Monday, March 9, 2009

I've decided that I'll add some of my musings from my weekly emails I sent out to members of my church and others about food storage.  Most of it is the sales from the different grocery stores each week.  But, it's also a chance for me to communicate some preparedness thoughts.  This is last week's.



I'm going to delve into your personal lives. Do you have a year's supply of toilet paper? Have you ever tried to figure that out? I'm not sure if I want to tell y'all how much TP I have saved, but....my goal is to have a roll/day. I have 8 people in my family. All of whom are potty trained now. And there are 5 girls to boot. So, like I said, I've got a goal of having at least 1 roll per day in storage. Depending on how quickly we catch the 3 year from unrolling it all ....I may need less or more. :) TP takes up a lot of space, BUT the good thing is that it doesn't require a cold, dark storage place like your food. Though, I would be thoughtful about where I store it because little rodents like the soft cushiness of Charmin just like we do. If you have extra Rubbermaid containers that you can put it in, you can store it in the attic or up in the rafters of the garage. You can also squish it down to put more in a container. I have a roll of TP in each of our 72 hours kits that's been vacuum packed with our food saver. If you have other suggestions, please let me know.

One more thing personal...feminine supplies. Please store these things. Just take a little wander into the world where you have nothing for yourself (if you're a woman) or your daughters or anyone else that may need your help. Again, they take up some space, BUT just like the TP, they don't require special storage conditions. It would be my suggestion that you pick up an extra package each time you go to the store. Don't wait until you need them. If you get them on sale, it's not too much of an extra burden. Plus, Kotex always has coupons available to make a package of pads right around $1.50-$2.00. That's not that bad. You've got to have them anyway, just make it a habit to grab a box each time you're at the store. You'll be surprised at how quickly that adds up. I encourage the men that read this to please support your wives in this extra expense. It'll make for a much happier wife in the long run. This is also something you may wish to add to your 72 hours kits. I'd put them in a plastic bag.

I'll tell y'all a little about myself. One that I"m sure will make you mock me, BUT I can handle it. Everyone has to start some where with food storage. I was a single woman living in Charlottesville Va with my own house (own mortgage). I did not have any food storage at all. Nothing! I got a letter from my aunt that encouraged me to start saving water in 2 litre soda bottles. That's where I started. Well, more specifically, I started with a 2 litre soda bottle filled with water and a GIANT box of Tampax tampons from Sam's Club. And the rest is history. :) If I can do it, anyone can. Trust me.

10 comments:

Holly said...

Thank you so much for your blogs. They have been very helpful for me. Please keep them coming.
P.S. I am Maria Hart's sister-in-law, I assume you know her from when she lived in N.J.

Anonymous said...

funny thing, those 2 products have been foremost on my mind lately. There are Kotex, OB and Stayfree coupons out right now! TP is always a neccessity! and you can never have too much. Thanks! Lorie

Anonymous said...

Thanks a lot for your post.:)

I was beginning to think I was the only one with tons of toilet paper. I buy the huge Charmin packs from Costco. At this moment there is probably enough for close to a year. I'm not quite so well stocked with feminine products, but definitely wouldn't be in trouble for a while. DD "shops" from my supply all the time.:)

Joyce

Anonymous said...

you know I've thought about the tp storage too and I have six in my family I also did the same thing you did with tp for 72 hr kits but one thing you might consider is including extra tp for caution this may me gross to some but we humans are susceptible to sickness including diaherra so if one is sick the others might catch it the tp will go fast also include tissue for allegries cold/flu season I know my family uses tp for colds

Anonymous said...

As an alternative to tampons and pads, there is a reusable product called a menstrual cup made from either latex or medical-grade silicon. They work much like a diaphragm. They are sold at www.keeper.com. Maxipads are excellent to have on hand from a first aid perspective, too -- they absorb 4xs more fluids than your typical gauze and bandages. http://tinyurl.com/ak88lv

Anonymous said...

Feminine pads can also be used for staunching bad cuts so add some to all first aid kits. Some of the smaller "super" absorbant ones are ideal and they are individually wrapped help keep them "sanitary".

dbever said...

Hi Wendi,
Instead of storing regular toilet paper, buy the camping TP. They are in small rolls, but have no big hole in the center. You can buy a 3 pack that will take up the same space, and it comes with a little plastic holder.

Laura S. said...

You can usually get Feminine products and toilet paper free or almost free if you have either a Walgreens or CVS near you. Walgreens has their Register Rewards program and CVS Pharmacy has Extra Care Bucks. Both of the programs are similar and it's basically if you buy certain items you will get some $$ back in the form of Extra care bucks or Register Rewards that you can then spend at the same store on anything else.
hotcouponworld.com is a great website to check out for more information on this

Hope this helps someone! :)

Anonymous said...

There is also the option of cloth menstrual pads. This way you NEVER run out unless you can't get to some water to clean them. :)

Rebecca said...

I LOVE having a store of toilet paper. I think I can conquer anything as long as I have enough TP!!!