Long term vs three months......

What a world we are living in right now!  I honestly don't know how someone can go through their days and not see signs of the times all around them, everywhere they look.  But, sadly, many don't see it.  I guess in some ways they choose not to see it.  That makes life easier when they don't have to worry about it, or do anything about it.

I see it, and thus have been working on a project.  We took out a set of stairs in our house, which created a

closet for a basement bedroom and this.....a pantry!
We are not finished it yet, but I am so excited to fill these shelves.  It ought to go a long ways to holding my three month supply of food.

I also should share with you, what I have been working on with creating my three month supply of food.  See you can create your own three month supply out of short term foods or longer term foods.

Short term foods, like fresh tomatoes, can turn into three month supply by canning them.  Long term foods like dried beans can turn into three month supply foods, by canning them.  Frozen

chicken is a short term food, but when freeze dried, can turn into along term storage food. Flour on the shelf, when combined with the right ingredients, can turn into a mix that is easy to use, a three month supply food, instead of a longer term storage food.

Why would I go through the work to do all of this?  Because as a mother, and the chief cook in the house, I realize that I am pretty much the only one that can walk into my storage room full of beans and flour, and figure out a great tasting meal out of all the stuff on the shelves.  Everyone else would stand there with their mouths open, and watering, and not know what to do with all of the longer term food storage items.

Thus, a three month supply of ready to eat, or easy to prepare meals.  You know when you go to

dried beans vs canned ready to use

a craft store (ladies), and they have all the patterns free, stuck to the sides of the shelves, where you can take it and add to your collection, so you come back and buy their stuff?  Well, I am also going to do that in my new pantry and long term storage room, only with recipes on how to do what.  I am going to have recipes taped to the walls, or shelves, on how to use certain items.  I think that is a big part of turning a long term storage item, into a three month storage item.  Somebody has got to know what to do with it other than myself, in my household.  Now I should give some of them credit, they could do it, but in all reality, they probably wouldn't want to.  It takes work, thinking, and planning to use long term food storage items.  So I turn them into more user friendly items.

So next time you are working on pantry items, or long term storage items, think........"How can I turn this into an item that will be more user friendly for my family?"  "How can I make it something that they can open and use instead of running to the store to buy it?"

Long term storage - not so user friendly - unless you have some knowledge and training

Three month storage - user friendly for anyone in the family

Let's Be Realistic...

You got it!  Let's be realistic, in a few things today!  I can no longer sit still and not write what I am thinking, than I could go sky diving.  And believe me I would never go sky diving, I am terrified of heights!  There is just too much going on in the world to sit still and pretend that we can just sit back and enjoy life, when the fact is, inside of me is screaming out to people to get prepared!  Look around!  Get prepared!

Another thing to be realistic about, is that I love my blog Today While The Sun Shines, it being the first ever blog I started writing.  It has been a great place for me to learn and grow, not only in preparedness, but in my writing and blogging hobby as well.  It has spread far and wide and has been read in many places in the world, and I can't just quit and ignore her.  Chuckles here.  So I need to keep writing on Today, about what is happening Today!

But let's get realistic about what is going on in the world, for just a minute here okay?  Do you watch the news?  I know it is kind of depressing watching it, but perhaps next time you watch it, look at it with eyes to see the signs of the times.  Watch it with the attitude of watching for those signs, you know the ones that tell us what is to shortly come to pass.

Only a few short years ago, I used to like to sit down every few months and look back and make a list of all the crazy things that were going on in the world, and I could actually do it.  Now, being realistic there is so much chaos and destruction, and war, and everything going on, I would have to do it on a daily basis, just to try and keep up with what is happening, and there is just no possible way I would be able to do it.  

Every day we hear of wars, natural disasters, terrorism, disease, civil unrest, economic collapse, famine, wonders in the sky, and everywhere in the world, you name it, you will hear about it.  Without a doubt if you can think of it, you will likely hear about it happening that day, either on the news, or by a google search that would show you.  Without a doubt, we are seriously a world that is in chaos, a world that has reached a tipping point, a world that has ripened. That's realistic.  

Yet, still there are those whom I talk to who seem to want to turn a blind eye to it all and pretend it isn't really as bad as it is.  Open the blinders people, and look around!  It is as bad as it seems, and we had better get prepared, and quick!

Let's be realistic about history for a minute.   Throughout the history of the world, we follow civilizations that have followed the pride cycle, that's what I call it.  It is a rise and fall of civilizations.  Once a civilization has become so wicked and prideful, they get destroyed, either

by war, famine, or some other way of the Lord cleansing them and compelling them to be humbled.  Then, they go on and live their lives for a few generations, doing pretty good, until all of a sudden they become prideful, selfish, and generally a wicked people again, and BAM!  They get humbled again.   

If you look at this cycle, it has happened over and over throughout the history of the world as we know it.  Now...........let's be realistic and take a big step back and look at the bigger picture of the world.  Where do we sit, not only as a civilization, but the bigger step back, as the world.  As a world of people where are we sitting in that pride cycle?  And.... more importantly.... what happened when civilizations became so wicked and prideful, selfish and corrupt?  They were compelled to be humbled by whatever means the Lord saw fit.  BAM!

As a world civilization, I believe we are there.  We are going to be compelled to be humble.  He is going to take care of it, if we won't do it ourselves, He will bring us to our knees.  And it is happening everywhere we look around us.  THAT'S REALISTIC!  The scriptures warn us of many things.  Some call it "judgement day" (I talked to someone just a couple of days ago that said this), some call it "the end of the world as we know it".  I don't really care what you call it, as long as you see it happening, and do something about it.  We are being warned, over and over.  


Mark 13:8 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.

 D&C88: 89 For after your testimony cometh the testimony of earthquakes, that shall cause groanings in the midst of her, and men shall fall upon the ground and shall not be able to stand.

 90 And also cometh the testimony of the voice of thunderings, and the voice of lightnings, and the voice of tempests, and the voice of the waves of the sea heaving themselves beyond their bounds.

 91 And all things shall be in commotion; and surely, men’s hearts shall fail them; for fear shall come upon all people.

Let's Be Realistic!

Get prepared!  Get ready!  And quit procrastinating, because it is happening with or without you!

New Site

I am still posting on all things Preparedness, but have recently started a new site, for the purposes of my new church volunteer position, and to do it properly, it required that I start a new site.  I may occasionally return to post here on my very first and much loved "Today While The Sun Shines", but for now, you can find some great info, and much help, here on Inch by Inch Preparedness.

Thanks!