Recently we have been going through a bit of a financial strain. Who am I kidding? We seem to always be in a financial strain. Ha ha ha. But recently I have been thinking more and more about how to be more prepared financially.
I hate the fear that lack of money gives me. I feel safer when I seem to have some money in the bank. I feel secure. But the money never seems to last very long. There always seems to be some sort of "thing" that comes up where we need to use our money. A refrigerator dies and needs to be replaced. A child needs dental work to the tune of $1200. Something always seems to come up and we have to spend our little (and I mean little) nest egg.
Years ago we took a Dave Ramsey course and it was great. It allowed us to see where our money was going and we learned how to reduce our debt. We used this method for quite a while and we still go back to it from time to time.
Dave says to have 3 to 6 months in income in a savings account for emergencies. He also says to have a budget for cars and car maintenance. He says to put money aside each month and then when your car needs repair the money is there. When your car needs new tires, the money is there. This makes total sense to me. But {sigh} I never seem to be able to do it. Ramsey encourages us to use cash. Put the cash in an envelope each month labeled for that specific category.
I remember my grandmother telling me a story years ago where she was using envelopes to put money in each month for different things: groceries, clothing, car maintenance, etc. Her story goes on to tell how she didn't know what to do with the extra money each month that she didn't spend. That never happens to us. I found that I had to steal money from another envelope to make up the difference in spending from another envelope. {sigh, again}.
Having a cash system is hard. In this day and age we don't use cash that much. Everything is done online, through debit or credit card, or with electronic transfers. I considered opening a host of bank accounts to settle out the "envelope" system but that didn't seem practical. I tried a spreadsheet, half-heartedly I admit, but that seemed very tedious. Lots of detail and saving receipts. It didn't work, and I admit, I didn't give it much of a chance.
However, one thing that we have done over the years pretty successfully is to put a bit of cash in a jar. We dip into it from time to time but it usually has a final purpose, like Christmas budget, or travel funds, etc. It is nice to know that a bit of money is stashed away for something or for an emergency. We usually have several hundred in there and sometimes it increases to a thousand! My husband puts his change in there and any cash he has on hand. I do the same when my purse seems heavy with change and when I end up with a bit of cash. It makes me feel good to contribute to our jar and it makes me feel safe.
Having a bit in an emergency fund is helpful for all those little emergencies. Like that refrigerator or the dental work. I am lucky because when those emergencies come up, while I hate to spend the money, we have it and don't have to get a loan or use a credit card to pay for it. Recently with the dental work, the account manager was going through the upcoming expenses and she said that I could apply for a short term loan through a financial company they use. I could apply right then if I wanted and it only took 5 minutes. {whew} Thankfully, I was able to decline because I knew we could pay cash for it. When it came to paying for my daughter's invisilign braces, we were able to take advantage of a cash discount if we paid for the whole thing up front. It took all our "emergency" money but I was able to save about $500 by paying up front. Now we are paying "payments" back to our emergency fund instead of paying a high interest loan payments to financial company for the loan for her braces.
How do you get started?
There are a couple ways to begin. One thing is to start a list of things that you might need money for in the next year. Think about appliance replacements, repairs, travel money, etc. Then start to budget for that expense in your monthly budget. Divide your total by 12 and add that amount each month. Watch out and be prepared because that number can be quite large.
For us we can't always make that amount each month to put away. For us, we just start adding whatever we can to our savings account. We try not to dip into it each month and I like to see the money start to add up. Even if it is just $20 a month that you can stick in a jar in your closet. At the end of the year you will have $240! Some months you may have an extra $10. Add that too.
What if your budget is so tight that you can't seem to part with any money to save?
Start by adding all "found" money. That penny on the sidewalk, the surprise $5 you found in your jacket pocket, change back from ordering a soda. Then look at what you might be able to take out of your budget. Maybe take your lunch instead of eating out once a week. That is an extra $5 a week ($20 a month). Perhaps it is your birthday money you receive from relatives. Start an emergency fund with money you earn from a yard sale or by selling an item online.
Other thoughts:
By having insurance on your home or rental insurance you are saving for an emergency also. Having this insurance will help replace lost or stolen items in an emergency situation. Your house floods, your insurance will kick in. But make sure you understand what is covered and what is not covered. Make sure your insurance covers your needs if a disaster happens. Know what your deductible is and save that amount in a savings account so your insurance will kick in immediately when you need it.
Health insurance is also important for peace of mind. Again, know your ins and outs of your plan and save the deductibles.
Think about life insurance too. Term life policies can be very inexpensive and can be for all sorts of amounts. Recently, a friend had the horrible experience of having to bury her teenage son. The cost of the funeral home and burial was very expensive and they didn't have that kind of money. They had to take a loan out to get their son buried. It was a very sad situation and one they had not expected nor planned for. Not only were they mourning and grieving horribly but also at the same time had to deal with the payments to the funeral home and cemetery.
Reality:
In full disclosure, we don't currently have health insurance or life insurance. This is something that we need to get taken care of soon and on my list of things to do.
We do have a small fund of cash in a jar and we are currently saving for Christmas and then for travel later in the year. We put all found money in there and whenever we end up with cash. Extras from the month will also go in there. When we need cash we tend to dip out of it and I hate that, but it happens. I always say I will take cash out of our bank account and replace it but in reality that rarely happens.
I write this post not only to help spark some ideas for you but also for me to get organized and help me get more prepared as well.
What creative ideas do you have to save money for emergencies?
Friday, September 29, 2017
Thursday, September 28, 2017
Holy Trash - a - Lot!!!
I can't believe the AMOUNT of trash we have in this house!! It is amazing how much trash one family can create! Tonight my husband emptied the kitchen trashcan for me. It was full (as it usually is) and he pulled the full bag out and put a new one in. Within about a minute and a half (maybe less time than that) the new bag was full too. Why you ask?? Because there was trash sitting in line waiting to get in the trashcan. Because the can was full it sat on the counter next to the can waiting its turn to be thrown away.
We stopped our trash service earlier this year. My husband wasn't thrilled with the man we had. He was a "two men and a truck" deal. He was the only one we could find that would come down our long, long driveway and pick up our trash at our backdoor. Other services wanted to pick up our trash at the end of our driveway. That just isn't possible for us to drag our trashcans down a quarter mile long driveway. {sigh} Again, my husband wasn't thrilled with this trashman because he wouldn't take all our trash. He would only pick up two outside trashcans-full, unless we paid him more, which we did to pick up all our trash. My husband felt like we were being "taken" by the new price to take the extra trash. So he cancelled service and promised to take our trash to the dump himself.
Tonight my husband said he would have to go to the dump AGAIN this week. I mentioned that it is why our trashman picked up our trash WEEKLY!! LOL
Back to our copious amounts of trash. We seem to fill the kitchen trashcan at least once a day, sometimes twice. And that is with just normal trash. Then each of the kids' bedrooms can fill a bag at least once every other week. The trash in the office can fill a kitchen garbage can at least weekly too. Bathrooms combined can fill a bag, and then we have the garage trash which we can pull two bags, at least, a week.
Two things I wish:
1. that we had a trash service that would just pick up our trash, all of it, each week so we don't have to worry about when we will get to the dump.
2. if we can't have a trash service then the guys will habitually take our trash to the dump each week so it doesn't pile up.
Last week before they went to the dump we had little animals partaking in a virtual feast each evening by digging in our trash on the deck. The trash had piled up so much that it no longer fit in our outside trashcans and we had to pile bags on the deck. It was bad, bad, bad.
We stopped our trash service earlier this year. My husband wasn't thrilled with the man we had. He was a "two men and a truck" deal. He was the only one we could find that would come down our long, long driveway and pick up our trash at our backdoor. Other services wanted to pick up our trash at the end of our driveway. That just isn't possible for us to drag our trashcans down a quarter mile long driveway. {sigh} Again, my husband wasn't thrilled with this trashman because he wouldn't take all our trash. He would only pick up two outside trashcans-full, unless we paid him more, which we did to pick up all our trash. My husband felt like we were being "taken" by the new price to take the extra trash. So he cancelled service and promised to take our trash to the dump himself.
Tonight my husband said he would have to go to the dump AGAIN this week. I mentioned that it is why our trashman picked up our trash WEEKLY!! LOL
Back to our copious amounts of trash. We seem to fill the kitchen trashcan at least once a day, sometimes twice. And that is with just normal trash. Then each of the kids' bedrooms can fill a bag at least once every other week. The trash in the office can fill a kitchen garbage can at least weekly too. Bathrooms combined can fill a bag, and then we have the garage trash which we can pull two bags, at least, a week.
Two things I wish:
1. that we had a trash service that would just pick up our trash, all of it, each week so we don't have to worry about when we will get to the dump.
2. if we can't have a trash service then the guys will habitually take our trash to the dump each week so it doesn't pile up.
Last week before they went to the dump we had little animals partaking in a virtual feast each evening by digging in our trash on the deck. The trash had piled up so much that it no longer fit in our outside trashcans and we had to pile bags on the deck. It was bad, bad, bad.
Monday, September 25, 2017
One Thousand White Women
Oh my goodness!!! What an awesome book!!!
One Thousand White Women by Jim Fergus was a novel that I bought on a whim at Target a couple years ago. It said it was a good book club book and I have this romanticised notion of being in a book club and reading great books, discussing these said books with others, and having smart, thoughtful conversation! Well, this notion has never really come to fruition over the years but I had this book on my bookshelf, sitting there, waiting for me to pick it up and read it.
Well that day came last Thursday afternoon. I was sitting in our study waiting on my husband to do something or another and I grabbed the first book I saw. This was the book. I opened it and began reading. And today is Monday. I spent the better part of the last three days reading this book. I was so engrossed in it I didn't cook any of the days for my family, nor did I write out assignments for the kids this week.
What makes this novel great? The premise of the book is intriguing. It is historical fiction and the history part seems quite sound and well researched. It reads quickly as the main characters writes in such a way that you feel her sense of urgency and fast paced writing. It makes you want to read it at that speed too.
This evening I was telling my sister about the book and looked up on amazon.com and lo and behold..... there is a sequel! And it was just released about two weeks ago! Yes, I have already put the book in my shopping cart. It will be on its way here soon. :)
Have you read this book? What did you think of it???
One Thousand White Women by Jim Fergus was a novel that I bought on a whim at Target a couple years ago. It said it was a good book club book and I have this romanticised notion of being in a book club and reading great books, discussing these said books with others, and having smart, thoughtful conversation! Well, this notion has never really come to fruition over the years but I had this book on my bookshelf, sitting there, waiting for me to pick it up and read it.
Well that day came last Thursday afternoon. I was sitting in our study waiting on my husband to do something or another and I grabbed the first book I saw. This was the book. I opened it and began reading. And today is Monday. I spent the better part of the last three days reading this book. I was so engrossed in it I didn't cook any of the days for my family, nor did I write out assignments for the kids this week.
What makes this novel great? The premise of the book is intriguing. It is historical fiction and the history part seems quite sound and well researched. It reads quickly as the main characters writes in such a way that you feel her sense of urgency and fast paced writing. It makes you want to read it at that speed too.
This evening I was telling my sister about the book and looked up on amazon.com and lo and behold..... there is a sequel! And it was just released about two weeks ago! Yes, I have already put the book in my shopping cart. It will be on its way here soon. :)
Have you read this book? What did you think of it???
Monday, September 18, 2017
What Hurricane Irma and Harvey Can Teach Us
Let me begin by setting up some background....
My family used to vacation in the Outer Banks when I was growing up. We spent several weeks in August there each year. It was a wonderful place for vacationing however August was the beginning of hurricane season down there. We never evacuated for a hurricane, never. Never. At the hint of a hurricane my aunt, uncle and family would leave. We would tease them, but they always left. I don't remember a Category 3, 4 or 5 ever hitting while we were there but I do remember Category 1s and 2s all the time. We survived them all unscathed and never had any real damage. Yes there was lots of wind, rain, and flooding, but no damage.
My family isn't scared of hurricanes. We typically don't evacuate unless absolutely necessary. I suspect that those who live in Florida and even on the coast of Texas have a similar experience and similar thought processes when it comes to hurricanes.
Harvey wasn't as massive, nor a higher wind storm but it stuck around in the same spot for days on end. Massive flooding occurred. Most hurricanes move through, albeit slowly sometimes but they move on. Harvey didn't follow those guidelines. It just stayed and stayed and stayed!
Irma was "impressive" to say the least. It was a cat 5 storm. It was HUGE, over 400 miles in diameter, and it was tracking to cover all of Florida. Many residents decided to evacuate because of the enormity of the storm. Some chose to stay and hunker down and ride it out. Houses down there are built for storms.
Last week the track of Irma looked like it would turn and go up the east coast. This gave those on the west coast a bit of relief and they relaxed a bit. However just before the storm hit the track changed and those on the west coast would be hit instead of east coast. This was a major change and required a quick decision as to what those on the west coast would do. Stay and ride it out or evacuate if they could.
Those who chose to go didn't have time to do much more than "grab and go". This was a big real life lesson.
Lesson #1: Bug out Bags
When prepping for a storm in which you plan to remain and shelter in place, one still must pack a Bug Out Bag.
This should be done during the prep stage of the storm. There may be no time to pack when it comes down to evacuating. I have listed some items that you will need to pack.
All members of the household must have their own bag or back pack. Even pack one for the pets.
These packs should be packed and ready to go in a moment's notice, all in one place. Put your shoes on or keep them next to the packs so you don't have to go look for anything in case you have to leave quickly. Some of these items can even be put in the car ahead of time so you don't have to worry about packing it when the times comes to "bug out".
Lesson #2: Emergency Shelters
Prior to the storm contact emergency officials and ask where the local shelters are and what requirements they have. If you have pets, ask what requirements they need for pets. Many shelters in Florida required proof of shots and the pets all had to be in a cage/carrier that you had to bring with you. Many residents didn't have cages and couldn't bring their pets. It would be horrible to get there and be turned away because your pet doesn't meet the requirements.
Lesson #3: Weather Updates
Prior to the storm contact a friend or family member and let them know your plans and options if you need to leave or move to another place. Also ask them to keep you informed of weather updates once your power goes out. Also have an emergency weather radio or battery powered radio where you can get up to the minute weather information for the locality where you are. If you have a weather radio know how to reprogram it for the locality you have to move to if you have to move locations. A friend can text you information from far away as now most major news channels run towards the major severe storm. This can also be a very important connection to help you weather the storm and keep your sanity about you. You can be very scared and make poor decisions in the midst of a severe storm and bouncing your ideas off a friend who may be able to help you sort through your fears is helpful.
Lesson #4: Never too many battery chargers
Your cell phone may be your only lifeline to the outside world. You can burn through your battery power quickly in an emergency. So have LOTS of battery chargers available and ready to use. Your kids may feel comfort using their tech to play a game and keep their minds off being scared and your batteries will wear down quickly. Texting uses less battery power than an actual phone call or video chatting or playing a game. Reserve your power as best you can by turning off all apps that run in the background other than the ones you need, like weather apps, texting ability, etc. Quicker charging can be done if you turn your phone off to charge or if you turn your phone to "airplane mode". If you don't know how to turn off apps, take some time prior to the storm to learn or have someone teach you. Once the storm is over you may not have the ability to recharge using electricity. Purchase a good quality solar battery charger.
Lesson #5: Evacuation
Florida is a unique place in many ways, but it is similar to other places in many ways. If you think about how you will evacuate your area most localities have one or two main highways heading into and leaving your area. Think about everyone in your locality leaving at the same time. Massive backups, traffic accidents, gas shortages. There is nothing worse than sitting in a 5 hour back up and running out of gas on the highway. Have a plan ahead of time and then if you are evacuating do it early. I can't preach this enough. A short 2 hour trip may take 3 or 4 times as long with massive traffic. Pack your patience and lots of snacks, drinks, and expect massive delays.
Lesson #6: Stocking Up
Most people do not have a store of emergency supplies, so when the time comes where a storm is predicted people run out to their local stores and start gathering the supplies they need. The stores don't have time to have shipments of emergency supplies come in prior to a storm so they run out of the supplies you need quickly. The first things off the shelves are flashlights, batteries, bread, milk, peanut butter, snack foods, tarps, generators, etc. Many of these items can be used over and over again like flashlights. Have a central location in your home where you store your emergency supplies and frequently check on your supplies for working ability so that these are things you don't need to worry about getting at the time of a storm. If you are going to need plywood to board up your windows then keep a stock of plywood somewhere in your garage or under a protective covering so that you don't need to run out to get that. Food is another situation however you can still stock up and keep a "stash" of foods that you can cook or eat without cooking when storms hit. One rule I use is that the first time I hear of a storm potentially impacting our area I hit the grocery store and purchase foods prior to the "panic" of the rest of my neighbors. Many times the storm doesn't impact us but we will still use the food I purchased. It won't go to waste. I don't buy "special" food for a storm.
For us, I try to do a review of my supplies a couple times a year and prepare for that season's needs. We use batteries all the time, so when I see that we are starting to get low I will stock up. Storm or no storm. If I find that a flashlight isn't working properly, I purchase a new one.
The big lesson here is stock up early. Fill all cars with gas. Be ready for the worst, hope for the best.
Lesson #7: The Aftermath
The storm is one thing. The impact can be major but you need to prepare for the aftermath also. Check on your neighbors, friends and family who were also impacted. Make sure they are safe and well. Make sure you have cleaning supplies, lots of towels, rags, bleach, trash bags, etc., for potential flooding or damage. Flooding can be many days. Have a plan for the trash, household goods that got ruined, and how you will deal with the clean up. Start making a list of all the ruined items to turn into your insurance company. Have a list of people you can contact to help you.
If you didn't have flooding but major damage to your home, you may need a long term plan for shelter while your home is being repaired.
At the very least you may have to deal with no electricity for days on end. Do you have an alternative cooking method, alternative lighting methods, alternative battery charging methods? Having no electricity can be quite frustrating. One of the first things most people do after the storm is go out and try to find a restaurant that is open. Don't expect it. Plan to be able to feed yourself for several days at least after the storm. If you live in a warm climate ICE may be tops on your list of items you need. Try to plan for that too. Make extra ice prior to the storm. Buy ice prior to the storm. Store it in coolers, your fridge and freezers. Having no power is a great way to clean out your fridge and freezer ;)
It is always good to look back and reflect. Every storm is slightly different and we can learn from them all so we are better prepared next time.
Have a great day. Be safe!
My family used to vacation in the Outer Banks when I was growing up. We spent several weeks in August there each year. It was a wonderful place for vacationing however August was the beginning of hurricane season down there. We never evacuated for a hurricane, never. Never. At the hint of a hurricane my aunt, uncle and family would leave. We would tease them, but they always left. I don't remember a Category 3, 4 or 5 ever hitting while we were there but I do remember Category 1s and 2s all the time. We survived them all unscathed and never had any real damage. Yes there was lots of wind, rain, and flooding, but no damage.
My family isn't scared of hurricanes. We typically don't evacuate unless absolutely necessary. I suspect that those who live in Florida and even on the coast of Texas have a similar experience and similar thought processes when it comes to hurricanes.
Harvey wasn't as massive, nor a higher wind storm but it stuck around in the same spot for days on end. Massive flooding occurred. Most hurricanes move through, albeit slowly sometimes but they move on. Harvey didn't follow those guidelines. It just stayed and stayed and stayed!
Irma was "impressive" to say the least. It was a cat 5 storm. It was HUGE, over 400 miles in diameter, and it was tracking to cover all of Florida. Many residents decided to evacuate because of the enormity of the storm. Some chose to stay and hunker down and ride it out. Houses down there are built for storms.
Last week the track of Irma looked like it would turn and go up the east coast. This gave those on the west coast a bit of relief and they relaxed a bit. However just before the storm hit the track changed and those on the west coast would be hit instead of east coast. This was a major change and required a quick decision as to what those on the west coast would do. Stay and ride it out or evacuate if they could.
Those who chose to go didn't have time to do much more than "grab and go". This was a big real life lesson.
Lesson #1: Bug out Bags
When prepping for a storm in which you plan to remain and shelter in place, one still must pack a Bug Out Bag.
This should be done during the prep stage of the storm. There may be no time to pack when it comes down to evacuating. I have listed some items that you will need to pack.
All members of the household must have their own bag or back pack. Even pack one for the pets.
- 3 days worth of clothing, don't worry about pjs - just the bare basics
- 3 days worth of water,
- 3 days worth of food,
- toiletries including toilet paper, a trash bag, first aid kit
- electronics, cords, batteries, and chargers (charge up all chargers and electronics and keep them charged until the time comes to bug out or no power) flashlights
- emergency info, numbers, papers, etc. thumb drives with back-up files, photos, etc
- Any additional special items that you can't live without.
- Rain gear (ponchos are awesome and easy to pack) plus you can put your backpack under it to keep it dry, use as a ground cover, or a drop cloth.
- for pets, leash and a spare, papers to prove shots and health info, food, water, bowls, blanket or towel for them to sleep on, a crate or cage.
- for kids, ask them what two or three toys or items that they must have with them (stuffed animal, toy or game to keep them busy)
These packs should be packed and ready to go in a moment's notice, all in one place. Put your shoes on or keep them next to the packs so you don't have to go look for anything in case you have to leave quickly. Some of these items can even be put in the car ahead of time so you don't have to worry about packing it when the times comes to "bug out".
Lesson #2: Emergency Shelters
Prior to the storm contact emergency officials and ask where the local shelters are and what requirements they have. If you have pets, ask what requirements they need for pets. Many shelters in Florida required proof of shots and the pets all had to be in a cage/carrier that you had to bring with you. Many residents didn't have cages and couldn't bring their pets. It would be horrible to get there and be turned away because your pet doesn't meet the requirements.
Lesson #3: Weather Updates
Prior to the storm contact a friend or family member and let them know your plans and options if you need to leave or move to another place. Also ask them to keep you informed of weather updates once your power goes out. Also have an emergency weather radio or battery powered radio where you can get up to the minute weather information for the locality where you are. If you have a weather radio know how to reprogram it for the locality you have to move to if you have to move locations. A friend can text you information from far away as now most major news channels run towards the major severe storm. This can also be a very important connection to help you weather the storm and keep your sanity about you. You can be very scared and make poor decisions in the midst of a severe storm and bouncing your ideas off a friend who may be able to help you sort through your fears is helpful.
Lesson #4: Never too many battery chargers
Your cell phone may be your only lifeline to the outside world. You can burn through your battery power quickly in an emergency. So have LOTS of battery chargers available and ready to use. Your kids may feel comfort using their tech to play a game and keep their minds off being scared and your batteries will wear down quickly. Texting uses less battery power than an actual phone call or video chatting or playing a game. Reserve your power as best you can by turning off all apps that run in the background other than the ones you need, like weather apps, texting ability, etc. Quicker charging can be done if you turn your phone off to charge or if you turn your phone to "airplane mode". If you don't know how to turn off apps, take some time prior to the storm to learn or have someone teach you. Once the storm is over you may not have the ability to recharge using electricity. Purchase a good quality solar battery charger.
Lesson #5: Evacuation
Florida is a unique place in many ways, but it is similar to other places in many ways. If you think about how you will evacuate your area most localities have one or two main highways heading into and leaving your area. Think about everyone in your locality leaving at the same time. Massive backups, traffic accidents, gas shortages. There is nothing worse than sitting in a 5 hour back up and running out of gas on the highway. Have a plan ahead of time and then if you are evacuating do it early. I can't preach this enough. A short 2 hour trip may take 3 or 4 times as long with massive traffic. Pack your patience and lots of snacks, drinks, and expect massive delays.
Lesson #6: Stocking Up
Most people do not have a store of emergency supplies, so when the time comes where a storm is predicted people run out to their local stores and start gathering the supplies they need. The stores don't have time to have shipments of emergency supplies come in prior to a storm so they run out of the supplies you need quickly. The first things off the shelves are flashlights, batteries, bread, milk, peanut butter, snack foods, tarps, generators, etc. Many of these items can be used over and over again like flashlights. Have a central location in your home where you store your emergency supplies and frequently check on your supplies for working ability so that these are things you don't need to worry about getting at the time of a storm. If you are going to need plywood to board up your windows then keep a stock of plywood somewhere in your garage or under a protective covering so that you don't need to run out to get that. Food is another situation however you can still stock up and keep a "stash" of foods that you can cook or eat without cooking when storms hit. One rule I use is that the first time I hear of a storm potentially impacting our area I hit the grocery store and purchase foods prior to the "panic" of the rest of my neighbors. Many times the storm doesn't impact us but we will still use the food I purchased. It won't go to waste. I don't buy "special" food for a storm.
For us, I try to do a review of my supplies a couple times a year and prepare for that season's needs. We use batteries all the time, so when I see that we are starting to get low I will stock up. Storm or no storm. If I find that a flashlight isn't working properly, I purchase a new one.
The big lesson here is stock up early. Fill all cars with gas. Be ready for the worst, hope for the best.
Lesson #7: The Aftermath
The storm is one thing. The impact can be major but you need to prepare for the aftermath also. Check on your neighbors, friends and family who were also impacted. Make sure they are safe and well. Make sure you have cleaning supplies, lots of towels, rags, bleach, trash bags, etc., for potential flooding or damage. Flooding can be many days. Have a plan for the trash, household goods that got ruined, and how you will deal with the clean up. Start making a list of all the ruined items to turn into your insurance company. Have a list of people you can contact to help you.
If you didn't have flooding but major damage to your home, you may need a long term plan for shelter while your home is being repaired.
At the very least you may have to deal with no electricity for days on end. Do you have an alternative cooking method, alternative lighting methods, alternative battery charging methods? Having no electricity can be quite frustrating. One of the first things most people do after the storm is go out and try to find a restaurant that is open. Don't expect it. Plan to be able to feed yourself for several days at least after the storm. If you live in a warm climate ICE may be tops on your list of items you need. Try to plan for that too. Make extra ice prior to the storm. Buy ice prior to the storm. Store it in coolers, your fridge and freezers. Having no power is a great way to clean out your fridge and freezer ;)
It is always good to look back and reflect. Every storm is slightly different and we can learn from them all so we are better prepared next time.
Have a great day. Be safe!
Friday, September 8, 2017
A Guide for Helping Kids Cope with a Hurricane
I found this gem this morning. It was published by the Florida Sun-Sentinel to help in preparation for Hurricane Irma coming up the Florida Peninsula. I thought there were some very helpful hints here.
Hurricane Irma: Prepping the Kids
Hurricane Irma: Prepping the Kids
Wednesday, September 6, 2017
A Beka Consumer Math
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| Consumer Math Workbook |
I chose this book because our cousin uses it in her school. We had never used A Beka products before now. I know A Beka has their own course schedule and lesson plans and honestly I never looked at them. I think they are in the teacher's guide which I have yet to open. Maybe I should have, however, I went through the book and organized a year long plan along with assignments. I know I will be using this again with my youngest child when she is ready so I need to put it somewhere where I can access it later and thought my blog is as good a place as any. So here it is.
I based my year on a 36 week year. I give them a day break after each test day and a break here and there. I aimed for 4 days of assignments each week and some weeks there are 5 days. I didn't assign all the exercise problems, as I know my kids don't need all that practice. I assigned worksheet pages from the workbook but won't be having them do any of the skills check that is on top of the pages. They will only do the lesson exercises on the bottom half of the workbook pages. So when I assign a "worksheet" and it is two pages, it refers to the workbook page numbers and they will only be doing the reviewing exercises on the bottom half of each page.
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| Consumer Math Textbook |
You are welcome to use these assignments or adapt them for your own use. If you do use them, please just comment "thank you" in the bottom so I know others are using these assignments too. Let me know if you like, how you like them and if you would like me to post more of my curriculum I use with my kids.
You can buy the textbooks at abeka.com. You really only need the student Text, student workbook, and teacher's edition text, teacher's edition workbook. That way you have the answers. You might be able to find them used for sale too.
Here is the link to the Google Doc that has the whole plan.
Abeka Consumer Math Year Plan with Daily Assignments
Yet One More Post About Hurricanes
The other night we built a fire in our outside firepit and roasted marshmallows. It was a great evening with my teenage kids. This is rare for us to spend the evening all together as they are busy with other interests, friends, and activities. I pulled out the s'more making ingredients and we made s'mores.
Why am I telling you all this when my post title implies that I will be talking about hurricanes??? I am getting to that..... When I ran into the house to get our s'more making ingredients I grabbed a lantern. The first lantern I grabbed had no batteries in it. I looked in our battery box and there were no D batteries. I grabbed the other lamp and luckily it had batteries in it and the lantern still worked. Heading back to the kitchen I quickly wrote down on my grocery list "D batteries" "AA batteries" "water bottles".
I don't know about you but there are a few things that we always seem to run out of. AA batteries not only fit in most of our smaller flashlights but also fits in my daughter's camera. She is always telling me we are out of AA batteries. Water bottles are also something that seems to disappear quicker than I can turn around twice. The kids grab them on their way out places, I throw one in my purse, my husband grabs one on the way out to work. With a family of 5 we go through a case quickly. We have awesome tasting water in our tap (well water) and we have insulated water bottles that we also use all the time but filling up before we run out somewhere doesn't always happen. And then the D batteries. I honestly don't know where these disappear to but I have a feeling it might be a radio somewhere (maybe in my son's room??) Our lanterns won't work unless we have batteries in them.
Another thing we need is a few screens for our windows. We don't have screens in our windows. The house didn't come with any and I just have been lazy in the last year and a half we have lived here to buy screens. Today I will be working to get the windows measured and go to our local hardware store and hope they have some snap in screens that we can put in a few of our windows to get a cross breeze should the power go out.
Hurricane Irma is barrelling somewhere towards the US and right now we aren't quite sure if it will hit us in Virginia but I want to make sure I am prepared for it, just in case.
I have posted a zillion times about hurricane prep so I won't go through all of it again. You can search on my sidebar all my posts on emergency preparedness. But remember the basics: alternate lighting, alternate cooking, alternate warmth (if you need it), alternate water. If you live in a place where you have well water, remember that you won't be able to turn on the tap to get water and your toilets won't flush normally. Alternate water sources can be your bathtub for non-potable water (for toilets, cleaning and such), and fill all your water bottles, large pots, and anything else that will hold potable (for drinking and cooking) water.
The day after our s'mores evening, I went to the grocery store and grabbed a couple packs of D batteries, AA batteries and a case of water. I feel like I need to grab a couple more cases (we will drink them even if we don't need them) and more D batteries..........just in case.
I would rather be over prepared and not have to worry than to not be prepared and worry.
Why am I telling you all this when my post title implies that I will be talking about hurricanes??? I am getting to that..... When I ran into the house to get our s'more making ingredients I grabbed a lantern. The first lantern I grabbed had no batteries in it. I looked in our battery box and there were no D batteries. I grabbed the other lamp and luckily it had batteries in it and the lantern still worked. Heading back to the kitchen I quickly wrote down on my grocery list "D batteries" "AA batteries" "water bottles".
I don't know about you but there are a few things that we always seem to run out of. AA batteries not only fit in most of our smaller flashlights but also fits in my daughter's camera. She is always telling me we are out of AA batteries. Water bottles are also something that seems to disappear quicker than I can turn around twice. The kids grab them on their way out places, I throw one in my purse, my husband grabs one on the way out to work. With a family of 5 we go through a case quickly. We have awesome tasting water in our tap (well water) and we have insulated water bottles that we also use all the time but filling up before we run out somewhere doesn't always happen. And then the D batteries. I honestly don't know where these disappear to but I have a feeling it might be a radio somewhere (maybe in my son's room??) Our lanterns won't work unless we have batteries in them.
Another thing we need is a few screens for our windows. We don't have screens in our windows. The house didn't come with any and I just have been lazy in the last year and a half we have lived here to buy screens. Today I will be working to get the windows measured and go to our local hardware store and hope they have some snap in screens that we can put in a few of our windows to get a cross breeze should the power go out.
Hurricane Irma is barrelling somewhere towards the US and right now we aren't quite sure if it will hit us in Virginia but I want to make sure I am prepared for it, just in case.
I have posted a zillion times about hurricane prep so I won't go through all of it again. You can search on my sidebar all my posts on emergency preparedness. But remember the basics: alternate lighting, alternate cooking, alternate warmth (if you need it), alternate water. If you live in a place where you have well water, remember that you won't be able to turn on the tap to get water and your toilets won't flush normally. Alternate water sources can be your bathtub for non-potable water (for toilets, cleaning and such), and fill all your water bottles, large pots, and anything else that will hold potable (for drinking and cooking) water.
The day after our s'mores evening, I went to the grocery store and grabbed a couple packs of D batteries, AA batteries and a case of water. I feel like I need to grab a couple more cases (we will drink them even if we don't need them) and more D batteries..........just in case.
I would rather be over prepared and not have to worry than to not be prepared and worry.
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