Tag Archives: collapse

Momma Bear: Book Review: Wool

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by Leah, Momma Bear -

WoolI recently picked up the book Wool, by Hugh Howey. There were a couple reasons I picked up this book: it was a post-apocalypse story set in a missile silo, it was originally self-published as a short story/e-book and then later picked up by Simon and Schuster, and the movie rights have been picked up by Ridley Scott. I will be curious to see if this book ever develops into a movie. While this was a decent book, I would not put it on the same level as some of the genre classics.

I come from a family of big science fiction nerds. I have had a long love affair with science fiction and the end of our world, a science fiction sub-genre known as apocalyptic or dystopian fiction (the basic “we’re doomed” theme). From movies to books, I love it all. Most of us think of the apocalyptic genre as stemming from the 1940’s and beyond, coming from the Cold War at the end of World War II. But the truth is that the genre is actually much older. Mary Wool-1Shelley (the same lady who gave us Frankenstein) wrote The Last Man in 1826, which is believed to be the first modern apocalyptic novel, about a world-wide pandemic. Seventy years later, HG Wells hit the literary scene with such masterpieces as The Time Machine in 1895, and War of the Worlds in 1898. These stories, with their end of the world themes, continue to be popular today as we see them portrayed each summer in the latest movies. In fact, many of our favorite apocalypse movies are rooted in literature. For instance, Blade Runner is loosely based on the book Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Philip K. Dick.

Wool is an intriguing read because it deals with the intricacies of human nature in a post-apocalypse society. Within the silo are the last vestiges of humanity, following some unexplained and no longer remembered apocalypse that has left the outside world toxic. Inside is a tightly contained, controlled, and stratified society in which every birth must be preceded by a death, a one for one population control essentially. Society itself is divided by a person’s occupation and location within the 100+ level silo, with the administrative/political people residing closest to the surface and the workers on decreasing levels until you reach the dark bottom, mechanics levels (though they are the ones who provide everything from air to electricity). But when a few people start to question authority, society within begins to crumble.

I found the setting of Wool particularly interesting because of the current popularity of Doomsday Preppers using old missile silos for end of the world retreats. Today in America, a couple hundred thousand dollars can buy you a rusting hole in the ground without electricity, or a million can buy you a small apartment within a luxury silo. It seems that these silos fall into the categories of “fixer upper” or “buy your survival”, with the latter leaving you unable to choose your neighbor and silo mates.  Whichever you choose, like Wool, it will take more than a few people and some structured society to keep it running. How do you choose the people for your silo team? How do you keep control when the s**t hits the fan and you’re in lockdown?

missile-silo-houseCheck out these links to available silo properties:

For more great apocalyptic reading, check out these lists:

Apocalyptic movies lists:

 

Sarah’s View: What Happens With Your Body When You Die?

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by Sarah Adams -

Death happens. Death happens to all of us, once you are born you will die. Being prepared means being prepared for all aspects of life, and that includes death. And preparing for death includes what happens after death. It’s not a fun topic, in fact it is rather uncomfortable, but having a plan for your body after death relieves your family of at least one decision during a difficult time. Because what happens to your body is definitely a decision they will be asked to make.

One of the things that makes us human is the respect we show for the body after death. For most (all?) of human history there have been rituals surrounding the care and processing of a body after death. These rituals are not universal, they vary with time and culture, but that there is a ritual is universal.

There are many many options available to us today – cremation, embalming, burial in a casket, entombing, donation. What you choose might depend on your religion or family or culture. Do you know how you’d like your body cared for after your death? Does your family know what your wishes are?

Now, since we’re preppers, we need to ask how many of those would be available or practical in a collapse situation?

Coffin-crematoriumA cremator generates temperatures between 1600-1800 degrees Fahrenheit. As far as I know, there’s no way to generate that kind of heat with easy to gather fuels. Modern embalming solutions include formaldehyde, methanol and other solvents. Not only would those materials be difficult to locate in a collapse situation, but people with the skills required to embalm without modern equipment and electricity are few and far between. Even burial is a challenge without modern excavation equipment — think about digging a deep enough hole by hand, now imagine doing it during a collapse. Many of the options we take for granted today would not be practical in a collapse situation.

burialplatform-curtis

So what options should we consider in a collapse? My suggestion would be to look at what native peoples indigenous to your region may have done. Their traditions were probably adapted to the locale. If you live near the coast an ocean burial may be an option. There are also the famous mounds of the Native Americans of the Mississippi River where bodies were “buried” in a mound of dirt instead of in a hole in the ground. Here in the Pacific Northwest it was common to practice “above ground burial” where a body was placed on a scaffold and left for the elements and animals.

I, personally, am a fan of some sort of exposure. In a pre-collapse world I’d like to be donated to the Body Farm; I would like my body to provide some use for science. In a post-collapse world, above ground burial or simple exposure in the forest works for me; my body is put to use, recycled into the circle of life.

The key, as always, is preparation. What do you want? Is it in writing? Does your family know?

 

Momma Bear: Bugs For Dinner?

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by Leah, Momma Bear -

DSC01552We currently feel like we’re under attack from cicadas! This is the year when the so-called 17-year periodical cicadas emerge in the BILLIONS from northern Georgia to upstate New York. Our yard, here in Virginia, is littered with holes in the ground from the recently emerged larvae. Hundreds of larva husks are dangling from my bushes, and the red beady eyes from the newly sprung cicadas are staring back at us. The mating calls have not yet started, but they aren’t far off. What is a prepper to do with all these bugs? The answer: EAT THEM!?!

bugsAbout 80% of the world’s population eats insects as a primary protein source. CNN recently reported, U.N.: Eat Insects, Save the World, that it has been hypothesized bugs are the future of food production due to their extremely low carbon footprint (compared to traditional proteins like chicken/beef/pork). Mass production of bugs for food does not pollute the environment, they are inexpensive to grow, and require very little space compared to the alternative proteins. Cicadas are just one of many edible insects, enjoyed throughout the world. Other common insects include meal worms, crickets, and water bugs (these look like giant cockroaches). These are all included on this photo I took of a “fast food cart” in Bangkok, Thailand, serving bugs for lunch.

DSC01550Cicadas are definitely edible, and were eaten by early Native Americans. They are best harvested in the newly emerged larvae stage for the most tender eating, though they can also be eaten as the fully developed cicada, though they are much crunchier.  Most insects are fried/sautéed. My kids voted that they would best be served with fried rice, that way they would be mixed in with other vegetables (and maybe they wouldn’t notice them so much). Interestingly, cicadas are a type of arthropod, which is the same category of food as shrimp and lobster. While I personally still prefer shrimp over cicadas, it is nice to know of another protein source that is literally right outside my door!

[Trace’s note: I challenged Momma Bear to serve them for dinner, she responded that they wouldn’t be eating them anytime soon — but was glad to have additional options if necessary.]

bug nutritional chart

Though it's not listed in this chart: 
gram of protein = 4 calories
gram of fat = 9 calories
gram of carbohydrates = 4

giantwaterbugSo, for example, a Giant Water Beetle (pictured on the right) would provide 77.6 calories from protein, 74.7 calories from fat, and 8.4 calories of carbs; for a total of approximately 160 calories per 100 grams (3.5 ounces) of Giant Water Beetle.

September is National Prepardness Month

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In September the federal government gives preparedness enough of a nod that it gets it’s very own month; though you rarely hear them say much more than: “Get a kit. Make a plan. Be informed.” Of course if everyone did at least that we, as a national population, would be much more prepared to cope with future disasters.

The media has also been talking about preparation, this time in a non-mocking tone. As Hurricane Isaac approached, CNN.com published an article, Keep a hurricane preparation checklist. It begins:

In areas where hurricanes can strike, it’s a good idea to have a closet or an area set aside for storm preparedness storage. There, you can keep items you’ll need in case disaster strikes suddenly or you need to evacuate.

And while this is great advice, what about everywhere else? Aren’t all areas susceptible to having a “disaster strike suddenly”? I think it’s interesting how the media portrays prepping–just prior to an incoming disaster (i.e. hurricane, snow storm, forest fire)–as completely common sense. “Of course you’d want to be prepared, you’d be a fool not to”, they imply. They include a completely practical list of supplies and recommendations of what to do prior to the arrival of the storm.

But what about the disasters we don’t see coming? The ones that give us no notice? No one should need to tell us that every day we need: food, water, shelter, security, and energy. So why not have backup supplies for these daily basic needs, insurance if you will, just in case a disaster strikes without warning? We are all expected, and it’s considered normal, to have home insurance, car insurance, health insurance, and life insurance but we know those preparations are very rarely used (hopefully). So why, when you incorporate being prepared into your daily lifestyle, are you frequently labeled as being on the fringe or a bit of a kook?

So this month, consider using the government’s endorsement of preparedness as an opportunity to talk about prepping with skeptical friends (family). As winter approaches we all tend to think a little more about being prepared; everyone knows that winter storms can knock out power and/or leave us homebound for several days. “Did you know September is National Preparedness Month?” would be an easy way to broach the topic, and then follow-up with something like “If a [fill in the blank disaster] happened here, and you weren’t able to get to the store for several days, how would your family hold up?” Then listen. Commend them on the things they have done or are doing, even if it’s relatively minor. Don’t overwhelm them with everything they SHOULD be doing. Instead, give them one or two ideas for ‘next steps’. If you push too hard then they’ll just push back — and close down to the idea completely. Take this time to plant a seed in their mind. Then live your life as an example.

(Wednesday: A new monthly contributor will be introduced, Rural Relations with Josh,  will write about: Lessons Learned, An Introduction)

Sarah’s View: Rules vs Principles

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Seattle recently passed a bag law, well actually a bag ban. This rule PROHIBITS stores from providing customers with single-use plastic bags. In addition, it REQUIRES stores to charge a minimum of $0.05 for paper bags (stores can’t choose to absorb the cost, they MUST pass it along). However, it wasn’t until I walked by The Gap Store today that I realized they would no longer be allowed to provide their signature (plastic) drawstring bags. It hadn’t occurred to me that the ban included clothing and retail stores. Yes, I know the law states retailers, but in the news we only heard about it affecting grocery stores. Now, suddenly, I find myself irritated and frustrated with the city and unlikely to do much shopping downtown.

I can understand and appreciate the motivation behind the law. But, what if the city had simply asked each retailer to put up a sign that said “We, along with the City of Seattle, support reducing waste. Please think about combining purchases into one bag or reusing the one we provide you. Here are some ideas: . . .”? Seattleites are already very good when it comes to recycling and reducing waste.

But, what about the tourists? Instead of leaving frustrated and without purchasing anything (because they don’t have a ‘reusable bag’ with them and, without a bag it’s difficult to get it back to their hotel), they would leave the store thinking “huh, what a great idea”.

I think something positive, that encourages individuals to act on a principle (in this case reducing waste), would go far in influencing their long-term behavior.

Rules vs Principles

The problem I see with rules is they must cover every detail. We’ve all experienced that feeling of being told something is not allowed, and suddenly that is all we want to do. A rule can be broken. A principle doesn’t break. A principle offers flexibility and choice; it provides the opportunity for a society to govern itself from a position of what works for them, at that time, in that situation.

When a rule is broken the perpetrator must be punished. But if the group operates by principles, there is room for consensus, for understanding, for situational consequences.

What on earth does this have to do with prepping?

In a collapse the law of the land will change. While some groups will try to continue to live by the rules of the pre-collapse society, I believe those that adapt and learn to live by principles will be much more successful. When forming a post-collapse community, principles such as Safety, Respect, and Autonomy will be more useful than trying to get a group to agree on a list of rules. For example, perhaps an individual wants to ban the wearing of orange clothing because it’s too bright and attracts attention. Instead of making a rule banning orange, the principle of Safety could come into play: there may be times when orange should not be worn (moving through an area at night) but there may be times when orange promotes safety (hunting in a group) .

Not only that, but by living within a system that promotes consequences for behavior as it relates to each situation, I honestly feel like people would be more likely to think through what they are doing. Instead of trying to break a rule to get what they want, they could collaborate with friends and neighbors to obtain it in a manner consistent with the group goals. Instead of “this rule is stupid for this situation, I’ll break it and see if anyone notices”, we would have, “I would like to get this done, I wonder what is the best way to make it happen”.

It’s unlikely we could ever live exclusively by principles, but consider starting with that goal; then adding rules only when absolutely necessary.

(Friday: What We Did This Week To Prep)

When I Was Sick, An Introspection

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We’re (I’m) Not Superman
– –
I want to preface this by saying, I don’t get sick. Because of genetics, lifestyle choices, and dumb luck I’ve lived a healthy and active life. But last week I was sick. I had gastroenteritis, an unspecific medical diagnosis, commonly known as stomach flu. Maybe it was food poisoning (though both Sarah and I ate pretty much the same things), who knows. What matters is that it sucked. Really sucked.

Gastroenteritis is defined as “a medical condition characterized by inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract that involves both the stomach and the small intestine, resulting in some combination of diarrhea, vomiting, and abdominal pain and cramping.” And I had it all. For over 24 hours I was miserable. Most of the time–when I wasn’t in the bathroom–all I could do was sit quietly on the couch; for a time I laid on the floor with my knees pulled up. It passed. Of course I lived. But I also learned.

I mention this because it made me realize that no matter how much we (including me, or as my wife would say “especially” me) view ourselves as superman, sometimes we’re not — we can’t be. Sometimes no matter how much desire there is to get up and do the job or even defend the home; physically there’s no way it’s going to happen. That afternoon, lying in an almost fetal position wishing the pain would stop, the most I might have been able to do would have been to crawl a short distance to get out of the way. I wanted to write about this soon after the incident because already my brain is starting to revise history, to minimize how bad I felt, and trying to justify that if I would have had to, I could have. But I can still remember how I felt laying there sweating, my gut spasming in intense pain, just trying to breathe.

I learned that we need to have redundancies built into our preparations, and not with stuff this time but with skills. If you can’t do it, who can? You don’t even have to be sick or hurt, maybe you’re just not there. Have you taught your spouse, partner, or children the skills that need to be done? Is there a family member, friend, or neighbor that has the knowledge and ability, and would be willing to help? Hopefully this person is nearby because maybe someone driving to your home isn’t an option (time or opportunity).

To be truly prepared for a disaster, or especially a collapse, we must have strong social support systems. We can’t survive on our own. Humans are social creatures. We’re meant to live in supporting communities to learn from, teach to, share with, barter with, care for, and protect each other.

Momma Bear: Women’s Maladies

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Sometimes being a woman is really the pits. I imagine it will be even worse in a post-SHTF society where our modern, quick-fix, take a pill for it remedies are no longer available. I’m talking about those dreaded conditions that are almost exclusively “women’s ailments”: yeast infections, vaginosis, vulvitis, UTIs, hemorrhoids, leaky bladders, migraines and menopause. Bleck! So what is the best way to prep for these lovely maladies? Like other areas of preparedness, we need to tackle this with a multi-step approach.

Knowledge: Know your body. You need to be able to recognize the warning signs of an impending ailment so that you can attempt to prevent a full-blown illness. Know your genetic predispositions and history. Ask your mother, grandmothers, and aunts about what female health conditions run in your family. Heredity is a funny thing and frequently cannot be avoided. While you may maintain a painstakingly rigorous “healthy lifestyle,” sometimes nature still throws that heredity-curveball at you. You might be young enough that many of these have not yet happened to you, but at least study up and be prepared to recognize and treat them if they occur (to you or others). In my family we get three main conditions: hemorrhoids, leaky bladders, and menstrual migraines. The first two can normally be treated by surgery and the last can be controlled by using birth control pills and prescription meds. But what will we do without access to routine medical care and medications?

Prepare: If there are medications you can get that you might need someday, GET THEM and stock up. You might never have had a yeast infection in your life, but if you live someplace hot and humid and suddenly your life has no A/C, infrequent baths and changes of clothing (because you are washing everything by hand!), you might have a serious run in with a yeast infection. Stock up on any OTC meds that you can. The other way to prepare is to not put off those elective surgeries (this seems to have been mentioned in plenty of other articles). These days both leaky bladders and hemorrhoids can be treated with surgery, but they are not ones that most of us would rush right out to get. I think you will find that surgery is preferred over living with the problem in a post-SHTF world. Last, maybe cleanliness IS next to godliness. Keeping clean and dry will prevent some of these conditions from starting in the first place. The military has been doing this for years…with feet. Every time they stop, they change their socks because it prevents a plethora of foot ailments. I say every time you sweat too much, change those undies. If you can’t stay cool, at least stay dry.

Take your knowledge a step further: None of these ailments are new. How did they treat these ailments in the past? Or how do they treat them now in third world countries? Look for “old school” remedies. Read up, research, ask someone very old who grew up in a rural environment what they did. For instance, yogurt is a common treatment for yeast infections (and I am not talking about eating it). And here I mean all natural, home-made, BASIC yogurt, not the flavored variety they carry in the grocery stores today. Culturing your own yogurt at home is actually pretty easy to do, but few Americans do it. Drinking cranberry juice works well for treating UTIs. There are “alternative” treatments for a number of ailments, but most of us have grown up in a society where these remedies have become obsolete due to our easy access to medications.

It will take time to research and practice these remedies before the SHTF. But it’s better to practice it now when you don’t need the remedy desperately.  Like other types of medical care, it is best to study up long before the SHTF!

(Friday: What We Did This Week To Prep)

An RV as a Bug-Out Location?

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Recently Sarah and I have been discussing the value of a recreational vehicle as a portable Bug-Out Location (BOL).

Some background: In the future (probably two to five years) we hope to get a five to ten-acre homestead in rural Western Washington. For now, because of family, finances, and life circumstances we live in a suburban neighborhood.

Risk assessment of the area we live: In the prepper world there’s the discussion of when and why you’d bug-out or bug-in in a disaster. Each family needs to assess the risks/perils of the area they live in. Our house is in a relatively safe location: no risk of floods or landslides, earthquake damage would be negligible, too far from the coast to be affected by tsunamis, we don’t get tornadoes, forest fire risk is low and wouldn’t reach us, we’re far from urban populations and their potential civil unrest, and it never really gets too hot or too cold here. Although Mount Rainier is an active volcano, as of 2010 there was “no evidence of an imminent eruption“. Sure an eruption would be a huge deal, but even if it did erupt we’re not in a bad location: we live on a hill top community any lahars would be channeled through the valleys around us, and most of the ash would typically be blown south with the prevailing winds (we live north). Our only real complaint about our current location is the small size of our property, and the density of the neighborhood population; we’ve worked hard to get as prepared as we can here, carefully using the space and resources available. In summary, we feel that–short of a complete collapse–we could stay here.

If there was a complete collapse where would we go?: At this point, probably to nearby family or friend’s home. That’s where the RV idea comes in. If we did have to go somewhere it would be a better situation if we had our own living space; very few homes have enough room for six additional people.

There are basically two major classes of RVs: There are motor homes (the kind where the vehicle is part of the unit) and travel trailers (the kind that are towed behind a vehicle). Both are available, in decent condition, for under $10,000 (used). After weighing the pros and cons we’d go with the travel trailer option and get a medium to large 5th wheel trailer. Having decided on a 5th wheel trailer means we’d have to have a vehicle capable of towing it. We don’t have one yet, but are actively searching for a 3/4 to 1-ton diesel truck so hopefully that won’t be an issue soon.

Advantages: While $10,000 is a lot, it’s not bad when compared to $100,000 to $200,000 for a true homestead/BOL. It gives you the flexibility of where you go in a disaster; what if your BOL isn’t an option? It also allows you to use it for camping or road trips (and you should, at least for practice), so it’s not like it’s useful only if the world collapses. Plus it could be pre-stocked with additional preps and keep in a secure off-site location — so if something did happen to our home we wouldn’t lose everything (repetitive and redundant).

Another thought is that it could be used during a pandemic as a quarantine area. Whether that means pulling it in front of our home, or on our future homestead.

Review the risks at your location, and your BOL options; a mobile BOL can be a good, flexible, in-between option.

(Friday: What We Did This Week To Prep)

Hand Washing Laundry

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We’ve decided that our next prepper goal is to be able to hand wash laundry. Washing machines require lots of power and lots of water, if you’re without either of those doing laundry gets much harder. Though we now do laundry every week, in a collapse it will not be as high of a priority or done with that frequency. But cleaning clothes and linens will still be important because they will last longer, keep us healthier, and overall improve moral and make life feel more “normal”.

We’ve never hand washed laundry before, so I began doing research on the process and what equipment we would need. There were several variations of the basic idea:

  • Use a washboard to scrub off stains. Apparently, contrary to popular opinion, washboards are smooth and won’t damage the fabric. They’re said to be a relatively easy way to remove stains.
  • Fill a tub full: This could be anything from a bathtub, a kitchen sink, a 5-gallon bucket, or an old fashion washing tub. Fill with cold, warm, or hot water as needed.
  • Add soap: From my reading I’ll probably just use a small amount of dish detergent. If you use laundry detergent use a very small amount; if it’s powder detergent dissolve it first in water before adding. Historically a bar of soap was grated into the water. You need to find the balance of enough soap to clean the clothes while avoiding too much soap that will be difficult to rinse out. Let clothes soak for at least 30 minutes before washing.
  • Agitate the clothes in the water: It looks like the easiest thing to use would be a clean (preferably new) toilet plunger. We found a ‘Tin-Plated Steel Washer’ in the Lehman’s catalog which looks like a metal plunger. Lehman’s states, “Just plunge up and down to force soap and water through clothes and linens — it’s that simple.”
  • Rinse the clothes, probably more than once. Soap left in the clothes will break down the fibers.
  • Wring the water out of the clothes: This can be done by hand, or much more efficiently with a hand wringer. Again in Lehman’s they state their hand wringers “. . . remove up to twice as much water as a spin dry.”
  • Hang the clothes to dry: This can be done either outdoors on a traditional clothes line, if weather and temperatures permit, or inside on drying racks. (Remember to get clothes pins for outdoor drying.)

So that’s the process. Our plan is to buy:

  • A washboard (Lehman’s $16 – $23)
  • Two galvanized wash tubs (about $40 – $50 each), they’re a good size and easily portable, plus they also have many other uses.
  • A Tin-Plated Steel Washer (Lehman’s $18.95).
  • A hand wringer (wide range of prices and quality).
  • A large indoor drying rack. Living here in the Pacific Northwest we’ll probably have to dry inside most of the time.

Once we get everything we’ll give it a few test runs and, of course, I’ll post about how those go.

Sarah’s View: Raising Children in a Collapse World

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Momma Bear’s post about birth control got me thinking: “What would it be like to be raising young children in a collapsed world? What would that look like? How would it be different from what we do today?”

I should start by saying that I don’t have any children of my own. However, that doesn’t mean that I won’t someday or that my friends or step-kids won’t. It’s important to consider the ramifications of having a child, both in our society as it is now, and how it would be in a potential disaster or complete collapse.

The challenges of having an infant or toddler in a post-collapse world would be huge for today’s ‘modern’ parents. It becomes incredibly difficult – if not impossible – to easily bug-out, especially if you’re going any distance on foot. An infant (child under 12 months old) can be carried, but if you are carrying that child you are then limited in what else you can take with you, i.e. BOBs, additional water, food, etc. Now, what if that child is a toddler? Anyone who’s spent any time with a child this age knows that they don’t always (ever) want to be carried. You now have a toddler fighting being carried and/or walking (toddling) beside you. Neither of these scenarios allow you to walk with any speed and could potentially draw unwanted attention.

If you can instead bug-in this removes some of the mobility issues that accompany infants and toddlers. However, now there’s the surviving day-to-day. Are you hunting and/or scavenging for food? A crying child doesn’t do much to lure game to you, or help you remain unseen. What is your child willing or able to eat? If your child isn’t used to eating anything but jarred baby food, suddenly switching to a hunter/gatherer diet, or even an MRE diet, will not go smoothly.

The things to think about with young children don’t differ greatly from the things we need for ourselves.

Food – The best thing you can do for an infant is breastfeed. I know this is not possible for some, but it is the easiest and cheapest way to feed a baby. If you can’t breastfeed, make sure you have in your preps enough formula or other supplemental milk to last your baby through six months of age. For toddlers, start encouraging them to try the food you eat (and store). If you need to, overcook it a bit and squish it up.

Water – Young children are especially susceptible to dehydration caused by overheating or diarrhea from dysentery, therefore sanitary water is key. Unlike adults a child will appear just fine, until they’re not, and then deteriorates very quickly.

Security (Safety), Shelter – Infants and toddlers love to explore so keeping them safe, even today, can be a challenge. In a collapse, when every able adult will need to be working, minding the babies is not something that a mom or dad can be spared to do. For infants I recommend checking out the various slings available for carrying babies – they are simple, come in many shapes and sizes, and are tremendously versatile. This option allows the child to be carried while leaving both hands free for working. What is your group’s plan for caring for toddlers? It’s great if there are older children around, or maybe a “grandma”, who can play with and watch over them. Keeping young children safe truly is the ‘village’ raising the child.

I believe that much of our “preps” for living with young children can be taken from human history and can be applied now and not just in a collapse situation. For thousands of years infants and toddlers were raised in tribes where they are no daycares, formula, or Purell. Instead there were grandmas, slings, and water. Prepping with and for infants and toddlers doesn’t need to be difficult; but thinking and planning for it now is key.

(Friday: Momma Bear’s June Preps)