Emergency Preparedness

Ok so we have had our kits done for a long time now, I just have taken forever to get this posted to give some or none of you some ideas. I spent many hours preparing to prepare our kits looking at websites and blogs. I just did what I thought was best for our family. So keep your family in mind when creating yours.

So our old 72 hour kits were about to expire, and Ryder joined our family so I felt it was time to update. It was fun to have the food from our past kit to snack on.

For those who don't know, a 72 hour kits is food and emergency items the would help you survive on your own for 3 days. The reason 3 days is because that is how long it takes government to get set up to help in the event of an emergency. These are good to have be portable in case you need to evacuate your home. The tough thing is you never know what circumstance you'll be in when you need to use it. I always picture being stranded in the wilderness or something, but chances are probably just being evacuated to a high school or something. You never know.

Ok so I made kits for Chase, Ryder and myself. It was kind of a little sad doing Ryder's because you never want your child to be in a bad situation. However I have to admit I love putting together these kits. It is actually kind of fun.

Below is everything (food wise I used). I think I did pretty good spending wise.

So I'll start with Ryder because his is somewhat basic. I will need to update his somewhat soon though.

Ryder's was a little hard because he was only like 4 months at the time and I didn't want to have to update his every couple of months so I tried to think what he will need.

Non food things:

• Diapers I put in a size up of what he wore at the time. He is now in that size so next time his diaper basket in his room runs out I'll use these and put a size bigger in his kit.

• Wipes

• "Binky"

• Bottle

• Teether

• Diaper Rash cream (hospital Sample)

• Shampoo (hospital sample)

• Wash cloth

• Formula (free sample in mail)

• Hot hands

FOOD:
Here is what Chase and I will have to eat for 3 days. Suggested calorie intake is 2000 per day so I tried to get as close to that as possible. Some things are big packages that we will be sharing and over the 3 days. I put lables on each item and put the designated meal on it so when we use our kits we'll know when it's suppose to be eaten. We put the food in a No. 10 can and sealed it so it will last awhile. Some said around 10 years, my goal is to check in 5 years and update it. Obviously Ryder will need updated before then. A lot of people rotate theirs around General Conference time so it's easy to remember. And then they snack on it during the sessions. Sounds like a great idea and a fun tradition.

We chose to have foods that didn't need cooked. So if you plan on having cooked food you need a heat source.
(ramen & Oatmeal are normally cooked, they can still be softened it just takes longer)
We also figured if we were able to have a fire we could use our No. 10 can and heat water if needed as a back up.


each day we each get a koolaid serving and 6 lifesavers.

Day 1
Bfast
Frosted flakes
Apple Juice

Snack
Starburst

Lunch
Salmon Pack
Beef Jerky
Crackers

Snack
Fruit snack
Almonds

Dinner
Ramen

Dessert
Apple Sauce

Total Calories: 2,015
Total Cost: $4.44

Day 2
Bfast
Fruit Loops
Oatmeal
Apple Juice

Snack
Fruit Snack
Crackers

Lunch
Ramen
Granola Bar

Snack
Banana Chips
Jerky

Dinner
Tuna Salad
Almonds

Dessert
Apple Sauce

Total Calories: 2055
Total Cost: $4.45

Day 3
Bfast
Pops
Banana Chips
Fruit snack

Snack
Almonds
Jerky

Lunch
Tuna Salad
Skittles
Granola

Snack
Crackers

Dinner
Oatmeal
Jerky
Crackers

Dessert
Applesauce

Total calories: 2060
Total cost: $4.73

Total Cost for all 3 days:
$13.62

For Ryder I put in a can of those puff cereal things and then a few tubs of baby food. I am nursing so that will help, but I did put in formula and some bottled water just in case.

In Chase and mine backpacks they each have around 10 bottles of water. We also try to keep a case of water so if we are driving we can throw that in the car. We have a 3 gallon jug that we have full of tap water just in case.

Below are some items that are not food in each of our packs.

-Wash cloth
- Shampoo and Conditioner (samples or hotel size)
- toothbrush & toothpaste
- Poncho
-Hot hands
- Flashlight and batteries
- Fire Starters
- Soap
- Matches
- Tealights
- Playdough (for fun)







In each pack (including Ryder's there is a thing of Tissue and some wet wipes. I found these at the Dollar Tree









I also got some glow sticks for each pack. Not sure what purpose they would really have (I think I was thinking wilderness when I got these). I bought at Michaels in the $1 bin and used a 40% off coupon. So it was $.60 for 15 of them.

Also, if you are doing the No. 10 can method or have any canned food make sure you have a can opener. Chase & I both have can openers in our packs.




Also a Dollar Tree find are instant ice packs. I'm not sure how well they work though. I should open it up and see. Next time one of us needs one I'll open it to see how it does and buy more if it's ok or get a new one if not so good.





There are some things that we didn't think that both packs needed to include so below are items that are in just my pack or just Chase's.

In my pack
- Pads (you never know) These are from the Dollar Tree also. I didn't want to spend a ton of money on something that will most likely never get used. I have used them before and they work pretty good. These would also be good in first aid kit to absorb blood. (Thank you Evelyn Salt)
- Hair ties
- Nursing Pads (sample from hospital) Not sure how good they work though.
- Wipes ( sample from hospital)



In Chase's Pack
- The Book of Mormon
- Water filtration tablets
- Coffee filters (can be used to get dirt out of water)











I have also made a list of items that I would like to add to our packs and have assigned one a month. I need to redo this though because I haven't been keeping up with this. I feel like I have a good start though and something is better than nothing.


things to add:

First Aid Kit
Tarp
Rope
trash bags
Extra cothes
Copies of important papers

I would love to hear any input or ideas that you have. Also, if you have any questions feel free to ask.

And if you don't mind sharing, if you have ever needed to use your 72 hour kit I would love to hear your story.