72 Hour kits - the food

Back in April and October, around the first week (General Conference time), we rotate our 72 hour kits. Mostly just the food. (The other things don't need much rotation - occasionally, we'll update the medicines and the kids clothes get rotated down as they grow.)

Usually, my husband and I handle the rotation and the figuring out what I need to buy. Then, I do the shopping (trying to think of ideas for the things we rotated out and no one would eat). We work together to unload all 7 bags (with 3 food bags each) and reload those 21 food bags back into the 7 backpacks. We've tried to include the kids before, but instead of it being a learning experience, it was just chaos.

This year, I decided to do that with the kids...results would be uncertain. But they are older (ages 6 to 13) and hopefully could handle following directions this time?

How it went:
My husband and I had already distributed each person's bags around the table and evaluated what needed to be replaced. (I purchased these things and and had them available before the kids and I did the rotation.)

• Everyone sat around our big table and unloaded their food bags in front of them.
• We pulled out all food that was already expired or that would expire before our next rotation (6 months later). Some things get rotated every 6 months, other things last longer.
• These soon to be expired foods went to the center of the table.
• Then we went through each type of item (poptarts, crackers, fruit, "main dish", etc) that I had bought and replenished each person's piles.
• We checked the dates of each item in their kits and each child wrote on a notecard what would need to be replaced next time. (This will make creating a shopping list easier - I can shop without having to unload all the bags first.)
• Everyone loaded into bags and containers what was supposed to be in each.
• Bags and containers went back into the backpacks, zipped up, and done.

Our menu: (for each day)
Breakfast - 1 pack of (2) poptarts
Snack - 1 can of fruit (canned, plastic containers sometimes spoil before 6 months is up)
Lunch -  vienna sausages (for my kids. We have soup), crackers* & PB (no PB for me)
(*sometimes I buy those filled crackers, "nabs" by dad used to call them, lance is a popular brand now)
Snack - granola bar or fruit/grain bar or rice krispie treat
Supper - Canned dinner (pasta, beef stew, spaghttiOs, etc)

I list 2 snacks, but in the actual time of eating, those could be eaten as part of one of the 3 meals instead. We change the food from time to time depending on what the kids are willing to eat and how much things cost and what "convenience foods" there are available that season.

----I've never done anything that couldn't be eaten right out of the bag before (because I wanted to be prepared for being in an evacuation facility without the ability to cook), but I decided to throw in ramen this time because it's something I know my kids will eat, and if nothing else, maybe I could convince them to eat it like a crunchy snack?

----The biggest thing in selecting food that will last at least 6 months and is something I know my family will eat! Not only for if it's needed, but also for when it's rotated in 6 months.

Rotate every time: poptarts, granola bars, cereal bars, rice krispie treats, crackers (ritz, nabs/lance, any kind)

Everything else rotates at date. (If it expires in March and my next rotation is in April, it gets pulled out and replaced. If it lasts until May, I'll rotate it out in April.)

 And we all get a big water bottle per day. (Also have a canopener in each bag, spoons, and wet wipes.) I won't go into all the other non-food, but these are related to food items.

Right now, this is how we pack it. Things that squish easily are put into old containers (like yogurt containers, sour cream containers, anything that holds its shape). Things that have a hard container (like a metal can) or like ramen that is better smashed anyways just go in a bag by day. (Day 1, 2, and 3) The things packed in yogurt containers have 3 of each item, so we just know it's 1 per day of these things.

I've bought a gallon plastic container with a twist on lid and I'm going to see if I can fit everything squishable into that and if it is better for space.

There are hundreds of ways to do 72 hour kits and hundreds of opinions on what to include. I'm posting this to be another idea out there that might help someone trying to find ideas on what to buy or how to store it.

Gymnastics short (which became a gymnastics skirt)

I don't like just leotards by themselves. I don't like seeing panties stick out around the leg holes, I don't like seeing them do splits and such in them...I want more coverage, but I know they need to be able to move around and have something that's stretchy to stretch with them.

I couldn't find the shorts I was looking for (of course, when I'm willing to pay, I can't even find what I'm looking for...except online, but what if it doesn't fit?)

So, I decided to sew them.

I still prefer shorts, but one of my twins asked for hers to have an attached skirt, so I altered the plan.

For the 2nd pair (purple), I used a pair of biker shorts to make my pattern.

(We call them "legging shorts" because they wear them under skirts and dresses like you would leggings, but not for show, for coverage when they are being kids).

I probably could have just told them to wear the legging shorts as gymnastics shorts, but they looked funny and the older girls are already 'short' on shorts - and I couldn't guarantee the pair they needed would be clean on gymnastics day.

Anyways - enough talk - this isn't intended to be a tutorial b/c I don't have time for that right now. It's just pictures to show my process. If you just need a little nudge worth of instructions, this should help.

Settings on my serger that worked best while sewing these:

 (I have a Janome very basic low cost serger)

Inner leg seams

 Ready to sew crotch seam

 Pin to keep seams aligned

 Crotch seam done - I almost always sew the seam then serge in case I need to adjust anything and so things don't move around.

 Once you serge, it's essentially permanent

 Shorts ready for seam and waistband

 Waistband (14" long folded, so 28" wide and about 5" tall)

 Serge edges (right sides together)

 Serged leg bottoms

 Flipped waistband right side out

 Folded in half (so seam is hidden in fold)

 Sew along bottom cut edges (baste)

 Then serge them

 Why are my pictures out of order?? Back to shorts - used twin stretch needle to hem shorts.
(I couldn't get the seam not to "tunnel" where it bumps up between the rows of stitches, but whatever!) A skill I'll work on later.

 Picture of the twin needle in case you need to sew what to shop for. I only use it to hem knits really, so it's lasted a while. (I probably should get a back up for in case this one breaks mid-project, but I expect it to last a long time and not wear out like my other needles do because I use it so little.)

 Circle skirt - there are a bazillion tutorials on how to measure and plan these, so I won't go into that.
(I think my measurements were about 4" down and then 10" down? Don't quote me on that...your measurements will be for your waist and your waistband.) Ideally, the circumference of the small circle will be the same as whatever the waistband of your shorts is.

Formula for circumference (the measurement around a circle - in this case, the side of the inner "donut"):

C = 2 x pi x r 

(r is the radius of your "inner donut" - the measurement from that folded corner to where the paper begins)

Pin it at the sides, back, front, and half way in between those to evenly space the skirt onto the shorts.
Sew on (right side of skirt and right side of shorts both facing up)

 Do the same pinning with the waistband onto the outside of the shorts/skirt (raw edges together)- front and back, then sides, then eighths.
Then sew, stretching either the waistband or the skirt as needed to align them.

 I sewed it on then serged it all.

 Flipped up

 Sewing directly onto elastic keeps it slightly stretched out, so I wrap the elastic around my child's waist and then make it a little tight. Cut it and sew it into a loop.

 Once last time with the pinning in 1/8's around the skirt.

Sew it on (I start at the back by the way) - zig zag stitch - narrow enough to fit on the elastic (1/4")

  You will have to stretch the elastic as you sew - this is good and will keep the skirt tight so it won't fall off.

 Elastic sewn right onto serged seam allowance. (the waistband is flipped down so you can see/get to the seam allowance)

 Flip the waistband back up and it's done.

 Finished skirt - still need to get a pic of her wearing it.

 Here's my other daughter wearing the skort I made for her.

Kids craft area - will it stay organized?

 I'd like to add some non-carpet mat under the craft area. I was also hoping to turn the table coming out the wall vertically, but the table was too shaky that way. (It would have fit 4 at a time instead of 2) - at least this way all the stuff attached to the wall is closer to the table.

Craft stuff that needs some effort required to get down. (hopefully this will deter it getting into the wrong hands)

Desk Area

The kids got all the old stamps my mom and I collected from the 1990s through current...which neither of us use anymore. After the kids got ink stains in the carpet right after they brought all the stamps home, I UNauthorized them until I give them a "stamp class" to learn how to properly use stamps and ink....and maybe until after I protect the carpet too!

Baskets from dollar tree - with laminated printed labels tied on with ribbon

Buckets from IKEA labeled with return address labels printed on and stuck on the inside of containers

Our "re-purpose box" (Where old cans, boxes, paper towel tubes, etc go to be used for whatever)...

There is no guarantee the craft made from these will survive more than a month!

The oldest 3 got this for Christmas a year and a half ago and barely got to use it before we packed it up to list the (previous) house, so when they kept coming into my room and using my  machine (and leaving my sewing table a complete wreck), I decided it was time to unpack theirs and set it up officially. Not the most comfortable table...but we'll work on that. I haven't found anything I like yet for their sewing table.

And some (dollar tree) hooks on a nearby attic access door for aprons.

I really hope they keep it organized. And if they don't, I'll just take away the things that are most messy. One more look...

Like mother, like Daughter

Earlier this week I decided I'm taking a week off from summer kids' activities because I need to sew!

My 10 year old came in and watched me work a while on Monday afternoon (I'll post my project when I'm done with them all) and then asked if she could have my scraps. She always wants them...little pack rat...but never makes anything from them.

Later that evening, she asked if I could help sew up the opening and get the ears on tighter because her stitches didn't work and she needed help. I'm not sure what I expected to see, but it wasn't an almost completed project!I had no idea she'd even been sewing? She had even used my sewing machine...need to teach clean up post-project next!

 I showed her how to finish it (and my part looks worse than hers! - my excuse is the terry cloth didn't give me much room for a blind stitch so the nose is crooked.)

I asked her how she did it and she said she found a pattern online and followed the instructions (using things from the allowed scraps baskets). I thought, By yourself!?!? I was so surprised. I guess when you want to create, you figure it out!

Here's where she found the pattern and instructions:

Little Mouse Pattern

(I don't think it's meant to be made from terrycloth, but it worked just fine.)

She calls him Pipsqueak.