Welcome To The Journey!

Hello Readers! Welcome to Food Storage and Beyond! This site is a journey to total preparedness and self-reliance. We’re not just talking food storage! Okay… it’s mostly food storage, but there are so many aspects beyond that as well!

If you are new to this site CLICK HERE to learn more about what we do and where to start. If you are here again for the second, third, or gazillionth time, welcome back! At this point, I am not actively writing posts (I need to dedicate my time to my family), however this site is FULL of great information regarding all aspects of preparedness… so use the category buttons above to browse around and work on your preparedness efforts at your own pace.

I do occasionally drop back in to add something new that I’ve learned, or a food storage recipe I’d like to share, and those will be posted below as they come (as well as added to appropriate categories above) so feel free to check back regularly for anything new and to keep your preparedness ambitions up and running! 🙂

My best and warmest wishes to you all as you strive to keep your families safe and prepared in these crazy times in which we live! 🙂

When the quarantine starts getting old…

 

Hey my friends! Just poppin’ in to share a little sunshine in all the crazy of the current world situations.

I have very mixed opinions about the whole COVID-19 situation. Real threat? Fake news? Political lies? Social conditioning? I have a very hard time sorting through my thoughts on it all without going into a rather negative place. And that’s just not my personality. I definitely prefer to focus on the positive and embrace things that bring peace into my life.

I know that looks different for each person, but the greatest things that bring me peace and joy are 1) my faith and 2) my family. GRATEFULLY, I am able to have both with me while navigating these unchartered waters.

I love spending time with my family.

Now….. I won’t lie to you and say it’s been all sunshine and rainbows with having everyone home all. of. the. time. And trying to get a handle on the new remote learning school process was definitely a headache of a process (I’ve got three kiddos in school). (PS. A HUGE shoutout of gratitude to all the teachers trying to help us crazy parents! I know this has NOT been easy for y’all!!) But now that we’ve got a few weeks under our belts with staying home and social distancing, we’re getting the hang of the ins and outs of making this work. Buuuuuuut….. we’re also getting a little tired of the same ol’ same ol’.

I have found myself in a rut, and not taking advantage of the gifts I have that bring a spark of fun into my days. So it was time to dust off the creativity cobwebs and find some HAPPY to bring into this whole situation.

My “go to” when I’m stuck wallowing in a little pity party is to find a way to serve someone else. Kinda hard these days since we’re not actually supposed to be around others. But there’s always a way to spread some love. So my family and I came up with “Quarantine Buckets” to drop off to some people we love and miss. We filled them with inexpensive activities (puzzles, bubbles, chalk), plus some funny virus additions (cough drops, tissues, hand soap), and of course some treats and snacks. And what better to put in a quarantine bucket than a Quarantine ‘Bucket List‘ full of ideas for fun activities you can do at home??!

So we scoured the internet to come up with a list of our favorite ideas. And I just loved the sunshine-y feel of this summertime list we came across, so I stole –I mean borrowed– her happy look. 😘 And now we have a whole list of fun ideas we wanted to share with you too! We hope it helps bring a little bit of HAPPY into your days too!

 

Download your FREE copy here!  Happy quarantining, everyone! 😉

The Ultimate General Conference Packet 3!

**UPDATE: Check out the super fun, ALL NEW ‘Conference Catastrophe’ Activity Packet available over on my new website: Simply JAD !**

Howdy, howdy my friends! I’m so excited to finally have another Conference activity packet done to share with y’all!! This is a fun one! Well… they’re all fun. But I feel like even I would enjoy doing this one. 😝 I may have to print one out for myself. 😂

General Conference is such a special opportunity, twice a year, to listen to living prophets! Words and counsel specifically for our day, from men and women who are authorized by the Lord to speak on His behalf. What an amazing gift. That being said, with little ones and their short attention spans, it can be hard to get our hearts fully in tune if we are constantly having to find things for the littles to do. (Hey… 2 hours, x4 sessions… that’s a WHOLE LOT to expect of a wee one!)

Enter the Ultimate General Conference Packet (3!!)! It’s here to SAVE THE DAY! (You have to say that in a superhero voice.) Y’all… so much love has gone into this packet. I even got my oldest daughter involved in the planning action. (She’s got a fun, creative mind.) ☺️ And, as always, it is FULL of fun activities related to Conference and the Gospel, from A-Z!

You can DOWNLOAD IT HERE. But be patient. It’s a really big file. 😂

Now, here’s my disclaimer… this packet is a wee bit more geared toward the older children. My oldest kids are 12 and 10, and I wanted them to still be able to enjoy this, without it feeling too ‘simple’. And I wanted it to engage their minds a little more in conference as well, so there are occasional questions to ponder and answer based on what they’re hearing in Conference, etc. So if you’ve only got younger kids, some of the pages may be a bit above their understanding. But there’s still plenty that they can enjoy as well… you’ll just perhaps want to sort through the pages first and give them the ones that they won’t need constant assistance with. (Maybe save those for between sessions! 😉)

But if TOO much of it is above your kiddos heads, the previous 2 packets (HERE and HERE) are also good options. AND I’m also working on a different fun activity for the younger kiddos that I will have available by the April conference. So check back then!

Anyhow… I hope your little ones enjoy this newest edition of the Ultimate General Conference packet! Don’t forget to grab some tasty treats and snacks (we will definitely be baking up our traditional Conference cinnamon rolls), and you’re all set to enjoy an inspiring weekend. 😊

P.S. If you need extra BINGO card pages (pg “W” of the packet) so that multiple kids can play against each other, you can download a set of 6 more cards here:

 Extra BINGO Playing Boards.

P.S.S. The 2019 October General Conference is Saturday and Sunday, October 5-6. Sessions are at 10am and 2pm MST on each day (that’s 11am and 3pm CST for us Texans 😉). And if you’d like to tune in online, you can watch it HERE!

And one last note… you can find a bunch of other fun conference ideas by clicking the ‘General Conference’ tag in the sidebar. Any updates will always be available through that route as well. 😉

Another Conference Packet Update…

**UPDATE: Check out the super fun, ALL NEW ‘Conference Catastrophe’ Activity Packet available over on my new website: Simply JAD !**

UPDATE! There is a NEW Ultimate Conference Packet (#3!). Check out the newest fun HERE. (Or you can find all the latest Conference updates by clicking the ‘General Conference’ tag in the sidebar.)

Yes indeed, General Conference is coming up again! Here is a small update to the Ultimate Packets for the coming April 2019 conference. (April 6th and 7th… you can tune in HERE to see it online!)

At this point I’ve kind of lost track of which packets need what updates, so I will just post any updated pages I’ve got here and you are welcome to grab any of them that you want/need. 😝

(Oh, and you can find Packet 1 HERE  and Packet 2 HERE)

Download the PDF file for A is for Apostles HERE

Download the PDF file for the Notes page HERE   (This is 3 pages that includes note space for the First Presidency, Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, and a few extra spaces)

Download the PDF file for the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles Word Search HERE

I sure hope y’all enjoy General Conference!

And stay tuned in October for the brand new Ultimate Conference Packet 3!! I know… I know… it’s past time for a new one. 😏 Well, hopefully it will be worth the wait. 😉

A Quick Conference Packet Update…

**UPDATE: Check out the super fun, ALL NEW ‘Conference Catastrophe’ Activity Packet available over on my new website: Simply JAD !**

UPDATE 9/2019: A brand NEW packet (#3) is available HERE! Enjoy!

Hey everyone! For all my LDS friends, I’m sure you’re aware that General Conference is fast approaching and that there have been some big changes in church leadership due to the passing of our dear President Monson, as well as Elder Hales! Sadly, I haven’t had time to work on a new conference activity packet, but I’ve had enough requests for an update that I figured I’d add a quick lil’ update on some affected pages of the Ultimate Conference Activity Packets 1 & 2. It’s nothing fancy or exciting, but just a quick something to allow the kiddos to recognize the new leadership. Look for a new packet hopefully coming for the October Conference with the included new apostles!

A is for Apostles- Update (April 2018)

First Presidency and Quorum NOTES Update (April 2018)

(Click the file name to get the full PDF of Notes pages. There are 3 pages that include the First Presidency and Quorum of the Twelve. And yep… there’s a typo in it. Doh! “Neal A. Andersen” is supposed to be “Neil L. Andersen”. Sorry about that!)

And that’s it for now! Hopefully that helps a wee bit. 😉 And enjoy Conference y’all!! …and Easter… and April Fool’s Day! 😂 (Who’d have ever thought all three would be on the same day?? 😝)

And P.S. any new packets will likely be posted on a new website I’m working on. Our family has family made a long-anticipated move to the country and we are excited to start sharing our new adventures with y’all! So stay tuned for where to find some crazy homesteading adventures! 😝

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General Conference Packet Updates!

**UPDATE: Check out the super fun, ALL NEW ‘Conference Catastrophe’ Activity Packet available over on my new website: Simply JAD !**

UPDATE Oct 2019: A NEW packet (#3!) is available HERE! Enjoy!!

Hey y’all!

I have FINALLY gotten around to updating the two Ultimate General Conference Packets to include the three newest members of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. (Better late than never, right??) Please note that these are NOT the full packets. I only updated the pages that specifically needed the updating, so each Update is only 3 pages long. Please see the original posts (packet 1) (packet2) to get the full packets, and then use the Update to replace the outdated pages.

So here they are!…

[Please note: These are the Updates from 2016. If you need the April 2018 mini updates, click HERE]

The Ultimate LDS General Conference Packet 1- Update

The Ultimate LDS General Conference Packet 2- Update

Sure hope y’all enjoy General Conference!! What a way to be spiritually prepared! My favorite! 🙂

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Updated General Conference Fall Tree Activity

*UPDATE Oct 2019: There’s a fun new Ultimate Conference Packet available HERE! (You can check out ALL the fun Conference Updates using the ‘General Conference’ tag in the sidebar!)*

Ladies and Gents… this is incredibly last minute–I know, but I figured since I have it done, I’ll share it with y’all. This is an updated activity packet for the Happy Fall Tree to use with your munchkins during this weekends LDS General Conference.

I wasn’t planning on adding any new Conference activities this time around. But with the recent passing of three of our dear apostles, I decided to update the Happy Fall Tree activity–since it’s the one I’m planning to use with my kiddos this time around. (I apologize that I have not had a chance to update the other packets, but please feel free to modify them as needed if you are using them.)

{Click Here to Download the Happy Fall Tree Activity}

To update the packet, I have removed the leaves for our dearly departed President Boyd K. Packer, Elder L. Tom Perry, and Elder Richard G. Scott, and have added a page that has some blank leaves to be able to use for the newly appointed apostles. I also added an extra page to use for any of the speakers from the Seventies, and included a leaf for a Sister speaker as well. (And you can print that page out as many times as you’d like for as many extra leaves as you’d like.) 🙂

I also added pictures of the General Authorities to their leaves (kind of combining the original nursery packet leaves with the primary packet leaves) because I enjoy seeing their faces on the leaves when they are taped up on our wall. 🙂

Anyway, I’m truly excited for this weekend. I don’t know about you, but my life could sure use a boost of peace and reassurance from the Lord. 🙂

Warmest Wishes to you all, and as always Happy Prepping! 😉

The Ultimate LDS General Conference Packet- 2!

**UPDATE: Check out the super fun, ALL NEW ‘Conference Catastrophe’ Activity Packet available over on my new website: Simply JAD !**

*UPDATE: Check out the NEW Ultimate Conference Packet 3 HERE!* (And for ALL Conference updates on various packets and activities, click the ‘General Conference’ tag in the sidebar.)

Hey y’all! Just poppin’ in to share an ALL NEW Ultimate General Conference Activity Packet! I’m pretty sure I swore to myself after the first one that I would NEVER do this again. But it’s kinda like childbirth… after some time passes, you forget how painful the whole process was and decide to give it another go! HAHAHA!

So here is my new little baby to share with y’all! (Isn’t she so cute?!) 😉 It’s loaded just like the first one with a whole whoppin’ 35 pages of activities to help keep the munchkins occupied, yet still aware of what’s going on during Conference! This packet is geared to the 5-12 year old age bracket, but could be used beyond that as well. Just be sure to get all the needed items (listed on the second page) gathered together prior to the start of Conference and you’re good to go.

I hope your kiddos enjoy it , and that you can snag a few uninterrupted moments of peace and inspiration during the upcoming General Conference. (And in case you forgot, that’s on October 4th and 5th, 2014 at 10AM and 2PM Mountain Standard Time… that’s 11AM and 3PM for us Texans, y’all!) 😉

And for all those who are not of the LDS faith, I would invite y’all to join us as well! The messages shared are for the whole world, not just one specific religion. To watch online, just go to LDS.org and follow the links to watch, or you can just click HERE (when it’s time to watch).

{Click on the image below to download the activity packet}

{Click HERE for the updated pages with the new apostles.}

Have a GREAT Conference weekend y’all! And if you want to check out some of my previous Conference packets and activity ideas, you can see them in previous posts HERE. And, as always, best wishes in ALL your preparedness efforts!

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The “Mommy… I’m BORED!” Buster Board

Seriously… I’ve already heard it multiple times and school’s only been out for 2 days!! “Mommy… I’m BORED!!!” Oh heavens.

Time to take action!

I’ve got a ton of cute ideas pinned on my Pinterest Summertime board (and the Mommy…I’m Bored board), but my kids don’t know how to access that (thankfully?), so that does little to keep them from coming and tapping me every 10 minutes to complain that they’ve got nothing to do. Oh, what to do, what to do?

{Insert royal trumpets sounding} SOOO… I created this printable for the kiddos to reference on their own whenever they’ve got the “I’m Bored” Blues! The first column is activities they can do by themselves, the second column is things to do with a sibling or friend (although a lot of items on either column could be done alone or with a friend).

Print, laminate (if desired), and post it on the fridge where they can easily see it. Problem solved. (Or so I’m pretending!) 😉

And since I know I’m not the only parent out there with the same problem, I thought it a worthy cause to break my internet silence and share it with y’all. lol. 🙂 So I’m including a free printable for y’all… as always, just cuz I love ya!

Click HERE to DOWNLOAD the I’M BORED file!

{And speaking of breaking internet silence, I’m also hoping to find some time (soon) to start sharing some information with y’all that I’ve recently learned about regarding planning for your financial future! It is SO AWESOME and SO AMAZING! I can’t believe it’s not more known! But now that I know about it I’m definitely going to try and spread the word. So stay tuned for some financial features!!}

But back to the list… I tried to use pretty generic ideas that any kid anywhere could do. But here are some things I’ll clarify and that you may want to have on hand and ready to go as they use the list:

• PERLER BEADS… these are awesome to have on hand. You can find Perler Beads, like THESE on Amazon, or they are also at craft stores.You stick the beads on a plastic pegboard to make a design, and then lightly iron it to melt the beads together.  My girls LOVE doing these and they can occupy HOURS, I tell you. HOURS! 🙂 My girls have THIS PET SET and love it!
• A Money Job is simply a job they can do around the house for some money. We have a list of them printed out for them to see, but you can always just make some up on the fly.
• Print out some “Learn to draw” pages from off the internet (Google search) to have ready for them to grab.
• PONY BEADS are great to have on hand for making necklaces, bracelets, or even decorating crafts.
• Keep PLAY-DOH on hand (homemade or store bought)… and I’ll try and upload my play-dough mats soon, but you can probably Google some too! Just don’t forget to laminate them, or they’ll get all gunked up and need to be tossed. (Speaking of laminating… I totally recommend getting your own laminator! THIS is the kind I have and I love it. Not very expensive and saves TONS on not having to reprint things!)
• Here’s a link to instructions for SALT PAINTING. Super cute and very easy set-up.
• Here’s a link to the MARBLE RACE TRACK (it uses pool noodles… keep those on hand too! There are TONS of things to do with them!!)
• And I can’t find my link for the tin foil river, but basically, you just take a loooonng length of aluminum foil and curve the edges up (lengthwise) into a “U” shape, then fill with water down the length of the foil and have them race things down it… sticks, homemade boats, bottle caps, anything small that floats. 🙂

I think everything else is typical ‘around the house’ stuff. So by just keeping a few things on hand–ready for when it strikes their summertime fancy–you’ll be a happy, sane Mommy. (Living in denial is a wonderful thing.) 🙂  HAPPY SUMMER!!!!

The Ultimate General Conference Activity Packet

**UPDATE: Check out the super fun, ALL NEW ‘Conference Catastrophe’ Activity Packet available over on my new website: Simply JAD !**

*UPDATE: Check out the NEW Ultimate Conference Packet 3 HERE!* (And for ALL Conference updates on various packets and activities, click the ‘General Conference’ tag in the sidebar.)

Oh goodness do I have a treat for all the LDS parents out there. I’m gonna keep this short and sweet cuz I’m brain fried from staring at my computer screen for so long… but I have created a great little packet for the youngins to keep their attention a little more focused and their bodies a little less wiggly during General Conference. (Can you believe that’s already here again??) I call it the ULTIMATE packet because this bad boy is HUGE. 35 pages huge. Ya. (Did I mention I’ve been staring at my screen for a little while??)

This packet is FULL of activities that touch on different Gospel topics (and I tried to keep them related to Conference as well) from A all the way to Z! And yes… I know there are only 26 letters in the alphabet, but some of the activities take up two pages, so yes… this got a bit on the long side. But that’s good! Because there are FOUR sessions of Conference and we don’t want the kiddos running out of things to do in the middle of the first session, right??

Download: The ULTIMATE LDS General Conference Activity Packet

Updated Pages (as of Oct. 2016): HERE

Okay, well, you know the drill. Download, print, give it to the munchkins with a bunch of crayons, scissors, glue, and snacks (for goodness sakes, DON’T forget the snacks). Dress it up, dress it down, make it as fun and fancy as you like, or just chuck it at them as you turn on Conference (okay… please don’t actually CHUCK it at them) 🙂 and hopefully you’ll be set to enjoy a few peaceful moments of Conference yourself. 🙂

Side Note: This packet has been created with the Primary Age youth in mind (roughly age 5-12). That’s not to say that a 3 or 4 year old couldn’t enjoy a lot of it (I’m certainly going to be trying to get my 4 year old to stay busy with it), but they will probably need a lot more coaching and assistance. Just FYI. They can definitely do the ‘poking’ part, which I think more than anything they would have fun with, but just be sure they take care with whatever poking device you give them. I will NOT be held responsible if your 4 year old leaves pins in your carpet that your 11 month old crawls over! (Not saying that happened in my house or anything…) 🙂

But truly, I hope this will help aid in allowing the Spirit to be in your homes as you listen to Conference. Try to help your children understand what they are hearing and feeling as they listen and work on the packets as well so they can foster their own testimonies and know for themselves that what they hear is true. What a great time to be living. What a great time to be raising children. Scary, but great. And there is no greater safety net that I’d prefer my children have than to be able to recognize and understand the Spirit in their lives.

Okay, well so much for keeping this short. But just a reminder that General Conference is on April 6th and 7th this year and if you’d like more ideas for things you can do to make this a special time for your family, check out my older conference posts HERE that have links to TONS AND TONS of ideas and other packets as well. (And P.S. one of the beauties of this packet is it’s not specific to any year or season… so you can use it over and over… or at least until your kids have all the answers memorized 🙂 )

If you are not LDS, but would like to know what in the world we are all so excited about, feel free to listen/watch as well! You can watch the LDS General Conference online by clicking HERE on Saturday, April 6th and Sunday, April 7th at 10 AM and 2 PM on each day (Mountain Standard Time). (That’s 11 AM and 3 PM for us Texans… 🙂 )

Best Wishes to you all, and as always Keep Prepping!

Chocolate Chunk Banana Baked Oatmeal Bites

Healthy? Check. Delicious? Check. Portable? Check.

All the makings for an awesome breakfast-on-the-go that keeps the waistline slim and trim. 🙂 And OF COURSE! It’s food storage! 🙂

Okay. Honestly you guys… you have GOT to try these. These little gals are so tasty and so good for you, that it would almost be a crime NOT to try them. I eat these as a breakfast, a snack, and even as a dessert (if I’ve been naughty the rest of the day). 🙂 It’s baked oatmeal, yes, but don’t let that deter you. I am actually not a fan of traditional baked oatmeal. And neither is Hubby. But when he tried these, he LOVED them. Now he even requests them!

They’re gluten free (in case that’s an issue for you), chock full of good-for-you ingredients, and have just enough sweetness to keep you coming back for more… and more… and more. 🙂

So give ’em a try! I promise you’ll be happy that you did!

Download Printable Version
Ingredients:

• 3 cups rolled oats (old-fashioned or quick oats)
• ½ cup packed brown sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp salt
• 2 eggs (or reconstituted egg powder)
• 1¼ cups milk (or reconstituted powdered milk)
• 1 cup mashed bananas* (about 3 medium)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 to 1½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chunks (or chips)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 ºF. Lightly grease roughly 18 muffin cups with non-stick spray.
2. Combine the oats (note: if using old-fashioned oats, I like to lightly grind mine in a food processor for a bit), brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a large mixing bowl and stir together.
3. In a separate bowl, stir together the mashed bananas, eggs, milk, and vanilla.
4. Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and give it a good stir until fully combined. Add the chocolate chunks and stir again. {Note: Use 1 cup of chocolate chunks for a regular amount of chocolate, or up to 1½ cups if you like it really chocolatey.} 🙂
5. Spoon the oatmeal mixture into the prepared muffin tins. (Note: These will not rise a lot–if at all–so go ahead and fill each cup at least ¾ full.)
6. Bake uncovered for about 18-20 minutes, or until oatmeal is lightly browned and starting to turn dark at the edges (and/or a toothpick inserted near the middle comes out clean).
7. Allow to cool for about 5 minutes and then remove to a cooling rack to finish cooling. Store at room temperature in an airtight container for a few days, or these are great to throw in the freezer (in a freezer baggie) and have on hand for a quick breakfast/snack/dessert. Just toss one in the microwave (on the defrost setting) for about 1 minute (or about 20 seconds on HIGH) and it’s ready to go! 🙂

Yields 16 – 18 oatmeal bites.

*Store bananas in the freezer for food storage. See tips HERE.