MESSAGE FROM TESS

Dear Reader,

To be fully ready for an unforeseen disaster, we have to lay a basic foundation of basic living supplies before we can move onto other preps.  In week 1 of Get Prepped, we focused on creating a 2-week supply of food and water, and in week 2, we focused on establishing the beginnings of a hardware/tool supply.  Week 3 of our 52-week series Get Prepped will focus on adding some simple medical supplies to our preparedness supplies to create a well rounded 2-week emergency supply.  We still have a long way to go, but these smaller lists will accumulate and continue until you are all prepared for the long term. 

With every issue of this newsletter, I want to take the time and thank all of my readers for being a part of Ready Nutrition! Remember to friend us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and extend an invitation to your friends and family; they need to be prepared too.

Regards,

Tess Pennington

PREP OF THE WEEK

Week 3 of 52: Grocery List

Experts suggest that each home have a basic medical supply that is unique to your family’s needs.   Many of us have our fair share of band-aids and antibiotic ointment, but do you have medical supplies that can stop dehydration or bleeding, or diarreah?   In the event of a major disaster, such as a hurricane or earthquake, if someone in the home is injured, emergency responders cannot always get to the injured victims in time.  Therefore, having necessary medical supplies in the home could save some one’s life if they need immediate medical assistance. 

Keep in mind that medicines can break down and spoil if they are subject to natural elements such as moisture, temperature fluctuations and exposure to light.  Did you know that aspirin has a tendency to begin breaking down when it is exposed to a slight amount of moisture?  Find an area in the home that has easy access and preferably located in a cool, dark area that is out of children’s reach.   Also, check expiration dates periodically to ensure the medicines are still good to use.  The below list of items will serve as a foundation for future medical supply lists. 

Preps to buy for Week 3: Simple Medicine Supplies

• Antacid
• Aspirin or non-Aspirin pain reliever
• Stool softeners
• Kleenex
• Feminine hygiene supplies
• Disposable hand wipes
• Band-aids
• Antibiotic ointment
• Extra baby needs (diapers, wipes, pacifiers, bottles, medicine, etc)
• 1 week of prescription medications
• Extra pair of reading glasses (optional)

Action Items:

Buy a local and state map to put in your vehicle.

Create an evacuation route in case you have to evacuate your town due to a disaster.  Map out mulitple escape routes to fall back on.  Click here to know  the signs of when to evacuate/bug out your home or community.

Sign up for a CPR/First aid class with your local area Red Cross or through your local Emergency Management Service department.  For those of you who are short on time, you can find online disaster skills training courses that can be done in the convenience of your own home.  Click here for a list of  organizations that provide online emergency education courses.

WHAT WE’RE UP TO

In our home:

Last week was Teacher Appreciation week at my kid’s school.  I decided to make the teachers fresh wheat bread as a gift.  I found the recipe on another prepper’s website (so sorry, but I forgot the site name), and tried it and fell in love with the taste.  It comes out perfectly every time!  Click here for the recipe.

With school coming to an end (my kids are ecstatic), I have started looking into summer activities for them to do.  I am concentrating my efforts on finding a lot of outside activities for them.  This day and age, it seems that children have forgotten how to play outside. 

Family Preps:

I splurged this week and bought some more dehydrated food products.  The Ready Store was having a sale on their #10 cans of vegetables and thought I would add some more to our stockpile.  For those of you that do not know, dehydrated food can last 25 years or more.  So how can I go wrong with buying them?  I also bought a folding stove for our bug out vehicle.  We had lots of soups and just-add-water meals, so I thought it would be a good idea to buy a mini stove to cook the foods in. 

Outdoor Activities:

This weekend we are headed to out for another camping excursion.  I have to pack these trips in now while the Texas weather is still pleasant – and the mosquitoes are no where to be seen!  My kids love camping and I really enjoy watching them exploring their surroundings.  It also gives me a chance to try out our bug out bags and make sure that we have everything we need to survive.

RECENT ARTICLES

In case you missed some of our recent articles, be sure to read these:

• Different Ways To Use a Whirley Pop
• Is Another Biblical Plague On Its Way?
• Roadside Medical Car Kit

STATS AND FACTS

Did you know that May is Bicycle Safety Month?   

Lauren Hawley, an author for www.PathAcross.comwas kind enough to write a great article for Ready Nutrition about using bicycles as a transportation option.  It’s a great overview of considerations to think of when using bicycling as a transportation option. With gas prices these days, I think she is onto something!

Using Bicycling As Your #1 Transportation Option

MEDIA

As busy as I have been, I have not had any new media opportunities, but I do plan on getting some more demonstration videos up for everyone on my YouTube Channel. So, stay tuned! In the meantime, click here and you can view some past media opportunities I had the pleasure of doing.

LETTERS TO TESS

One of the perks of my job at Ready Nutrition is to address questions and/or concerns that you may have with your prepping endeavors. Feel free to ask anything that is on your mind because no question is too big or small. You can email questions to: : getprepped@readynutrition.com

This week’s question addresses how to prepare for floods:

From Edna Short:

Dear Tess,

With all the flooding that is going on in the U.S., do you have any tips on how to prepare our homes?

Sincerely,

Edna Short

Answer:

Edna,

Your question has impeccable timing.  Not only are families struggling to make ends meet, now they could be displaced due to the flood plains.  90% of the damage related to all natural disasters (excluding droughts) is caused by floods and debris flows.  There are some protective measures that you can take to prepare your home before a flood threatens. 

To prepare for a flood, you should:

• Avoid building in a flood plain unless you elevate and reinforce your home.
• Elevate the furnace, water heater, and electric panel if susceptible to flooding.
• Install “check valves” in sewer traps to prevent flood water from backing up into the drains of your home.
• Construct barriers (levees, beams, flood walls) to stop floodwater from entering the building.
• Seal walls in basements with waterproofing compounds to avoid seepage.
• Have a disaster plan in place along with disaster supplies in place.

If a flood is likely in your area, you should:

• Listen to the radio or television for information.
• Be aware that flash flooding can occur. If there is any possibility of a flash flood, move immediately to higher ground. Do not wait for instructions to move.
• Be aware of streams, drainage channels, canyons, and other areas known to flood suddenly. Flash floods can occur in these areas with or without such typical warnings as rain clouds or heavy rain.
•  Do not hide in the basement.  If a flash flooding occurs, basements can quickly become death traps.

You can read more on this disaster concern here.  I hope this helps.

Thanks again for your question.

Tess