What To Expect

Now that we’ve established the purpose of this blog, here’s what you can expect from it (and me) on a weekly basis. Each day of the week (M-F) will have a separate theme (COD freak, remember?) to help us accomplish all areas of our goals as well as educate ourselves along the way. Granted, I likely won’t be able to get something posted every day (after all, I’m first and foremost a mommy and wife), but the basic layout will go like this:
Monday: Food For Thought
This is where we can discuss important issues, review motivational quotes from religious and other leaders, etc. We’ll also have some nice heart-to-hearts about the whole food storage/self-reliance process and why this is so important.
Tuesday: “Food Storage…”
Delving into the basics (and eventually the not-so-basics) of food storage. This will include things like planning what you need, how much you need, how to get it and what to do with it once you have it, and other great food storage information.
Wednesday: What’s For Dinner?
Sharing great recipes that can be made entirely from your food storage.
Thursday: “…And Beyond”
Learning how to be self-reliant beyond just our food storage. We’ll learn emergency preparedness information, including: first aid, first aid kits, evacuation planning, sheltering in place, knowing what to do in an emergency, 72-hour kits, etc; and other general information that will help you on your way to self-reliance, including: gardening, good equipment to have on hand, etc.
Friday: Feature Friday!
I will be on the hunt for cool ideas, awesome lessons, great products, etc that others have to share and I will feature them on Fridays. This way we can all share and learn from the experiences and knowledge of so many others as well!
Although, occasionally I think I’ll do a Frugal Friday (it’s my blog and I’ll change it if I want to!) that will spotlight a great way to save some money (because I think we can all use a little more of that right now!) 😉
And just for fun, I will occasionally throw in a “Houston, We Have A Problem” Saturday. I will throw an emergency situation at you and you can evaluate how prepared you are to handle it. This will help you get an idea of where you are in your preparedness and determine if there are any changes that need to be made.
So buckle your seatbelts and hold on! We’re heading for some fun!

Who Am I? And Why Should You Bother Listening To Me?

Well, first off, let me introduce myself. Hi! My name is Debbie (insert shaking hands here). I’m a stay-at-home mom to two beautiful daughters (currently ages 1 and 2) and a wife to one fantastic husband who never mocks all my crazy, insane ideas (like writing this blog). I love to do a myriad of things, including crafting, reading (when I have “spare” time), baking, and more than anything I love being with my family. I’ve also decided that I suffer from COD (Compulsive Organizational Disorder) (yes, I made that up… I think) 🙂 and one of the hardest things for me about being a mom has been ‘letting go’ of my need for control and order when it comes to certain aspects of life… like messes. Sometimes life is just messy (especially where kids are concerned) and it’s not healthy (for me nor my children) to try and fight it all the time. However, food storage is one area in which I can let my organizational freak side run wild. And I’ve gotta say, when I sit back and look at my beautiful jars of spaghetti sauce all lined up in a nice pretty row, my heart does a silent leap for joy at my little victory. Ah yes, if for no other reason than that, I love food storage. 🙂

Okay, and now that you know what a nut I am, why in the world should you bother listening to me?! Well, in no way, shape, or form do I claim to be an expert in any of the food storage/ emergency preparedness arenas, but I have learned a thing or two as I’ve experienced life—things that not every family has had to go through—that I hope can help you if you’re ever in the same boat (or better yet, before you’re ever in the same boat!).
One of my unique experiences was Hurricane Ike. I live in the suburbs of Houston, TX and had the pleasure of being here when Hurricane Ike hit in September of 2008. And although we were fortunate enough to be on the ‘clean’ side of the hurricane (meaning we didn’t take the full force of its’ wrath), we were still without power for 7 days and had plenty of clean up to take care of. Luckily, we were pretty prepared at that point, but boy did we learn some lessons about life in an emergency/crisis situation.
The other fun life experience we recently just came out of was unemployment. A little over three months ago hubby lost his job. However, the entire time he was without a job we never had to panic over the situation. We’ve been working hard on following the counsel of living prophets to have a reserve of food and money and I can truly testify that this has been the source of so much peace to us in a time that could otherwise have caused great panic. Because we have some savings to fall back on, we have never had to apply for government aid and hubby has had time to reevaluate his passions and pursue a new career path. All this without ever having to worry if we will have enough money to pay the bills or enough food to put in our mouths. It was there. And we’re at peace.
Now as I said, I’m no expert, and we certainly still have a long way to go before we’re where we want to be, but I would love to share the wisdom and lessons I’ve learned along the road I’ve already traveled as well as those lessons I will continue to learn. So feel free to join me. I promise to try and make it worth your while. 🙂

Howdy and Welcome!

Hi there! And welcome to ‘Food Storage & Beyond’. This is a website dedicated to helping you (and me!) on the road to self-reliance. As I have taken my own journey, I have come across a lot of important knowledge, helpful tips and tricks, great recipes, and so many neat ideas that help to make the whole ‘food storage’ process so much more simple, logical, and even fun! And I thought to myself, ‘Self, it sure would be a shame to have gone through all this effort and then not share the wealth.’ (Well, wisdom anyway). 🙂 And although I’m still in the process myself (let’s be real… this isn’t something that’s accomplished overnight), I would love it if you’d share the journey with me and hopefully we’ll enjoy the adventure together.