Filling up big Bertha

     It's a cool frosty day so I am spending it inside doing some food prep.   As soon as I finish my coffee.  I bought 5 pounds of apples and some strawberries since I am running low and am going to slice them up and put them in the dehydrator.   We use them a lot in oatmeal and I am making up several bags of instant oatmeal with cinnamon, apple and strawberry pieces in them.  It is so much cheaper to make your own individual bags then buy the boughten ones and that way you don't have all the chemicals and unnecessary sugars.  I just take instant oats, my fruit and cinnamon and some powdered organic whole milk and mix in a large bowl and then divide into bags with a desiccant and then store them in a mylar bag for when we want them.  A little bit of prep time but so worth it.

    Yesterday we went shopping.  I got some great deals on pasta so bought up a bunch to store in my long term storage.   My kids save me their liter pop bottles since I don't drink pop.   Watch the video to see how to do it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NcFwFOB5t58 

   When you prep on a fixed income it doesn't have to be expensive.  Just look for sales and tips like this.  We recycle as much as we can.  All jars get washed and can be used for storing stable things.  The bottles work great for pasta and rice and beans.  To prevent bugs which are naturally in most foods I used to freeze my flour, rice and beans first but using this method with the bottles and starving it of oxygen it saves me a step.   

    In Sweden prepping is encouraged and the government expects you to.  I wish it was encouraged here in the states.  Sure fema and the red cross tell you you should have 2 months of food and water but they don't really put their heart in it and you have to search their sites to find information.   I think a lot of people in Texas have now found out the value of being prepared.   I bet they are doing it now.  In flooding situations where you may be trapped in your top floor for awhile until help comes being prepared can make a difference.  In a big blizzard or ice storm like we get it is important to have what you need already so you don't have to try and travel.

    After I get my apples and strawberries loaded I am off in search of quart canning jars.   I have plenty of pint but want some qallon jars.   They hold so much more.  I also bought some cans of soup that we had used and rotated my old ones up front.  Don't prep things you don't like to eat and always replace what you use.