre bottles of water.  You are then going to put these in the back of the cupboard for an emergency....

Moving on....I want you to start a binder....

So to date you should have:  Copies of all important documents, you should have copies of photographs of all your family members in case you get separated and need to find each other.  

Today I want you to get a binder....any kind.  I chose a enclosed zipper one, but I have been printing crap off like crazy and most of it I probably won't even use.....then again, you never know!

I want you to put all of your copies in this binder and store it where you can grab it immediately....

We're going to add more info to this binder....lists you should have and a few recipes....


Ok....Go get that binder!

Now...Let's talk about Places to get water...

Finding Water sources

So....The electricity is out, you do have supplies on hand, since you are following along and doing what I say....LOL.

But you need to look to the future.  Where can you find water to supplement what you have.

Let's look at obvious places...Hot Water tank, toilet tank, and ice from your freezer.  You could also access your water pipes and use that water as.

Now let's look outside.

Lakes, Rivers, and streams,  if you have access to any of these...that's great.  Remember you should never take water from a non-moving water source unless you are truly desperate.

Even taking the water from these sources means that you have to properly treat it to drink it.

Other sources:  Rain water, catchment systems(to be talked about later), and dew...yep, morning dew.  Get out a clothe and run it over the dew and wring it into a container.....voila - water.

Any other ideas?  Let me know!

So, while you are working on your photos...I want to talk about water.

You are supposed to be getting photos of all your loved ones together to print off so that if you get separated you have photos to find each other.

I now want to talk about water.

Water is the most important part of survival of any kind.  The human body can not go more than three days without it.

Even when it's cold, you still require the same amount of water as when it's warm.  If it's Hot, you may require more.   Remember just because you aren't thirsty, doesn't mean your body doesn't need water.  Usually by the time you are thirsty you are suffering from dehydration. Scary Thought.

So...Let's talk about how much water you need a day to survive:  4 litres  For our American friends, That's a Gallon a day.

Lots of water isn't it???

Ok.....so, we've organized important papers, now let's do photos

I want you to take recent photos of your family now. Don't forget elderly family members, like parents or grandparents, especially if they live separately from you.

I want you to put them on the computer and using whatever photo software you have to write their names, date of birth, and a general description.

I am fairly familiar with photo editing software.  So I will be putting them all on one sheet of paper and then printing them out.

This way, if something happens and I need to look for someone(God forbid)  I just cut the photo of that person out and I can enlarge it, multiply it, etc....Hand it to the person in charge of looking for people.

When Katrina hit, there were a lot of missing people and some didn't see their loved ones for a  while even though they were ok.  Being this little bit prepared will help you if something ever happens.

So....Let's move on to doing this!

I'm starting off slow here. 72 hour preparation....Things you really should do!

I'm positive people are thinking I'm nuts.  I've posted this blog to facebook twice and no one seems interested.  Ironically these are the same people that are not ready for anything to happen.

When I asked a friend today if she was going to do this with me, I got a big sigh, and an..."I'm prepared".  Yet when I asked her who was keeping a copy of her documents, she admitted that she didn't have anyone doing it for her....

When I asked what happened if an earthquake ate her house, her response was, the government would have them....LOL  Really?  Cause last I checked, the government didn't keep copies of her will or her insurance.  They also didn't have photos of her family members if she got separated from them and couldn't find them....

This is pretty common sense stuff people.  Pick up my initiative and get on this.

Start Here:  http://www.getprepared.gc.ca/index-eng.aspx

Copies of important documents

I am currently gathering up all important documents to make copies. This includes birth Cetificates, passports, wills, and insurance info.  I figure three copies of each should be enough, plus the originals.

A copy will go to my husband's work.  A copy will go to the inlaws, and a copy will go into a "bug out bag", which I will discuss in a later post.

I may make an extra copy just so I have one on hand.

For a more detailed list of things you should have,  I found this site.
http://pubs.ext.vt.edu/354/354-141/354-141.html

It's an american site....but the info is mostly the same of what we should have on hand...Just in case of an emergency or disaster.

**This is an edit...as I was going through papers, I realized that I should also add a copy of Medical documents that I consider necessary.  We have a child with aspergers, and a copy of his assessment is definitely a necessary.

Wow...So much Information on Preparing! So Many Freaks!

Yep.  Lots of freaks out there.

LOL, I spent the last half hour going through multiple blogs on preparing for disasters and there are lots of them out there.  All of them from it's the "End of the World" and you need cans of food that last 30 years....yep, that's right...30 YEARS!

I'm just not that freaky!  I would like to believe that the world is an ok place and that everything will right it's self shortly...like in three months.  LOL

I did come up with a couple good sites.

I like this one the best.  It had stuff I never thought of....and ironically it's a Canadian Government site!

It even has a cute little video!

http://www.getprepared.gc.ca/index-eng.aspx

Go Check it out and make sure you take the 20 minutes to prepare an emergency plan.  I did.  

First Tip Right from Zombieland

CARDIO CARDIO CARDIO!

It's like his number one rule....this way, you can outrun the zombies!  LOL

My first tip on being prepared for any kind of emergency is to be fit!

This is a hard one for me, I'll be the first to admit that I am about 30-40 pounds overweight and my muscle mass is pretty low.  I am slowly getting it back up there but it's been hard.

My goal is to be able to run 5km again by the end of this year.....think I can do it?

Think you can do it??

GET FIT TO BE PREPARED FOR ANY EMERGENCY!

Being Prepared For Any Scenario

I have been watching lots of youtube videos.  I started with gardening ideas and somehow found all kinds of stuff on being PREPARED.  Not sure how the two go together, except if the world did collapse, you may need to know how to garden to grow food....hmmmm....

Anyhow....

Being Prepared for an emergency is a great idea.  I think everyone should have enough food on hand for three months.  Doesn't matter if you think the world will end or not.  First of all, any big storm can take down the power grid.  It happened here 13 years or so ago and most people were without power for a week.  In the middle of winter, in the bloody coldest part of the year.  Since I am in Canada, you can imagine how cold that is.

Now, if that was to happen today, would I have enough supplies on hand to make it that week?  Right now...nope.

So this is my goal. To be better prepared.  I'm going to bring you along with me.  Over the next year, I want to make sure I have everything I need to be prepared for 3-6 months.  I want to make sure I can keep my family, fed and watered, warm, and of course safe.

That being said.  Sounds easy huh?  Well...it's a pretty big bill.  Are you up for it?  I'm not sure I am....