Oct262010
Integrating Prepping with Life
by Liz Long
image by jurvetson
We all know to pick up a few extra items when we’re grocery shopping or on sale, but for our family and many others, prepping has involved far more than that. We are making a great many lifestyle changes at the same time, which also includes the need to learn new skills. In our case, we really started prepping when we moved from Los Angeles to Washington D.C., and then the stock market and economy went Bad Places soon after. In Los Angeles, a certain amount of prepping is normal because of earthquakes, so we were already inclined to be prepared
Clearly, a move that large leads to major lifestyle changes, but they have been even greater because of concerns about the economy. I find myself frustrated because I cannot do things I’d like to do because I need to get prep-related things done, and vice versa. The only way to do both is to find ways to combine them – integrate your prepping with your regular life.
Our house needs landscaping work and we want to grow our own food. We are combining these two by planting berry bushes, fruit trees, kitchen and medicinal herb gardens, and a veggie garden instead of just Pretty Things. Even the Pretty Things we’re planting, like roses, coneflower and day lilies, are edible. We bought a “new” tractor to work on our new, larger yard. It’s a diesel. We probably would’ve ended up with a diesel in any event, but knowing that if things go badly it can run on biodiesel, is comforting.
We should get a lot of berries next year from all those bushes, so I went to Williams Sonoma for a free Technique Class that showed how to make jam preserves. Since we have long had Domino’s Pizza on the speed dial, this is quite a change for us (me). The Technique Classes actually make me feel more confident that I really can make food from scratch and inspire me to try new things, so I try to go fairly often. They also give me a few precious hours without the kids. Sometimes I even get a mommy friend to come along for a nice social afternoon while I learn new things.
My youngest is home now instead of in daycare and we need to decide new after-school activities for our eldest. I’m working on baking and cooking more with both kids to improve all our skills, and we’re trying to play more educational games like Cashflow for Kids with them and we’re watching shows like “The Colony” and “Dual Survival”. I’m actually starting a small Lego-based business with my eldest. After school, he has air rifle practice once a week with pellet guns. The youngest loves loves loves being outside so I’ll start working with him soon on making shelters outside. The eldest is competitive, so that will get him to start to prove he’s better, and then we’ll be off and running on learning woodland skills. As the weather is getting cooler, we’ll show them how to build a fire to make campfires for s-mores.
How are you integrating prepping with your normal life?
© 2010, thesurvivalmom. All rights reserved.
(14) Readers Comments
Leave a Reply
How To Dry Shampoo Your Hair to Save Water
My girls and I have long curly hair that has to be washed everyday. B
Win a Copy of Survival Mom AND a FlashLantern!
Bookperks is running this giveaway on their own. I will ask them for
Win a Copy of Survival Mom AND a FlashLantern!
when is the give away closed? how will we know who won?
The Importance of Patient Advocacy
When we went through my mom's final illness, I so wished I could be wi
Anatomy of The Survival Mom's Pantry
Oh my goodness Soren you are hilarious! I guess we had better stock up
Josh H
I like the idea of adding berries to your landscaping instead of flowers.
LizLong
We’re also adding a lot of herbs, both culinary and medicinal. The echinacea (coneflower) is decorative, but it’s also good if you start getting sick. Planting herbs and tubors where the actual food is underground are also good ways to conceal the fact that you’re growing food, should that become a concern. Tomatoes and corn are a lot harder to hide in the front yard! Ours will go in the back, where it at least isn’t visible from the street.
We’re also planting lavender near the front sidewalk. It will smell pretty and look good most of the summer (I think), and we’ll have it for it’s aromatherapy and medicinal qualities. It’s also possible to use in cooking and tea. And most people would never suspect it of being planted for any reason beyond the pretty smell.
teresa
If you contact your local extension office, they offer free canning classes for canning fruits as well as non acid foods. They are a great resource for propper food prep and storage as well as raising small farm animals in a subdivision.
Andrea
We landscaped with a lot of edibles too. Blueberries and sage are quite pretty in flowerbeds. Serviceberry trees are pretty and the jelly made from the berries tastes like Hawaiian Punch!
Both of my kids are involved in gardening; they each have a small garden of their own around the clothesline posts where they plant whatever they want. This year, sunflowers were a huge hit. They provided a trellis for the runner beans and also made great bouquets for homewarming/thank you gifts.
We've replaced take out pizza with homemade pizza and breadsticks. That's done wonders for the budget!
And having food stored means that now that my husband is laid off, we have a cushion until there's a call back.
LizLong
What are serviceberries? I've never heard of them.
Andrea
It's a tree, an ornamental tree that has the most delicious, sweet berries. They have beautiful white flowers in spring and then purplish berries in early summer. The birds love them, but I normally beat them to the punch! Here's a link for you:
http://www.pickyourown.org/unusualfruits.htm
Dustin
It makes for a healthier, happier lifestyle, I think.
BTW – can you elaborate on the "lego-based business?" My son and I love legos and I'm intrigued.
LizLong
We created a model of his school mascot and we're selling it through the school store.
rightwingmom
We made the switch to landscaping that produces a few years ago. My grandfather gave me a few blackberry sprouts. We've since expanded to apples, peaches, nectarines, a grape vine, and peaches. It will take a couple of years for full production, but we're already seeing our Housi pear tree bloom and our (still small) orange tree is loaded! Very exciting!
PrepperMom
We started berry bushes around the perimeter of our yard in 2008 when things were heading south. Blueberries on one side, fruit trees along the back and black berries on the other side. The great thing about the berries is that once established … they are free to you! If just starting w/ berries, I would get the $20 to $30 dollar bushes if you can. We got $20 worth of blueberries off our 1st bush the first year. Also, if you'd like to strengthen your security, you can get blackberries w/ thorns for the perimeter … we chose the thorn less due to wimpy pickers!
It's amazing how much food you can get from your backyard if you try. We've had a blast learning to be more self sufficient! And great learning for the kids. Also, we recently did the thorny roses in front of all the windows that were ground level … the benefit is the sweet smell that comes in when you open the windows … not to mention the beauty! No one would ever guess is was a security move! 
Happy planting all!
brescon
I'm VERY new to prepping but I've been reading alot about "repackaging" some foods. I bought 2 10# bags of rice at Sam's. they are packaged in a plastic bag. Do I need to repackage these?
Fla SD
I travel frequently for work, and I take my bug-out bag with me (even as a checked-bag on the airlines.)
First and foremost, this has been a GREAT TEST of my gear. (e.g. I've added things to my bug-out bag that I didn't even know I needed and relied upon?) It's also SO NICE to have some familiar tools/gear when I'm in an unfamiliar town/hotel for a few weeks. Can/bottle openers, mess-kit for cooking in my junior-suite, fork-knife-spoon kit to eat with, etc. Heck, even my few rolls of quarters are GREAT for laundry machines and vending machines.
I also "learned" that our bug-out bags need to be less than 50 pounds!!! (e.g. to avoid the overweight fees of the airlines.) <– That was an important lesson-learned!
Since I travel a LOT for work, my bug-out bag has evolved to become a bit more "urban" than it used to be, too! Think about it… If/when we DO have to bug-out, how much of our time will REALLY be in the woods, versus a hotel room?
Ask the people of New Orleans who bugged-out ahead of Katrina. Most fled to nearby towns in Texas (for MONTHS in hotel/motel rooms, RV sites, etc.) Urban gear subsequently added: Multi-prong outlet (to convert a dual-power outlet into a six-way outlet.) METAL fork, knife & spoon kit (instead of a plastic uni-tensil spork.) A small extension cord (with three receptacles.) Collapsible AA & AAA battery charger (and about a dozen AA & AAA rechargeable batteries.) And the winner: My own programmable TV remote. (The ones in the hotels are germ-city!!!) Oh, and two of my own pillowcases, too.
My BoB also has a collapsible fishing pole (and a small assortment of lures — which makes for some fun on the weekends while I'm away.) I also have a full-size machete, wrist-rocket (sling shot.) Airport security: Check your bag at the "oversize gear" area (and ask to wait for a "manual check" in case they have issues.) It's the place where they check all the gold bags and ski gear. If you check it at the counter, security WILL "flag" it and open it and rummage through it all. Items WILL go missing. One time, they didn't zip mine back up, and all my gear came out in pieces on the conveyor belt!
Be Prepared! Test your gear and your plans, by USING it regularly (even in everyday life.) I also walk/jog with my Bob (to make sure it feels/fits right, and that doesn't chafe my back/shoulders.)
Fla SD.
vanessa minnillo engagement ring
We landscaped with a lot of edibles too. Blueberries and sage are quite pretty in flowerbeds. Serviceberry trees are pretty and the jelly made from the berries tastes like Hawaiian Punch!
Both of my kids are involved in gardening; they each have a small garden of their own around the clothesline posts where they plant whatever they want. This year, sunflowers were a huge hit. They provided a trellis for the runner beans and also made great bouquets for homewarming/thank you gifts.
We’ve replaced take out pizza with homemade pizza and breadsticks. That’s done wonders for the budget!
And having food stored means that now that my husband is laid off, we have a cushion until there’s a call back.
angel
Are you prepared?
you should be, Prepping and storing, should be part of your everyday tastk
shtfm.com