Do One Thing! -Project Noah 20

Week 20: 1 lb. Box of crackers sealed in plastic for 72 hour kit.

Hint: Teach family how to treat shock victims. Learn how here!

Do One Thing: Week 14

Week 14: Bandages.

Hint: Make sure you have emergency provisions for pets.

Standard First Aid Supplies: adhesive tape, ammonia, antibiotic ointment, bicarbonate of soda, calamine lotion, diarrhea remedy, elastic bandages, gauze bandages, hot water bottle, hydrogen peroxide, ipecac syrup (induces vomiting), knife, matches, measuring cup, medicine dropper, needles, paper bags, razor blades, rubbing alcohol, safety pins, scissors, soap, thermometer, triangular bandages, tweezers, first aid book, prescription medications, consecrated oil. First aid kits and supplies should be checked and replenished regularly. All supplies should be labeled and organized for fast use.

Do One Thing: Week 13

Week 13: 1 gallon bleach.

Hint: Learn how to "Protect your Home against Fire".

UPDATE:

First, I got a head's up from Willis, about Costco's 6 day kit for Two People being on sale! Check it out: According to the ad:

Basic preparation will impact the probability of your family’s survival in an emergency. Survival Kit designed for 2 People for a total of 6 Days in 1 bucket. Keep at home and in your vehicle. This kit contains the food and supplies you need for 2 people for 6 days in 1 bucket. In the event of an emergency – keep your family well fed and warm. Keep one in a convenient location at home and one in the trunk of your car. Food is 100% Vegetarian with a 20 Year Shelf life.

click here---->6 Day Kit for Two People $20.99 OFF! Now: $49.00!

Second: I guess I dropped the ball on the above suggestion. Sorry no links! Ack!

I was thinking that by suggesting it, one could search their home owners policies to see how up to date they are, what is covered and then do any adjustments. Most insurance companies will cover your hotel expenses for three weeks, after that, you're on your own. Are you prepared for what else may not be covered? Most home repairs/rebuilds will take much longer than three weeks, even FEMA will not house you for much longer than your insurance company. You will need an alternate plan. Clothing allowances are usually $100.00. Most families will find that is not enough to "cover" them! Again, making a plan ahead of time will ease stress when stress is a daily situation. Recovering household items may mean reassessing their values at retail value as opposed to replacement costs, which are much higher. Your fridge may be 8 years old, it's value would be much lower than that of a new appliance. Also, many insurance companies will want receipts for everything you purchased and want replaced. I'm not sure about you, but I don't have receipts for everything I buy.

Getting all your important information recorded onto flash drives or c.d.s. (Think of everything you would need to start over, insurance, birth certs, school records, medical records/info, SSI numbers, etc.) Do the same with family histories and photos. Make sure someone who does not live in your home can access the information if they need to for you.

Have plans in place ahead of time in regard to what to do when or if you need to evacuate. Do you have a plan to evacuate if you are not at home or can't get home at the time of the evacuation? (Have you set up a neighbor or nearby friend to help you out if you are unavailable and do they know what to grab for you?)

Do your children and or aged adults (or anyone else living with you) know the routine, the plan and escape routes and where to meet if there is an emergency? Have you shown small children how to escape via their bedroom window, and how to decide whether or not to do that? Do they have ladders or stools to give them access? Do they know they safest way to break a window if necessary? If your home is multi-story do you have window escape ladders in all the rooms? Have your little kids been introduced to FireFighters and the equipment they use (masks, air tanks, uniforms, etc.) so they will not be frightened by their rescuers appearance and sounds? Do they know what your alarms sound like and what they mean and what to do when they hear them?

Are your pets in the plan? FireFighters will not risk their life to save an animal, however they will go in after a pet if at all possible. Stickers on windows will let them know if pets are expected to be in or out of the house.

Are your smoke detectors/alarms fresh? When is the last time you tested them? Do you have freshly charged fire extinguishers?

Outdoors, at least in our area, that 30 feet of defensible space, weed abatement, house and garage clean of oil or rags, yada yada.

Is the roof fire safe or extremely flammable? Are the gutters clean of debris that could catch flame? (This is how many of the houses in the recent fires caught fire, via flying embers!)

yeah, stuff like that. I hope that gets your ideas working and thinking on how you can determine how fire safe your house is.

Do One Thing: Week 12

Week 12: 2 bars of body soap per person. (probably wouldn't hurt to have some body lotion too.)

Hint: If you have a fireplace double-check to make sure flue is clear and the fireplace is clean and can be used without danger.

Do One Thing: Project Noah: Week 11

Week 11: Dish Soap.

Hint: Store extra prescription medication in an air tight container labeled "Emergency use only." Rotate it each time you renew your prescription.

Don't Try This At Home! Try It At A Friend's House!

Well, as long as today's theme is water I thought I'd set up this video for you. It was pointed out to me by my Sis, Chronicler. You see, she is the mother of three daughters. I have three sons and two daughters.

The thing with boys is this, they discover things, they have adventures, they act before they think things through. They freeze amphibians because they have watched one too many National Geographic Videos ("Beaver Pond" - I don't recommend it.)

If these were my boys I can tell you right now, things in this video would have been different. After each of the boys involved had a trial run, things would have been kicked up a notch. Say, surf style (standing up), or after dark with sparklers. I know, because when we had the advantage one summer of living where a pool was in the back yard and accessible, swimming was JUST. SO. BORING. yawn. No , we had to figure out ways to propel our bodies into the pool from various and sundry vantage points, like the roof. Or fence. Or off a moving bike. The diving board was just a means to an end, an additional tool in the arsenal of dangerous toys. Anything that could float was employed as a surfboard. Including your best friend. Contests and feats of strength were invented, and commentary was sometimes pre-scripted as to make sure nothing got left out. Boats were made, slides were invented, rules were constantly changed to promote manhood and the growth of chest hair. And the loss of cousins. kidding. I think.

We only lived in that house one summer however, so learning and testing had to take place in other arenas. Little sisters were also used as tools or physics experiments. Their smaller bodies lent them to be used as keys ("Shove your hand through the hole and turn the nob!"). Their cat like legs begged to be dropped from trees to see if they too (girls) landed on their feet. Or as human propellants ("As soon as you get this high...JUMP!) Poor little things were flung across the yard, into pools, off of trampolines and skate boards, and onto old mattresses or boxes (...like in the movies!)

One summer our then 16 year old was at his best friend's house. No parents. No sisters. Just the two of them. They had spent hours and hours filming each other trying out the newest tricks on their skateboards and decided to go indoors. One thing led to another and they began to wrestle each other while on the boards, in the house, in the living room (probably while eating something). My kid lost. He went elbow first through the fancy glass coffee table severing all the muscle systems, the ligaments, the tendons, and chipping the bone in his dominant arm about two inches above the elbow. When I first saw it, his arm muscle looked like a red sea urchin. Lovely. His brother drove him to meet me at the local ER and I have been informed that along the way the injured one managed to flirt with a girl in the car next to them at the stop light. (Never miss an opportunity.)

Long story short, he also severed the nerves, so he wasn't in pain, but that night he had an 8 hour appointment with a neuro surgeon who had to reconnect all of the above. He had an amazing recovery (one for the books actually) and a few months later had a "ligament transfer" (read: The neuro plastic surgeon harvested the extra ligaments in both of his arms and rewired his hand so that he could use it again, like the bionic man, only without the cool noise and slow motion, and um, six million dollars paid by the government.) He had 33 "entry points" in his one hand and after 130+stitches we stopped counting. Again he had a miraculous and amazingly quick recovery and he was the youngest patient to ever have this procedure at the time.

So yeah. Boys. I could go on, but suffice it to say, keep your eyes and the first aid kit open, never leave them alone for a second, and if you do, make sure your medical insurance is paid up!

Do One Thing: Week 4

Week 4: FIRST AID KIT: alcohol, wipes, band aids, neosporin, moleskin, tweezers, nail clippers, medications, Rx meds. if you can, flashlight with batteries, sunscreen, bug repellent, sunglasses, etc.

Below is one example of a fully stocked kit from the
American Red Cross website:

First Aid Kit
Assemble a first aid kit for your home and one for each car.

• (20) adhesive bandages, various sizes.
• (1) 5" x 9" sterile dressing.
• (1) conforming roller gauze bandage.
• (2) triangular bandages.
• (2) 3 x 3 sterile gauze pads.
• (2) 4 x 4 sterile gauze pads.
• (1) roll 3" cohesive bandage.
• (2) germicidal hand wipes or waterless alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
• (6) antiseptic wipes.
• (2) pair large medical grade non-latex gloves.
• Adhesive tape, 2" width.
• Anti-bacterial ointment.
• Cold pack.
• Scissors (small, personal).
• Tweezers.
• CPR breathing barrier, such as a face shield.

Non-Prescription Drugs

• Aspirin or nonaspirin pain reliever
• Anti-diarrhea medication
• Antacid (for stomach upset)
• Syrup of Ipecac (use to induce vomiting if advised by the Poison Control Center)
• Laxative
• Activated charcoal (use if advised by the Poison Control Center)