Preparing Your Family for Winter Weather

You've remembered to winterize your house and your car, but is your family ready? Be sure to prepare your kids and your kitchen for snowy days and long winter nights.

Ice, snow, and, perhaps worse, lots of "snow days" with the kids in the house. Are you and your family "winterized"?

Preparing for unexpected campouts in your living room is not exactly akin to preparing for a terrorist attack, but some of the same precautions apply. Ice can put weight on electrical lines and cut off power, so have the following on hand:

-Flashlights and batteries; candles are not a wise choice, because in bad weather you can have a fire and no one can reach you.
-Plenty of blankets.

-A safety kit for your car, consisting of shovel, sand or cat litter for traction, tire chains, booster cables, a cell phone, extra warm clothing or boots, an ice scraper, small tools, winter sleeping bag or blankets, snack food, water, flashlight with good batteries, matches and newspapers, games and toys, zip-top bags (for elimination if stranded), and a 12-volt adapter coil heater that can plug into the lighter to heat water.

-Salt or sand for treacherous sidewalks.

-Safe, radiant space heater (no open coils).

-Fan for fireplace that blows heat into the room and does not suck it up the chimney.

-Supplies of medication to last a few days at least.

-The phone numbers of older or disabled neighbors, just in case.

Making Your Kitchen Ready for Winter


Food to stock up on:
 
-Steel cut oats, for oatmeal
 
-Frozen berries. Great in that oatmeal for any meal of the day

-Peanut butter

-Tuna

-Garbanzo beans

-Canned juices

-Crackers/bread

-Long-keeping milk (shelf-stable)
-Vitamins

-Baby food. And don't forget diapers, towelettes, bottles, ointment, and the rest.

-Pet food

-Carrots, squash, and apples. Keep apples in the fridge, they last a month that way.

-Raisins and nuts

-A slow cooker

Next post will activities your family can do when the power is out, or it is a snow day.  Stay tuned!