Weekly Update/Preparedness At Our House
Not a whole lot got done at our house this last week. I wish we could have gotten more done! I did decide that I was going to combine these two posts, Preparedness Update and Weekly Update, because they are so closely intertwined! This blog is still getting tweaked, but someday I will get it organized in a good way.
Jordan’s closet did get put up! Yeah! This was made much easier by having the right tools on hand. Do not underestimate having a good toolbox, hacksaw, and drill! I only needed to make one trip to Bomgaars to get a drill bit that would go through plaster and lathe. Thanks to Jim for his excellent advice there!
I also canned 4.5 pints of pear sauce yesterday. I can’t wait until this winter when opening one of those jars will remind us of the good flavors of fall. I did not get to the potatoes or squash yet, but that is coming soon! The little kitten at our house thinks the small potatoes are great toys to chase around so those will get done sooner than later.
I have all but one onion dehydrated. That will be done tonight! Woo hoo! I like having my own onions on hand to throw into browning meats and soups. I did get the peppers done too and should have a good supply on hand for that. Those I will probably rehydrate before putting into dishes.
I also got bread made for the week (maybe two?). I got my oat flour in at Fresh Connections and made a batch of granola bars. These were a big hit, but I need to tweak the recipe a bit. It contains Karo corn syrup and I am not sure how good that is for us.
I did get to a couple of garage sales on Friday, but all I bought was some clothes for the kids. I am starting to get clothes for Dane in size 10. That is a few sizes too big, but nice to have on hand when he gets to that size.
Not much progress in the way of preparedness. I am a little depressed about that, but coming to accept that I need to study some of the areas more and decide what is best for our family. I am still reading How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It: Tactics, Techniques, and Technologies for Uncertain Times by James Wesley Rawles. Excellent book! I am also getting my LDS Preparedness Manual in order. I bought more printer ink on Saturday so I can print the rest of the manual and get it into a binder.
Both the book and the manual have brought to my attention that I just do not have enough water stored. I need both potable and non-potable water on hand and need to get that done straight away. That will be my focus for the next few weeks.
This week’s goals include:
1. Make granola
2. Store more water
3. Clean up basement so I can start getting the walls cleaned and sealed
4. Can potatoes and squash
5. Continue to research generators and heaters
6. Clean up garden and plant garlic
What did you get done last week? What are your goals for this week?
Thanks for reading and have a great week!
This has been added to the Barn Hop at the Homestead Revival!
3 thoughts on “Weekly Update/Preparedness At Our House”
Good job getting all that done! You are energetic. Just a note about water. I store three kinds of water: drinking/cooking, washing, and flushing. The drinking/cooking is the most pure and I store it in large 5 gallon bottles that fit on a non-electric dispenser; the wash water is just tap water stored in clean bottles and jugs (I re-use the bottles from store-bought juice and gatorade). We use it for washing hands, faces, teeth brushing, etc. Then flushing water is stored in non-sterile, just rinsed out heavy milk jugs (Land of Lakes brand). It takes at least one gallon to flush the toilet, then one more to completely rinse it down. I keep a five quart bucket for accomplishing the flush. Fill the bucket with water and then holding it above the toilet, pour it in, the force of the water will wash/flush everything down. Another gallon will finish and leave enough clean water to keep the smell down. We lived for five days without water in VA when the pump on our well went out. I learned a lot about how much water is needed. Also, have on hand paper plates, bowls, cups and plastic utensils so you don't have dishes to do and use up precious water. One gallon per day per person is about right for drinking, cooking and washing (hands, faces & teeth); more (much more) is needed for flushing. And, of course, if it's yellow, let it mellow, if it's brown, flush it down. Don't mean to offend anyone's sensitivities, but sanitation is extremely important. One last thing, store some spray disinfectant to control odor and germs in the bathroom.
Keep up the good work!
Thanks for the great tips! The flushing water is where I am extremely short at so I will make it a top priority!
Wow! You did a lot of things! I was just wondering, did you heard about the "7 hour bread"?? When I make it, it give me at least 7 bread… With our family of 7, we are good for 5 days hehe… If you want the recipe, I can give it to you :o)
Have a nice evening,
Caro.
(PS: Sorry for my poor English, I'm a French Canadian blogger…)