“Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without!”

This last Sunday Michelle Bell gave a great talk in Sacrament Meeting about being self-reliant.  Here are a few of her great quotes!

Zeith B. McMullin:
 “Work is the source of happiness, self-esteem, and prosperity. In the economy of God, there is no room for chicanery and greed.”

Brigham Young:
“I commend to all the virtues of industry and thrift, which I believe go hand in hand.  The labor and thrift of the people make a nation, a community, or a family strong.  Work and thrift make the family independent. “

President Hinckley:
“I believe in the gospel of work.  Work is the miracle by which talent is brought to the surface and dreams become reality. . . . . The process of stretching our minds and utilizing the skills of our hands lifts us from the stagnation of mediocrity. “

Spencer W. Kimball:
“The responsibility for each member’s spiritual, social, emotional, physical, or economic well-being rests first, upon himself, second, upon his family, and third, upon the Church.  Members of the Church are commanded by the Lord to be self-reliant and independent to the extent of their ability.”

Thank you Michelle for reminding us to strive for self-sufficiency. 

Emergency preparedness Tips

I put on a presentation for the Relief Society this last Thursday. I wanted to put up the tips that we talked about. This is the information I went over, the tips will follow.

For many of us, actually sitting down and creating a food storage plan, seems not only difficult, but, costly and time consuming. Several women have shared tips on how they do their food storage, and although many of us know a fair amount, we don’t take the time to put all the pieces together to actually move forward with a plan. (www.molly-mormon.com/ food storage tips)

"We ask that you be wise as you store food and water and build your savings. Do not go to extremes; it is not prudent, for example, to go into debt to establish your food storage all at once. With careful planning, you can, over time, establish a home storage supply and a financial reserve."
—The First Presidency

According to figures gathered by one of the food storage manufacturing firms, less than 6% of the members of the Church have an adequate emergency program.

Where do you fit into this figure?

Let’s enjoy life as much as we can – but let’s also be prepared. As we have recently seen, an unexpected disaster or loss of income can strike every s-o-o quickly.

“When the emergency is upon us, the time of preparation has passed.” (www.ldsemergencyresources.com/food-storage)

First Two Tips...

Buy ingredients, not prepared foods

Ingredients such as salt, honey, oatmeal and wheat will last a lot longer than prepared foods like TV dinners, cereals, and food mixes. Naturally, as you purchase food ingredients, you’ll want to practice actually using them! And remember the basics. For example, if you purchase a bag of wheat, how exactly do you plan to make flour out of it? (ldsemergencyresources.com/food-storage)

Buy extra, use FIFO

Go ahead and buy more food than normal when you’re out shopping, and set it aside. Use the “first in, first out” rule to eat your older supplies first. Keep rotating your supplies so you never abandon food “way in the back.” (www.ldsemergencyresources.com/food-storage/

Here's the rest of the Tips...

Work your food storage plan into your regular shopping list.

Buy ingredients, not prepared foods.

Buy in Bulk.

Home canning is cost effective, not difficult but time consuming.

Dry packing with a food saver or vacu-pack-type machine is a good option for preserving items bought in bulk, or maybe even for spices.

Gardening: allows for a greater degree of self reliance.

Families should store the type of food they like to eat.

Families should sit down together to discuss their needs and ways to build up food storage and prepare for emergencies.

72-hr kit: Babies and small children need special considerations. Diapers, wipes, bottles, formula, blankets, binky’s… etc.

72-hr kit: Have copies of all important documents like birth certificates, shot records, insurance policies and deeds in your 72-hr kit.

Things like soap, shampoo, toothpaste, laundry detergent are all things that should be considered when planning your year supply.

72-hr kit: A “refresh” card that lists the contents of your kit and the dates that medication and perishables will expire.

72-hr kit: A corded phone. It will still work when the power is out.

Medication: Get a 7-day supply of any daily prescription(s) you or your child is taking. You can ask your doctor for a 1-week supply for your kit.

Have a communication plan. Teach your children a cell number or good contact number in case of an emergency. Also, designate an out of state contact for family members to check in with, in the case of a larger disaster.

Have an emergency numbers list near your home phone.

Don’t forget your pet! They need supplies too!

Food Storage

You’ll be glad you did.

Dutch Oven Cooking Class

Thursday night I attended a night Relief Society class that focused on dutch oven cooking taught by Bonnie Waltz. She highlighted many great features of dutch ovens. Such as being able to adapt anything from stove top to dutch oven, using charcoal as the heating source.
~ frying, boiling -- heat from the bottom
~ baking-- 2:1 ratio lid to bottom
~ roasting-- 1:1 ratio top and bottom
~ stewing, simmering -- 4:1 bottom to lid ratio
~ lid- turned upside down can be used as a griddle

We also learned that a proper dutch oven needs to have a lid with a flange, or lip around edge, legs and a bail (the wire handle). The best ones are cast iron, but aluminum is also a choice.

Bonnie cooked a variety of foods for us to try. The bread pudding, chicken pot pie and biscuits were great. A big thank you to her for putting this class together and teaching such a yummy class!

Activity Day Girls Project

This last Wednesday the Activity Day leaders had a great project for the girls. They talked about emergency preparedness and then put together little 72-hr kits to get the girls started. The kits included things like granola bars, raisins, beef jerky, cup-o-noodles, trail mix and even a small first aid kit.

This is a good example for us all. It only takes a little bit of effort to get something put together, even if it's only something small.

A great quote was included in the kit:
"'Self-reliance means using all of our blessings from Heavenly Father to care for ourselves and our families and to find solutions for our own problems.' Each of us has a responsibility to try to avoid problems before they happen and to learn to overcome challenges when they occur ...

"How do we become self-reliant? We become self-reliant through obtaining sufficient knowledge, education, and literacy; by managing money and resources wisely, being spiritually strong, preparing for emergencies and eventualities; and by having physical health and social and emotional well-being." -Julie B. Beck, Relief Society general president, Ensign Jan. 2010

Cannery

A new price list just came out from the cannery with increased prices.

According to the new price list from April 4th, many food staples
have increased by more than 20% since the last price list came out just 3 months ago on January 3rd.

Beans. Black 13.69%
Beans, Pinto 12.13%
Beans, White 11.88%
Milk, Non Fat Dry 25.00%
Rice 38.99%

Sugar 33.81%
Wheat, Red/White 44.54%
Apple Slices 24.53%
Carrots 21.31%
Macaroni 40.25%

Oats, Quick 48.90%
Oats, Regular 49.19%
Onions 21.60%
Potato Flakes 33.33%
Spaghetti 38.99%

Beans, Refried 27.72%
Cocoa Mix 40.69%
Flour 29.70%
Fruit Drink Mix 26.20%4

Now, I don't know if the prices are rising due to gas prices or inflation, but it gets you thinking about the future.

From the Stake Handout on Food Storage

COMPLEMENARY PROTEINS

Meat is a complete protein. It's the only source of complete protein. Dairy products are near perfect and eggs have the most usable protein of any food. Soy products are close to being complete since soy has the largest of total protein of any food(40% of soy is protein). Quinoa is also almost complete. The rest of the plant proteins are incomplete. This means that these other plant foods do not have the 8 essential amino acids we must eat to combine with the other 14 amino acids synthesized by the body to total 22 amino acids necessary to sustain human life. Non-meat protein sources are divided into four groups-grains, legumes(peas and beans), seeds & nuts, dairy.

Complementary Proteins

· Combining one plant food that provides four of the 8 essential amino acids with a different food that provides the other four gives you all eight. Together, they provide complete protein. Selecting two or more sources that, together, provide the eight essential amino acids is a practical diet. It is the essence of a vegetarian diet. Most ethnic(poor people) cooking around the world fits this pattern.

· This is NOT complicated. It turns out ANY two foods, from different groups, provide complete protein. At one time it was thought they had to be eaten together but later studies show that it's fine just to eat the two foods in the same 24 hour period.

By far, the grain-dairy and grain-legume combination's are the most common but there are standard examples of all combination's.

Other reasons why non-meat protein sources are good

· Plant sources are plentiful, cheaper than meat, and store well. Meat is expensive and hard to store. Hence, plant proteins are what the church suggests we store for our long term food storage program which include dried legumes, grains, & fat or oil.

· Furthermore, non-fat dry milk as an animal product is suggested as a food storage item because of its high amount of usable protein which is almost complete and complements other incomplete plant sources of protein such as grains.

· Plant sources also provide much needed fiber while meat provides little or none. While too much fat is bad, some is essential. Meat is a good source of fat, and if it is restricted, one needs another source. Dairy, seeds, and nuts provide fat and so do many beans.

EXAMPLES OF COMPLETE PROTEIN COMBINATION'S

Grain and Dairy

· Bread and butter(not margarine)

· Hot or cold cereal with milk

· Eggs and toast or Yogurt & toast

· Pizza (bread & cheese)

· Macaroni & cheese or Spaghetti with grade cheese

· Anything with noodles or rice and a cheese sauce

· Egg salad sandwich

· Cake and milk

· Quiche(egg pie)

· Any whole grained bread/sandwich with a glass of milk

· Rice, whole grained bread or tapioca pudding made with milk

· Any sandwich(whole grained bread) with a slice of cheese

Grain and Legume

· It is common to put some peas in a noodle dish

· Chili over rice - sprinkle some cheese on top and you have three groups

· Peanut butter sandwich -peanuts are peas(legumes). They are NOT nuts.

Grain and Seed

· Rolls with poppy or sesame seeds

Legume and Dairy

· Chili topped with cheese

· Green bean casserole made with milk

· Any serving of beans topped with butter or cheese

Dairy and Nut

· Custard(milk/egg) dessert with nut topping

It is very important to note that a person undertaking the above combination's from a plant source diet should read the following book from which this information is designed.-"Diet For a Small Planet" by Frances Lappe. For example, a 170 lb man needs 64 grams of protein a day.

CWG: Comp Proteins(R 2-14-11)

Food Storage Recipe

We tried out this recipe a couple of months back. It was a hit with the kids, though of course we doubled it. I wanted to post this because it's ingredients are very easy to store , which makes it an excellent dinner recipe for your food storage menu.

Shepherd's Pie
serves 4

On your shelves:
1 (40 oz) can of Beef Stew
1 (12 oz) can of Vegetables (peas, corn or green beans)
1 cup of Potato Pearls (or using the equivalent in potato flakes, to make 3 cups)

From the pantry:
1/2 cup grated Cheese (optional)
2 cups very hot water (follow potato flake ingredient instructions if substituting)

To the Table:
~ Combine stew and vegetables then pour into a 9x9 inch baking dish.
~ Combine potato pearls with water. Stir briefly, cover and let stand for 5-10 minutes.
~ Spread potatoes over the stew, top with grated cheese if desired. Bake at 350 deg. for 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

Food Storage Home Party

I just went to a Shelf Reliance home party! Thrive foods is the brand. Maybe you've seen this website before? I didn't know they did home parties or that they had independent consultants in the area. There were all sorts of food to taste that was super yummy. I was very surprised at how good the freeze dried fruits and foods were. I would definitely recommend the Instant milk.... it tasted like milk! Nothing like powdered milk.

The independent consultant that ran the party was Michelle Parker 214-9904. Or you can check out www.shelfreliance.com

I was really impressed with their product. The catalog also had lots of emergency 72-hr stuff if you wanted to supplement your 72-hr. kits.

Water Challenge

Get one weeks worth of water for your family.

1 gallon per person per day = drinking amount

if you want to sponge bathe, brush your teeth.. you'll need more.

So a family of 4 minimally needs:

4 gallons x 7 days = 28 gallons for just one week.