I have been reading multiple forums and I am confused to say the least...I have my firearms in order but you cant eat bullets, at least not and wake up tomorrow....lol I really need some pointers as to where to start. I have a fairly good sized family with 3 children and money is not scarce but very limited...So you guys please tell me where does one start food, water, etc....I will take any advice or forum links from your experienced planning as wasted money cant be tolerated.....and it can be easy to do.....THANK YOU ALL I really love this forum and it's wealth of information ( information overload for someone who has never thought outside the box)

First is water, WATER (drinking water) is going to be your most VALUABLE asset, yes a lot of people say (i got a well or a stream near by) great but what if they were contaminated ? At least start by getting some cases or 5 gallon jugs or try getting 55 gallon Jugs THAT YOU CAN DRINK FROM (please be careful when getting big containers EVEN if they are FOOD GRADE they could have had chemicals in them and you should not drink from them. But get enough water to last for 2 weeks for drinking only.

Next you can Start with simple canned foods that you can get while out shopping buy extras at a time then you will want to start a shelving system as to rotate your foods so the NEWEST will always go in the back and you will be using the oldest FIRST.

Now that is just something to start on your grocery lists.

Start with a 2 week supply of everything. I mean everything you can think of:

* WATER
* FOOD
* TOILET PAPER
* HYGIENE PRODUCTS
* PRESCRIPTIONS YOU MAY TAKE
* WASHING WATER SUPPLY, (RAIN WATER, BARRELS ETC..)
* FIRST AID KIT

Like i said this is a start as for everyone has their own way of doing things.
AFTER YOU HAVE the 2 weeks supply BUILD ON IT, make it bigger and bigger and add more things you think you will need or DO NEED !


And i am sure you will have many who will add to this, so take it all in stride.


I am just giving you an easy way to start.


Resources:
post6115.html?hilit=55%20gallon%20barrels%20free#p6115


Start Here Too:
survival-preparedness-basics/

most important thing to do is to calm down! After that, the next biggest thing is to provide for your family. Stock the pantry first with what ever you guys normally eat. Once that is accomplished, then you need to be able to defend it. After that, pray.

Have some lists and advice type PDF's, take everything with a grain of salt!
Research and apply your knowledge of your situation and impliment measures that best fit within your current assesment.

A couple more for ya,

And bacause this will help so many others I'm going to add,

I am a strong believer in a balanced and diversified approch to Survival Food preparation.

The first thing necessary to proper mplanning is to determind what types of situations and events you are preparing for as well as how long of a period of time you expect them to last. Next one must decide how many persons need to be provided for.

When it comes to the types of food to be acquired I suggest a combination of dried ( ie. beans, rice, grains, etc. ), canned ( wet pack commercial consumer types ), and long term types ( freeze dried, dehydrated, retort pack, etc. ).


Obviously the long term storage types are very expensive unit wise. They are superior for the long term type events lasting years. Remember to obtain fruits, rice, beans, baking, cerials, etc. for a well rounded diet.


Wet pack type commercial consumer canned food is critical to medium and long term survival food preparations. Not only do they cushion the transition to a long term survival diet but supply vital moral building and maintance during the extreme stress to be endured over the length of any type disaster.

After decades of research I realized that consumer can and pouch packed type foods offered the broadest range of food for the survival diet at the most economical cost. Meats, beans, entrees, fruit, vegetables, seasonings, drinks, cerial, Milk, side dishes, crackers, cornbread, etc. not only offer variety in tastes but nutrician. One shoud of course tailor the choices accoirding to the needs and preferances of the intended users.

In the 21st century we in the US have access to pouch packed foods of an increasing variety which store, under proper conditions, for years. Even wet pack can food stores for some years depending upon both storage conditions and type of food ( certain tomatoe and fruit types acidity limits their shelf life. ).


It is easy to see that the more normal the diet the less complications to both moral and constituion will be encountered.


Just as a long term diet limited to just MREs or dried food ( ie beans and rice ) would bring both moral and constution problems so too will a diet based solely upon Long Term type foods.


Variety is so much more than just the spice of life in a medium or long term survival situation.

I hope this over view helps.

I have 2 pallets of distilled water and a well that pumps 25 gallons of water per minute.
Water is important.
Get together with like minded people.
Be ready to say no to people that just don't get it.
Buy extra food when you go shopping.
Extra can of soup,mac and cheese,you get the idea.
Go to the top of the page and go to the forum and search and click on it and go to the food calculator.
This will help.

I,m a single mom with 3 kids(did have 4..my oldest passed away)..low income,blessed but still cash strapped every month...

I don,t drink alcohol, I am a pepsi(pop) drinker..I buy all my pop in 2 litre bottles,save those..rinse with warm water,and you can refill those with water and a couple of drops of regular household bleach..

Yard Sales and second hand shops are your best friends for those unuasal items you may need..

for emergency cooking until you can get more together buy a fondue pot and some fondue fuel..i found mine at yard sales for 1-3 dolars..fuel is at dollar stores...I have 6 fondue pots now..one is ofr heating up water,another for soups,another for pasta and stuff..one we use with oil..last 2 I bought as spares(before you buy check the burner make sure it is in good shape)..

food buy a big bag of rice on shopping trip and a couple extra cans of stuff...watch for sales and calculate if you had to buy 2-3 at regular price and they are on sale for half price(well buy double)

Coupons are always great to buy 2 get one free and so on...

You are welcome to come to my forum also and post for help...we have a coupon section and preps 101

http://www.preparingforthefuture.org/index.php