[Utah Girl]

Do you have any estimated costs of what the total monthly investment is to fund these purchases for General Storage and 72hr kit that you would be willing to share with us?

We should all think of it as self-insurance, instead of paying premiums we invest in a safety net of commodities and foods. Saved for a short winter storm that we hope never appears but we must prepared for...

I don't have any idea what a monthly list like this would cost. It totally depends upon the number of people in your family, and their ages (children eat less than teenagers, adults eat less than teenage boys.) And if you rotate through the food storage, you kind of save money by buying in bulk and when it is on sale. I know that a local grocery store here has a canned goods sale every July. So I save a couple of hundred dollars for July and buy a lot of canned goods. Then when I use a can of something, I just buy one can to replace it as I go along.

In the future I'm going to post some ideas on what to buy, how to store it, and some recipes. I have a friend who is rich and a gourment cook. You should see her food storage. ;-)

Personally what I would recommend is to perhaps get your 72 hour kit together first. A lot of the stuff is lying around the house, I didn't buy hardly anything new. I did buy a solar, battery operated radio from Radio Shack for ten dollars. Here is the total list in one spot. I probably spent under 25 dollars for my kit, but I am single without children. The most money was buying the stuff for the first aid kit. One extra thing I threw in the first aid kit is four sanitray napkins. They work really well for compressing against a bleeding wound that needs to be staunched. I also store my sleeping bag and blanket right next to the 72 hour kit. I still use the sleeping bag when I go camping, so I didn't buy another one.

This 72 hour kit should meet the needs of your family. Use ready to eat foods your family will eat and hobbies and entertainment your family likes to do. Include individual medication as required by your family members. Whatever container is used should be portable.

You should have:

Immediately available Battery powered radio Flashlight and extra batteries Emergency Needs Instruction Manuals on Emergency Preparedness Water storage Sleeping bags and blankets Sanitation Kit Plastic bucket with tight fitted lid Plastic bags and ties toilet paper disinfectant improvised toilet seat (for bucket) feminine hygiene needs paper towels soap paper cups paper plates plastic utensils can opener utility knife Stress Factors Children - coloring book, crayons Adults - books, needle work In the Car Standard First Aid Kit Blanket Flashlight and batteries Reflectors and flares Individual Medical Needs Suggested Additions Family Photographs Medical Information Sheet Insurance Information Identification for each Family Member Will or Trust Information (copies of each)

Food - Ready-to-eat Meats: canned Fruit Cocktail Peanut Butter Powdered Milk Infant Care: Canned milk and bottles Dried Fruit: (caution - drink plenty of water.) Raisins, prunes, fruit leather Crackers Stress Foods Sugar Cookies Sweetened Cereals Hard Candy Standard First Aid Kit First Aid manual Spirits of ammonia Scissors Table salt Baking soda Eye drops Safety pins Matches Adhesive or paper tape Bandages Telfa pads (4"x4") Triangle Bandage (37"x37"x37") Roll of Gauze Elastic Bandage Splints Popsicle sticks shingles or thin board 40 page newspaper or magazines Heavy String At least one change of clothing for everyone including shoes

I've also thrown in a sweatshirt with a hood, an inflatable pillow, my scriptures (Bible, Book of Mormon)

[c. l. coffman]

Do you have hints/advise on formula, diapers, and baby food?

[appalachian_dweller]

#88 - Good list UG. Check my 'about' page. You should add extra flashlight bulbs to the list.

It's good to see folks getting/staying prepared.

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