Our Stake President from church asked all the families to do a special Family Home Evening about our family emergency preparedness. Thanks to a really informative site, www.preparedldsfamily.blogspot.com, I was able to pack our 72-hour kits, medical supplies, camping gear, etc long ago. I highly recommend this site for food storage guidance, emergency plans, what to pack in 72 hour kits, how to organize a first aid kit, etc. It's VERY informative!
We used to have the supplies hidden in different closets, but 6 months ago my sweet husband moved all his electronic components out of the downstairs closet and sacrificed that space for the exclusive use of our emergency supplies (and the vacuum). I loved the idea shared by other LDS moms of writing up a chart to post in the emergency closet. The chart has a list of all the important items to grab, where they are located (things like journals that aren't stored in the closet), and who is responsible for packing that item in the van. It's so organized, I love it!
For FHE I taught the children about the chart and how to read it (different colors for each family member really helps the process run smoothly). We set the timer for 5 minutes and had a staged evacuation. I was thinking that it would take 5-7 minutes for the entire family to be packed and loaded in the car. Everyone was in charge of loading their own 72-hour kit (packed in a backpack) and then they had specialized jobs to do.
Sarah was in charge of getting the first aid kit, box of medicenes from the medicene cabinet, and scriptures from the master bedroom. Matthew was in charge of loading hte sleeping bags, Bella's pack (filled with dog food), and getting Bella on a leash and preventing her from running out the open front door. Daniel's job was to collect the pillows off of every bed, then he was to buckle up in his carseat and just stay there, safely out of the way. :)
It was incredible to see how fast everyone worked. It's amazing how much can be done in a short amount of time. We were completely loaded in the car, with everyone buckled and ready to drive away in 4 MINUTES 40 SECONDS! I was so proud of everyone! Then we had the *delightful* task of unloading a full van, putting everything away, and winding down for bedtime. We rewarded everyone with ice cream sundaes. During the refreshments, Nathan asked the children what we should do if we had to evacuate while he was at work. Matthew immediately replied, "First we'll have to go save you!" Nathan asked, "What if I died?" Matthew responded, "Then I guess I'll have to cook my own food." Matthew's always thinking about food. On Mother's Day our ward made little books for all the moms. It had quotes from every child in Primary, and the quotes were the responses offered to the question, "How do I know my mother loves me?" Other kids said things like "She reads to me" or "She helps me feel better when I'm sad" or "She teaches me neat things". Matthew said "She cooks breakfast for me." Nice.
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