A Food Storage Frame of Mind

I have had many people tell me over the last few years that they don't have food storage because it is just too overwhelming to deal with.  I have thought a lot about that feeling and have wondered why I don't feel that way about food storage.  I came to the conclusion that I make food storage a way of life and not a one time obstacle that I have to overcome.  Just like we shouldn't diet, but make eating healthy a way of life, food storage should be a lifestyle. I believe in having food storage for emergencies, BUT I truly believe it is a principle of provident living.  " personal and family preparedness should be a way of provident living, an orderly approach to using the resources, gifts, and talents the Lord shares with us. So the first step is to teach our people to be self-reliant and independent through proper preparation for daily life." -Victor L. Brown, Ensign 1976

So, how do you make food storage a way of life??  There are MANY ways to store food and rotate food storage.  This is what I do and it's what works for my family.  It may not be right for your family but there might be a few things you could try out.

• Have a meal plan that includes easy to prepare recipes.
• Know what ingredients you use on a daily basis and keep those in stock at all times.
• Watch the grocery sales and know what "a stock up price" is for every item you use in your recipes. Don't stress out about this....it took me a few months to know what a good deal was, but after some practice of comparing prices I know off hand what the low prices are.
• Have freeze-dried or dehydrated equals to the fresh produce you like to eat.  They come in handy a lot more then you think they will.  They are worth the price and cook up almost like the fresh counterpart.
• Make pantry meals that only use shelf-stable foods in your pantry 1-2 times per week.
• Rotating food becomes easy when you are eating what you store.   
• Learn to bake crackers, fruit leather, snacks, breads, etc. to save money and also to use food storage basics.
• Store long term items in a proper bucket or mylar bag to prolong their life. Nothing is more frustrating then knowing you have food, opening it to use, and find it has become rancid.      
• Be patient with yourself!!  I have a system down and know which foods I make every week.  I make granola bars, bread, and snacks on a regular basis.  It becomes natural and stress-free after a few times of making a recipe.  Give yourself time to learn something new.  
•  Plan and grow a garden year after year.  I have only had small gardens and I really don't know what I am doing, but it gives my family fresh food. I feel that we spend time together as a family, and it really helps with our food budget in the summer.
• I don't have foods that will only be used in a "SHTF" scenario.  I use all the food in my storage all the time. Some of my dehydrated foods don't get used as often, but they do get used, and when I store them properly they last a long time.
• Learn to can and preserve.  There are so many times I run out of chicken in the freezer and open a bottle of canned chicken to save dinner.   
• Add beans, tvp, and veggies to sauces, meat dishes, and casseroles.  It extends the amount of food your serving, and it uses your food storage.  There is also the added nutrition when you are sneaking veggies into dinner.  Cooked wheat can be added to many meat dishes and no one will know it's there.   

There are so many ways you can implement food storage into your daily life.  Keeping food storage in the back of my mind all the time I see things that maybe wouldn't have caught my eye otherwise.  While shopping, keep your eyes peeled for clearance and discount items that will work for your family.  I have come across many items that I would have passed up if I hadn't been in a prepper frame of mind ;) 

Making Yogurt With Acidophilus Tablets

Making yogurt is a skill that will save you money and also allow you to make several other things, like cream cheese or sour cream, out of plain yogurt.  I have been making yogurt for a few years now and I have tried many different ways and have found what works and doesn't work.  I started making yogurt with regular milk from the grocery store but milk started to get expensive so I switched to using powdered milk.  For a yogurt starter I have tried regular, plain yogurt, dried starters, and even a forever starter that gets used over and over.  They all worked but my goal was to be able to make yogurt without having to use a refrigerated starter.  I do keep plain yogurt in 1/2 C measurements in the freezer, but that will still be a problem if there wasn't electricity.  My husband has always laughed at the fact that you need yogurt to make yogurt, but I think I have found a way around needing refrigeration for a starter.  One of my favorite websites is myfoodstoragecookbook.com  and that is where I learned about acidophilus three billion.

Acidophilus Three Billion is a probiotic that aids in digestion, but it is also the live cultures needed to make yogurt.  Instead of using plain yogurt with live cultures, use the acidophilus tablets instead.  (I bought mine on Amazon, but health food stores should have it too) Take note that the incubation period for the yogurt will be quite a bit longer, like 18-24 hours, before it starts to firm up.  Normally, with a plain yogurt starter, I would get the yogurt started in the morning and it would be setting up in the fridge by dinner time.  I made yogurt with the acidophilus and started incubating at 9am and I let it sit until about 10am the next day.  It wasn't bitter, like yogurt can get, it just took longer to set up.  I also made the yogurt in my Saratoga Jacks Thermal Cooker and that was a great option if I didn't have electricity.   I usually use my yogurt maker, and I'll have to try my next batch with my tablets to see if the yogurt comes out any differently.  


This is how I make yogurt.  You will notice that I don't heat up my milk and then let it cool. If you are using powdered milk you can skip that step.  If you use regular milk from the grocery store you will need to heat up your milk to 180 degrees and then let it cool to 100-110 degrees before adding your starter.  Don't let it cool to under 100 degrees or the starter won't "start".  It will stay in kind of a hibernation state.

Start by putting 3 3/4 C water and 1 C powdered milk into a blender.  Blend until combined.  Allow a few moments for the frothy milk to settle to the top.  You can scoop it off at this point and discard.  I add 1/3 C sugar and 1 T vanilla flavoring to my yogurt unless I am planning on making sour cream with it.  My children really like a little sweetness and flavor to their yogurt. I used to give them honey to mix in but the yogurt would get runny and they wouldn't eat it.  If you really don't care to use the sugar you can try a sugar substitute.  

Pill Crusher that I bought on amazon.com.

Using a pill crusher, crush 3 acidophilus tablets and add to a little of the blended milk.  Add it back to the blender and just stir to combine.  

Pour the milk into a clean, warm quart jar.  This recipe makes enough yogurt for one quart.  (I fill my mason jar with hot water while I make up the yogurt.)

There are several ways to incubate your yogurt but I decided to try my Saratoga Jacks Thermal Cooker.  If you don't have one try a small cooler or wonderbox.  Just make sure to have little or no air space around the jar.  I filled my cooker with the hottest water I could get out of my faucet, which was around 125 degrees.  Anything hotter will kill your starter.  After 8 hours I did switch out my water for hot water again.  The yogurt won't set up if it is too cool either.  Try to keep it above 110 degrees.  Don't let all of the temperature info scare you away from making yogurt.  It really isn't as hard as it may seem.  

Here is my yogurt after about 24 hours of incubation.  It is now in the fridge cooling off.  I tasted it and it was smooth, creamy, and just sweet enough.

Powdered Milk Yogurt Recipe

3 3/4 C warm tap water
1 C non-instant powdered milk (milk from the cannery)
2-4 T plain yogurt with active cultures OR 3 Acidophilus tablets, crushed
1/3 C sugar
1 T vanilla


Combine the water and powdered milk in a blender or use an emulsion blender.  Scoop off the foam.  Add the sugar and vanilla and blend.  Add the starter to a little of the milk from the blender and stir to combine, then add back to blended milk.  Use a spoon and stir gently to combine.  Pour into a warmed quart mason jar and incubate.  Wrap tightly in towels and place in a cooler or use a thermal cooker.  Fill the thermal cooker with hot tap water and place mason jar inside.  If using a yogurt starter your yogurt will be ready after about 8 hours.  Place in fridge and allow to firm up.  The thermal cooker can take up to 24 hours.  I checked it about every 8 hours.  

I filled my jars with warm water to heat them up.

Now you can have yogurt anytime, even in an emergency.  The cooling of the yogurt after incubation could be done with a cooler that has been buried under ground (with the lid open at the top) or in cold storage, but that is a whole other post :)


Click HERE to view another post on how I made yogurt in my yogurt maker and even how I made yogurt cream cheese :)

Storing Complete Meals

Here's a question:  Do you have cans of food in your storage that you don't use? Do you have a case of pasta sauce, but no pasta to go with it?  

The answers to these questions will matter one day when you are hungry for a spaghetti dinner but you only have pasta sauce. If you buy a case of spaghetti sauce you will need to store pasta and maybe grated Parmesan cheese and a vegetable, or fruit, to round out the meal.  Every time you purchase a food item, make sure you are storing all the other items that round out that meal. 

I don't like to have food in my pantry that will only partly make dinner.  I like to have all the ingredients on hand to make a complete meal.  I have found a system that works to have complete meals in my storage. I started out by writing down all the dinners that my family enjoys, then I listed every ingredient needed to make those meals. Now I have created a shopping list, and I know exactly what to buy, and have on hand in my pantry at all times. The list is what works in my food storage plan....I always know what ingredients I need to have in my storage.  This also works for building my 3-month supply of food. I have 5 weeks worth of dinners planned, and if I multiply each item by 3 I then have enough for 3 months worth of meals.  It keeps my meal plan organized in a way that I'll have all the ingredients on hand to make many different meals, without having to go to the store for last minute items. (click here to see my recipe binder)

My ingredient list that becomes my shopping list.

Example:

1. I have 5 weeks worth of different dinners planned out with side dishes.
2. I wrote every ingredient on a piece of paper to make each meal, including the side dishes.
3. The ingredient list now becomes my shopping list.
4. Multiplied by 3 (to equal 3 months worth) and I now have enough food to make a meal every night for 3 months!
5. I know how many cans of chicken broth I need to make those meals and also how many cases to buy at the case lot sales.  
6. COMPLETE MEALS!  I am now storing all the ingredients to make complete meals. Including the side dishes, which include muffins, quick breads, veggies, and fruits.  

It doesn't matter how many meals you have planned out.  I just happened to have 5 weeks worth of recipes that we really like to eat.  Start with one week's worth of meals it that is easier for you.  Multiply your 7 meals by 13 to have 3 months of food storage. There are roughly 13 weeks in 3 months, so if your plan only has 7 different meals in it you'll multiply by 13. Then begin shopping for those ingredients. 

 What If I Want To Eat Fresh Produce....

While we all love to have fresh produce as our first choice when cooking, you'll need to think of a back-up if those fresh items become unavailable.  For longer-term storage of fresh produce, think of dehydrated, freeze-dried, or canned items to fill in for fresh ingredients.  Give freeze-dried foods a taste.  There aren't many that I wouldn't eat.  Fresh dairy is also an area that we don't want to be without.  Freeze-dried cheese, powdered butter, canned butter, and powdered milk are also an important item to have in your storage. 

Back to complete meals....

Once you have your ingredients in your storage you can make many meals with them.  But even with careful planning like my example above there may be times that you''ll have to know how to cook something you would normally buy at the store.

Let's take a look at a breakfast example: 

If you make pancakes, french toast, or waffles, do you have the ingredients to make syrup?  Or have freeze-dried or bottled fruit as a topping?  Do you know how to make the bread to have the french toast?  Do you have all the ingredients to make bread?  

Meals need to be broken down this way. Yes, you may have bread in the freezer as part of your 3-month storage, but if you were in a situation where the grocery store wasn't an option anymore, you'll need to know how to make bread.  Think of all the items that you buy at the grocery store.  Do you know how to make a homemade version of them?  Go through your menu plan and see if there are items that you buy that could also be made at home. Even if you plan on buying them as your 3-month supply, there may be a time when that isn't an option anymore. Here are a few of the things that I know how to make at home instead of buying at the store.

• granola bars
• bread
• dry ranch dressing mix
• syrup
• granola
•  crackers
• fruit snacks 
• yogurt and cottage cheese  

Of course there are many things that you can be bottled.  Grow a garden and save more money by making your own spaghetti sauce, canned fruit, applesauce, salsa, pickles, etc.  Think of how self-reliant you could be! No more running to the store for something for dinner. It's my goal to be that way someday.  As you're shopping, and adding to your storage, always think of what you are purchasing and how you're going to eat it.  It does no good to have 50 cans of tuna, but no mayo, pickle relish, and a bread recipe with all the ingredients on hand to make it. Plain tuna from the can would get old really fast, I promise :)

Self-Reliant Saturday-- Living Wills & Health Directives

Being prepared isn't something that is always for some future event.  There are no guarantees that life will be smooth sailing.  Trials and accidents happen to all of us.  But are you prepared to deal with the trial when it happens to you?

From a tragic accident that happened this week in my family, I want everyone to know how important it is to have a Health Directive, "Living Will" Declaration filled out.  None of us want to think that this will happen to us, but life changes...literally...in an instant. And there are so many decisions that need to be made beforehand.  If my mom did not have a health directive filled out with her health care wishes made known, it would've made a horrific situation even more stressful.  Please be prepared with your healthcare wishes known for those in your family who will be taking care of you in an emergency situation.  It is stressful enough to have to deal with an accident, but to not know how to treat someone medically according to their wishes, will be too much for even the strongest of us.  

Keep all vital records and paperwork together in a binder or file folder. Looking for paperwork is almost beyond mental ability when you are in shock from learning about an accident.  Have all information in one location to you can access it and also be able to grab and go in an evacuation type event.  Click here for a previous post on vital record storage.  

Chicken Update--Our Broody Hen

The chicken adventure has been going pretty smoothly.  We even went out of town for 2 weeks and the girls seemed just fine with their babysitter. But the day after I got home, one of the hens insisted on sitting in the nesting box and hogged all the eggs in there.  I looked it up online and it seems that Hawk Eye is broody.  She thinks she has to incubate her, or anyone else's egg.  We purchased our hens to be layers, so to have one hen that won't lay an egg because she wants to sit on them 24/7 was a problem.  Back to the internet I went, and searched for a solution.  The solution from several sites was to put Ms. broody Hawk Eye in chicken jail. 

 The goal is to keep her from sitting on comfy shavings.  She spent all of day one by herself, but we let her back in the coop for sleeping.  During the day we gave her some alone time in the backyard as well to encourage foraging for bugs, etc.  She was really freaked out and paced back and forth along the main coop at first, but we didn't cave in to her begging, and she calmed down and acted like a non-broody hen.  After her night in the coop she was again hogging the nesting box and so she is currently in jail again for today.  The main problem was all of our hens like to lay in one specific box and they were picking on Hawk Eye because she wouldn't move.  This also lead to less egg layers.  It's a whole chicken drama! Using the chicken jail remedy, Hawk Eye should be cured in a few days, but she might not lay an egg for a week or so after.  Kind of a bummer!  But even though there has been drama and we are learning by trial and error, they are so fun to have and my kids really enjoy taking care of them.  I am also glad that we are learning all about chickens now and not in a survival situation.  

Self-Reliant Saturday-- I Can't Afford Food Storage

It's all about PRIORITIES. As with most things in life that we can't seem to get to, or finish, it's all about how important it really is in our lives.  Maybe take a minute and reprioritize the things you feel are most important in your life, and see how to fit food storage in.

Self-Reliant Saturday--God Will Help Us If...

Chicken Coop Remodel

If any of you have daughters, then you know how girls can become kind of feisty in close quarters.  I have four daughters and I totally understand girls needing their space.  I have learned that our chickens are the same way in their tiny coop.  They were getting on each others nerves and picking on each other.  These girls sure are high maintenance...haha....we've only had our hens for about two weeks and they are already getting a home remodel.  We felt bad that they were all cooped up in the small area under their nesting boxes so a new wing was added to their coop. (pun intended)  

This is the original structure. 

We turned it 90 degrees and added on to the back side.  It will give the hens 8 more feet of play space plus a sandbox to bathe in. 

 As you can see they will have a much bigger area to roam around in.  I wish we could let them out in the yard all day, but we decided that we didn't want to deal with kids stepping in chicken poop. 

My husband added chicken wire to the sides and top of the new structure. And the girls were ready for their new home.

Don't mind the blankets on top of the house.  It was over 90 degrees today and they girls were hot.  They were all back in the smaller original coop crowded together.  The minute I covered the top and gave them shade they came back out.  

They LOVE the sandbox!  The hens have been playing, bathing, and scratching in it all day.  We used cleaned construction sand for their sandbox. 


We love learning about the chickens everyday and the hens are much happier with their new space.

Self-Reliant Saturday-- Promoting Self-Reliance

I belong to an amazing Church that promotes self-reliance, and also helps those in need while also teaching them how to be self-sustaining. 

Click HERE to view more of the Humanitarian work done by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

Backyard Chickens--A New Adventure!!

We did it!  We've wanted chickens for a long time and we finally got it to all work out.  It's self reliance and fun all rolled into one exciting adventure. I am not what you would call an animal person and I didn't think I would really enjoy the chickens as much as I have. 

But they have such fun personalities and are so entertaining to watch. We have 6 hens that are about 1 years old and lay eggs, and 2 younger ladies that are only about 4 months old and will hopefully start laying in September.  

My husband said we shouldn't name them but I couldn't help it, they are too cute.  My children each picked a hen and named her and my husband even got in on the naming.  From the top left going clockwise the white chicken is Felicia, Tilly, Hawk Eye, and the bottom left is Dory Escape.  That is pronounced Es-cop-pay, like Dory says it in finding Nemo.  She was the first chicken to escape so her name is fitting.  We also have a Coco Moco, LaVone, Francis, and Honey who aren't pictured.  They have been laying eggs and getting to know our family.  They are fun and kind of therapeutic to be around.  Right now they are enclosed under their nesting boxes, but we hope to have a larger run for them soon.  We have quite a few predators in the area and are nervous about letting them roam the yard just yet.  But the best part is......

 Aren't they beautiful!  My kids get so excited to check for eggs all day long.  It has been a fun summer adventure so far. We are learning as we go along so I'm sure I'll be posting about "the girls" more often.  But this has been a great lesson for our family in becoming a little more self-reliant.  

Self-Relilant Saturday-- "Thou Shalt Not Be Idle"

"The Church cannot be expected to provide for every one of its millions of members in case of public or personal disaster.  It is therefore necessary that each home and family do what they can to assume the responsibility for their own hour of need.  If we do not have the resources to acquire a year's supply, then we can strive to begin with having a one month's supply.  I believe if we are provident and wise in the management of our personal and family affairs and are faithful, God will sustain us through our trials.  "For the earth is full, and there is enough and to spare; yea, I prepared all things, and have given unto the children of men to be agents unto themselves."  -James E. Faust General Conference 4/1986 (bold and underline added)

Self-Reliant Saturday-- Food Storage Basics

Basic Storage is the foundation of any good food storage program. It is composed of life-sustaining foods that store well for long periods of time. 

While shopping at a local thrift store I found a really cool preparedness book. 

Written in 1969 it was a jewel of a find. While it doesn't have all the latest information on food storage it did have over 100 recipes that ONLY used 4 basic foods; wheat, powdered milk, honey and salt.  The whole concept of this book is that by storing only the basics you would be able to stay alive and survive in an emergency.  The author made meat wheat and all forms of gluten, sprouted wheat, candy, cookies, crackers, cereal, cottage cheese, yogurt, etc, and even had a seven day meal plan.  I'll have to read the whole book and do a proper review of it later, but it got me thinking of the basics in any food storage plan.  

The LDS Church does recommend that we store the basics found in the book above and now I know why.  There is so much that can be done with those four foods. I found a chart in my files, and I do not know where I got it from, of the amounts needed for food storage basic supplies.  This includes a more well-rounded meal plan than just wheat, powdered milk, honey, and salt.  Take a look and see where you could maybe fill in the gaps in your storage.  If you bought the amounts listed below once a month, for 12 months, you would have a year supply for one person.  Multiply the amounts by the number of people in your family to have food storage for every member of your family. 

One Month Supply

Based on a suggested amount, a month's supply for one person would consist of the following:

(the amounts are based on a 2300 calorie diet)

Grains (wheat, rice, oats, pasta etc)   25 lbs.

Powdered Milk   6.25 lbs.

Sugar or honey  5 lbs.

Salt  1/4 box

Fats & Oils  1 2/3rd lbs.

Legumes  5 lbs.   

Estimate 1 gallon of water minimum per day/per person

Purchasing in cans would be:

(1 Case of 6 #10 cans)

1 can wheat

1 can rice

1 can rolled oats or macaroni

1 can popcorn 

1 can non-instant dry milk

1 can dry beans 

PLUS:

5lb bag flour

4-5 lb bag sugar

26oz box salt

32oz bottle oil

One Month Supply of Shelf Stable Foods

Based on the MINIMUM of 1600 calories for one adult

18 oz. box oatmeal

1 lb rice

20 oz pasta 

5 lb flour

1 lb popcorn

34 cans vegetables (or freeze-dried equivalent)

26 cans fruit (or freeze-dried equivalent)

2 lb Velveeta (or freeze-dried cheese equivalent)

4 cans evaporated milk (12oz)

3.2 lbs powdered milk 

1 jar peanut butter (18oz)

4 cans tuna

4 cans chicken

4 cans ham 

8 cans cooked beans

PLUS:  oil-shortening-nuts-sugar-syrup-jam-molasses-salt

NOTE:  For a 2400 calorie diet add 1 more box of oatmeal, 1 lbs of rice, 40 oz pasta, 1 lb popcorn, 17 cans of veggies, 8 cans fruit, 1 can chicken, 1 can ham, and 5 cans beans

When the numbers get broken down into monthly amounts it seems a little easier to buy food for a food storage plan.  Don't get frustrated...please just start small and take it a step at a time.  

(watch for a book review this week of  "Passport To Survival" that I found at the thrift store)  

Self-Reliant Saturday-- Gardening

"Let every man who has a garden spot, garden it;  every man who owns a farm, farm it."  -J. Reuben Clark April Conference 1937

"We encourage you to grow all the food that you feasibly can on your property.  Berry bushes, grapevines, fruit trees- plant them if your climate is right for their growth.  Grow vegetables and eat them from your own yard." - Spencer W. Kimball Ensign May 1976

Gardening is definitely out of my comfort zone and I don't really know what I am doing, but my sweet husband built my boxes for me last weekend.  The dirt is coming this week and we will be ready to plant after the recommended Mother's Day planting date.  I live at almost 6000ft and we have a very short growing season, but the colder plants like spinach and beans love it up here.  Wish me luck!  How are your gardens coming along?  Do you plant in garden boxes or containers?  I would love to hear what you all plant.

Everything In Its Place...Organizing The Storage Room

How are all of your January resolutions going? Did you read my last post on my food storage goal for 2015?  Click HERE is you missed it. Since it's still January, I'm going to continue with the organizing theme.  Remember...

A house of order can transcend to all aspects of our lives, but let's start with our food storage.  I hope you were all able to accomplish the organizing assignment in the last post.  The assignment was to inventory your food storage pantry or storage room.  This may seem monumental but I promise it will help in the long run of having a useable food storage system.  (Scroll down the page to see a picture of how I keep an inventory on a white board of all my #10 cans.)

After inventorying your food and supplies the next step is to organize your food into a system that functions for you.  

I am going to show you what works for me and what keeps my food rotated and useable, but there are many other ways to organize your food storage and I'll mention those at the end of the post. 

I have been blessed with a large storage room where I keep all of my extra smaller cans, #10 cans, bulk foods, paper goods, etc.  This is the room that I go to when I need to refill the containers in my kitchen pantry.  The pictures in this post are going to be dark, I apologize but there isn't any natural lighting in this room. Which is a good thing for food storage!  Remember that light, temperature, moisture and bugs/pests all need to be considered when you pick an area for your food storage. 

In my storage room I try to group "like" items together.  That way I usually know where everything is and goes.  I group my #10 cans in a different area then my smaller cans.  The smaller cans are stored in my kitchen and I only keep them out in the storage room when I have too many to fit in the kitchen. 

This is a small sampling of how I organize my #10 cans of dehydrated and freeze-dried foods. 

I have most of my fruits and veggies grouped together.  This helps with knowing how much I have, but it also helps my kids know where things are when they are sent out to the storage room to grab something for me.  The powdered milk and other dairy items like sour cream powder, buttermilk powder, powdered eggs, freeze-dried cheese, powdered shortening, and powdered butter all get stored together.  I also have baking supplies like baking powder, baking soda, and cocoa powder on that shelf.  There is actually a shelf below the milk shelf and it holds my salt, oils, cornstarch and any other baking items that I might buy in bulk.  

How do you store oddly shaped containers, like condiments?

I use the free boxes I get from case lot sales and food storage retailers to group them all together on a shelf.  I also live in earthquake territory and I feel this gives me added protection if the room started shaking.  I really need to instal a small lip on my shelves so things don't go sliding off, but that is on the to-do list :)

All of my bulk items like wheat, oats, rice, sugar, etc. are stored in buckets around the perimeter of my storage room.

I love gamma lids!!  They make it so easy to open and close, and it doesn't feel like such a chore when I need to refill my kitchen pantry containers.  It is very dry where I live so I don't use the mylar bags inside of my bulk buckets.  I pour the bulk bags directly into my buckets.  And I am also comfortable resting them directly on the concrete.  Some may not feel comfortable doing that, but my room doesn't fluctuate in temperature too much and the concrete doesn't get wet.  I feel the chemicals from the concrete are not leaching into my buckets.  This is one of those examples of what works for me may not work for you ;)

And finally, this is how I keep track of all those #10 cans of food.

In all honesty here....this is my goal....to update this white board.  Notice I didn't take the picture too close...haha.  This proves I'm not perfect and I need a food storage refresher too.  The cans that get used the most are the fruits and veggies, so they need to be updated first.  But this is how I keep a visual of what I have.  Some cans are things that I won't use unless I absolutely have too, like the canned cheese and butter.  But having it listed on the board with hash marks allows me to know at a glance what I have in my storage room.  

Other Food Storage Options

 Some people may like using the commercial can rotater systems, but I don't have the room for them.  I have found that I can easily add newer cans to the back of my shelf without having a rotating shelf.  But you can decide if that will work for you.  You can also store like items together or groups of ingredients into complete meals.  Like the meal in a bag idea. Or maybe you like to make meals in a jar. Or maybe storing your food like the grocery store, with different types of food together, like Italian, Mexican.  I know of some people who like to store their food according to breakfast, lunch, or dinner meals.  It's all up to you!! It is really up to what works for you so you will USE your food storage!

Remember this rule with any food storage system....

F.I.F.O

This is how you rotate your food!  Always place the newer foods in the back.  This may seem tedious and hard to do but knowing you are using the oldest food first will save you a lot of $$.  Take the few minutes when you buy your food to put them in the proper place...behind the older food! 

Food Storage in Smaller Homes 

Many of us may live in smaller homes or apartments.  How is is possible to have food storage....and to store the larger amounts of food needed?

• Think of the space under the beds in your homes.  For long-term foods (#10 cans that lasts 20+ years) they can be stored in their boxes under a bed.  Think about taking the bed off the frame and using the food storage as the base.  The food from the cannery like rice, wheat, oats, powdered milk, would all work great for this option.  They don't need used as often. 
• Do you have extra space above your kitchen cabinets?  This unused space could easily store cans of food.  
• Instead of end tables, place stacked cans under a tablecloth and use a wood or glass topper to create a small table.  
• The space behind your sofa and the wall can hold food storage as well.  It can be covered with a cloth or if you know someone handy, they could build a cover for it out of wood. 
• Do you use all that extra closet space on the shelf above your clothes?  Think of how high you could stack #10 cans if they went all the way to the ceiling of the closet.  
• Buy several over the door pocket hangers, that are made for shoes, and you'll have a great area for smaller items. Think of all the doors and closets that you have and think if an over the door organizer would work there.  

**All of the above ideas take organization to a new level.  You will need to have a record of what you have stored and where you put it.  Keep a notebook with every item listed, where you put it, how much you have stored, and the expiration date.

It takes a little creativity and thinking outside of the box, but I know if you make it a priority to have your food storage you will be blessed.  Thoughts and ideas will come to your mind as you pray to know how to prepare for your family.