Preparing for winter weather and potential emergencies

When meteorologists first started forecasting the snowstorm we received Feb. 15 and 16, we were supposed to get just a few inches of snow. Instead we ended up getting between 10 and 12 inches.

When I went out to feed our calves Monday morning, it measured just over 10 inches, and we received some snow Monday morning. Then more winter weather was forecast for Friday and Saturday.

Many times we hear or read articles on getting our vehicles prepared for winter. Some recommend carrying blankets and snacks and warm clothes and such in one's vehicle. Some recommend having a bag or two of cat litter to add weight but also to give traction on slick spots on the road. But we hardly ever hear about preparations for our homes.

Where we live, on the New Madrid fault line, we have a really good reason to be prepared at home. We definitely need to have some type of heat that doesn't depend on electricity. If you have to have electricity, then a generator is a must have. I haven't heard any real guidelines, but I'd say everyone needs to have at least two weeks of necessities on hand. This would include groceries and water and some way of getting warm. Also include some way of cooking, even it's a Coleman camping stove.

One thing we probably need to check is our pantry and refrigerator and freezer. Kind of go through each one and make a list of what you have on hand. My wife normally has quite a number of cans or packages of soup on hand during the winter. So we have 18 cans and packages of soup, so that's 18 meals. Also have four cans of spagetti and meatballs, six cans of chili beans, a couple cans of oysters and so on. We just got a bag of potatoes, so that's close to 10 pounds of potatoes, and five pounds of onions. Since we can goodies from our garden, we have a good supply of canned or frozen green beans, corn, broccoli, tomatoes, cauliflower and so on. We get our beef in bulk, so we have enough beef to last a long time. But along with the beef in our freezer, there are always several loaves of bread.

Honestly, we could live for months on what we have on hand. But we didn't just go out and buy it all at once. Most of it we canned or froze from our garden. The beef we raise ourselves.

But what about you? How long could you go without having to get groceries or water? Do you own a freezer? I'd buy one. They have the little chest freezers for just over $200 and small uprights for just over $300. I'd go with the upright. Food is more accessible in the upright and won't get lost or overlooked like in a chest freezer.

After you buy a freezer, when you buy a package of hamburger, buy two and freeze one. When you buy some cans of soup, buy a couple extra and put them in your pantry.

Buy two loaves of bread and stick one in the freezer. If you have to have milk, then every so often, freeze a gallon. Once a month take out the frozen and use it, but freeze one to replace it. Buy a box of powdered milk and drop it in the freezer. Go to stores like Aldi and stock up, but don't buy stupid stuff that will deteriorate. Buy stuff with a good shelf life.

A super way is to make a list of what you buy and use for an entire week or two. This should be a guideline as to what you need on hand. Work at it. If you need suggestions or help, drop me an email.

Until next time.