Share

A lot of you took a strong liking to my complete paranoias that I shared on social media yesterday.

Heavy rain has been causing massive mud slides and scary effects in California the past few days. It was a strong reminder about how quickly weather and unexpected events can take you from a state of “normal” to “emergency” in a matter of moments.

Because so many of you asked about my emergency kit section of the garage, I thought I’d throw together a little blog post of what’s included in mine.

1. Judy Kit

I discovered Judy in an IG ad and I have to say that it’s one of those “why didn’t I think of this” type of brands. The below emergency backpack is the one that I have which is filled with everything from glow sticks and food to water kits and warmth for up to 4 people. It’s kind of a one stop shop type of emergency kit specifically for hurricanes, earthquakes and more.

Share

2. Lanterns

I feel like I hit the personal jackpot when I discovered these 200 hour, USB charging lanterns. You can use them to plug in a charge and they have super bright lights (800 lumens if I’m speaking your language). We have two of these in our home in case the lights go out. I also have 4 of these smaller collapsable lanterns which work great for kids rooms, bathrooms or smaller spaces. You can also hang them!

Share

3. Best Flashlights

I grew up with a Maglite flashlight in every nightstand drawer. I don’t know what it is about these Maglite’s that make them so special but they’re approved by my dad and that’s all that matters. We have one in our room, June’s room, the kitchen and in the garage for good measure.

4. Batteries!

Don’t be a fool and make sure you are fully stocked on all sorts of batteries. It’d be a true shame to have all of your emergency kit gadgets but not be able to use them because you ran out of a good ole battery. We have all of our home items stores in these organizational boxes and a full bin is dedicated to batteries.

5. Water Purification Tablets

Here is where I start to kick my emergency kit into high gear. If you are hoping to really cover all of your bases, then a few jars of tablets never hurt anyone. After all, you never know when you might lose access to clean drinking water!

6. First Aid Kit

I hope you already have this in your home but just in case you don’t, no judgement! Every house needs a first-aid kit. In fact, I think it’s a wonderful housewarming gift! We have a big black tackle box that’s very similar to the one below. I also have smaller first-aid kits in our cars.

Share

7. GO BAGS

Whether it’s a surprise visit to urgent care or a massive earthquake that you need to bolt out of the door for, I have a go bag for every member of the family. Here’s what I did: packing cubes (one for each of us). Adults have a fresh set of clothes, toothbrush, medicine, water, extra phone chargers, cash etc.. For the kids we have things like a change of clothes, diapers, lovies, medicine, extra blankets, pacifiers, bottles, snacks, milk, etc.

Our packing cubes are inside this utility tote bag at the top of our guest closet. It’s ready to grab and go but also has enough space to add misc. items. There’s an extra utility tote handy for any food or other supplies we may need to pack in a moment’s notice.

The other night we had to take June to urgent care for an ear infection. The trip came on quite suddenly in the middle of the night. Instead of worrying about forgetting something, I just grabbed her packing cube and tucked it inside my bag. I had very strong peace of mind knowing that I had already run through a pre-check list on a less stressful day and had remembered everything I really needed in the event that she had to stay the night away from home.

Also, I took a poll on IG asking for a great back up battery and across the board you guys recommended GENRAC. I will definitely be looking into this and thanks for the rec!