3-month supply: Milk

Powdered milk is probably not the first thing you think of when you need a refreshing drink. In fact, if you've used it at all, you know that is doesn't really smell fabulous. BUT, in times of emergency, ESPECIALLY with children in the house, you need the protein and calcium provided in milk. So...

Let's talk about our 3-month supply of MILK!!!

Amount to store per person: 16 lbs.

Remember, you can use THIS great excel spreadsheet to figure your family's food storage needs, THIS food storage calculator, OR just estimate how much your family really uses in a given period of time. The first worksheet says 4 lbs per person, but I think it's a typo because then is says that you need 4 cans of 4 lbs each. Just FYI.

So here are some different milk products you can store:

Powdered milk, which includes Instant Nonfat and Regular.
Evaporated milk
Sweetened Condensed milk

Instant Nonfat powdered milk is a little bit smoother in texture because it has a little more air in it for easy mixing. Regular powdered milk, or non-instant is denser and can be harder to mix but is usually less expensive and more can fit into a can. Canned milk has at least a 5 year shelf life, although I bought a few cans a while back that are good for 30 years.

I have been using powdered milk for a while now, but only in my cooking. Simply stir 1/4 cup of powdered milk and 1 cup of water and you have a cup of milk for any recipe. (My husband has a "refined sense of taste" and he's never noticed when I use it.) This is not only a good way to get used to using powdered milk, it also helps me to rotate my food storage AND it's cheaper than fluid milk so using it saves me money.

Where to find powdered milk?

Powdered milk is available in a box at any grocery store, but this will not store long. For longer term storage, you want to purchase powdered milk in #10 cans. Some stores in Utah carry these, but here are some links for other options:

Self-Reliance
Augason Farms
Emergency Essentials
LDS Cannery- definitely the cheapest option, but you have to have access to a cannery.

Evaporated Milk is shelf-stable canned milk. This product is made by removing 60% of the water from fresh milk. It takes up half the space as fresh milk with the same nutrients. When mixed with the right amount of water, it becomes more like fresh milk.

Evaporated milk is often used in baking and cooking, but can be a great item to store. It have about a 15 month shelf-life, but comes in small cans that make rotating easy.

Sweetened condensed milk is also fresh milk with water removed from it, but has sugar added to it as well. Because of this, the shelf life is extended. This product is most commonly used in desserts.


Stock-up prices (lowest to highest):

Evaporated milk: $.05 per oz
Sweetened Condensed milk: $.10 per oz
Regular powdered milk: $2.10 per lb ($.13/oz)
Instant nonfat: $4.14 per lb ($.26/oz)


Check out Every Day Food Storage's post about powdered milk.

Emergency Binder

(Beautiful, right? It looks like a Trapper Keeper.)

So a year or two ago I started following the website, Food Storage Made Easy. It's a fun site with some great tips on getting your food storage and emergency preparedness stuff going. My favorite thing I've learned from that website is the Emergency Binder. I used their list as a guideline and went from there.

Here's their list:
-Birth certificates
-Passports
-SS Cards
-Copies of credit cards, front and back
-Homeowners insurance policy
-Auto insurance policy
-Life insurance policy
-Retirement statements
-Internet passwords
-Immunization records
-Utility statements
-Work/tax documents that would be difficult to replace
-Cash, keep a variety of small bills on hand

So here's what I have:
-Contact info. I have our parents, local family, friends, emergency numbers, doctor's numbers and where we would meet in case of emergency, like a church or school.
-Account info. Anything with an account number basically. I have our account numbers, phone numbers and addresses of the company. This includes utilities (so I don't have to keep a statement in the binder) credit cards, student loans, whatever. It's basically a brief summary of all accounts and important numbers.
-Internet passwords. I know, it's a little scary in a way, but you have to have them somewhere. If I died, my husband would have no clue about half our bills, so at least he'd have all the passwords so he could see what's up. :)
-Important certificates. Birth, marriage, car title, social security cards, immunization cards, etc. I even have my old passport and my vision rx as shown below. (Don't worry. I blurred out some of the info.)
Each member of the family has their own sheet protector, so when I went to Kindergarten registration I only had to grab the sheet protector and everything the school needed was there. Easy.
-Insurance stuff. I have the declaration page for our homeowners insurance, our auto insurance and our extra medical insurance cards.
-Taxes. I keep the last two years worth of tax stuff. The W2s are in sheet protectors. Last year itemizing actually helped, so this year I am also keeping receipts and note to remind me of our deductions so I'm not scrambling at tax time. It's also good to have an extra copy of your return. Oh, I have our property tax stuff in there too.
-Loans. Curse them. I have the statements and any important notices from our student loans including notes from conversations with people so I know what I'm talking about next time.
-401K and stocks. Yes, we have both, although they are sad. We put a tiny bit in a 401K through my husband's work so we have that quarterly statement. I also keep our stock statement. Just so you know, we put a little bit in RIGHT before everything went crazy so we currently have $3.38. Be jealous.
-Mortgage statements and any other info from our lender. Behind these I have our Title insurance.
-Paystubs. My husband's are online now, but I make a tiny bit from coordinating the daycare at a local gym so my last few paystubs are in a sheet protector. I should probably print out a few of Silas's, just in case.
-Random stuff: purchase agreement from our car including warranty information, warranty info on our washer and dryer (which I just purchased and it made me feel like a big girl. I usually hate spending money on warranties, but our machines getting older and I use them CONSTANTLY), print out from our credit reports, and stuff about our alarm system (that's a long story).
-Cash. Honestly, I think this is probably THE MOST IMPORTANT part of the binder, but I don't normally have more than a few dollars. I need to work on that. What if no ATMs or card readers were working? People probably won't take a check if that was the case, so cash is important.
Oh and I got a pretty purple binder so it would be easy to grab if we were panicing. And no, I don't have it sitting out for all to see. Don't worry.

Don't get overwhelmed. Just do one thing at a time. You will feel so good when it's done.

NEXT POST: 3-month supply: Milk

Meal planning

For a few years now, I have been planning our family meals. For a while I was planning for every two weeks, but now I plan a whole month at a time and shop for 2 weeks at a time. It has taken a long time for me to get comfortable with it, but here are some things I've learned.

-Have a list of meals your family likes. (Don't feel bad if ramen noodles or Hamburger Helper is on your list)

Click HERE for a blank worksheet created by Prepared LDS Family.

-Space out similar meals. For example, you may not want to have spaghetti and lasagna in the same week. This is on reason I prefer planning for the whole month. I would make breakfast food every other day if I could but my husband doesn't love that, so I plan on one breakfast food meal a week.

-Plan for a leftover night. We usually have one day a week when we need to clean out the fridge. It doesn't always fall on the same day every week, so I have to be flexible, but you have to LOVE leftover night.

-Plan for new recipes! To shake things up a little, plan a new recipe once a week or once every other week. This can help you find new favorites for your meal list. (Remember to use recipes that include your food storage, so you can learn HOW to use ingredients you may not be used to and so that your food gets rotated.

-Use a blank calendar and/or make a list of all the meals. I was reminded of this the other day. When I had one of my kids, my mother-in-law came for a few weeks and before I had my baby I made this list so she could pick something and cook. She was recently visiting and mentioned that. Since then, I have tried it for myself. I like it.

I am currently using this list and marking on a calendar I printed from Word want we ate that day. I have a binder with my calendars so I can look through it quickly to remind of things I made last month or things we haven't eaten in a while.

Meal planning helps me to feel a little more in control of my day, helps with my general sanity, and saves me money because I'm not going to the store every other day for things I need.


Remember, this month count and try to add to your SUGAR supply and CLOTHING for your 72-hour kits.

72-hour kit: Clothing

As far as clothing goes this is what I recommend for EACH family member:

1 shirt
1 pair of jeans (I use old, holey ones)
1 pair socks
1 pair of underwear (or 12-16 diapers for baby...and don't forget wipes!)
1 sweater
1 pair shoes

You can get clothing from your local thrift store. I save ALL my boys' clothes, so most of the stuff is used from their older brother. For my daughter, I have some pajamas that are the size bigger than she is currently in.

In the image above, I had all the clothing in a large, rolling suitcase. Since I took that photo, I have made separate kits for each member of the family. Do what works for you.

I also have a set of clothing in the car for each of my children, as well as a bunch of diapers and wipes. There have been MANY times that I have needed a new pair of underwear and pants for one of my kids who got in mud or had an accident while at a friend's house or even out doing errands.


While you're thinking of clothing for you 72-hour kits, you may want to consider the following items as well:

Ponchos
Blankets
Work gloves
Hats

This is Step 3 on the PLAN 9 pamphlet put together by the Southwest Utah Public Health Department.

Previous Steps...
Step 2: Food
Step 1: Water

3-month supply: Sugar

Let's talk about a 3-month supply of SUGAR!!!

How much? 15 lbs. per person

What? White sugar, brown sugar, powdered sugar, honey, corn syrup, jam/jelly, gelatin, pudding, maple syrup, powdered fruit drink mixes, molasses, etc.

One of the best things about many of these foods is the shelf life.

White sugar and powdered sugar have indefinite shelf lives, meaning they really only need to be protected from moisture and bugs.

Brown sugar can dry out, but there is at least one company that sells canned brown sugar. Personally, I just buy 6 or 7 packages when the 2 lb. package is on sale. I put them in a Ziploc and don't really have a hard time with keeping the sugar moist. Although it dries out, brown sugar has a shelf life of 4-5 years.

Honey never goes bad, but is expensive. Honey will crystalize over time but you can put a container of honey in warm water when needed.

Corn syrup comes in light and dark varieties and is used to replace sugar, to make many candies, and more. Note that corn syrup is different from high-fructose corn syrup. Click HERE for a little more info.

Maple syrup- Pure maple syrup is a natural, unrefined sweetener and can be stored for up to 2 years. I use mapeline to make syrup, so as long as I have water and white sugar, I'm good.

Molasses is also natural and unrefined and contains a lot of iron. I don't know much about molasses except that it has a strong flavor and you can substitute 1 T molasses and 1 cup white sugar for 1 cup brown sugar.

So although you need to rotate your food, you can stock up when you see a good sale on any of these items without worrying if the food will go bad before you use it.

Here are some good prices for sugars, in cost order starting with the cheapest:

White sugar- $.47 per lb ($.03/oz) is great. Canned, about $.98 per lb and lasts 30 years!

Brown sugar & powdered sugar- $.68 per lb ($.04/oz).

Jams- $.05 per oz.

Maple syrup(not pure)- $.05 per oz.

Fruit drink mix (from LDS cannery)- $1.39 per lb ($.09/oz). Lasts for 2 years. Tang can be about $1.29 per lb if you buy it in bulk.

Corn syrup- $.10 per oz (about $1.68 for 16 oz bottle).

Honey- $2 per lb ($.13/oz) is amazing! Closer to $2.50 per lb is more common. Expensive, but honey lasts forever!

Gelatin- $.17 per oz for the brand name, about $.16 for generic.

Pudding- About $.18 per oz.

Molasses- $.21 per oz.


Please note that these prices reflect deals from the last several years in the state of Utah and may vary from state to state. Also, with the past few years of economic hardships, many prices may be constantly higher than the prices I have. Please only use these as a guide.

Smart Shopping

When you're on a strict budget (which we all should be) then it's important to get as much out of a dollar as possible, right? One way you can stretch that dollar is to be a smart shopper.

Here are some tips:

1. Know what things cost. For example: Once I bought a case of 24 cans of pineapple for $.99 a can, and then saw that the were $.92 a can at Wal-Mart. Not the end of the world, but I might not have bought the whole case. (Side note: Today I saw pineapple at Wal-Mart for $1.00 a can! For the cheap stuff! Hopefully that will go back down soon.)

There's a lot to keep track of so make a list and keep it in your purse or wallet, so if you see an unexpected sale you can decide whether or not it is REALLY a good deal. On your list, you may want to use the price per ounce for comparison since some items are packaged in different quantities.

Click HERE for more information on Case Lot sales and a price comparison sheet created by Prepared LDS Family. (The prices reflect stores in Northern Utah, but you'll get the idea.)

2. Stock-up price. When something that you want to have in your storage is pretty low, you might call it the Stock-up price. It means: Get a bunch! For example: When ground beef goes on sale for less than $2 per lb, I get at least 10 lbs and then I package them into small portions and use for a while.

Note: To keep your storage replenished, replace items used as you go. Sometimes it's hard to pay more than your stock-up price, but buying a few items a week to keep up with your storage is less traumatic to your bank account.

3. Pay attention to sales. Every week, our two local grocery stores come out with an ad of their weekly sales. Grocery Smarts is a website that matches grocery ads with coupons...

4. Use coupons. A few years ago, I did the whole 4 Sunday paper thing so I could get 4 sets of coupons. With the price of the papers and all the literal PAPER I ended up with, I decided that it wasn't for me. BUT I do save the coupons that I get with my ads in the mail, and I use online coupons that I find through Grocery Smarts or another site called Freebies 2 Deals.

5. Use a list...and stick to it! This can be even easier when you have your meals for the week (or more) planned before heading to the store. If you know what you're making the next few days, you can make a more efficient shopping list, hopefully eliminating those last minute trips to the store.

Click HERE for more information on couponing.

Click HERE for some great tips on quick shopping.

Debt

“Those who structure their standard of living to allow a little surplus, control their circumstances. Those who spend a little more than they earn are controlled by their circumstances. They are in bondage” (N. Eldon Tanner).

First of all here some simple, yet important points:

-Avoid Debt. In the world we live in, this might seem impossible. Obviously debt from buying a modest home and car is understandable. Sometimes student loans are also unavoidable. Other debt should be avoided when possible.
-Distinguish between Needs and Wants. This is also a hard one in a world that tells us to do what makes us feel good. When making financial decisions though, especially big purchases, it is crucial to decide if it is a necessity or not.
-Use a Budget. See previous post: Financial Self-Reliance.
-Build a Reserve. Even if it's $5 per paycheck, having a little cash on hand is important!
-Teach Family Members. This culture of buy now, pay later has got to stop somewhere. If we can teach our children, other family members, friends, etc. how to live within their means, the next generation will be much better off.
(Taken from All Safely Gathered In pamphlet.)

OK, but what if you are already in debt?

Use a budget! Track your expenses.

Once you know how much you have going where, you can make a plan to eliminate the debt as fast as possible.

Dave Ramsey has a lot of information on getting out of debt. Click HERE for more info. One of the things he talks about is the snowball plan. Check it out!

Also, HERE is a debt planner from CNN.com. This one shows you how much interest you will pay if you only make minimum payments without snowballing. It's crazy how much interest you end up paying!

My husband and I started our marriage in debt. I had a student loan and he had medical bills. Not the best way to start out. We ended up getting into come credit card debt the first few years too. So basically what I'm saying is, that I have dealt with this issue for the last 10 years. Not cool. BUT when we were finally free of the credit card debt, you would NOT believe the relief we felt. It is indescribable! So much better than having stuff.

So take my word...get out and stay out!