In case of Emergency

So I've been behind on things.

That may have something to do with moving (changing homes does strange things to a person).

But one of the yearly chores I missed out on while we were muddled in a move was our exciting annual evaluation of our 72 hour kits.

Ooooh, hold on to your hats, this one is going to be F-U-N!!!

Yup, every September about the time the kids head back to school, we hold a fake family emergency where we come home all aghast and pretend there is a big doomsday type disaster (we go over the top enough for the kids to know it is fake, but they are well trained enough to play along) and we all have to rush to grab our emergency backpacks and hustle to safety.

It's good prep, even if it is done with a side of laughter and joking.

Anyway, this year our fancy preparedness bags were packed away in a fancy storage unit which made them difficult to access so we decided to pass on the practice.  But the job of digging through the bags to be sure all the stuff inside is still good still needed to be done, so one lonely afternoon I did it.

I thought about telling myself there was a disaster and running through the house in a panic, but decided against it.

Anyway, I pulled out all the goodies.  Each pack has food for three days each day divided into a zip seal bag (we will NOT eat like kings, but we won't starve either).  We also have water, thermal blankets, spare clothing, paper, a few dollars cash, some tools, flashlights, and other emergency odds and ends.

I discarded everything that had expired (or would expire soon) and replaced the items that seemed like they were on their last legs.  I added a few things that I thought we might be missing and then I packed it all back up and stashed it away for a real (or invented for our practice) emergency to come.

At least I know we are prepared for the new year.

Want to start a 72 hour kit of your own? Here're some suggestions. 

(yes, I know here're isn't a real word...but when did that ever stop me before)