Your fourth preparedness challenge for September is to work on preparedness in a rational way. Some of you have felt an urgency to do something and found your way to my Facebook or Instagram page, or my website. That urgent feeling could be a spiritual prompting, or you've seen the many disasters going on around us in the world and you are scared to death. Whatever it is propelling you, act rationally.  I feel the best way to gather food storage and preparedness supplies is gradually and within your budget. I believe with all my heart that you CAN do that gathering each month while ..read more

This week our third preparedness challenge is to gather long-term dehydrated onions or other long-term dehydrated spices. Most of the spices your buy at grocery stores have a 2 to 3-year shelf life for best quality, but some companies make long-term food storage spices. I purchase dehydrated onions from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at the Home Storage Center.  Printable Preparedness Challenge: May Week 3 Imagine a neighborhood where each family was self-reliant and prepared for emergencies. There would be less need to borrow from others or depend on governments to b ..read more

During the month of May, I like to focus on gathering condiments and spices into my pantry and food storage supplies. It's also the month I try to figure out ways to cook outside for emergencies. In preparation for this month, I took an inventory of my spices and condiments. I also filled my small spice jars from my large spice containers I buy from Sam's Club or Costco. I only buy large containers of a few items: oregano, parsley, garlic powder, cumin, chili powder, cinnamon. Some people like to get refills from bulk stores. Cinnamon is the one item I keep two large containers of on my shelf ..read more

The last preparedness challenge of April is to gather long-term pasta which can be stored for up to 30 years. Many people work towards a goal of a 1-year supply of long-term foods, however some of you have smaller living spaces. So begin by gathering an amount that is doable for you so you are prepared for financial hardship or other disaster. Printable Preparedness Challenge: April Week 4 1. Decide How Much Long-Term Pasta to Store Pasta is considered a grain and amounts may be interchanged with wheat, rice and oats. If your total grain amount for one adult is 54 #10 cans or about 250 lbs ..read more

Last week we worked on putting together a cleanup supply bucket to help with emergencies. I found my bucket at Home Depot, and have been slowly adding items throughout the month to it. It's kept under my sink in our laundry room. This week our focus is on gathering sanitation and hygiene supplies into our home supplies and our 72-hour kits. Our Covid-19 experience has taught us the importance of stocking up on more than just food storage. Thankfully we gathered toilet paper in our January preparedness challenge. Look over more sanitation and hygiene items on the list below which you may find i ..read more

April 2020 is quite different than April 2019 because of this pandemic, but I want to help you get back on track by gathering a few canned tomatoes and pasta into your food storage and some sanitation supplies. If finances are too tight, stay focused on what you are already doing. In the recent LDS General Conference, President Russell M. Nelson said: “Of course we can store our own reserves of food, water and savings, but equally crucial is our need to fill our personal spiritual storehouses with faith, truth and testimony." I hope you find many ways to strengthen your spiritual storehou ..read more

If you would like to participate in a face mask service project for my husband's health care employees in several facilities (not hospitals) in Utah, we'll need over 5,000 face masks as an emergency backup. These fabric masks will be worn over medical masks and should have ties, not elastic. We need your donations by April 11th. INSTRUCTIONS:  How to video and printable pattern Use 100% tightly woven cotton Bias tape may be used for the ties or make your own ties Please make small, medium and/or large Remember when choosing fabric these are for women AND men DO NOT go into a store to purc ..read more

Three times a year, Utah grocery stores have case lot sales where you may purchase canned and packaged goods at a discount. These sales may help you stock up on items for your food storage. In the past you had to buy the entire case of items, but now most stores allow you to buy an individual item at the case price which is pretty awesome if you are single or have a small family. TAKE AN INVENTORY Take an inventory of your canned and packaged foods at home first. What do you really need to stock up on? COMPARE PRICES All items at case lot sales are not the cheapest you can find, so it ..read more

Since coronavirus is on our minds, let's start our first March preparedness challenge by gathering first aid and medical supplies. As we look at history, epidemics and pandemics happen repeatedly. So, we should be prepared. Isn't it exciting that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has some general instructions you can print? Keep reading. Printable Preparedness Challenge: March Week 1 Since I've been ill with a sinus infection, aka influenza for the past week-and-a-half, I've learned about isolation, hydration, sanitation and rest. I'm not an expert on pandemics, but we can be ..read more