Safely Gathered in... And Beeswax Candles

..... And the results are in....

So, many of you might remember several months ago when we did a "preparedness" survey during a combined meeting. These numbers have given me a general idea on how we are doing as a ward with the things we have been counseled to do and have prepared. It also gives me a idea of what I should focus on to help encourage where most are struggling.

I am so excited to report that ALMOST every family surveyed has their three month supply. That made me so happy!

I was also impressed that a little more than half have a 72 hour kit for each family member.

About a third were almost there or have a years supply. That is actually not too bad, but there is always room for improvement here!!

The last question had to do with a financial reserve. This had the most varied answers of any question (probably because it wasn't a yes or no answer :) ). What can your family do to put a little extra away?

Even though these answers may have changed in the last few months for your family as you have worked and stored and canned and saved, only you know where you need to keep working. Some of you may be so prepared that you can sleep soundly while the storm rages outside because all is safely gathered in.

.... And another thing...

A year ago, I did a demonstration on how to make beeswax candles. It wasn't the best demo ever. In fact, I was really disappointed at how the wicks worked even though I talked to more than one candle wick company and they assured me their wicks would work well for our container beeswax candles.

Well I found this website and video and I love it! When you get a chance, watch this video. I want to get this mold! Beeswax candles burn hotter, longer and are cleaner. There are no toxic chemical scents either. This website also has lanterns and the old fashioned brass holders too. The wicking is CHEAP too.

http://jas-townsend.com/product_info.php?cPath=30&products_id=71

Isaac and I roasted mini-marshmallows over a beeswax candle yesterday morning for a little activity. We had a great time :). There are SO MANY uses for beeswax candles :).

Spiritually Prepared

"In the search for our best selves, several questions will guide our thinking: Am I what I want to be? Am I closer to the Savior today than I was yesterday? Will I be closer yet tomorrow? Do I have the courage to change for the better? The years have come and the years have gone, but the need for a testimony of the gospel continues paramount. As we move toward the future, we must not neglect the lessons of the past."

--President Thomas S. Monson, "On Being Spirtually Prepared", Ensign February 2010



Mormon 7:5

Come, Let Us Anew, Hymn #217

Self Reliance Tip # 49 Bottled Chicken and Bandaids

Woah! Did I can some chicken! I had enough chicken to fill 40 pints. Two didn't seal, one broke and I used the last two would- have-been pints for dinner on Thursday night. So, all together I did get 36 pints (3 boxes full). That's awesome!! It took me all afternoon into the night, but I got it done and it feels really good!

The two that didn't seal we had for dinner on Sunday and my family loved the flavor that the carrot, celery and onion added to the chicken salad. I'm going to use some of the green chili that I added to other jars for chicken enchiladas in a week or so and see how that goes over.


For those who might need a refresher course when you get the time and means to can some chicken of your own, here are canning instructions - meat is the EASIEST thing to can:

http://everydayfoodstorage.net/videos

.... And another thing....

How is your First Aid Kit looking? Does it have more than 32 band-aids and 15 alcohol wipes? My husband and son went on a camporee a few weekends ago for scouts. They were asked to show their First Aid Kits. The man checking the kits was impressed and said that the combined kits for the group they were in was the most complete he had seen. They were only missing one main thing- triangle bandages. I need to put that on my list.

In many of the "preparedness minded" websites I've seen, their First Aid Kits have much to be desired. If someone got hurt and this is all you had to fix them up, 32 band-aids don't go very far.

Real medical kits can be expensive, but you're not going to get much for $23.95. Here is one I've found. There is a link below that tells you what is in it. It has scissors, triangular bandages, and tons of other stuff. Along with this, you should educate yourselves on how to use some of the items because this isn't your "Walmart Special" First Aid Kit.

http://store.survivalcenter.com/products/EMT%252dMedical-Rescue-Kit.html

Self Relaince Tip #48 Bulky Goodness

Welcome to my really late "Tip of the Week"!

For starters, my cousin Kaelyn is the local contact for Coles Livery who periodically has good deals on bulk food that they ship here. There is another shipment coming this Thursday. If you are interested in any of these foods, her phone number is at the end of this section - the orders need to be prepaid by this Wednesday:


(The chicken is awesome and I've bottled the butter before and it is THE BEST!)


COLES LIVERY CHEESE and MEAT SALE

BONELESS/SKINLESS NATURAL CHICKEN BREAST 40 lbs @ $70 -$1.75/lbs
BONELESS/SKINLESS CHICKEN THIGH MEAT 40 lbs @ 72.00 -$1.80/lbs
BONELESS/SKINLESS CHICKEN LEG MEAT 40 lbs @ 64.00- $1.60/lbs

GROUND SHOULDER CHUCK HAMBURGER 80/20- comes in 10lbs tubes $29.00- $2.90/lbs

BONELESS PORK LOIN 8-12 lbs- $2.75/lbs -approx $23.00 (price adjusted @ delivery)

CHEEDAR CHEESE- 43 lbs block $93.00- $2.16/lbs
MONTERAY JACK CHEESE- 43 lbs block $93.00- $2.16/ lbs
MOZZARELLA LOAF- 2-6 lbs-$33.00

SHREDDED CHEESE
FEATHER MJ/Cheddar Mix 20 lbs (4X5 lbs bags)- $52.00(thick shred)
FANCY MJ/Cheddar Mix 20 lbs (4X5 lbs bags)- $61.00 -(fine shred)
FEATHER CHEDDAR 20 lbs (4X5 lbs bags)- $52.00 (thick shred)
FANCY CHEDDAR 20 lbs (4X5 lbs bags)- $70.00 (fine shred)
Mozzarella Feather 20 lbs (4x5 lbs bags)- $50.00 (thick shred)

BUTTER: Salted & Unsalted
30 X 1lbs cubes @ $71.00- $2.37lbs

AVOCADOS, ripe #2 avocados: 70 count--$37.00 (make guacamole and freeze the excess)

MOLASSAS: 1 GALLON GRANDMAS MOLASSAS--$17.75

RICE:
white rice 25 lbs.--$17.00
brown rice 25 lbs.--$18.00

POTATO 70 count--$26.00
potato 90 count--$26.00

SAUSAGE,LINKS, COOKED, 160/1 oz--$33.00

SUGAR
white sugar 50 lbs--$36.00
brown sugar 25 lbs--$32.00
brown sugar 50 lbs--$53.00
powdered sugar 25 lbs--$31.00
powdered sugar 50 lbs--$54.00

Give me a call or email me if you have questions or would like to place an order. Thank you, Kaelyn 428-7071


...... So 40 pounds of chicken does a lot of pints! When I spoke with her yesterday she told me that she has bottled her chicken with green chili and onions in the bottle, and also carrots and celery. She said it helps the chicken taste less "tuna" like. I'm gonna try that! She also showed me where she layered ingredients for beef stew in a half gallon jar and then pressure canned it for 90 min. Now, all she has to do is put it in a pot, warm it up and TADAH! Easy squeezy meal! She gave me the hint that if you chunk the potatoes and carrots nice and big they don't dissolve under all that PRESSURE! She layered her stew this way: bottom - onions, celery, carrots, bouillon cubes salt and pepper, potatoes, and beef on top. When they ate it, she said her family loved it!


I'm so excited to start playing with this!!!


Until next time.... may the forces of self-reliance be with you.

Stay on the path

"There is no guarantee that life will be easy for anyone. We grow and learn more rapidly by facing and overcoming challenges. You are here to prove yourself, to develop, and to overcome. There will be constant challenges that cause you to think, to make proper judgments, and to act righteously. You will grow from them. However, there are some challenges you never need to encounter. They are those associated with serious transgression. As you continue to avoid such tragedy, your life will be simpler and happier. You will see others around you who don’t make that choice, who do things that are wrong and evil and bring sadness. Thank your Father in Heaven that your pattern of life is different and that you have been helped to make choices guided by the Holy Ghost. That prompting will keep you on the right path."

--Richard G. Scott, "To Live Well", BYU Devotional April 21, 2011



Moses 6:33

Choose the Right Way, The Children's Songbook #160

Self Reliance Tip # 48 No Need to Knead!

“Knowing what we know…we must —use our talents, strengths, energies, abilities, and means to prepare for whatever may
befall us and our children… We do not know when the calamities and troubles of the last days will fall upon any of us...

The Lord deliberately withholds from us the day and hour of his coming and of the tribulations which shall precede it—all as part of the testing and probationary experiences of mortality. He simply tells us to watch and be ready. We can rest assured that if we have done all in our power to prepare for whatever lies ahead, he will then help us with whatever else we need."

- Elder Bruce R. McKonkie Ensign, May 1979, 92


I LOVE this quote!!! I think it says everything I've been trying to get at for almost a year :).


Check this video out. It is a demo about no kneed bread! I didn't know you could do that!! It is about an hour long just an FYI.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jP80e9PJOxA&feature=plcp&context=C3fefe00UDOEgsToPDskLSSNa0mGY1uErNBPDVEu5L

And Another Thing...
....From Heavenly Father's Medicine Cabinet

For my birthday, my husband gave me the coolest gift. He paid for a class for the both of us to learn about edible, medicinal and useful desert plants.

The one I'd like to focus on today is one of the most amazing plants in the desert- The Prickly Pear Cactus. You can use both the pad of the cactus and the fruit. I want to talk more about the wonders of the pad. The instructor had MANY personal experiences he shared using the pad for all its wonderful glory!

The pad is good for:
- sun screen
- sunburn and burns ( use much like you would use aloe vera)
- snake bites
- bug bites ( scorpion, bees, ants, spiders,)
- wounds
- cuts and abrasions

To use without getting poked, keep the pad on the cactus and rub thorns off with a rock on each side. Take a knife and cut around the outer edge of the cactus and then slice down the middle. To use for bites, stings, and wounds, roast for a little while over a fire, it will become pliable and can be bandaged over the area. For sun screen, take the fresh exposed pad and rub it on areas most likely to burn and it will protect from the sun. For sun burns, if used the same day, will help the skin tan and not peel. To get more juice, use your fingernail to scrape more juice to the surface.

My husband also told me that snake bite kits that you can buy in the camping section of stores are pretty much useless. The old cowboy movies where they mark an "x" over the bite and suck it out...that's no good either. It looks tough and daring, but a prickly pear pad is much safer and works WAY better.