Here’s another list of simple, basic steps for getting started as a Survival Mom or prepper. How basic can you get?
1. Find a source of inexpensive spices, herbs, and seasonings and begin stocking up on those you use most.
2. Buy a Food Saver vacuum sealer. You’ll find these on Craigslist and eBay, Walmart, Target, and even Cabela’s. This machine will vacuum seal the Food Saver bags as well as jars.
3. Be on the lookout for canning jars. The lids and rims of these jars provide a tighter seal than the lids of jelly or other jars.
4. Once you have a Food Saver and canning jars, invest in one final item: a Food Saver jar sealer. This will allow you to fill those canning jars with foods that would melt or otherwise be spoiled in the canning process, vacuum oxygen from the inside of the jar, and have those foods ready to store long-term.
5. Wherever you have food stored, be on the lookout for insects and rodents who might chew through food containers. You’d be surprised at what a diligent mouse with a lot of time on his hands can do!
6. Look for coupons for batteries. Batteries are great as an item for barter, and it’s hard to stock up on too many.
7. Go through the house, garage, and vehicles, and find every flashlight you own. Make sure each one has fresh batteries and then place them in locations where they’ll be easy to find. If you have kids, make sure there is a flashlight in their bedrooms and that they know where to find it.
8. Ask friends and family for their coupon circulars in the Sunday paper and clip coupons for non-edible items, such as dental floss, ibuprofen, baby products, etc. Read this about coupons for food products.
9. Collect birth certificates for each member of your family and copies of all insurance policies. Make copies of the birth certificates and begin to assemble your Grab-n-Go Binder. It will take time to track down all the important documents for the binder, so start with just a couple of those on the list.
You’re doing great! You are more than half way through our 6 How Basic Can You Get lists! In case you missed one, here are the rest of the articles:
I hesitated to buy a FoodSaver because of the expense, but I’ve had mine now for about a year, and we love it! In addition to food, we’ve used ours for a variety of items that would be damaged or useless if they get wet (matches, sanitary pads, etc.). Any time we buy dry goods of any sort, we immediately fill a bag. Our stores have increased significantly since we started doing this, because there’s no temptation to use what’s been packed away like there is when it’s sitting on the shelf in its original container.
The FoodSaver has also come in handy for our BOBs. I pre-mixed an assortment of meals that only need to be dumped in a pot of boiling water. Not as convenient as the backpacking meals like Mountain House, but certainly a lot cheaper. We’ve also used it for compacting small items in our BOBs. It keeps similar items together and gives us more space for other necessities.
The only drawback for me is that I can only find pint-sized bags online, and those are the ones I prefer for our small family.
First let me say I don’t know this seller other than being a customer and don’t get anything for this recommendation, but I have found their bags to be just as good as the expensive food saver bags and about half the price.
The site is thesweetattack.com. They have different types of bags depending on your sealer and what your sealing so check for the kind you want, all sizes of bags from pints quarts and gallons and in quantities from 20 to a thousand. I have been using them for 3 years and they work great.
Please don’t forget, if an EMP hits, there won’t be any batteries, especially nicad, which will explode. Just saying. Unless you have your batteries stored in a faraday cage that yoiu can make for just that purpose.
where is list #3?
Here’s that link to list #3, Winona.
https://thesurvivalmom.com/how-basic-can-you-get-list-3/