How do I find the time to get prepared?
Make prepping a priority. Just like you would make brushing your teeth or doing the dishes a priority, find the time for prepping. It could be just 30 minutes a week, you really don’t have to do something daily. By doing something at least once a week, you’ll slowly be getting into the mindset of prepping and may naturally want to increase how often you prep.
Schedule time to prep in a reminder app or on your calendar or maybe a white board; somewhere that will remind you to carve out those 30 minutes a week to get prepared. Then just do it! Start small and don’t worry about the end result. Don’t get overwhelmed by taking baby steps to your preparedness. Don’t worry about where everyone else is with their preps; Just get started!
Here’s a video about how to make it a habit:
How do I practice my skills?
Do you have a backyard? Get outside and practice making some shelter or make a fire in your BBQ pit! Do you live in an apartment? Does your apartment have a BBQ grill? Practice your fire making skills! Do you have ANY parks nearby? Get out to your local parks and test out your gear! It doesn’t take a lot of time or effort to practice your skills, you just need to look outside of the box. You don’t need a forest in your backyard and you don’t need to live on 100 acres of land; you just need to get out and practice skills wherever and whenever you can.
Here’s a video that talks more about how to get out and practice your skills:
How do I make a bug out bag?
I have some great videos that outline the beginner’s guide to prepping, including what to put into a bug out bag. I also have a FREE bug out bag checklist that can help give you some ideas. Basically, don’t overcomplicate it. Food, water, fire, shelter. Make sure that each person in the household has a bug out bag. If they can’t carry their own bag, then you’ll need to find a way to carry the needed supplies for them.
Here’s a Beginner’s Guide to Prepping YouTube Playlist.
Is it ok to store water in my shed, garage or car?
Absolutely. Contrary to popular belief, it’s perfectly fine if water gets a little warm. I would just suggest keeping it out of direct sunlight as direct sunlight could leech toxins into the water, but it would take a very long and very hot exposure to do that. However, it’s a good idea to keep it out of direct sunlight.
How can I prep for my pet(s)?
For bugging out, for dogs, if they are strong enough to carry some of their own stuff, then get them some doggie backpacks and have them carry some stuff. Even if it’s just a little bit of water or food, that’ll take some of the weight off of you.
If they aren’t strong enough, or you have a pet that isn’t a dog, or you just don’t want them to carry their own stuff, you’ll have to carry their food and make sure that you have enough water for them or are able to easily acquire water for them.
For bugging in, I would suggest keeping an extra 25-50lb bag of food around, in addition to portioning out daily food in a vacuum seal bag. We’ve vacuum sealed dog food and fed it to our dogs a year later and it didn’t harm them at all, it still smelled and looked great.
Also make sure that your pet(s) are well trained. Is your cat ok on a leash or in a crate? Does your dog bark incessantly? Does your dog listen to you?
If your pet(s) take any medications, make sure that you have extra on hand for emergencies.
How can I prep for my kid(s)?
Kids aren’t stupid. Involve them in your preps. Let them help you organize the food and water storage. Keep them active (with family walks, bike rides, etc). Get them involved with your mock bug outs. Let them in on DIY projects. Have them create their own bug out bags (with your guidance, of course), teach them fire safety and knife safety, etc. Teach them! Kids want to learn and they are eager to help. Make it fun, but also make sure that they know why you’re all doing these things. In an emergency or disaster, you want your kids in the know, you don’t want them complaining or wondering why you’re doing what you’re doing. They may still complain, but at least they’ll have some prior knowledge that you can gently remind them of. Keep kids involved as much as you can.
If your kid(s) take any medications, make sure you have extras on hand.
What if I don’t want to store freeze dried meals or beans and rice?
Then don’t! There are no rules to prepping. If you want to make your own dehydrated meals and can your own food, then do it! If you want to store healthier foods that maybe don’t have such a long shelf life, do it! Store what you eat. A lot of families simply don’t eat canned foods and that’s okay. Even if you’re on a specific diet, you can still prep specific foods.
Don’t listen to anyone that says you HAVE to store this or that; you do you.
How can I prep on a budget?
First realize that you don’t have to acquire every little item right away; Rome wasn’t built in a day, right? Neither should your preparedness supplies and skills. You should be constantly learning and constantly acquiring items that will benefit your preparedness. If you want a knife that’s $100+, it could be out of your price range for a while, but as long as you budget for it and put money away for it, you can have that knife eventually.
Don’t worry about anyone else and where they are with their preps. This is about YOU and YOUR prepping journey. Even if you have just $20 a month to spend on prepping supplies; that’s perfect! Budget that $20 to go towards whatever you want. Acquire it little by little and one day, you’ll reach your goals.
Celebrate every little aspect of prepping; not just the end result. Every step you takes towards being better prepared is a step further than most of the world.
