What's In Your 72-Hour Kit?

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Last month, as I was making kid-backpacks for the children in Japan, I made them thinking, if my kids ever get stranded in a natural disaster, this is what I'd want them to have:  a backpack full of everything they'd need to get by and some items to bring them comfort...especially if I was no longer around to see to their needs.  Lightning bolt, Jocelyn:  You'd better update those 72-hour kits!! 

  

The last time that I updated them, Guy was in 18-month-old clothing and diapers.  So I bought each kid their own backpack, printed off a list of items to include in children's 72-hour kits, and went to work.  Luckily, my mom really did me a favor when she gave me my own 72-hour kit for Christmas about 10 years ago.  Most of the stuff in there was still usable and in good shape.  I just replaced the expired medicines and food, and added clothing for each family member.

I distributed everything evenly between the three backpacks, and I had the children try them on during FHE last night and try to walk in them.  Autumn, my 2-year-old, looked like Ralphie's younger brother in A Christmas Story.  She took two arduous steps forward and then fell flat on her back.  Little bit of a weight issue there, but the other two packs were more evenly distributed, so they worked fine.  She'll grow into it, right?

Without further ado...here's:

WHAT'S IN OUR 72-HOUR KITS

This is pretty much everything, minus the food and sleeping bags.

Everything gets it's own plastic bag to protect it in case anything gets wet.

The items still in their original packaging (like the flashlights) will eventually come out of the store packaging to save space.

If there is an emergency, and we have to leave our home, this is what we'll be eating.

I know, YUM, right?

I'll be adding some Power Bars to the mix, since every adult requires 2,000 calories per day.

Of note in this photo:  duct tape, TP, chapstick, water bottles, sterno cans, light sources, waterproof matches, paper and pencil for leaving messages, a Kid-identification notebook with a recent photo of the child and contact info, utensils, pocket knives, lighters, water filter, hand-warmers, a lock, and is that mace?  
Why, yes it is.

Each child will be stepping out--into the wilderness--in style:  
in these shorts, pants, tees, long-sleeve sweatshirt, socks/underwear.

A tarp for cover or to make a tent.  We do have a small tent not shown here.

The yellow things are kid-sized ponchos.

The backpacks were a splurge, but I don't mind.  They are packs supposedly made to fit the "shape of a women's back"  (ha), so I figured it was a good choice for a kid pack.  It fits what they need, but is not bulky.  Also, it accommodates a 2-liter camel back.

If we get bored while we're trying to survive, we'll learn to play Parcheesi or five other games included in this magnetic travel game kits!  (Thanks again, Mom!)

First-aid kits, collapsible cup, sewing kit, water purification tablets, medicine, soap, rubber gloves, bug spray, bug bite ointment, sunscreen, hand sanitizer.

Note the sample-sized hair-spray bottle in this personal hygiene kit.

(Being on the run is no excuse for a bad hair day, that's what I always say.)

No excuse for bad breath either!

Thanks again, Mom.

Mess kit, rope, adult poncho, flint, steel wool, and a waxy candle thingy that I'm not sure about.

And it all pretty much fits inside these three packs.

I added a little light reading material and the children's songbook (pocket-sized).

Other important items we've included in our kits:

Birth certificates, passwords, copies of other vital records for each family member, a recent family photo, contact information for both sides of the family, a map of the local area, house keys, cash, sunglasses, hats.

If you are looking for a pretty good list to get started or make sure you've got everything you might need, you can find the list that I used here.

The kids are sooooo proud of their 72-hour packs.

Steve has decided that when the kids get older he'll have "surprise" 72-hour camp-outs where we'll have to use only what's in our packs.  Children (in the future who might be reading this)...consider yourselves warned.

Our bishop and his family eat their 72 hour kit food twice a year at General Conference.

A good way to keep things rotated...but kind of a gross menu for conference! :)

So, WHAT'S IN YOUR 72-HOUR KIT???

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The Power & Joy of Testimony (Plus TWO GIVEAWAYS)

Hi there - I hope that everyone enjoyed all of the great talks given this weekend in General Conference.  We are so blessed to know that God still speaks to men on earth!

Today, I want to introduce you to my new friend Dedra.  When I approached her to do a giveaway of some of her cute bow ties for our Easter Blog Party, I had no idea how incredibly awesome she was.  She agreed to the giveaway, which you'll hear more about in a minute, but she also expressed a strong desire to bear testimony of Jesus Christ.

Without further ado, here's Dedra!

I’m so excited to share my testimony of Jesus Christ!

I love my Savior and my Heavenly Father. It’s so easy at this time of the year to feel that they are real and that they love us. It’s amazing to see green buds showing up everywhere – even on the rosebushes I hacked back last fall, which have looked so dead for so long. Now it is as if they are coming back to life.

Just like the spring turns the darkness of winter into a glorious, radiant light, so a testimony of Jesus Christ and His divinity and earthly mission bring joy and happiness to our lives.

For me, my testimony is a power – almost as literal as to be able to touch. My faith in Jesus Christ, my Saviour, has gotten me through years of waiting for children, miscarriages, over a year of half paychecks from my husband's work and living off food storage and crazy frugality (I now know what will NEVER go in my food storage again for fear of having to actually eat it), having our house on the market now for what feels like an eternity and just the regular daily struggles we all go through. 

My faith helps me to make my trials into sources of joy, because through Jesus Christ I can see the big picture but I know how to live in today. I can taste the glorious blessings ahead if I can just ground myself in the present and ENJOY!!!

I don’t have all the answers, but I do know that “men are that they might have joy” (2 Nephi 2:25). HOW?!?!? You may ask. Well, for starters I’m 5 weeks pregnant. There is a VERY big chance this pregnancy won’t last, that I’ll never be able to hold this baby, BUT—I’m excited. 

I’m excited to have a part in Creation. I’m excited to sacrifice for someone else. I’m excited to put my trust in Jesus Christ because at the end of the day, or year, or in the eternities, He will make everything right. 

He is my Rock. My Anchor. My Savior. He makes my life wonderful, happy, and full of joy. 

Just trust Him and choose to have joy along your journey of life.

I promise you that if you seek daily for true joy you will find it—and here’s a hint: It is almost always in the little things. Don’t worry about your destination. Find a way to enjoy traffic, poopy diapers, breakfast, chores, poor health, errands, etc. and at the end you’ll arrive where you always wanted to go.

Now for the Free Giveaways!!!

Visit Modish Podish and reply to this post listing which item is your favorite. Be sure to list the title. One winner will be selected to receive their favorite item (as long as it is still in stock by the end of this contest, or something very similar).

Visit Prettiful Designs and reply to this post listing which item is your favorite. Be sure to list the title. 10 winners will be selected to receive their favorite item!!!

The winner of the bow ties  the 10 winners of the digi-designs will be announced Friday!

Good Luck!!

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Introduction to Our Kid Garden

Prescript:  Don't miss your chance to enter the Lunchbox Love note Giveaway...I'll announce the winner on Tuesday.

Welcome to my garden...my "Kid Garden", that is.

It's a work in progress, but it's coming along.

This part of our backyard used to be sorta swampy, but my husband built a french drain to dry things up, and now we are making it into a little garden paradise.  We've got strawberries, tomatoes, watermelons, peas, carrots, mona lisa lilies, yellow roses, morning glories, poppies, echinacea, mammoth sunflowers, a bird bath that we made, and this fun little path that leads back to a nice shady Kid hang-out.  I am so excited to see it all take shape, and the children LOVE playing and working in it already.

Have a told you about our Mennonite best friends yet?

We are close friends with a family of Mennonites.  They are sort of like Amish, but they use electricity and some other distinct differences.  I LOVE spending time with them.  They are so sweet and genuine, hard-working and loyal, and they are humble followers of Christ.  I love them.  I would consider adapting their lifestyle, but I don't think I could live without make-up.  And the one time they let me milk one of their cows kind of grossed me out.  I still like milk though, don't get me wrong.  Anyway, they are dairy farmers.  They grow all their own food.  They once asked us if our religion "taught farming".  My husband said "no", but I quickly corrected him.  Yes, our religion teaches that we should plant a garden, learn how to grow, harvest, prepare and store our own food.

So, it might not be one of the 10 commandments,  per se...but working with your hands in the soil, creating with it, caring for God's green earth, is very enriching to the soul and good for the mind and body.

Thanks to my Dad who showed me by example what joy can come from gardening!

Do you have a garden?

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Fun With Food Storage

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints teaches its members to prepare for emergencies by storing food, saving money, getting out of debt, growing a garden, learning survival skills, and gathering emergency 72-hour survival kits for each family member.  Becoming self-sufficient is always the goal, so that if we lose a job or if there is an interruption in the US food supply, we will have what we need and then some to share with neighbors.

I am currently working on my three-month food supply, and I found this wonderful site that makes starting a food storage plan for your family pretty simple.

They just updated this nifty tool for calculating how much your family needs for a three-month supply.  All you do is enter meals/ingredients for one month of meals, and the excel spreadsheet that they have created tallies up the totals and creates a shopping list for you.  It's very efficient.

And if you are interested in building a one-year supply of food for your family within one year, you might want to sign up for their email check-list that keeps you on track to reach that goal.

The church also has a website dedicated to helping people meet their goals of self-sufficiency.  It's  www.providentliving.org

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Saving For A Rainy Day

There is no question that as a country we have fallen on hard economic times.  Our church leaders have advised us for years to prepare for such times by gathering food storage, eliminating debt, paying tithing, and saving for the future.  Some advice seems harder to follow because of the self-denial it requires to get out of debt and save for a rainy day.  But if you are looking for more information on becoming more financially solvent, you might want to check out this site:  http://providentliving.org

This site has a lot of valuable advice and tools for creating a debt elimination calendar, starting your own food storage plan, and creating a family budget.

The church has always been big on self-reliance.  There is peace that comes from knowing that you have followed wise counsel and prepared for a rainy day.  As the parable goes, the wise man builds his house upon a rock. - a firm foundation - and our firm foundation is the gospel of Jesus Christ--a gospel that encourages us to live simply, give generously, serve willingly, and to prepare gladly for whatever life sends our way.

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