I know it’s not the most interesting of topics but…

It’s important to keep adding to your food storage this month!

The crazier the world gets, the more we feel a push to prepare our families for what might come.

Because you never know and it’s always better to be prepared than to be caught unprepared and wishing you had done more.

 

I hope you feel the same way!

Everything that we add to our food storage while life isn’t crazy makes us that much more prepared for when the trials and hard stuff come do come our way.

Unfortunately, that’s a part of life.

We know that things will happen that are out of our control.

No more Debbie Downer!!

 

What can we do about it?

 

So this month in our food storage we are focusing on collecting 4 types of things.

• A rain poncho for every member of the family.
• Headlamps or a flashlight for every member of the family.
• We are going to add to our water storage or BEGIN a water storage.
• We are going to collect dried potatoes or dehydrated onions.  Or both if you have the means.

 

So let’s dive into each one.

 

FIRST

The rain poncho.

You can get these anywhere.  These are the ones I have for my family.

They are inexpensive and you can fold them up and reuse them.

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The rain ponchos below are longer which might be better if there is a lot of rain, and you get two for a pretty decent price.

They are also reusable.

 

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Or if you are on a tight budget and just want some to get you by for right now, here is a set of 5 at a super reasonable price.

They claim to be reusable and lightweight yet durable but I can’t vouch for their effectiveness.

However, they have a lot of good reviews!

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SECOND

Headlamps are by far the easiest and most convenient form of a flashlight, in my opinion.

It leaves your hands available to use, to hold children, to work on something, etc.

I got these for each of the kids for Christmas last year and they are a great choice!

They come with 7 different lighting modes.

 

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Here are some hand-crank flashlights that I have, that won’t ever need batteries, which is nice!

Pack them away and forget about them!

You know how frustrating it is to grab a flashlight only to have the batteries dead!!

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THIRD

Get some sort of water storage container, whether it is a 50-gallon barrel, a 5-gallon jug, or a case of water bottles.

Just have some water storage on hand.  You KNOW you will always need it.

For example just yesterday our water at our home was shut off while they had to fix a hydrant at someone else’s home.

They called and alerted me the night before, but the next morning I had forgotten!

When I went to turn on the faucet in the kitchen… NOTHING.

My thoughts went immediately to the couple of cases of bottled water I have downstairs in my food storage.

That’s such a relief!!!

We keep two large barrels of water out in the garage and try to empty and replace it with fresh water every summer.

That doesn’t always happen.

It’s inconvenient and huge.

We also have a couple of smaller options.

I picked this one up at the grocery store on a whim.

A collapsible water container like this one below is pretty cool as well.

It’s more convenient, it comes with its own spigot, and it’s portable.

Much more user friendly and that’s what I plan to focus on this month.

Convenient water storage.

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Just recently I found these stackable water containers, that also come with a spigot, and that stacks!

I really like these and thing they would be super handy!!!

 

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FOURTH

Stock up on some dehydrated ONIONS or potatoes.  Or both, depending on your family’s need.

I buy mine in #10 cans from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints at the Home Storage Center.

However, right now they are closed due to Covid-19.

So these onions would be a good option and you can get them at any grocery store.

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While products like potato flakes stored in a #10 can will store for 10-15 years, dried potatoes in a box or bag only have a shelf life of 1-2 years.

Logically, you’ll want to take that into account when purchasing and watch those expiration dates.

I realize that dehydrated onions and potatoes don’t hold a CANDLE to fresh vegetables.  But if stores emptied quickly as we saw recently, you’ll be glad you have these as an alternative.

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Finally,

Please remember that these are ONLY suggestions!

As you look at what your family eats and uses on a regular basis check to see what you are low on and consider purchasing a few extra of that thing.

I am doing that same thing!

 

Here’s an example.

In light of the last few months, I wasn’t able to store near enough chili for our family because it was hard to find those in the store!

So this month as I shop, I’ll keep my eyes open for more of those.

 

Whatever you gather, enjoy the feeling of gathering!

What are you putting away this month?

 

If you haven’t yet seen my updated garden video, you can check it out HERE.