Raising Riley

The idea of emergency preparedness has been heavy on my mind as we recently had a tornado touch down about a mile from our house! Living in the Midwest means there’s always a possibility for severe storms and tornados during March, April, and sometimes May. Back when I was younger and didn’t have a family, this fact never really bothered me. Like a true midwesterner, I was fine to sit on the porch and watch the storm roll in. Now that our daughter is involved, we’ve gotten serious about our preparedness for any and all emergencies (weather related or not).

I’m going to write about the things we have in place for an emergency, and then I’d love to hear from others in the comments what you have prepared! I’m always looking for new ideas. Some of the things I list may not apply for everyone, because I do think we lean on the side of “doomsday” preppers and some of the things we have may be a bit extreme for others. We definitely prefer to be on the side of over-prepared rather than not.

Basic Emergency Supplies for Everyone:

-Clean water (we like the big 5 gallon jugs)

-Shelf stable food to get you through a couple weeks (ideally a couple months worth if you have the space). We love emergency food buckets that Costco sells because they don’t take up much space and they last for years and years

-Utensils for eating the food, can opener, etc. My husband also insists on keeping a ziplock bag of seasonings and Taco Bell sauces

-Flashlights with extra batteries

-Matches

-Toiletries you can’t live without- soap, basic hygienic items (for me this means spare glasses and contacts)

-Medicine for the whole family

-Complete first aid kit

-Extra bag of food for dogs

-Couple packs of wipes/toilet paper

Extras that may not work for everyone:

-Generator- this was a purchase for us after the tornado. We had held off for so long, but we had a spare freezer packed with meat and couldn’t risk losing it all while we were without power for about 3 days. We were able to power our fridge and extra freezer with the generator and that was enough for us.

-Life Straws- more for a “doomsday” situation if we can’t access clean water

-Camping gear- sleeping bags, camp stove with butane cans, pots and pans, utility knife, warm gear, etc. Basically anything you could imagine for a camping trip.

-Weapons- once again, not for everyone! We feel safe knowing our weapons are locked up, out of reach, and available if an emergency deems necessary.

-Gas in cans- we try to keep gas in cans in our garage and periodically use it and refill so it’s fresh. Does gas expire? This is a question for someone else (lol) but I think it must because my husband switches them out semi-frequently.

I’m sure I’m forgetting a few things, but this is the gist of how we approach being prepared for an emergency. I will say it was a bit more complex when our daughter was a baby. We included things like diapers, emergency formula (in case my breastmilk supply tanked), spare clothes, portable bassinet, etc. Now that she’s older and can eat regular food and is potty trained, the list has shrunk.

I think it also goes without saying that we are in a fortunate position to be able to have these extra supplies AND the space to store them. I feel very lucky and grateful to have this peace of mind, especially as a mom to a young child.

As always, thank you for reading! Share your ideas in the comments!