SECTION ONE: CAR BASICS
- insurance info page
- car info page
- emergency contacts
- basic car terms
- what you should always have in your car
- basic emergency car kit
- what to check before leaving on a trip
- how to change a flat
- changing car fluids (oil, wiper fluid, etc)
- when you should call 911
- what to do when in an accident (accident forms, info to get, etc)

SECTION TWO: WEATHER
- driving in the rain
- driving in lightning/thunderstorm
- driving in the snow
- recovering from skids
- what to do when you get stuck

- driving in a dust storm

SECTION THREE: SUMMER TRAVELING
- getting your car ready for summer
- things to make sure you have in your -emergency kit
- surviving in the desert
- summer health concerns
- what to do if your car overheats

SECTION FOUR: WINTER TRAVELING
- getting your car ready for winter
- things to make sure you have in your emergency kit
- winter weather warnings you should know
- winter health concerns

SECTION FIVE: IF YOU GET STRANDED
- weather survival
- survival skills: water, fire and shelter
- survival uses of Mylar blanket
- Ground to air rescue signals

- survival uses for items in your purse or glove box

SECTION SIX: HEALTH CONCERNS
- snow blindness
- frostbite
- hypothermia
- dehydration

Books are now available for pre-order at TotallyReady.com. They are priced at $12.00 per copy, a 25% savings. For group or wholesale pricing please contact me directly at: carolyn@TotallyReady.com Reserve your copies now.

I was also asked to share tips with those attending the expo. I would like to know what the best tips are that you have received. They can be any aspect of self reliance and emergency preparedness. Please share your ideas today.

To Listen to past broadcasts of READY OR NOT visit:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/search/carolyn-nicolaysen/

Subscribe to our Newsletter: http://blog.totallyready.com/announcing-the-totally-ready-newsletter/

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Back issues: Totally Ready Newsletters July 2009- June 2010

Holding a swap meet is a great way to clean out cupboards, attics and garages while at the same time,  getting items you may need, or even finding an unusual item for a gift. All this, without the hassle or expense of a garage sale or an Internet sales site.

To have a successful Swap Meet it’s all about thinking outside the box. This is not the time to empty your “stuff” into a big box and show up at a friend’s home. It’s time to make it an event and to get together with those who have similar goals and needs.

1). Make it fun. Plan a potluck, dessert potluck or cookie exchange. In addition to bringing items to swap everyone bring food to share. For a cookie exchange have some brown paper lunch bags ready for everyone to take home some goodies.

2). Before you send out invitations, outline some ground rules.What is acceptable to swap? For example, all clothing should be mended, washed and ironed. All appliances must be in working order. Decide how to handle disagreements over items. What happens if more than one person wants an item? What happens to things that don’t find a home by the end of the party. Will everyone be responsible to dispose of their own extras or will you call Goodwill or someone to pick them up?

3). Draw up some guidelines about how the swap will work. You could pull numbers from a hat and each person will be able to choose one item at a time, or you could hand out numbers as people arrive, those who come early to help get priority. You could count how many items a person brings and they get to take home the same number. Once everyone has chosen then anything left over is up for grabs.

4). Invite the right people. You could have a free for all with anything allowed or you could be specific as to the items people can bring. Get together people with similar interests and you meet will be more fun and more successful.

Consider:

A clothing swap

A children’s items swap

A home furnishings swap

A garden swap ( seeds, tools, plants)

A book swap

A talent swap (cooking, baking, sewing, babysitting, canning, hair cuts, etc.)

A school supplies swap (great for school teachers or Sunday school teachers or home schoolers)

A swap for a cause: How about a swap of music and art items to benefit your high school band program.

5). Invite enough people. If there are those who need items but don’t have items to swap they could bring freezer foods to swap or make up some IOUs for babysitting or housecleaning.

6). Choose a place. A home is usually the best location as it will allow you to set up and to keep items displayed without a time limit for getting cleaned up. Be sure to have plenty of large tables for display and also some boxes or bags to take home items. You may want to assign people to bring additional folding tables.

Finally, make a list before the day arrives, of items you want to be on the look out for. Swap meets are great for getting those items or services you would otherwise have to pay for, remember that is the objective. Remind yourself you are looking for specific items but you are also looking to make room in your home for more important items, like food and emergency supplies!

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If you are still trying to think of a great Christmas gift that is related to preparing, thoughtful, and fun then here is an idea for the pet lover in your midst.

Pets are often overlooked in our planning but like every other family member pets need a 72 hour kit too. They also need their own section in our General Stores. This Christmas do the unexpected and stock the self for man’s best friend.

Purchase a plastic pet dish or a plastic bowl from a dollar store and fill it with a collar, a small toy, a brush, and leash.

Design a fun Emergency Card which can be filled in by the pet’s owners. Designs are easy and free with all the resources on the internet. Be sure to create spaces for the owner’s information, name of pet, history of vaccinations, medications being taken and their frequency, vet’s name and phone number, allergies, and an out of area contact person. Include a gift certificate for a photo shoot with the pet and you to create some pictures to include in family members’ 72 hour kits.

Purchase a pet carrier.

Purchase a back pack and have the kids decorate it for “Fido” and tuck in a list of items which should be included in a pet 72 hour kit, even get them started and include a few.

Purchase the items necessary to  help stock the pet section of a General Store, a little dry food, a few canned foods and a gallon of water. If you purchase dry food in a box be sure to put it into the freezer for a few days to kill any moth larva before you gift it.

Stock the toiletries section with pet shampoo, dental chews, toothpaste labeled for pet use and a finger brush to brush teeth.

Our pets are so important  us but we often forget about their needs during an emergency until it is too late. Be the oh so smart one and give the gift now.

Other items to consider:

A muzzle, even the most calm pet can become aggressive when frightened during an emergency.

Small plastic bags and a scoop. For cats, kitty litter.

ID tag for collars and/or a micro identification chip.

Giving a fun gift and keeping it preparedness does not have to be expensive and can be a very unexpected and much appreciated surprise.

With the economy iffy, natural disasters increasing, a pandemic upon us and a more serious pandemic threatening, and the increasing threat of terrorism, more and more of us are taking the time and making the commitment to become more self reliant. Our family is being much more frugal this Christmas season as we have all made preparing a priority. Many are cutting down because they have become unemployed or are having to support family members who have lost jobs.

If you have no money there is always something you can do, you can give of your time and talents. Please do not spend money you don’t have. Give an IOU. Some suggestions….

Last year was our year of Seven Steps, seven things every week to be better prepared by the end of the year. One of those steps was to make a household inventory. We discussed the importance of an inventory for insurance purposes in case of a house fire, burglary, hurricane, earthquake or any other natural disaster. As your gift volunteer to take digital photos around the house, and then download them. The person who receives this gift can then go through the pictures and add labels and information. The inventory will then be ready to record onto a disc to be mailed to their out of area contact as well as having a record in their home. A friend just had this service done and it cost them $700.00.

Give an IOU to teach a class. This could be a class for several friends or for an individual. Teach car repair, bread making, sewing, fire and/or shelter building, cooking from your General Store, how to survive if the power fails, and more.

Help a family by answering one of the excuses many people have for not beginning or expanding their food storage, space. Give an IOU to help them find that space by analyzing the ways in which they are using their space or by building shelves in the back of closets or above existing closet shelves. There is always so much wasted space in a closet and many other areas of our home.

Don’t just encourage gardening but give a gift certificate and plant a garden for someone. This doesn’t have to be extensive. A few zucchini plants will more than feed a family. There are many other vegetable plants which produce lots and with just a few plants of a few varieties can provide a garden no matter how small their space. If there really is no room plant a container garden for them or fill a planter with herbs. They can provide the plants and/or seeds, you provide the labor.

Another of our Seven Steps was to add photos to our 72 hour kits. Again, digital photos are free. Set a date to take pictures of the family, download them and they can decide which photos to print and add to their kits, or display on their walls. Remember every 72 hour kit should have a picture of the family as a group, including pets, and also an individual picture of each person in case you are separated.

For something fun but not directly self reliance oriented, give the gift of Scrap Book pages. If you scrap book you will have paper, ink, stamps, stickers, all kinds of supplies. Give a gift Certificate for 6 scrap book pages (or more, or less). Gather photos from the family and make the pages from supplies you already have on hand.

No matter how little money you have this year there is no reason you can’t give a thoughtful gift. Don’t purchase a gift if you can’t pay cash, instead, be creative and give the gift of yourself.

Please join me and James tonight on blog talk radio, 5:00pm Pacific time. We will be addressing any questions you have and we will also be talking about this cold, cold, cold weather and what we can do to prepare for power outages and also cold weather travel. I’ll answer any and all questions…

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/james-talmage-stevens

Now lets think about self reliance gifts that are not food related. How about…

1. Gardening gloves and tools with a plant or vegetable seeds seeds.

2. Purchase several small herb plants and place them together in a basket with a favorite recipe card for using each.

3. Handwritten copies of your favorite food storage recipes along with a ingredients for one recipe.

4. Prepaid long distance phone cards to be kept in 72 hour kits or for emergency use.

5. Address book with family addresses and phone numbers, and contact information for poison control, fire and police departments, and the local hospital. Include a note stating that this is to be kept in the car or 72 hour kit.

6. Puzzles or travel games for 72 hour kits

7. Last year we made rice packs for use when you have a stiff neck or headache. Expanding that idea, make draft stoppers. Measure the doorway, cut a six inch wide piece of heavy fabric the length of the door and fill with sand or rice. This is really a great gift for anyone living in an area with frequent power outages during the winter.

8. Hat, mittens, and/or scarves so the old ones can be added to car kits.

9. A great cookbook, especially if it is a food storage cookbook.

10. Set of maps for the area in which the recipient lives in addition to maps to their “out of area contact”, with several “escape routes” highlighted.

11. Candles are pretty but are also good for a power outage. Remember scented candles during an outage can become really awful when they are not the same scent or several are lit to provide light in several rooms. Keep the scents the same or purchase unscented. For emergencies candles in glass containers are the best.

12. Give an item for an auto kit. If they have none consider a back pack of fanny pack with a few items such as a mylar blanket, glow stick or two, or one of the items on sale at closeout right now at Totally Ready are great to begin a car kit for everyone on your list, first aid kits and energy bars are a must for anyone who travels and all those who will be making the trek to grandma’s house for the holiday or to the ski resort. Keep a list of what you have given and add a new item or two every gift giving occasion.

13. Same idea as #12 only for the office. If you or your gift recipient live in an earthquake, tornado or wild fire area they should absolutely be prepared to evacuate from work and have the resources to survive for a day or two until help arrives.

Remember our General Store? The purpose of our store is to have on hand the things we need and use so when times are tough we don’t need to go to the store and we can care for the needs and safety of our family. In that spirit purchase items to help stock the shelves of a loved one’s General Store, non food items.

14. Purchase gift wrapping supplies at the dollar store. A few gift bags or different sizes, tape and tissue paper.

15. For a friend with children purchase a few craft supplies at the dollar store. You will be so appreciated when the “I’m bored” hits during Christmas break, summer or that snow day turns into two or three. Purchase colored paper, crayons, paints, stickers, glitter, wood cut outs, poster board,…etc.

Make this a fun and self reliant Christmas for all.

AND DON’T FORGET: I have a limited number of autographed copies of the best selling book Making the Best of Basics available. Purchase one now and you also receive the free ebooks Mother Hubbard: What She’s Doing Now and That won’t Happen to Me All for $50.00 and all the proceeds go to a family in need of help this Christmas. They make great gifts and I only have a few available so purchase today.

If you are like most of us you probably still have friends and family who are not yet accepting the idea that a self reliant life style is the only one that really brings peace. There are several recipes in the December Newsletter for “cheap” yet fun gifts from the kitchen but those not yet embracing food storage, who are also on your gift list, the following is a list of inexpensive and thoughtful gifts to help them begin their General Store.

1. Purchase several varieties of popcorn and include a favorite classic movie.

2. Purchase a loaf pan and fill with quick bread mixes and an IOU to teach the recipient to bake bread.

3. Place a variety or herbal teas in a basket or pretty gift bag, along with a list of when to use each (ie. chamomile for stomach upset or Peppermint for a tension headache).

4. Purchase a pretty non-Christmas gift bag (could be red gingham with a green bow) and fill with jams or mustards. Better than another basket that has no purpose, the gift bag can be reused.

5. Several varieties of olive and other cooking oils.

6. Homemade pancake or waffle mix (with the recipe so they can make their own mix when the gift is gone) and a bottle of real maple syrup.

7. Gift a variety of honeys.

8. Purchase a variety of vinegars and give with a few recipes for using them.

9. Comfort foods are a must in any General Store. Give a collection of comfort foods (hot chocolate mixes, brownie mixes, cake mix and frosting, cookie mix).

10. Purchase a variety for barbecue sauces and marinates for the grill master in your life.

Of course a subscription to our Newsletter or a copy of Mother Hubbard:What She’s Doing Now would always be great gifts!

Keep gifts thoughtful while still helping those you love prepare.

Buy One Get One Free on my Newsletter and also Mother Hubbard: What She’s Doing Now. To take advantage of this offer simply click on the links above and send me the email addresses of those you wish to receive your gift. For those of you who already subscribe to the newsletter the offer there still stands, buy one get two free, you know what to do to claim that offer.

Yes, we have a winner of the heart wall hanging. It is John H. of California. Thank you to all who helped by purchasing tickets. I have received  some autographed copies of the book: Making the Best of Basics from James Talmage Stevens, which I will be selling to benefit this same family. You may have noticed the banner ad for his book on the blog. It is packed with great information and a great addition to the library of anyone interested in a self reliant life style. I have packaged the book with a copy of my books:  Mother Hubbard: What She’s Doing Now and That Won’t Happen to Me. You can receive all three for $50.00. This amount includes shipping. Purchase this great library now for yourself or as a gift. The number of books is limited so order today.

I am also very serious about helping others prepare and have made every effort to make that possible for a minimal amount of cash while still becoming Totally Ready. I am offering a Buy One Get One Free on my Newsletter and also Mother Hubbard: What She’s Doing Now. To take advantage of this offer simply click on the links above and send me the email addresses of those you wish to receive your gift. For those of you who already subscribe to the newsletter the offer there still stands, buy one get two free.

The latest unemployment rates are out today and we are now at 10.8% nation wide. This means 16 million Americans who are looking for work cannot find it. That does not include those who have been looking for  awhile and given up. California’s rate is now at 12.5%. That is no surprise, as we have discussed the lack of work for farm workers due to the government decision to place the survival of smelt over the survival of our food supply…a little editorial there. Seriously, right now there are 30,000 people in one county here Madera county has a 20% unemployment rate!) who are being fed at food banks because of the loss of farm jobs. I have warned you the price of food would rise due to this ridiculous decision and it has. In addition to nuts, fruits and vegetables, have you noticed the price of salmon? Now, salmon may be a luxury to many but it also means the fishermen are out of work which increases the welfare rolls, and, you get it, that costs us too.

In addition to higher unemployment and increased welfare rolls, and higher food prices, we are also looking at the quality of our food supply being affected by all this nonsense. Do you remember a few years ago when people died because of imported fruit from South America?  As we produce less food, we export less food, affecting our economy and creating even more job losses. As we produce less we import more, building another count’s economy and not our own.

California is considered the nation’s sole producer of a large number of crops.

Almonds (99%), Artichokes (99%), Clingstone Peaches (98%), Dried Plums (97%), Figs (98%), Olives (100%), Persimmons (98%), Pomegranates (99%), Kiwi (97%), Raisins (99%), Sweet Rice (99%), Walnuts (99%), Pistachios (96 %), Apricots (95%), Celery (94%), Tomatoes (94%), Broccoli (93 %), Nectarines (93%), Plums (93%), Strawberries (90%)

Close behind are: Carrots (89%), Lemons (89%), Grapes(88%), Avocados (84%), Dates (82%), Lettuce (78%), Peaches (76%), and Honeydew (73%).

California retained its ranking as the nation’s leading dairy producer by a wide margin, producing 21 percent of the U.S. milk supply.

As nations move from third world status to second world status they are purchasing more food, decreasing supplies and increasing the cost. When you add to that the decrease in crop yields in California the supply grows even smaller. I hope you can see that this is a huge world wide problem.

When will water be returned to California farmers? We don’t know. There are however, other signs that times are bad.

Thieves broke the lock on the food bank’s storage locker and took around 30 crates of potatoes, onions, canned food, peanut butter, and other items–around $1500-$2000 worth of food earmarked to be given to needy families over the weekend as part of the food bank’s Thanksgiving distribution. The Rainer Valley Food Bank provides food to around 10,000 people per month, up from about half that this time last year.

We can only imagine what goes through someone’s mind as they steal 30 crates of food from a food bank–a place where, if they’d asked, they’d have been given food for free. The need is particularly dire: this time last year, the food bank served about 5,000 people a month, but this year, the number has risen to approximately 10,000 says executive director Sam Osborne.

When will the economy improve? We don’t know. This is the time to prepare, before it gets worse, and if there are not dramatic changes, it will get worse. Help prepare your family this holiday season. Think preparedness in all your holiday planning. This week in the United States we celebrate Thanksgiving. As you gather together assess the needs of your extended family and commit to helping them by giving preparedness gifts this year. We have talked about many the last few years, and I will be adding more ideas. I hope you will share what you are doing.

In an effort to help I am offering a few items at deeply discounted prices as I close out items at TotallyReady.com I will not have these again as I am closing the store, so if you need any of these items please purchase them before I run out. Check them out at:

http://totallyready.com/component/option,com_virtuemart/page,shop.browse/category_id,5/Itemid,1/

Please share with us what you are doing to help others prepare. Remember what Madame Currie said: “Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood. Now is the time to understand more, so that we may fear less.”

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/allyoucaneat/2010311572_food_bank_burglary_bigtime_hel.html?syndication=rss

http://www.patriotwatch.com/water4farmers.htm

www.cdfa.ca.gov/Statistics.html

Throw a photo party. Invite a family or two to your home. Instruct them to wear clothing appropriate for a photo. Serve cookies and hot cocoa and take pictures. Prepare a note to be given to the family instructing them what to do with the photos, 72 hour kits, out of state contact, etc. Print a few copies of the family photo and two copies of the individual photos and give as a gift  along with the instructions for use when they leave. Email the photo file to the family so they can then make any further copies they need.

I have been asked many times about putting my books on CD so they can be used by those not commuter savy and given as gifts. I have just finished that project and the new CD is now available for only $11.95. It includes the book Mother Hubbard: What She’s Doing Now plus the book That Won’t Happen to Me .. Volume 1. In addition I have included a few appetizer and drink recipes which are from my new cook book Can Can Cooking which will be available in February. When ordering be sure to include a message in the comments box and we will gift wrap and enclose a personalized note from you with your gift, at no additional charge.

If you have family and friends you have been trying to encourage to become self reliant please consider a gift of education.

You can copy the Seven Steps program and place that in a binder. We will complete our year of Seven Steps in just a few weeks. I have an idea I am very excited about to replace that series, but more on that later.

You can copy the Where to Begin Food Storage series and place that in a binder to give as a gift. All the information in those posts is also included in Mother Hubbard : What She’s Doing Now. Naturally, the book includes much more information as well as an interactive food calculator and interactive inventory sheet, which the posts do not.

We will be continuing our Pandemic Series but since we have just begun and there is limited info here, for now, you could copy some information from the Center For Disease Control http://www.cdc.gov/or World Health Organization http://www.who.int/en/ to give along with some Pandemic preparedness gifts.

We had three families with us for the Thanksgiving holiday and I learned so much about my Pandemic preparations and what is working and what I have to rethink. I’ll share that tomorrow. It was such a great feeling to have 19 people in our home for several days and never once did we have to go to the store. We were able to handle all the food and treat needs as well as medical, some of the kids and one of the adults became ill, it is winter after all…it felt great to be Totally Ready.

For those of you working with preparedness groups I will be happy to quote you a discounted rate on the purchase of CDs for your group. Please contact me and I will be happy to give you a quote based on the size of the group.

The important thing to remember is to share what you know with those you love. There is no greater gift.

SEVEN STEPS WEEK 22: Prepare to add a “family uniform” to your 72 hour kits. What? During evacuations it is not uncommon for children to be separated from parents, or even for parents to become separated from the family. Having unique clothing can make your search much easier. Spend time this week formulating a plan. You may consider purchasing plain t shirts and embellishing them. If you do this, do not pick a white, black or grey shirt. They are too common. Choose a bright color. Hold a family competition and design a shirt. Use fabric pens or fabric crayons and make matching shirts. If you want to purchase unique shirts consider tie dye. During the evacuation of Louisiana there were many families separated. Think what a difference it would make to be able to ask people if they had seen a child or a family all wearing the same shirt you are wearing. People will notice and remember a wild shirt far more easily than “just another” 5 year old, wearing jeans, who has brown hair and brown eyes. There could be dozens of them, but only one wearing your funky shirt.This is also a great tip when vacationing at an amusement park. Distinctive clothing will get your child noticed more quickly if you are separated. Never, never, put a child’s name or your family name on a shirt. Predators love having this information.

If you are a grandparent consider ordering matching shirts for your grandchildren and their parents for gift. Then if there is an emergency and you are trying to find them you can describe the shirts to relief workers. I have placed a link to a great site, Mellowtiedie.com for ordering tie die products. You can choose a design and even the colors you want in that design. They have agreed to give you a 10% discount on your entire order so if you decide to order mention Totally Ready and get the discount. I have ordered these and they are high quality shirts and the quality of the tie die is amazing. I love the arrow heads and stars, they even have a crown, perfect for the princesses in our family.

This is a great gift for any family on your gift list.

Hygiene kit for a 72 hour kit: toothpaste, tooth brush, deodorant, razor, shampoo, soap…

College survival kit: cereal, laundry detergent, toothpaste, soups, cookies, hot cocoa…

Pandemic kit: gelatins, ginger ale, otter pops, disinfectant, herbal teas, anti inflammatory

Do an intyernet search and look at some gift baskets to get ideas for your own. Use your imagination and watch for those BOGO deals. You will be amazed how many there are if you start paying attention.

A few months ago we purchase some bottles of black currant juice. It is very good for you but like so many things that are good for us it is really bitter. I have wondered what to do with it and have tried adding it to smoothies but I didn’t like that either so…I decided to make jelly. I have been making pomegranate jelly for Christmas gifts and I am in a jelly mood. Wow!!! It is awesome! Best of all it was so…easy. So here is the recipe I created.

4 C bottled 100% black currant juice

5 C sugar

1 box pectin

In a medium size bowl measure out 5 C sugar. Pour pectin into a small bowl and add 1/4 C sugar you have taken from the 5 cups you just measured. Stir sugar and pectin to combine. Place juice in heavy saucepan. Slowly stir in pectin. Bring to a boil stirring occasionally. When the juice reaches a boil that can not be stirred down add the remaining sugar all at once. Stir until sugar is melted. Bring back to a boil stirring occasionally. When it reaches a boil cook 1 minute. Ladle into very hot pint or 1/2 pint bottles and process 15 minutes in steam or hot water bath. You can let them seal by themselves but I like the added security of processing them.

Have any of you made jelly from bottled juice? Please share if you have. This is going to make great Christmas gifts!! A jar of pomegranate jelly, a jar of black currant jelly and a loaf of bread or some crackers, yummy and it’s food storage! Okay, sorry, I had to get that in there.

There is a chill in the air today and I have the feeling I just want to curl up in front of the fire and read a good book. This feeling reminded me of a Christmas gift I made for family and friends a few years ago. Yesterday I talked about making fire starters from egg cartons. Those do not make fun gifts, they look a little…tacky…but the ones I refer to today are wonderful.

You will need: pine cones, candle wax or old candles, cotton string, and waxed paper.

Prepare your pine cones by using a kitchen dish brush to clean. You are really just making sure no little critter has made a home in your pine cone. You do not need to wash them, in fact if you do you will need to wait a few days for them to dry before proceeding or the wax will not adhere.

Place candle or wax in the top of a double boiler and slowly melt the wax. I create my own double boiler by placing an old number 10 can in a pot of water. When I am done I can simply throw the can away, no cleanup. If you want your room to smell wonderful when you use your starters purchase scented candles but be careful of and scent. Pine or cinnamon work will but flowery scents become overwhelming.

Cut a ten inch piece of 100% cotton string. You can use candle wicking but it is more expensive. Leaving a 1 one inch piece at the top of the pine cone, begin forcing the string between the scales. Continue working around the cone and down toward the bottom. Be sure the end of the string in tucked in well.

Using tongs to hold the inch of string, dip the entire cone, including the string into the wax. Remove, let cool thirty seconds and dip again. Place on waxed paper and allow to cool.

Place in a basket, tie a bow on and give as a gift. Include directions: Place a few fire starters under kindling, light. Fire starters will burn for several minutes allowing the kindling to ignite.

Look around for pine trees producing cones and gather the cones for free.

Cut a strip of flannel 6 inches x 42 inches

Cut a strip of cotton 6 inches x 42 inches

Sew a 1/4 inch seam down the long sides of the flannel sleeve. Turn over the opened end and hem. Sew a 1/4 seam down each of the long sides of the cotton fabric. Fill 2/3 full with white rice. Turn over the open edge and sew closed. Slip the cotton sleeve filled with the rice into the flannel sleeve. Place in microwave to warm and enjoy!