Baby steps

smart prepping

Seven Things I Wish I Had Known When I Began Prepping

June 26, 2022 / 4 Comments

Have you gotten bit by the prepper bug? Millions all over the world now consider themselves to be preppers, and there are handbooks, such as Survival Mom’s classic family prepping handbook, that provide step-by-step survival instructions for families. I bet you’ve spent hours on the internet searching for the ultimate solar radio, the most comprehensive food storage inventory list or maybe which water filtration system to use. We have all been there, usually late at night by the warm glow of …

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The Year I Stopped Prepping and Why I Started Again

June 26, 2022 / 8 Comments

I was the first person to become a prepper in my fairly large family. Among my husband’s family and huge extended family, he was the first prepper. As far as I know, after almost 8 years, we are still the only preppers, with one lone exception. It’s not something we talk about with anyone. Loved ones on both sides are busy with their own lives, playing computer games, dealing with office politics, and all the thousands of distractions that are a part …

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A Survival Guy’s First Steps to Preparedness

June 11, 2020 / 18 Comments

I love getting emails from readers and listeners to my radio show, and I try to answer them all.  This week I received an email from an unexpected source: a single guy!  Now, I’ve always suspected that about 25% of my readers are men, based on their comments here on the blog and from email I receive, but this email was especially meaningful.  The concept of preparedness was new to the writer, D.F., and I’ll let you read his letter …

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The Quick Start Guide for Getting Prepared

May 30, 2020 / 14 Comments

There’s just no telling when Armageddon will occur, nor is there a date scheduled, yet, for a zombie invasion. However, all this talk lately about the debt ceiling and a looming financial apocalypse has scared a lot of people. Many of them have done very little about getting prepared and are wondering, “Is it too late?” You’ll know it’s too late when your pantry is empty, right along with grocery store shelves, no water comes from your tap, there’s no electricity, and …

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checklist for evacuations

Make an Evacuation Checklist

May 30, 2020 / 9 Comments

You wake with a start in the middle of the night. Someone is banging on your front door. A gas main has broken one block over. You have 10 minutes to get out of your house. What do you do? An up-to-date checklist for evacuations is the key. How you respond to a scary scenario depends on a wide variety of things, but comes down to one key factor: How prepared are you to leave your house? During a wildfire event several …

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The Prepper Baby Steps List Collection

May 28, 2020 / 1 Comment

Baby Step #1: Plan for a short-term emergency Baby Step #2: Prepare your vehicle Baby Step #3: Get smart about potential disasters Baby Step #4: Get home, no matter what Baby Step #5: Develop a survival mindset Moving on… Top 10 Foods for Stocking Up 13 Food  Storage Resolutions 20+ Foods that must be repackaged for long-term storage and how to repackage them 6 Quick ways to increase your survival education 10 Essential OTC medications for your emergency kit 5 …

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The Disaster Communication Hub

February 24, 2021 / 2 Comments

As you go about crafting your disaster response plans, consider adding a communication hub to the equation. The idea is to have a central person who family and friends can contact to keep abreast of developments and get messages to one another. The person chosen to be a communication hub should live outside of your own immediate area. You want this person to be outside the area likely to be affected by “your” disaster. This way, there is someone who …

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Caution! You have entered a No Judging Zone!

June 11, 2020 / 87 Comments

Some of the very first foods I bought for my food storage pantry weren’t exactly health foods. I loaded up my shelves with cans of ravioli, Vienna sausages, and boxes of Cheerios, from GMO crops, I’m sure. My kids tastes have changed since then and we are eating fewer foods with gluten, more raw milk, and lots more produce, but when I first started with food storage, I bought what I could with a limited budget. There’s a lot of …

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How Basic Can You Get? List #6

May 28, 2020 / 23 Comments

Are you ready for more? Did you work your way through Lists 1-5? This next list should keep you busy and out of trouble for a while! 1.  Learn how to use a compass and a map. It’s a lot harder than you might think, but it’s a skill that just might make the difference between you or a loved one wandering around in the wilderness, lost, and finding your way back to civilization. Look for classes at stores like REI or …

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How Basic Can You Get? List #5

December 3, 2020 / 16 Comments

Here are ten more tips to help a newbie learn how basic can you get. If you’ve made it this far, you’re doing a great job of getting started! It can also help a seasoned Survival Mom stay on track! 1.  Start looking for both tarps and rope. As long as they aren’t worn out or frayed, they will be useful for making shelters, wind breaks, and even for water collection. They can provide a quick patch to a roof, …

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