Seven Steps Week 10
This has been another week of disasters in the news. Does it seem to you that these are occurring more frequently now? The flooding in the mid west was awful and it's not over and the flood season has just begun. Food prices are going crazy! Fuel prices are more than crazy and driving up the cost of everything else in the country. Now is a good time to seriously think about alternate vacation plans and allocating the money you save to food storage and emergency preparedness.
For this week:
1. Inventory the living room, dining room and laundry room. You really will be surprised how much money you have invested in the laundry room. If you have the spring cleaning bug this would be a great time to check how much is really in those bottles and get rid of the near empty ones and make a list of things you need to buy because they are almost used up.
2. Contact at least 2 of the people who are on the list you made last week. Remember? The friends and family who may have an item or talent who can help you prepare. Let them know of your goal to prepare and become self reliant and ask them if they would be willing to share with your family. Offer to trade…if you have neighbors who have fruit trees and you know they don't have the time or skills to can ask them for fruit and offer to can a case for them.
3. Add an extra set of keys to the top of your adult 72 hour kits. You will want keys to everything you own and to your office, safe deposit box, mail box and anything else you may need to access. It is very important you keep these where they are easily found just in case you need to evacuate in a hurry.
4. Add 1 can of fruit and 1 can of vegetables per family member to your food storage. Don't forget canned potatoes. They are great in casseroles and soups. Remember variety is the spice of life.
5. Inventory your food storage. Place the inventory in your binder.
6. Make foil dinners with your family. It's fun and great practice in case of a power outage. Don't know what they are? Ask a scout or see below.
7. Make a list of items you will need to gather in order to care for your pets for 72 hours.
I do not want to be the voice of gloom and doom but it seems more and more communities, government agencies, churches and just ordinary people on the street, are worrying about the future. The only way to rid ourselves of fear is to press forward and continue to prepare ourselves so we can be self reliant. Then, if agencies fail, prices continue to rise, or a disaster affects our neighborhood, we will be able to provide for our families. Do you remember the feeling of fear when you took a test in school? There was always some fear but when you had prepared it was a very different anxiety than when you had not.
Foil Dinners
It is best to use heavy duty foil for a foil dinner, since it will be less likely to be punctured. If you use thinner foil, use two pieces. Heavier foil also helps prevent the food from burning. The sauce you use and the steam created will cook your meal.
To prepare a foil dinner place a variety of the following in the middle of the shiny side of a large piece of aluminum foil:
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Meat-such as hamburger, steak, chicken, or kielbasa. Chicken should be removed from the bone and sliced to ensure it cooks completely.
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Potatoes-sliced or cubed for faster cooking.
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Vegetables-carrots, onions, beans, peas, corn, tomatoes, peppers, zucchini or any other vegetable that you like. Carrots, peppers and onions should be cut into smaller pieces to reduce cooking time.
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Sauce- foil dinners can dry out if you don't add some type of sauce. This could be canned soup, (don't add water), catchup, barbecue sauce, teriyaki sauce or even Italian dressing, which is great on chicken.
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Seasonings- if you still want more flavor you could add taco seasoning or barbecue seasoning or any favorite spice from the cupboard.
When you are finish creating bring the long ends of the foil together above your food and fold over two or more times. Keep folding down almost to the level of the food. Then roll or fold the open ends of the foil towards the middle. Cook the dinner by placing a few coals under it and a few coals on top. Use barbecue tongs or a shovel to place the coals. It only takes a few coals, more and your dinner could burn. Your dinner should only take 15 minutes to cook. Check it carefully by unrolling and testing with a fork. BE CAREFUL when opening as the steam will be hot!!
When dinner is over it's time for smores!
