Prepping Tidbits....Great Links to Info

100 Items That Disappear First in a Crisis
http://www.thepowerhour.com/news/items_disappearfirst.htm


In the event of a Ebola crisis or any other kind of Pandemic it would be very important to know how to isolate a sick family member or create a "sick room"
http://www.pandemichomecare.com/files/2261183/uploaded/Checklist%20for%20Setting%20Up%20a%20Sick%20Room%20.pdf

http://readynutrition.com/resources/the-well-stocked-sick-room_08122011/


Purifying Your Water with Bleach....sometimes boiling may not be an option
http://www.ehow.com/how_5890710_purify-water-bleach.html


Pandemic Flu Checklist....could be adapted for any scenario such as preparing to stay in during an Ebola outbreak. This is a great wealth of information and would be great to print.
http://www.struck.us/CheckList/PandemicFluChecklist.html

Prepping 101....NOT Doomsday...Just Common Sense

First of all let me begin by making it clear I am no Doomsday Prepper. While the show can be entertaining and may even make some people THINK, I can not imagine one person with common sense going on national TV and telling the world what they have and where it is. With that being said and out of the way, I will say that I believe EVERYONE should at least have some kind of game plan in their head to care for their family in a "what if" crisis.

What if ISIS does blah, blah, blah....
What if there's a problem with the water.....
What if we have a hurricane....
What if we are without power for extended time....
What if there is a huge ice storm....
What if Ebola or Enterovirus 68 spreads.....
What if my spouse looses his/her job....

I think you get the picture. There are 1001 scenarios that could seriously disrupt your household at any given time. Have you though it out or are you leaving it to chance? Any responsible person with half a brain in their head has to realize that depending on the Government or any other entity to take care of you and yours would be a foolhardy plan. They may come, but it could take a lot of precious time with all of the red-tape. Remember Katrina?? Remember Sandy?

"Prepping" does not make you a right-wing extremist. Look at it as an investment. If you pick up extra cans or boxes here and there, and a month down the line your spouse looses his/her job you will be thankful you had provisions set aside. If you continue building a reasonable stockpile and there is an illness in the home you won't have to leave to get soups or meds. I know of many times when I have been caring for sick children and husband is working. I couldn't take off to the store, but I was OK because I had what was needed because I planned ahead.

Now that we have discussed a few logical disruptions, we need to discuss the out-of-the-ordinary scenarios....

At this very moment we have had 2 confirmed cases of Ebola and several that the Government transferred here. Never in history has Ebola been on American soil. This deadly disease has the potential to claim many lives if something is not done. Remember what we just discussed about waiting on Government? Well in this case they are not coming to help us...they seem to be helping the disease. Air travel to and from the infected countries are non-stop. Our borders are wide open. Not only are we concerned with Ebola, but we are also dealing with Enterovirus 68. This nasty virus has claimed many young children and we have not even hit flu season. Everything has a cause and effect. Public panic could very well be lurking around the corner. It would not be so far-fetched to wake up and see that there are several confirmed cases and that could light a fire under the general public. Do YOU want to try to battle the folks at Walmart, Costco or Sam's who are scared beyond belief? I don't like battling Sally and Sue at Walmart on Saturday, and I certainly have no desire to be fighting for the last gallon of water or can of soup.

Walmart and other major grocery chains look like they have an abundance of stock, but the actual truth is that there is only enough stock for about 2-3 days. Where do they get their stock? Truckers. If you were a trucker would you put yourself in harm's way during some sort of crisis to transport a load to a grocery store or from a warehouse? I wouldn't. So what happens when the trucks don't arrive? Hmmmm...something to think about.

Of course some may say this is taking it to the extreme....maybe so....but it is a thought process. It's kind of like thinking what am I going to do if I run out of gas before I get to the gas station. Working out different scenarios to see if you could make it is only prudent.

Here's another scenario.....

You decide you'll start picking up some extra items. You start researching and making a list. You organize your closets and pantry. After making some progress you decide to talk about what you have accomplished with your neighbor down the street. Surely they have thought about the same because the nightly news is not getting better. If they haven't gotten a clue yet then you will be the good Samaritan who helps them or enlightens them. Don't be too upset when you get "that" look. You can tell by their facial expressions and body language they are uncomfortable and they may just flat out laugh it off and say something like "if something happens we'll know to just come to your house." Let this be a warning and red flag to you. In the event of a crisis the people who blow you off as a nut will be the first people knocking on your door wanting food for their kids. These are the people who stop at the store everyday to get supper and never have more than a day or two worth of food on hand. These are the people who will be angry and not think twice about taking food from your child's mouth to feed their own. This might be another scenario you want to think through. What will you do? Will you turn people away? My suggestion is to not let anyone know what you have or don't have.

There is no set way of doing any of this. There is no right way or wrong way....just get started. No one will love or care for your family the way that you do. Don't take a chance on having to rely on someone else to do it for you. Do something....even if it is just a little bit.

Prepping for Ebola or Any Other Disease ....A Place to Start





I have recently been asked by several friends how to get ready for Ebola. Prepping for Ebola is a little different then other prepping scenarios.

The goal is:
1) Get ahead of the game and avoid the public panic
2) Be prepared to shelter-in-place

You don't want to be out in a crowd trying to fight for the stuff you need. Shelter-in-place may be a decision that you and your family makes....not necessarily the Government. When the Government makes that announcement we are really in trouble.

The following list is just a "start". This list does not cover total breakdown of society such as no utilities or sanitation.

1) WATER (fill up your 2 ltr soda bottles to help save on expense) You need 1 gallon per person per day.

2) Can goods, box goods, rice, dried beans.....things like chili, ravioli, chicken and dumplings, soups would be perfect b/c it's a meal in a can - keep in mind that some things you need water to cook and prepare accordingly

3) Canned meat like spam is great to put in beans for flavor, tuna, chicken etc (check Dollar Stores)

4) Snacks, pop tarts, cereal, crackers

5) Chicken and beef broth or boullion

6) Pet food and supplies

7) Not a bad idea to stock the freezer and fridge. If it gets to where there is no power then we are really screwed but this list is not for that "phase"

8) Sodas, Drinks, Flavor packets for water, Gatorade, Sprite or Ginger Ale

9) rubber gloves for cleaning and also rubber gloves they use in hospital. I found both at Dollar Tree

10) Garbage bags and plastic store bags for small garbage cans

11) Bleach

12) Detergent...don't want to get caught with nothing to wash clothes; Cleaning Supplies

13) Hand sanitizers and plenty of hand soap

14) Toiletries (soap, shampoo, toothpaste, saline solution)

15) OTC meds....the last place your want to go is to a Dr. office or hospital. If you have children you will need to prepare for both.....Tylenol, Motrin, Cold Medicines, Stomach Meds, Pedialyte or something similar, Alcohol, Peroxide, Vit C

16) Toilet Paper

17) Surgical Masks

18) Bullets

19) Entertainment for kiddos; Batteries

20) If you get down to this point then go get more water and bleach....you can't have too much

Approach this with a clear head and try to think through every possible scenario. Lots to think about....lots to do.....Get busy!

Are You Really Ready?

With all of the things that we are witnessing daily it's hard not to ask, "Are we really ready"? I have never experienced, nor witnessed, things that we are seeing daily on the news and in our own backyards. What is even more frightening is after speaking to people who are in their 70's and 80's....they say the same.

The President of this country has no problem writing one  Executive Order after the other when things don't go his way. He also has no problem bragging about "having" to do it on National television. I guess that is about as far as his transparency goes. Our borders are WIDE open with this administration basically giving an invitation for one and all to head on across. While hard-working Americans, and more shamefully United State Veterans, struggle daily to put food on the table and get medical attention, the ILLEGAL ALIENS are coming in and getting set up with assistance. There have been several reports from reputable sources that most of these ILLEGALS are not even being completely and properly screened for health issues. What are they bringing to our communities?

So let me ask YOU....Are you ready?

Imagine after getting off of work one afternoon you hear about an altercation between law enforcement and a suspect. What would normally be routine, ends up becoming a cascade of falling dominoes as the suspect is shot and killed. The catalyst is that he was supposedly an innocent unarmed man. One thing leads to another and before you know it half of your town is up in arms and are protesting. "Peaceful" protests turn into looting and destroying everything in sight. Regardless of who was right and who was wrong...are you prepared to take care of yourself and your family in a situation like this? In St. Louis, Missouri....Ferguson, to be exact...we are seeing this happen now on a level that is mind-blowing. I'll save my opinion on this powder keg for another time, but this is an example of why we need to ask ourselves are we ready? Do we have a plan??

Are you ready for the morning you wake up and turn on your television or radio to find out that there is a huge problem with your water?  The newscaster is reporting that everyone is being advised NOT to boil it because it will cause more problems. It is recommended not to wash dishes, clothes, brush your teeth, give to your pets or bathe in it. Now think about this for a minute....and don't think it can't or won't happen because it just did in Ohio two weeks ago. Are you prepared to take care of all cooking and drinking needs for your family and pets, as well as, all cleaning and hygiene issues?  Within hours every convenience store, grocery store and chain store was sold completely out of every form of bottled water. People traveled long distances to find more while others stood in line for hours only to be given a six pack or five gallons. Are you ready to do this for three to four days?

In my lifetime the only kind of medical concern on a national level was swine flu. Although I'm no big fan of Obama, when he interrupted TV on Sunday morning with his speech about the possible outbreak he got my attention. Having three kids, I decided to stock up on extra things like soups, sprite and Gatorade in case one of the them got sick so I wouldn't have to juggle taking care of them and running out for what was needed. As luck had it, I got sick and it WAS Swine Flu. My husband had his hands full trying to help care for me and keep the house running. It was so bad I fluctuated between fearing I was surely on death's door and begging God to take me. Had I not planned ahead for "just in case", my poor husband would have had a much harder time. So think about this.....as I mentioned above, our borders are wide open with people bringing God knows what with them. We are watching the worst outbreak of Ebola in history with no slow down of air traffic to the infected areas. Those people are fleeing in hoards and they could very well be infecting the people they walk and sit by in the airports and airplane. See where I'm going with this? Ebola is no joke....it's worse than your worst nightmare. Are you ready to quarantine your family in your home for a few weeks if a case popped up in your area? This would mean having enough food, water, toiletries and pet supplies on hand. This could be a mandatory quarantine or this could be a decision that you make for your family's safety. Are you ready for the massive panic and chaos that could come with the announcement of an outbreak? This may seem far-fetched and not a possible reality in our world, but most things seem that way until they happen the first time. There's a first time for everything.

These are only a few scenarios, and quiet honestly, they are scenarios I never thought of as being an actual reality.... even with my active imagination.... until a few weeks ago. I asked myself if we were ready and we weren't completely ready for any of these scenarios. The good thing is that although things are financially tight for everyone these days, it's not hard to get ready. Even if you aren't "completely" ready, something is always better than nothing. I, for one, do not plan to be one of the ones sitting in line for two hours waiting on a six pack of water unless absolutely necessary. You can't depend on anyone to take care of you and your family except yourself. Take a few seconds from your daily routine and just give it a thought.....are YOU ready?