It’s so easy to get into a rut, to keep saying “I’ll get to it later” about things you know you should do.
I’ve been that way about all kinds of things including emergency preparedness. One of the best ways to get out of any rut, however, in all kinds of areas including fitness, weight loss, and housecleaning, is to set mini-goals. Do one small thing repeatedly, and you’ll be surprised about how quickly the effect builds up. This can open up all kinds of new horizons, and allow you to accomplish things you never thought you could!
Everyone needs an emergency food supply. Anything could happen – a car could break down, preventing you from getting to the store for a while, there could be a bad snowstorm, a temporary job loss, or any number of other unfortunate events. The sense of peace provided by an emergency food supply is incredible. And it’s easy to do!
First, set aside your space. It could be a cupboard, a closet, a few buckets in the corner, a shelf. You want your supplies to be in one place so they are easy to inventory and rotate through.
Pick what kinds of things you want. Canned goods, freeze dried items, vitamins, bottled water are all good items to keep. Think about what you and your family like, and think about what you can prepare if you don’t have electricity in the house. For example, I have a large supply of sardines in tomato sauce. That’s protein, vitamin C, lycopene, calcium, and other nutrients. It may not be fancy but all I need is a can opener. Protein bars or energy bars can be another good choice, depending on what you buy. Read labels!
Then, when you go out to do the weekly or biweekly grocery shopping, just buy one or two extra items each trip. Put them away in your food storage space. Don’t forget to buy a gallon of water every now and again and keep it sealed. When you see vitamins on sale in the mark down bin, get those too.
Finally, once you have a good stockpile, make sure you check your expiration dates occasionally. Every once in a while, use some of them up as you buy more, that way your stock stays fresh.
That’s it! A little planning, and a few extra dollars every shopping trip, will soon turn into a respectable stash of emergency supplies. You can do the same for first aid supplies – things like gauze, hydrogen peroxide, rubbing alcohol, aspirin, calcium antacid, etc are available very cheaply at your local dollar store or discount store. It’s worthwhile to have a stockpile. I know I love having one. It’s such a good feeling to know that if I lose water for a while, my family will still drink, or if I can’t shop, we won’t go hungry.
Bonus emergency tip for American readers: If you buy the 50 milligram Unisom generic gelcap (dipehnhydramine) it’s good to keep around for sudden allergic reactions. It’s basically a double dose of Benadryl only it’s faster for the body to absorb and only costs a dollar at Dollar Tree and 99 Cents Only. It might save your life!
Mindflight 
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