The contents of an Off Grid Tool Box could be endless, but let’s start with the fundamentals.  Make sure they are quality tools.  Consider investing in Craftsman or Snap On depending on your budget and how often you will use them.  Tools can also be purchased from a variety of places: Walmart, Home Depot, Lowe’s, Harbor Freight, etc.  Older quality tools are frequently found at estate sales.

Tools also come in assorted sizes.  Make your purchases based on what is most commonly needed; add other sizes to your tool box as your budget allows.

Basic tools:

• hammer
• screwdriver
• wrench
• pliers
• measuring tape
• saw
• axe / hatchet
• utility knife
• safety glasses
• duct tape

Assorted Hardware:

• nails
• screws
• bolts
• other?

Everyone has their own preferences when it comes to tools, but here are a few suggestions if you want to get started with an assortment of tools already assembled for you.

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When to get out of Dodge (GOOD) is the question a lot of survival minded people ask themselves. Sometimes, in the case of massive flooding or earthquake damage, the answer is obvious: get out now!

But looking ahead to a time when the rule of law and the structure of our society may not be reliable, when do we know that it’s time to get out, to leave the security of our homes and, hopefully, move on to a safer location?

Last month I asked a number of survival and preparedness experts to weigh in on this question. You can read Part 1 of their responses here.

Now for Part 2, another set of experts weigh in with their assessment of, “How will you know it’s time to get out of Dodge?”

From Nathan Jefferson, author of The Wayward Journey

The long and short answer is very binary. You won’t or you will.That’s really helpful, right? So let me clarify: in most possible scenarios you won’t really know that TSHTF right away. To help illustrate what I’m talking about I’ll use two events; Event X and Event Z.

Event X is a regional, national or even international event that leaves you wondering about your next steps. These happen dozens if not hundreds of times a year around the world and usually a level of normalcy returns after a few days, weeks or sometimes months.

Event Z, is the game changer. You aren’t wondering if TSHTF. Instead you are running around and executing your plan (you have a plan, right?) trying to prepare as fast as possible. The easiest examples would be nuclear war, invasion by foreign forces, national or international large scale events.

For this part of the discussion Event X will be our focus:

People, even the unprepared, are pretty resilient and it would normally take days if not weeks for things to slowly fall apart after Event X.

You’ve seen it on TV and in the news dozens if not hundreds of times after localized disasters. People sit around and expect someone to come help them and that everything will be all right. While there might be looting or other criminal elements around that you don’t see in your average day, things are still pretty quiet and society holds together until they eventually get better or worse. You can find hundreds of examples of things getting better; it’s the norm and to be expected.

It is this very expectation that helps keep the wheels on the bus for the first few days or weeks. As a prepper person who wants to help restore normalcy and keep you and your family safe you should be spending your time executing your plan, assuming things will get back to normal, but always being ready in case they don’t.

For this, you should have everything you would need for a bug out or to ‘hunker down’, ready and waiting. BOV (Bug Out Vehicle) loaded, BOBs (Bug Out Bags) stashed by the door, window protection pulled out from storage, water containers filled, etc. You are ready to bug out or you are ready to fortify, but you aren’t executing that part of the play, yet.You should be listening to the news; local, national and international. If available check the internet. Contact relatives, friends or those in your mutual support group via any means available, phone, internet, CB, Ham. You want to watch for things like:

• Widespread rioting
• Mass evacuations
• People being taken to relief camps
• Gas and food shortages
• Warnings that utilities will be out for extended periods of time
• Spreading unrest or turmoil

It will be up to you, based on what you learn, to make the judgment call of when to move to the next steps of your plan and bug out or fortify. If you are bugging out, leaving a day before normalcy returns probably won’t hurt, just treat it as a practice drill. If you are fortifying, you might want to wait to the last minute to do any permanent structural changes to your house, but having your protective plywood in position by windows and doors won’t hurt. For Event Z:

You know Event Z has happened. (If it is an Event X that turns into an Event Z, you should already be well on your way to being ready.) You will hopefully have some means to listen to the news and hear details such as:

• Nuclear attack/meltdown
• Martial law
• Invasion or large scale attacks
• National scale natural disaster/catastrophe (such as Yellowstone Super Volcano or meteor impact)
• Response to other disasters has failed
• Almost instant national unrest

If Event Z happens you will be executing your plans as fast as possible, hopefully it isn’t the first time you are testing it.

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Now that another school year has come and gone, I wanted to bring up the subject of homeschooling once again. Today’s episode of “The Survival Mom Radio Hour” discusses how to decide if homeschooling is right for you and what are some of the challenges you might face.

You have all summer to think about it!

As I’ve thought about our 9 years of homeschooling, I have to admit that some ages and grades were easier than others. Here is what was true for me:

Kindergarten – 2nd grade

On one hand these grades were super easy because the material was so simple. I taught my kids to read using How to Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons, and sure enough, it worked. Our school days were super short, and I read a LOT to my kids. In fact, for the first several years of my daughter’s life, her favorite “toys” were books.

What made these grades a little complicated at times wasn’t my student, it was her younger brother. I remember sitting at the kitchen table with her going over a math lesson (we started out using Saxon Math) while my son climbed onto my chair and tried to sit on my shoulders. He was old enough to know he was missing out on something but too young for those school lessons himself.

I tried many, many different diversions to hold his attention during “school hours” but it was a struggle. Life became easier when he was doing real live school work himself.

In most families with a kindergartener, there’s a high likelihood of younger siblings. There are lots of creative ways of juggling all these little ones at once but my very extroverted son just wanted to be in the middle of things. Literally.

One other complicating factor was that I still had to read almost everything to my daughter. We didn’t use traditional textbooks, but still we had lots of reading in subjects like nature and history.

However, during these years “school” can be finished in just a couple of hours, leaving time for field trips, park days, and play dates. We included all of these in our schedule.

3rd – 5th Grades

Gradually, as my kids became more proficient readers, they began doing more and more lessons on their own. However, since we were using Ambleside Online, and it’s still our curriculum of choice, the book selections were very advanced.

In 4th grade we had Robinson Crusoe on our reading list. That is no easy book for a 10-year-old! We read it together and there were many times I had to stop and explain some of the archaic words and terminology. Still, it was a great book.

What this has developed in both my kids is a no-fear attitude when it comes to books of any genre or copyright date. My daughter thought nothing of reading Peter Pan or Oliver Twist. She has read plenty of twaddle but is more than willing and able to read any classic that might show up on a “Must Read” book list.

She’s 13 and recently finished Animal Farm. “I hate pigs now more than ever. Except when they’re bacon.”

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One of the very first survival articles that caught my eye way back when was written by Ferfal, aka Fernando Aguirre. At the time he posted his notes about surviving the economic collapses of Argentina on a forum known as Frugal Squirrels.

I have no idea how I ended up on that forum, but it’s one of the best out there when it comes to overall preparedness chat and idea exchange.

Anyway, one item of interest was his mention of using gold jewelry as currency when the Argentine paper currency became all but worthless. He wrote about buying gold wedding rings and chains at pawn shops. These smaller amounts of gold became an effective way to purchase goods and services.

Over the years I’ve given this a lot of thought. I’ve often wondered about the practicality of owning a lot of gold coins if you’re planning on using that gold as a currency as the American dollar loses its value. Wouldn’t gold jewelry be just another way to “invest” in precious metals while giving you something pretty to wear as an added bonus?

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As you may have guessed, I have almost no time at all to just sit down and read a book. I have a huge stack of non-fiction, survival related books, and they’re sitting right where I put them. I scarcely have time to take a shower and make myself presentable each day, much less wile away the hours with my nose in a book.

This is why it’s such a delight to happen upon a book, purely by chance, that grabs my attention from the first page and keeps me entertained through the last. Collapse by Richard Stephenson is that type of book. Incredibly, Richard never had big dreams of becoming a novelist andCollapse is his first book, based on his musings of what it would take for America to collapse. It isn’t a cheery book, but it’s gritty, realistic, and definitely held my attention.

For someone with ADD, that says a lot! As the book opens, America has been hit with a second Great Depression that has devastated the economy, a killer hurricane that has reduced Florida to third world status, and a vicious, ongoing war with the Empire of Iran. America is crippled and the President faces enemies within his own administration. Collapse introduces us to three main characters. First is Howard Beck: billionaire, genius, close friend to the current President, and affected by Asperger’s Syndrome. Richard was smart to introduce this character first because everything about Howard is, well, really eccentric, and I kept turning page after page, just to learn more about this guy!

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1. Improve your soil, if it needs it. Marjory Wildcraft of Grow Your Own Groceries, says that conditioning your soil is one of the first thing any gardener should do. Keep in mind that soil composition can change over time and should be re-evaluated every so often.

Our garden was growing tomatoes non-stop, even throughout the winter, when suddenly everything pretty much died. We learned, later, that our soil had accumulated too much nitrogen and had to back up several steps to make some adjustments. You might need to:

• Have your soil tested by your local extension office
• Mix compost in with the soil you now have
• Add amendments, per instructions from extension office or local growers

2. Push your composting into high gear! Make sure everyone in the family knows what can and cannot be added to compost and place “compost catchers” near the kitchen sink and anywhere else food is prepared.

Get the kids busy shredding newspaper and old mail (remove plastic windows in envelopes before shredding). Visit a nearby coffee house and ask for their old coffee grinds. Ask neighbors for grass clippings, piles of old leaves, and vegetable peelings.

3. If you’re not sure what to plant and when, visit a farmer’s market and talk to the pros or search on the internet for local gardening blogs.

Out of curiosity, I did a search for “Phoenix garden blog” and came up with 28,900,000 results. OK, most of those won’t have the information I’m looking for, but the way I figure it is that if someone cares enough to write about their gardening efforts, they probably have some pretty good information and tips to share!

Local nurseries (probably not the big box store nurseries) will likely have good advice about what grows best in your climate. Remember that many of us live in micro-climates, which affects what we can grow and when it should be planted and harvested.

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Recently by Lisa Bedford: 23 Ultimate Survival Gifts for the Person Who Has Everything

Guest post by Kris.

Everything has a purpose – sometimes two or three of them! For most seasoned Survival Moms, some of these u201Creuseu201D ideas are already habit. But for those of us fairly new to frugal motherhood or the Survival Mom lifestyle, here are 20 things I never throw away:

For Storage:

2-liter bottles, gallon vinegar jugs, etc. – Use to store water (room temperature or frozen). Be sure to date and rotate every six months.

Huge coffee containers – I refill with whatever needs to be moved into rotation: brown sugar, instant oats, flour, powdered milk. These fit into my everyday pantry a lot easier than 5-gallon buckets. I can also fit about a dozen Ramen Noodle packages into one to make them less accessible for my tiny, four-legged nemeses.

Plastic peanut butter jars – The large ones can nicely fit a couple of bags of split peas, chick peas, or other bean varieties I don't usually buy in bulk. Or, if I'm moving longer-term food into rotation, these are perfect (and I can see what's in them). Also great for storing treats like dehydrated corn (which the kids eat like candy!), venison jerky, chunks of rock candy, or opened pretzels. I hate when that half-eaten bag goes stale!

Plastic food tubs – Perfect for leftovers – especially ones I'm sending home with guests. I also use the tiny sour cream tubs to store homemade lotions and my fledgling attempts at homemade yogurt. They're also nice for dividing up paint and paste for craft project because tossing them is cleanup.

Empty spice jars – Refill with your own dried spices at the end of the growing season.

Fancy wine, vinegar, or other glass bottles – I make my own fruit-flavored vodkas with the cheapest, bottom-shelf stuff. Then I pour it into pretty red wine vinegar bottles, attach a recipe for a fancy drink, and give as hostess gifts. Fun meets frugal.

Mason Jar boxes – Okay, I'm probably not a genius, but I sure felt like one when I discovered this. I almost feel like I should whisper it to you. If you slice the plastic down the very middle and just slide the new jars out the slit, you can restock the box with filled jars, label the side of the box with masking tape, and stack as high as you dare. The boxes are pretty stable, especially with the added support of the stretched-tight plastic. And it's a lot cheaper than buying those plastic storage stackers.

Cardboard boxes – Yes, you can store linens and off-season clothes. BUT you can also store valuables at the bottom, label the box u201Cwinter sweatersu201D or whatever, and stack that box at the very back and bottom of the closet until you can afford that 36-gun safe. I'll bet no burglar is going to rummage through your sweater box.

Baby food jars – We don't have babies anymore, but the jars are still in faithful service. My husband screwed the lids into a scrap of 2×4, which he then mounted to the wall of the garage. The top is a storage shelf. He can unscrew the jars from the lids to access the screws, nuts, bolts, nails, and other u201Cboy thingsu201D stored in the jars, which he can see without rummaging through drawers. He could actually be a genius. (Tip: Use two screws instead of one; our prototype featured jars that spun in a circle every time we tried to unscrew them.)

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Recently by Lisa Bedford: A Mom's Guide To Getting Ready for WinterTravel

This list isn’t for the faint of heart, nor for the person on a tighter-than-tight budget. However, if money allows and you want to give the ultimate gift to your favorite prepper or survivalist, here’s a list from practical to extravagant.

SIRT Training Pistol, must order by Dec. 13 for guaranteed Christmas arrival. Use coupon code 12sm12 to save 20% off the pistol and all Next Level Training products, good through January 1, 2013.

Jon Bullivant Urban Survival Gear Solar Backpack — Without a doubt, the very best survival kit I have ever seen. Includes a ballistic shield. This one has everything. Watch for a video review on my blog.

A SteriPEN water purifier. One for each emergency kit and the Sidewinder for off the grid action.

The MedCall Kit – Not cheap, but equipped with common prescription strength meds and loaded with vital supplies.

A Global Sun Oven — Save $80 on a loaded solar oven kit!

A Goal Zero solar generator. Quiet and needs only sunlight.

Emergency Evacuation Cart

Polartec blanket

How about a still for making homemade brew, for bartering purposes, of course!

A tactical vest complete with a holster and magazine pouches.

Every hard core prepper needs their own pocket geiger counter, right?

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Recently by Lisa Bedford: 15 Non-Traditional Containers for Your Bug Out Bag/Emergency Kit

Guest post by Kris.

Flashback to 2001, when my husband and I were traveling 4 hours to visit family for Christmas. Out of nowhere, mild snow flurries became a full-on snowstorm so fast that the road crews couldn’t keep up. We were stranded on the interstate at night – along with hundreds of other travelers – with no forward movement for over two hours. As newlyweds it was a small inconvenience and an excuse to kiss between Christmas carols on the radio.

A moms guide to getting ready for winter travelFlash forward to 2012. Two children and a (prepper) lifetime later, I realize that minor inconvenience today could result in a major meltdown – or worse. As a relatively new survival mom, I now carry items to ensure the comfort and safety of my family should my car (same one from 2001, plus about 195,000 miles) leave us stranded. Please note: NONE of this was on my radar at the time. But I couldn’t stop thinking about that snowstorm the first morning I had to scrape ice this fall. I’m now carrying:

Car kit – Fix-a-Flat, jumper cables, spare tire, extra keys, tow rope, and basic tools

72-hour kit – Food and water enough for the whole family, plus the basic fire-starting and survival tools you’d keep in a bug-out bag. Even if we don’t need to survive for days, a kid-friendly snack can be a big morale booster. Boredom plus low blood sugar equals meltdowns and multiplied stress. That’s math I’d rather not attempt. (P.S. My husband says carrying water is important, anyway, in case of an overheated radiator. Who knew?)

Complete first aid kit – I can’t tell you how many times I’ve doctored up other people’s kids at t-ball or soccer games from this trunk kit. I added some Celox just in case. And for my little guys, I got a version with tooth preservation gel. They only have two permanent teeth between them, but I’d really like to keep them. And if that snow storm causes a pile-up or ditch slide, we’ll have a few resources in case ambulances can’t get through.

Coveralls and blankets – I found these on clearance last summer and bought them a size up for the kids. In space bags, they nestle at the bottom of a clear bin in my trunk. I have also included a small case of “Hot Hands” instant warmers (like my husband takes hunting) just in case the battery dies or I run out of gas. Speaking of which…

At least a half tank of gas at all times

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Recently by Lisa Bedford: UPDATE to PurifiCup Review: MoreFluorideInfo

1. A rolling suitcase on wheels. Look for sturdy wheels because if one breaks off, you’ll be carrying that suitcase. Not fun! Some of these suitcases also have backpack straps.
2. A Rubbermaid container with lid. You select whichever size suits your needs and space. These are a good choice because the bin itself can be used to hold water, kindling, and a lot more.
3. Under the bed storage container – Mine fits perfectly in the back of my Tahoe and the transparent plastic lets me see the contents.
4. Trash can on wheels. These hold a lot, are very sturdy, and have an attached lid. They will also be heavy and difficult to load into a truck. However, if a trailer is part of your bug out/evacuation plans, you could store a trash can, fully packed, in the trailer. Include a box of heavy-duty black trash bags to keep the interior of the trash can clean if you ever have to use it for actual trash!
5. Space Bags – Great for use with softer items, such as blankets, coats, jackets, and pillows.
6. 5-gallon buckets with lid – Again, these buckets have multiple uses besides holding your emergency kit contents.
7. Multiple milk crates – My husband swears by these! They are extremely durable, stack easily, but do not have lids. They’re also free if you can find a grocery store that will give you one or more.
8. Military duffel bag – Soft-sided means you’ll be able to shove this bag behind and between things, and they come in several sizes. Their muted colors are also a plus.
9. Ziploc Flexible Tote – Inexpensive, can easily see inside the tote, and lightweight. Not heavy duty, though, if your evacuation includes trekking through the wilderness.

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Recently by Lisa Bedford: The Backstory of the Survival Mom Blog

When I posted my review of the PurifiCup and mentioned that it reduces fluoride, there was a flurry of interest. Fluoridated water has become very controversial in the past few years with some arguing that it amounts to involuntary mass medication. Not all cities fluoridate their waters and in some parts of the country, well water contains fluoride.

As questions arose about the PurifiCup’s ability to reduce fluoride in water, I contacted Robert Kao who heads the company out of Dallas. The product was developed in Taiwan and Japan where water isn’t fluoridated, so although he knew the PurifiCup’s filter reduced the amount of fluoride in water, he wanted to learn more about it and see if his product could be improved to remove even more.

In an email to me he stated:

First, because of our manufacturing partners in Taiwan and suppliers from Japan do not use any fluoride in their countries, and due to the different values of each city’s application in concentrations varies.. we had to do the (fluoride) test in the U.S. We have found the most common fluoride level in U.S. cities to be roughly 0.40-0.86 ppm (parts per million). So we did our testing with tap water from the city of Plano, Texas. The City states the fluoride level to be between 0.46ppm -0.66ppm range.

The following video shows the complete process of first, calibrating the meter from Hanna Instruments and second, testing both the City of Plano’s water for fluoride and then a sample that had been filtered by a PurifiCup.

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Recently by Lisa Bedford: What To Do When You Can't Avoid Being in the Wrong Place at the WrongTime

In disaster after disaster, we are reminded of the importance of having a way to purify water. When Hurricane Sandy hit the east coast, many water sources were quickly contaminated with sewage, gasoline, and other unhealthy ingredients. In a power outage it’s not possible for most people to boil water, so having other alternatives is vital.

The PurifiCup is a great solution for always having pure water. When I tested the PurifiCup for myself, I was impressed with the simple, effective design and the completely pure taste of the water.

Not only did the PurifiCup help my tap water taste better, but the unique filter removes fluoride. We own two other water filters and although both effectively purify water, neither removes fluoride. Since more and more Americans are becoming aware of the possible health issues related with fluoride (also read this), being able to remove fluoride is important to me.

The filter used by the PurifiCup removes heavy metals (mercury, copper, etc.), calcerous elements, such as magnesium, as well as fluoride. When I first tasted the water that had been filtered, I wondered what was missing. Now I know!

What makes the filter unique is its use of silver. Over the years I’ve learned about the anti-bacterial properties of silver and give my family members colloidal silver, especially when they’re sick or have an infection. Purifi-Cup has a nano-silver layer on its filter that effectively removes hundreds of different types of bacteria. You can read the science behind this use of silver here.

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Recently by Lisa Bedford: Action Step: Buy Junk Silver

This article is sponsored by Home Security Store, who asked me to review their ebook, Crowd Control, Flash Mobs, and Your Safety.

When the economy made a sickening downturn about five years ago, I fully expected to see crime rates increase. It made perfect sense. Individuals who were out of work and in need of money to pay for the essentials in life would turn to a life of crime.

Instead, annual reports from the FBI indicated that crime rates were actually dropping! Between 2008 and 2011, murder and robbery rates dropped sharply, in spite of the economic conditions that continued to grow worse.

In spite of those statistics, it was hard not to notice an increase in a new type of crime, the flash mob. I know I wasn’t the only American who was disgusted and angry at reports that swarms of people would descend upon a helpless, unarmed business, often a retail or convenience store, stuff their pockets, backpacks and purses with anything and everything, and then leave, long before the police arrived.

More than once I wondered what I would do if I were caught in that type of scenario. The urge to do something would be strong, but the smarter side of me realized I would be in the minority and, therefore, vulnerable.

I suspect that mob violence will continue to grow, and not just in the form of flash mobs. Around the world we see mobs, angry that their governments have let them down, and they can no longer afford the basics. The only solution, as they see it, is to express their rage and helplessness by rioting.

Will those riots come to America? Might you and your family suddenly find yourself in the middle of an angry crowd and, possibly, in danger? If that happens, will you be prepared to survive and escape?

I wrote about civil unrest here, and created this video, but I also picked up some new tips from the ebook, Crowd Control, Flash Mobs, and Your Safety.

• The “Bystander Effect,” causes people who are generally well-meaning and concerned about others to feel little to no responsibility for a situation due to being part of a large group of people. I want to train myself to react to emergencies in an appropriate way in spite of the number of people who could do something but are not.

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This action step is designed to help you dip your toe in the world of precious metals. It’s a lot easier than you might think.

I used to be very intimidated by the thought of buying gold or silver because I had never collected coins and had never been in a coin store in my life. Chris Slife, of Howling Coyote Silver Company, gave me a great tutorial, which I posted here and here, and I made my first venture into the world of precious metals.

This Action Step is to purchase one or more ounces of junk silver. Junk silver is just quarters and dimes that are dated 1964 or earlier. These coins are 90% silver and are an easy way to begin buying precious metals. They may also come in handy someday when the dollar is devalued because they are easily recognizable as legitimate silver based on their date and denomination

Purchasing either silver or gold is also a smart way to preserve your wealth, since the dollar has been declining in value over the past several decades. This trend will continue and will likely accelerate as the federal government pumps massive amounts of “new” money into the money supply. The value of the dollar is never going to increase, so you might as well invest in precious metals as you can afford to, because those will always have value.

So, here’s the plan.

1. Visit a local coin store and ask to see a pre-1964 quarter or dime.
2. Compare that coin with a quarter or dime you have in your pocket. It will look and feel different.

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In this video I share how easy it is to use a laminator, something you probably already knew! However, until I started pulling out those laminating sheets and scouring the house for various documents, I didn’t realize how many uses there were for that machine!

Here’s the video, which also reviews the Fellowes laminator, followed by my list of 28 things to laminate!

1. Photos and a personal information sheet of each family member and pet in case of evacuation or lost child/pet
2. Local wildlife ID cards
3. Chore lists
4. Evacuation checklist
5. List of items for your emergency kits/bug out bags
6. Medication lists – who gets what, when, and how much
7. Insurance information (house, car, life, health, etc.)
8. Whiteboard pages – Put one in each kid’s emergency kit along with a dry erase marker.
9. Vehicle maintenance checklist
10. Vehicle emergency checklist
11. Laminate one emergency card per person. Include name, photo, description, medical info, and identifying marks.
12. Maps for evacuation with routes marked
13. Important contacts, including phone numbers, addresses, and email addresses

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Before we know it, the season of colds and sniffles and coughs will be upon us. One of my readers shared with me these three recipes, and I wanted to pass them along to you before you’re faced with a sick family and have no choice but to make a mad dash to the drugstore.

These recipes require natural ingredients such as essential oils, coconut oil, and herbs. They’re very simple to make and will provide an all-natural alternative to whatever the drugstore sells, and I’m a big fan of Nyquil! Another reason to make these is just to learn how to make your own salves and oil mixtures – a great skill for any Survival Mom.

By the way, I tried to track down the original source of the first two recipes but couldn’t find them online. If you know of the source, please let me know so I can give proper credit.

Homemade Liquid Vapor Rub

1 oz. coconut oil 1 oz. olive oil 6 drops tea tree essential oil 4 drops eucalyptus essential oil 4 drops lavender essential oil

Warm the coconut oil until liquid. Combine all ingredients. Let sit at room temperature or in the refrigerator until solidified.

Essential Oil Vapor Rub

10 drops eucalyptus essential oil 10 drops peppermint essential oil 3 drops thyme essential oil 1/8 c. olive oil

Combine all the oils and mix well. To use, rub oil mixture over the throat and chest, then cover up to help increase the warming effect. This is very effective when done right at bedtime as it helps relieve congestion and helps you fall asleep more easily.

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The Best of Lisa Bedford

I used to read one book after another and even won an award in 1st grade as an official, “Prescott, Arizona, Bookworm!” If I ever find the photo of myself wearing a bookworm costume standing in front of the city library, I’ll post it.

These days I’m more likely to be found reading non-fiction survival manuals and rarely have time to read simply for pleasure. However, last month I set a goal to begin reading survival, or apocalyptic, fiction and have 3 books under my belt.

Lucifer’s Hammer by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle

This book came highly recommended by a number of friends who are avid readers, and they were right on the money with their positive reviews. I thoroughly enjoyed the book once the action got started, about 25% into the book. Here is my review on video.

The Jakarta Pandemic by Steven Konkoly

Again, a winner in the category of survival fiction. This time around it’s a worldwide pandemic that threatens humanity. No family is untouched by the ravages of this virus, but fortunately, our hero, Alex Fletcher is a prepper and his family is well prepared for this and just about any other crisis.

It’s apparent from the first pages that everything Alex does, in terms of being prepared, is for the sake of his family. His wife, Kate, is completely on board but occasionally challenges Alex’s decisions and judgement. Together, they make a strong team, determined to protect their family from, first, the flu and then multiple dangers that come from neighbors and strangers alike.

Alex has three advantages: he’s a former Marine, is a pharmaceutical sales rep with access to a lot of medical information, and has an extremely well stocked basement with every sort of provision his family will need.

This book really kept my interest throughout and made me think about how prepared our family isn’t for a large scale pandemic. Unlike many other disaster scenarios, this one would require an individual or family to remain completely isolated for months. I had never thought that something as simple as my mail could transmit a virus or that a deadly pandemic would shut down power plants, water/sewage plants, and virtually eliminate most first responders.

There are a few odd notes here and there, such as Alex’s ridicule of Fox News and his obsession with watching The Today Show. Often these details didn’t dovetail with the picture I was getting in my mind of this character, his motivations, and state of mind.

Survivalists and preppers will enjoy reading about Alex’s stash of food, weapons, and other supplies, as well as some of his tactical and strategic decisions.

The Jakarta Pandemic has been recorded for readers who enjoy listening to their books, and that recording can be found here. It’s available at Amazon.

Overall, I give this book 4 out of 5 stars and as a mom, give it a PG rating for language and a bit of graphic violence.

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Food storage is the Queen of Survival Topics on most sites and forums because, I guess, people are naturally drawn to food. That’s a good thing! Another reason so much attention is given to the topic is because food storage isn’t simple like, say, storing water. I’ve heard it describes as both a science and an art.

In my most recent webinar, “Food Storage Basics”, we covered the topic thoroughly, from reasons why to store food, stupid reasons to NOT store food, and beginning steps.

You can access the recorded webinar by clicking here.

In addition to the webinar, however, I wanted to answer a handful of frequently asked questions because there is always more to learn when it comes to food storage.

Q: My kids are quite young, ages 2 and 3. Should I store food in amounts appropriate to their ages now or later when they’re eating more?

A: It’s really, really smart to think about this ahead of time. As an older mom of two kids, ages 10 and 13, I can tell you that time will fly and before you know it, their appetites will surpass yours! I recommend looking ahead and storing larger amounts of food, as though your kids were already those ages. A crisis may hit later this week and cause you to rely on your stored food and with extra, it will just last longer. It won’t go to waste. However, if some horrible event happens 5 or 6 years from now and you’ve stored your food correctly, there will be plenty for those older kids.

Q: My husband wants us to store just the basics, saying that our family will eat anything if we’re hungry enough. I disagree but am not sure how to counter his argument. What do you think?

A: Your husband wants to provide for his family and like a lot of men, just wants to get the job done and move on to something else! I can’t blame him. You, on the other hand, realize that there’s more to food than just filling tummies and holding off starvation. If you think about a time when your family has to rely on stored food, I can guarantee that it’s because of some very scary scenario. It could be an economic collapse, riots in the neighborhood, food shortages, a personal tragedy. Whatever the case, life is already going to be off the scale in terms of stress. Do you really think it’s a good idea to fight food battles every night, trying to get the kids, and yourself, to eat something barely palatable?

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Last month I challenged you to schedule a family camping trip. My family went on a 3100 mile road trip and camped about half the time. One night we arrived late at our reserved campsite, only to discover in was a concrete RV parking lot! There were generators running all night long and a streetlight glaring through our tent window. Live and learn.

Anyway, one thing I have always enjoyed about being outdoors is that it is such a natural fit for kids. They love exploring the sights, sounds, and smells that surround them. On one trip when the kids were younger, we practiced walking through the forest as quietly as possible. They had been learning about various Indian tribes and were convinced they could move soundlessly through the forest! Another time we took a bird identification book with us that came with recordings of each bird’s call. We were delighted to hear the caw of a crow, play the recorded caw, and then hear the live bird respond!

Camping is a natural way to introduce survival concepts and skills to kids but also important academic information they will only learn via a school textbook, if at all. Here are just a few of the ways you can turn any camping trip into a great educational experience.

Studying nature: Look for and identify animal tracks and edible plants. Sit silently and watch and listen for animals. Identify birds and their calls. Always popular, looking for animal poop, examining it to see what the animals eats, and then identifying which animal pooped.

Survival Skills: There are so many of these: locating and purifying water, fire-starting, safety in the wilderness, and use of compass. Take a night time hike to help your kids, and yourself!, overcome their fear of being out in the dark and try walking on a safe path without using a flashlight.

Primitive Cooking: Learn how to set up a safe campfire, cook over a campfire, and use a Dutch oven.

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Starting in mid-May, my email box began filling up with questions about storing food in hot weather. The current heat wave covering most of the nation hasn’t helped matters and food is particularly susceptible to the effects of high temperatures.

I wanted to share with you the answer I give to this question and some of the tips we use in our own home.

First, as you may know, I live in Phoenix and know all about summer heat! We have to be careful of indoor temps beginning around early to mid-May all the way through October! (Kids don’t exactly wear jackets over their Halloween costumes around here!)

It’s a smart thing to be worried about the effects of heat on the food you’re storing, but also guard against light, oxygen, pests, and humidity. In our home we have a spare bedroom that has become our food storage pantry. We haven’t come up with a perfect solution for dealing with the heat, but here’s what we’ve done.

First, my husband covered the window with an opaque film to help keep out the heat. A big percentage of heat is transmitted indoors via windows, plus light damages food over time. Keep your windows covered, even in the winter and if you can do something to insulate them, that would be even better. Home improvement stores sell large sheets of styrofoam, which can be cut to measure any window. This styrofoam is used to insulate stucco homes, and while not attractive at all, it can be effective in keeping heat out of individual rooms.

During the summer, I generally keep the air conditioning set to 80 degrees during the day. Our home is very well insulated, and this temp works for us. Your situation may be different and you might need to lower the A/C in order to maintain an ambient temperature of less than 80 degrees. Test the temperature of your main food storage area occasionally. Install a ceiling fan to circulate the cooler air entering the room or consider buying a small A/C unit to keep in the room and use only on the hottest days. We haven’t done that but I would if our house wasn’t so well insulated.

Under no circumstances should you store food outside in the heat and keep in mind that a consistent temperature is better for your food than fluctuating temperatures.

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Massive solar flares have been in the news recently, along with vague warnings of how a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) might affect us here on earth. The dangers of a man-made Electro-Magnetic Pulse (EMP) was outlined in excruciating detail in One Second After by William Forstchen.

We rely on electronics way too much to ignore the potential of these events, and although even the experts aren’t always in agreement where details are concerned, it makes sense to have a plan to protect important electronics in either event.

What experts do agree on is that many items with any type of electronic component may become inoperable by either a CME or EMP. From Survival Mom: How to prepare your family for everyday disasters and worst-case scenarios:

An EMP can be caused by the detonation of a large bomb, nuclear or otherwise, in the atmosphere, miles above land. Its pulse wave can easily cover a continent and destroy electronic components in computers, engines, power plants, and solar panels alike. An event like this has never happened on a large scale, and there are differing opinions as to the exact consequences, but one thing is certain: In a matter of moments, life as we know it would be gone forever. Our closest star, the sun, could also do extensive damage in the form of a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME). The results would be similar.

I don’t have a plan to turn my garage into a giant Faraday cage in hopes that our vehicles would be spared, but I have made plans to protect other, smaller items that would make a huge difference in our survival following a CME or EMP. Here is a list of some of those items.

1. Mp3 players filled with music. also, every spare set of earphones I can scrape up around here.
2. An old laptop computer with downloads of ebooks and stored personal information
3. One or more digital cameras
4. A set of walkie-talkies that run on rechargeable batteries
5. Solar battery chargers
6. A Kindle containing more than 150 books, many of them reference and survival books but also dozens of classics and a couple version of the Bible
7. One or more digital watches and clocks
8. Small DVD player (a backup player would be good also)
9. Any and all digital photos stored on a DVD and/or a thumb drive
10. Scanned documents stored on a DVD and/or thumb drive (See Grab-n-Go Binder.)
11. Computer hard drives
12. Ham radio equipment
13. A small generator
14. LED flashlights
15. Shortwave radio
16. Inverters
17. Electronic medical equipment

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A few weeks ago I was in a particularly depressed mood. That’s not the norm for me, but this time it was completely justified. I was pondering my children’s futures.

College prices have sky-rocketed, far surpassing wage increases. My daughter will be ready for college in five years. Will we be able to afford a college education for her or even pay a percentage of it? And, if she does go to college, what will she major in that will provide a reliable career in a world whose future is increasingly unreliable?

Perhaps my kids should learn a trade that would provide a rock-solid income, but what would that be? As a mom, I want their futures to be as secure as possible, giving them a chance of achieving their dreams and a comfortable lifestyle.

As you might imagine, it was right around this point that my thinking got pretty muddled. Is there a career that’s EMP-proof? A job that will provide their families with an income even if the dollar goes belly up and America, as we know it, declines forever?

I’m still not sure what path they should take, and of course they have a say in their future plans! However, my brain lit upon something that gave me hope as I contemplated a dismal future.

What’s more important than a college degree?

The future job market may be bleak for professions from A to Z, but people will always, always, look for and need leaders. People who have the skills, confidence, and personality to stand up and lead. Isn’t that what our world is crying out for right now? Leadership?

My son could easily become an electrician, capable of wiring a building, knowing electrical code, and also able to give direction, focus, and encouragement to his peers and family. Perhaps my daughter will become a florist, but why can’t she also live her life with goals and a vision and inspire others to do the same? It’s those leadership qualities and skills that may very well trump another person’s Ivy League education.

I believe the future belongs to those who possess leadership skills and are willing to step out and lead. Leadership, though, is mostly taught and nurtured. Skills such as decisiveness, ambition, the ability to motivate and inspire are not taught in the public school. I spent 9 years in the classroom as a public school teacher and another 4 as a school district trainer. Trust me. There is nothing in the public school curriculum that teaches leadership skills. If your child is to become a leader in a tumultuous and unpredictable future, you will have to teach him or her yourself.

What skills and qualities should you begin focusing on? Here are a few:

Communication skills

From an early age, give your children practice speaking to and with adults. At restaurants, insist that they place their own orders with the waitress. Stand back and let them approach the librarian or store clerk with their questions. Be willing to sit and just listen to your child as they put their thoughts and emotions into words. Enroll them in activities that will require them to make speeches or presentations or communicate with the general public. Many adults shrink away from this themselves, but it’s impossible to be a leader without effective communication skills.

Even if there is no need for your child to earn money, getting a job is an excellent way to learn how to communicate with all sorts of people. My first job was at J.C. Penney and I had to work in the children’s clothing department. I learned how to strike up conversations with customers, ask my boss for help when I needed it, and not crawl into a hole when the store manager showed up! All lifelong skills!

Creating a vision

All children have fantasies and dreams for their futures. Encourage them to talk about what they want to be when they grow up, what they want to do, to build, to create. Nothing meaningful on this earth has ever been accomplished without, first, a vision. Our world has been greatly enhanced by people like Steve Jobs and Thomas Edison. They let their imaginations run wild, and apparently, so did their parents!

Setting and achieving goals

Once your child has a vision for something, help him or her break it down into smaller parts. Setting and achieving goals is an enormous confidence builder but too many people, including most adults, have no idea of the power of goal-setting. Start with a small goal, perhaps earning a certain amount of money or achieving some specific goal in a school subject. Write out the goal and what has to be done in order to complete it. This teaches kids to know what they want and what has to be done to get it.

Courage in the face of opposition

We live in a world where too few people have courage. They are too willing to behave like sheep and kowtow to the latest version of political correctness. A real leader stands up for what he or she believes in the face of ridicule, prejudice, and rejection. As well, it takes courage to finish a difficult task and overcome obstacles of every kind. Facing peer pressure is another chance to be courageous and do the right thing.

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Have you decided to take the Survival Mom Family Camping Challenge? If so, you might find this list interesting and helpful. How many of these skills do you already have? Which do other family members have and which will you need to learn?

Keep in mind that these skills aren’t just limited to camping. They are basic survival skills as well, which might come in handy someday if you or your children are lost or need to evacuate to a rural area.

• Cook over an open fire
• Know multiple ways to start a fire
• Know how to safely put out a fire
• Store food safely outdoors
• Cook on a camp stove
• Learn how to tie a reef knot, bowline, sheet bend, clove-hitch knot and when to use them

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This is an excerpt from my book, Survival Mom: How to Prepare Your Family for Everyday Disasters and Worst Case Scenarios.

One of the most critical uses of electricity is staying cool in very hot weather. Our bodies can become quickly overheated, with young children and the elderly being most susceptible. I was in Chicago during one of its worst heat waves in 1995. Employees of the Hyatt Hotel where I was staying had to stand on the roof and hose down giant air-conditioning units with water in order to keep them running. In a matter of days, more than 700 people died because of this heat wave.

How did our ancestors survive, then, without air conditioning? I’ve spent my entire life in the American Southwest, and as you might expect, I have a few tricks up my sleeve when it comes to staying cool:

1. Keep spray bottles of water around and spritz faces and wrists to stay cool.

2. In the earliest morning hours, open windows to let in all that cool air. Be sure to close them again, along with all blinds and curtains, once the day begins to heat up.

3. Just before bedtime, spray bed sheets with plenty of water, aim a battery-powered fan toward your side of the bed, jump in, and go to sleep, quickly!

4. Wear bathing suits around the house.

5. If you’ll be outside, wet a bandanna, place a few ice cubes down the center, diagonally, roll it up, and tie it around your neck.

6. Check doors and windows for incoming warm air and install weather-stripping if necessary. This will do double duty in the winter, when cold air is the enemy. Duct tape can substitute for weatherstripping if you’re desperate.

7. Check the western exposure of your home. If you have windows that face west, check into inexpensive blinds from Home Depot or Lowe’s. Even aluminum foil taped over your windows (gasp!) can help keep your home cooler.

8. If you need to do outside chores, do them in the morning when the sun rises or even earlier.

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One of my readers contacted me to let me know that she has given up smoking as a way to prep. She said, “I have my weak moments like anyone, but I laugh through my tears, cause I’m in control!” All her preparedness related activities are keeping her mind and hands busy.

If you or someone you love wants to stop smoking, here are some huge motivators:

• One package of cigarettes costs around $6. One month’s worth and you’re talking some pretty serious prepping money, almost enough to buy a Sun Oven or a Berkey. In the future, health care may become very expensive and possibly scarce. As a smoker, you might have to just suffer with all those smoker-related ailments and disease.
• Stop smoking now, while you have access to lots of support systems.

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My kids and I finished our 8th year of homeschooling two weeks ago. It was the very best year we’ve ever had, in spite of being interrupted by endless sessions of editing my book and then launching the book in March, complete with lots of interviews and excitement.

As I think about our 8 years as a homeschooling family, I have to be honest. It hasn’t all been happy faces and gold stars. There are some downsides that not many of us like to talk about.

1. At times, your children will be outsiders. They won’t be hip to all the latest fashion trends, video games, music, and fads. Many of these are fun and harmless, but it will be your kids who may seem like the odd man out because they won’t fit in.
2. Sometimes you will be the outsider as other moms talk about the teachers at their kids’ school and which sports their kids are into this year.
3. There will be times when school will be no fun at all. For anyone.
4. You’ll have to listen to public school parents brag about their kids being accepted into gifted programs and how great their kid’s school is. You might detect a bit of defensiveness but it wouldn’t be polite to point that out.
5. Sometimes virtual strangers will confront your decision to homeschool. “You can’t shelter them forever, you know.” Yes, I was told that when I informed someone I would be homeschooling our 5-year-old.
6. You’ll spend a lot of time second guessing yourself:
   1. Should we have chosen that other curriculum?
   2. Am I doing enough?
   3. Am I doing too little?
   4. Are my kids well-adjusted?
   5. I thought homeschooled kids weren’t shy but my daughter is. What did I do WRONG???

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• Sterling silver flatware — Even if you can only afford to buy a spoon or a fork at a time, sterling silver is known to have antimicrobial properties. Some people believe that simply using silver flatware as everyday eating utensils can ward off harmful microbes. Typically, a single piece of silver, such as a spoon, will run about $50. Buy from reputable sellers, such as established estate sale agents and thrift stores.
• Survival related reference books — Peruse Amazon lists such as this one and become familiar with titles, authors, and subject areas. Books about homesteading, gardening skills, primitive camping, wilderness survival, and so much more are very often found for just a couple of dollars, or less. Other books to look for: Boy Scout manuals, Foxfire books, and issues of Backwoods Home magazines and anthologies.
• Grain mill — A good mill can run upwards of $300 and more, but it’s not uncommon to find them in yard sales and thrift stores. Familiarize yourself with good brand names, ask to test the mill with actual wheat (if possible), but otherwise, I’ve found mills in very good condition for less than $50.
• Camping equipment — Good quality tents, sleeping bags, camp stoves, lanterns, cots, etc. are often sold at very low prices by people who thought camping was a great idea, tried it once or twice, and decided to stick with hotels! Their loss is your gain!
• Good quality knives — Look for brand names such as K-Bar, Cold Steel, and Gerber and know how to spot quality. A Swiss Army Knife is also a good find.
• Homeschooling supplies — In a crisis, you may end up being your children’s teacher. Workbooks, classic literature, flash cards, math manipulatives, textbooks, and even school supplies are very often for sale by homeschoolers who are moving up a grade or have decided to liquidate their stockpile of school supplies.
• Winter wear — I once picked up a super heavy duty men’s winter coat for ten dollars. I was thrilled because it looks like it’s never been worn and came in a dry cleaner’s bag. Look for snow boots, winter gloves, and other pieces of winter wear, and if you have kids, buy this clothing in a size or two larger for future winters.
• Boots — Work boots, riding boots, gardening boots, mucking boots, military boots, motorcycle boots, cowboy boots, hiking boots, desert boots — who knew there were so many different kinds of boots? Check for quality construction and material as well as wear and tear. When it comes to taking care of your feet, always go for quality.
• Tools — There’s just something about old tools from the 40′s and 50′s that beats the heck out of today’s “Made in China” label. Some sellers are savvy to the higher quality of their tools and may ask a bit more, but in the long run, it will be worth it.
• Battery-operated appliances — I get a lot of questions about survival following an EMP or long-term power outage. If you find battery powered fans, important appliances, and other tools, buy them, just to be ready for a power-down scenario. Be sure to stock up on the appropriate batteries as well.
• Food dehydrator — No need to be a snob about this. I still use the inexpensive American Harvest dehydrator I bought a few years ago on Craigslist. I spent $30 and got extra trays, fruit leather trays, and even a couple of screen trays.

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After 4 years of being The Survival Mom, I’ve been reflecting on what I would do differently if I were starting to prep right now. Maybe my mistakes will help you avoid a few pitfalls. I wish I would have:

1) Read less Survival Blog and watched more how-to videos on YouTube.

Survival Blog gave me a big kick in the pants for getting started in preparedness, but it also sucked me into near-panic attacks and bouts of despair. One day my husband came home from work to find me at my desk, in my pajamas, hypnotically reading article after article on Survival Blog. Rather than motivate me into action, I was frozen with fear.

YouTube is also filled with massive amounts of great information but in smaller doses and often accompanied by a friendly face and voice. I would have learned more about waxing cheese, filtering water, and stocking up on veterinary antibiotics, all of which would have been more practical than reading tips for buying property safe from rifle fire. James Rawles is one of my heroes, but for a beginner, YouTube videos would have been more helpful and encouraging.

2) Bought less crap and more high-quality products.

Preparedness is best done in this order: awareness, education, and then action. I steered clear of education and jumped right into the action phase. That’s my style, I guess! Early on I bought a lot of cheap “survival” products that were recently sent to a thrift store as a donation. Because I had a stack of “awesome” coupons, I bought bottles and bottles of salad dressing we’ve never used and has since turned all sorts of weird colors. I don’t think the thrift store will be interested in those, and I can’t blame them.

I’ve since learned that buying the best quality we can afford is smart, even if we have to wait until we have the money. A high-quality pair of walking shoes could make the difference between life and death someday. We want tools, supplies, and even food that is meant to last for the long haul, not bargain basement specials that are cheaply produced and quickly fall apart.

3) Spent less money early on

I imagine that most preppers start off in a panic mode and begin amassing enormous quantities of stuff, just for the sake of having stuff. However, I have learned that doing a fair amount of research first is the smartest way to go.

I didn’t know much about food storage conditions, for example, when I first began buying extra food and soon found myself with packets and boxes of potato flakes infested with tiny black bugs.

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Many women enjoy target shooting, but I have found something even better – a fun and practical shooting sport called IDPA. IDPA stands for International Defensive Pistol Association and is a shooting sport that simulates real life self-defense scenarios. Shooters use full size weapons and holsters that are practical for real life concealed carry. All you need to compete is a handgun, strong side belt holster, magazine/speedloader holder, cover garment for concealment, and eye and ear protection.

I have been shooting in IDPA matches for a year now. Notice I didn’t say “competing”, because I am still far from reaching a competitive skill level. IDPA is a friendly sport and beginners are always welcome. I’m not sure if this is true everywhere, but in my area kids are also welcome. Experienced shooters are friendly and encouraging and happy to share tips and discuss equipment and gadgets.

kel2crop 300×293 Rev Up Your Shooting Skills with IDPAAt a match, shooters are assigned to squads and are under the direction of a Safety Officer. The SO runs the squad and gives all the range commands. A match consists of several stages. In each stage, the SO reads a scenario and explains the requirements for that stage. There are instructions for the order of shooting targets and how many rounds in each target. For example, you might need to put two rounds in the chest and one round in the head of each target, from behind cover or while moving to cover. You might have to shoot with just your strong hand or just your weak hand. Some targets are marked “non-threat” and partially block targets you need to hit. Most targets are fixed, but some swing back and forth so they peek out from behind non-threat targets. Some targets only face the shooter for a couple of seconds and are activated by shooting a steel target. It is a challenge!

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