January 4, 2008

I mentioned this once before in a previous post, but I wanted to expand on the reasons it’s important to keep some cash in your house for emergency situations, and the most effective way to do it.

Bank Failure – I’m sure this is the most obvious reason, but you want to have cash in case something happens to the bank!  If all of your money is in a bank account, and the bank has been destroyed… what are you going to do?  You have to have some cash in order to have money in this situation.

Getting Out - I just have to think back to hurricane Katrina in New Orleans… you may not have time to stop at an ATM to get cash to get out of town!  You may need a cab, or a hotel, it would be nice to be able to pay for those things instead of ending up in a massive shelter, where there is no privacy and little food. 

Trade – I mentioned previously… I love movies and tv, and will use quotes anytime I can.  So I have to think of Homer Simpson “awww… $20, I wanted a peanut” (Homer’s Brain) “$20 can buy many peanuts” Homer “Explain how!” (Homer’s Brain) “Money can be exchanged for goods and services”  Homer “Woo HOO!”  Cash is something immediately available.  I can’t think of anything better to have during an emergency.  (OK, except for everything else you need during an emergency).

 A good way to start your cash stash is to set aside a little at a time.  When you go to the grocery store and the little machine asks if you want cash back, say yes, and get 5 or 10 dollars.  Place it in a secure, easy to retrieve location in your home and keep adding to it.  You will see that it adds up. 

So get going and start your cash stash today!

What I’m Doing or Buying This Week to Prepare

• I’m going to pull out $10 during my grocery shopping trip tomorrow and add it to my cash stash!

December 28, 2007

I mentioned previously that my “Emergency Preparedness Friday’s” are going to deal with all types of emergencies.  Today we will tackle how to bring your child’s fever down if they get sick.  Maddie woke up one night a few months ago and I went to get her and she was burning up!  I really hate when that happens.  You feel so bad!  So what are the best methods for getting your kid feeling better again?

Tylenol or Motrin – Old standby’s, but I am a big fan of drugs.    There is nothing I enjoy more than a Nyquil induced coma when I’m feeling under the weather.  Never  give asprin to a child though.  If the fever is due to chicken pox or the flu asprin could make the child develop Reye’s Syndrome.

Fluids – Encourage your child to drink lots of fluids.  If it’s a mild fever and they don’t seem too uncomfortable it’s actually best to let the fever run its course and just offer them a lot of fluid. 

Sponge Bath – If they have a high temperature you may want to quickly lower it by sponging them with tepid water.  Don’t use cold water as that can cause the blood vessels to constrict, preventing heat loss and driving the temp up! 

Don’t Bundle – When you put them to bed remove most of their clothing and give them a light sheet.  The sheet will help to keep the body warm (to prevent chills), and won’t make them too hot.

Hopefully your child will be back on their feet in no time at all!

What I’m Buying or Doing This Week To Prepare

• I am buying some extra over the counter medication to pack away in our emergency container (NyQuil, Motrin, Etc.)

December 14, 2007

I guess warmth is just on my mind lately, as there has been about 6 inches of snow in my backyard for about a week.  Last time we discussed how to prevent warmth from escaping.  This time I am going to discuss the best methods for keeping warm.

Layers – It’s really all about layers.  Your first layer should be made of polypropylene or polyester.  This is the layer that actually touches your skin.  The worst thing you could have on the first layer is cotton!  Cotton will hold moisture, and as we learned last time, that is a quick way for heat to escape!  Next, pack on the fleece or other synthetic fabrics.  Then obviously a nice big warm jacket!  An additional layer of pants wouldn’t hurt either.

Hat & Scarf – You lose most of your heat through your head and neck.  If you want to stay warm keep these well protected. 

Shoes & Socks – Another good place to lose heat is through your feet.  I grew up in Oregon, and got pneumonia one year because I wasn’t wearing good shoes.  My high school was constantly soaked, and therefore so were my shoes.  I bought some really cute Eddie Bauer shoes that were rubber, but still looked like cute shoes, and my socks never got wet again!  So make sure your shoes aren’t going to soak up the water.  Also, to me there is nothing better than some nice warm thick socks!

So stay warm out there!  (when am I moving back to Southern California again?)

What I’m Buying or Doing This Week to Prepare

• Time to stock up on cereal again!  Your local Kroger store should be having a killer sale on cereal, and I’m taking advantage!

November 30, 2007

Sorry about the lack of post yesterday, I was really busy trying to get something ready for Saturday.  Anyway, Since it is sooo super cold here, I thought I’d chat about how to stay warm when there isn’t electricity or gas around to keep you nice and toasty.  I think in the event of an emergency I’m moving back to California… California with no heat I’m sure is much better than Utah with no heat.  So, since we all can’t move to California, how are you guys going to stay warm?

Radiation – Not THAT kind!  Our bodies radiate heat, so one of the best ways to stay warm is staying insulated.  Obviously layers are going to help keep our body heat in, but also create radiant barriers.  Shiny material with nonconductive layers can reflect your body heat back towards your body.  That is why those emergency “blankets” are so effective.  I look at those and think how can this thin thing possibly make me warm?  But that is how. 

Conduction – This is when heat moves away from it’s source.  So if one end of something is cool, and the other end is hot, the cold end will heat up as the hot end will cool down.  To prevent this transfer of heat make sure the materials you are using to heat yourself are dry.  water is about 25 times more heat conductive than air. 

Evaporation – When we sweat we are allowing moisture to escape from our body.  The water will contribute to heat loss.  In an emergency situation, try not to work very hard and make yourself sweat.  It may feel good while you are working hard, as your body heats up, but afterward you may end up colder!

Fire – The old standby.  Try to start a fire.  The best way to start a fire is to start small.  Get lots of small twigs and kindling, and as it grows you can add bigger logs to the pile.

There you go!  Stay warm… it’s supposed to snow here tomorrow!

What I’m Doing or Buying This Week To Prepare

• I’m going to get some of those waterproof matches and add them to my emergency box.

November 23, 2007

The key to a good food storage plan is rotation!  First, if you don’t use your food storage, you may not know how to prepare food based on the food you have stored when an emergency arises that requries you to actually use your storage.  There are some more reasons to use your food storage.

Prevent spoiling – This one is obvious.  You don’t want to spend a lot of time and money collecting and storing this food, and then have it all go bad before you need it! 

Nutrition – Food can lose it’s nutritional value when it sits around for too long.  It can also absorb things from it’s packaging, making it not worth eating.

Cost – Like I stated earlier, you don’t want to have to throw away food that you have spent money on.

Getting Used to It – Again, if you never eat these things, your system and taste buds may be in for a shock in an emergency.

I challenge you to use at least 3 things from your food storage this week.  If you don’t have any storage, then my challenge is to get some!!

What I’m Buying Or Doing This Week to Prepare

• I’m pulling $10 more dollars out of the bank for the sleeping bags I’m saving for.

November 16, 2007

We are a big Disney family (OK, probably my fault, but I digress).  So we watch Disney Channel, and there is a little mini show in between the shows called Lou & Lou Safety Patrol.  They really have some great tips on being safe.  They had an episode where they were practicing evacuating their house in the event of a fire.  I thought I’d copy them and help you practice evacuating your house.  It is important that we practice these things so your children know what to do, and they won’t hide or panic.  It would be so awful for you to have to look for your child, who is hiding in a closet while you need to get out of the house fast.  Here’s a good printout from where I got most of these ideas.

Practice Different Escape Routes – Make sure they under stand the main route from their bedroom, but if that room is inaccessible then help them with a different route.  Even if that route is climbing out their window.  If their room is on a higher floor it is especially important to practice.  Keep a ladder in their closet that they can use for emergencies. 

Establish a Meeting Place – Make sure every member of the family knows where to meet (far enough away from your house to be safe, but close enough to not make it a long trek). 

Check Your Smoke Detectors – Make sure you test your smoke detectors regularly.

Hot & Cold – Make sure your kids know the difference between hot and cold and show them how to test their door.  If it’s hot, don’t open the door!

Keep Low – Show them how to keep low to avoid most of the smoke.

Again, practice makes perfect.  The more you practice evacuating your house, the easier it will be if you actually do have an emergency.

What I’m Doing Or Buying This Week To Prepare

• I’m going to create our evacuation plan and practice it!

November 9, 2007

Trevor and I had a unique experience a few years ago.  We were at Disney World during Hurricane Francis.  We knew it was coming so I went to the store to stock up on some food.  The resort had told us that the staff was leaving and basically we were on our own until the storm passed.  I bought some board games, and cards, and what I thought would be food we could “live” on for a couple of days.  I was an idiot.  I bought chips, crackers, basically snack foods.  We had the power go out a few times, and pretty much had to stay in our hotel room for 2 days straight.  By the end we were STARVING for real food!  We could not eat another chip.  We just wanted some meat, a sandwich… ANYTHING!  I apparently knew nothing about food storage then.  So what should you do to avoid our situation?

Purchase Spices – Have different seasonings like onion, tomato, cheese, etc.  Make sure you store spices!  You do not want to be stuck with bland food for extended periods of time.

Variety of Beans – Make sure you get different kinds of beans.  The textures and colors will really add something to your food.

Vitamins – Very important to store vitamins so your children can have all the vital nutrients.  Plus you usually crave whatever vitamins you are missing in your system.  This will help keep specific food cravings down.

Protein – This is what Trevor and I were missing the most.  There are a variety of sources of protein that you can store.  Tuna fish, beef jerky, nuts and peanut butter.

This should be a good start for you.  These are in addition to the grains, honey, etc.  That you usually hear for food storage ideas.  Happy planning!

What I’m Buying Or Doing This Week To Prepare

• With the holiday season approaching watch for sales on baking goods.  Vegetable oil is essential to store, also those spices I mentioned earlier will probably start going on sale too. 
• Nuts are also coming into their cheaper season, so stock up on a variety of nuts!

November 2, 2007

When I was pregnant, Trevor and I attended a class called “Baby Saver.”  It was a first aid class for you to take care of your baby in case of an emergency.  Unfortunately the head fell off of Trevor’s “baby” during the class.  It was amusing and fortunately never happened to Maddie.  What we learned in the class was invaluable though!  I felt much safer knowing what to do with Maddie in all sorts of emergency situations.  The good news is that I haven’t had to use that training yet, but I’m still comforted in knowing what to do.  Here are some basic CPR tips to get you through, but I would definitely sign up for a class and get certified if you aren’t already.  The first few minutes of an emergency could be the difference that saves your child.

CPR for Infants (under 1 year) – Slap the bottom of your baby’s foot to make sure she is not responding.  Place her face up on a firm surface.  Open her airway by tilting her head back (just press lightly on their forhead) and lifting her chin.  Bend down and place your ear near her mouth and feel, listen and look for breathing.  Seal her entire nose and mouth with your mouth, and exhale two gentle breaths, making sure you see her chest rising with each breath.  Trace a line with your fingers just below her nipples to the center of her chest (onto the lower half of her breastbone).  With two fingers push the chest down 5 times.  Repeat five times, then call for help if you are alone.

CPR for older children – Again, lay the child down on a flat surface and tilt their head back.  Check their airway for breathing.  Pinch the child’s nostrils shut with two fingers, take a deep breath and seal your lips around the child’s mouth.  Breathe gently, but firmly into their mouth until you see their chest rise.  Breathe 3 times.  Place the heel of one hand over the lower half of the child’s brestbone and press down 1 to 1 1/2 inches and release.  Do 5 compressions to 1 breath for at least 3 minutes, call for help, and then continue CPR.

I just gave you a VERY basic explaination.  I highly recommend going to a class and getting certified!

What I’m Buying or Doing this Week to Prepare

• I’m taking more cash out to pay for the sleeping bags I want to get

October 26, 2007

With all the fires in Southern California (which is affecting many of my friends and family because we are from Southern California) I was thinking it would be appropriate to discuss what you should have from your house in case you need to leave in a hurry.  My brother is an LA City Firefighter, and lets just give him and his co-workers a hand for working so hard to put them out!

First get the largest plastic container you can store and start stuffing.  I would gather the important documents we put together a few weeks ago, and place them in a plastic sleeve and put it in the container.  Things that I have in our sleeve are our birth certificates, social security cards, titles to our cars, etc.  Another thing I would keep in this sleeve is some cash.  Just in case the ATM’s of the world are broken.  It is just nice to be able to have some cash on hand in case you have to evacuate. 

I would pack in some water bottles.  As many as you can fit!  Just the normal 12 oz. ones.  Also lets add some food that has high calories, but compacted.  My friend’s husband is in the military and she has Ready to Eat meals.  If you have access to these, they are a good choice to include.  Granola bars, energy bars, meals that you just need to add water to like cup o’ noodles, or oatmeal are also good choices to include.  Go grocery shopping at your local sporting goods store for camping meal equipment. 

Place some warm clothing in it like sweaters you typically don’t wear (I know you have ‘em).  Get some really warm socks and place them in the container as well.  You also want to put a couple of changes of clothes for each member of the family. 

Don’t forget a flashlight, and some extra batteries, light sticks, and an am/fm radio would be nice to keep in touch with what is going on in the world.

Medications are important to include so get some extra and store it in the container.  You may also want to include some other first aid equipment such as band-aids and antiseptic spray.

Toiletries will be especially nice to have on hand.  I would buy those “wipes” for adults.  They are more compact then a roll of toilet paper, and will clean you better out in the world.  Pack extra toothpaste and toothbrush, and mouthwash.  Shampoo, conditioner and body wash will also be nice to have on hand.  With all the toiletries, don’t forget some wash cloths and towels. 

Toys will definitely be important if you have small children.  So grab some toys that they won’t miss and place them in the container.

Lastly make sure that you grab any special family pictures and place them the plastic sleeve.  If you have to evacuate because of a fire you will be happy to have your really special pictures with you. 

This should at least give you the basics from your house so that if you needed to evacuate you can do so quickly and comfortably. 

What I’m Buying or Doing This Week to Prepare

• I’m doing all of the above!

October 19, 2007

Upon request, I’m going to delay what I was going to talk about this week in order to talk about where you can store extra food, if you don’t have extra room! 

Create a nightstand – In your bedroom you can place all the food neatly in boxes and then cover the boxes with a tablecloth!  Whenever your alarm wakes you up in the morning you can think of how great it is to be prepared!

Bookcase – This one is a little more unsightly, but use what you got right!  You can put a piece of wood on top of cans of food (the bigger cans that you can buy in bulk).   You can add as many “shelves” as you need.  You could even store other food on those shelves!

Under the Bed – Instead of a bed frame, just put your box spring on boxes of food! 

Closets – If your coat closet is like mine, there is nothing under those coats!  Closet floors are a food storage GOLDMINE! 

Luckily I am blessed with an extremely large pantry (not trying to brag, I have a normal sized house, just a HUGE pantry!)  One of the things I love best about my house. 

If anyone else has any hidden food storage ideas we’d love to hear it!  I’ll even give away a book on emergency preparedness for the most creative!

What I’m Buying or Doing This Week to Prepare

• I’m need some shampoo this week, so I’m going to buy 2 extra bottles of shampoo, conditioner, and body wash. (Vo5 on sale at KMart for .69!)
• I’m also going to pull some cash out for 2 purposes, 1 to have some cash on hand in case of an emergency, and 2 I’m going to start saving that cash to buy a new sleeping bag.