When bad weather brings with it a loss of power, we’re often stuck wondering what to do for our family’s meals. Sam and Ellie, during today’s episode of Summer Snacks with Sam & Ellie , are discussing alternatives when you have no power to cook your meals.
PLEASE NOTE:Please plan ahead and KNOW what type of cooking stove and fuel you are using. There are many that ABSOLUTELY CAN NOT be used indoors. Don’t add to the already challenging situation you’re in by using a fuel that causes Carbon Monoxide poisoning. Remember, you can’t see or smell this gas. If you’re not sure, get a small, battery-operated, CO detector with an average price of $20. Place it in the area where you’re cooking to be sure you’re safe. Better yet, cook outdoors if possible or find a fuel that’s safe indoors and possibly slightly open a window near the cooking area.
CLICK HERE for the pdf transcript if you like to read along while watching our video.
There are several types of stoves available today:
small ones that would easily fit in a backpack
alcohol-fueled
butane-fueled
propane-fueled
canned heat (like Sterno)
wood or charcoal
candles (yes, it’s slow but it can help when you have no alternative – those little ‘tea candles’ can certainly heat a can of soup or boil water for tea, coffee, or hot chocolate!)
Do your research. Some are safe indoors. Others are not. Be prepared and remember that baking soda poured over a grease fire will help put the fire out. Again, do your research.
Practice for Preparedness
Most importantly, take a weekend and have a ‘pretend’ emergency situation. Have the entire family take part. Maybe even try 2 or 3 different stoves – indoors and outdoors. Give everyone a task. Make it fun and enjoy your meal! When the family practices in this way, an emergency situation will not feel so scary. You’ll be prepared. Each family member will be able to help. Action helps us feel as if we have some control over the situation, which in turn, makes everyone feel more positive about the emergency at hand.
Be SMART and Be SAFE!
NOTE: If you enjoy our life hacks and simple common-sense approaches to sustainability and everyday life, please spread the word. Visit and like our youtube channel and our Facebook page. Sign up for our newsletter – the form’s on the HOME page. Share your thoughts with us on youtube or FB. And, please, share us with your friends. Here’s to your peace of mind because you’re prepared!
Between us, we have over 100 years of experience, and Sam’s only 40!
If you enjoy our life hacks and simple common-sense approaches to
sustainability and everyday life, please spread the word.
It’s storming outside. The electric has gone out. There has been area flooding. Your water system is either not working properly or the water is contaminated. What do you do while you wait for the storm to end and the flood waters to recede? Even if the water is available soon, it most likely won’t be safe to drink right away.
ARE YOU PREPARED?
In today’s Sunday Snacks with Sam and Ellie, we share our personal thoughts and suggestions. We don’t have all the answers. We’re working on these solutions ourselves. But we’d like to offer some tips and ideas to get you thinking about your own situation. Our goal? To keep you and your family prepared for just such emergencies.
In our video we share some of the following:
Your hot water tank has potable (drinkable) water. It’s the same water that goes to your kitchen sink (and bathroom, etc)
Products such as LifeStraws™ can help you if you have contaminated water or live near a stream that you can use
If you’re in an area that floods a good deal, there is a bladder (plastic bag) that fits a bathtub. You can fill this with water to use in an emergency.
You can also use household bleach (unscented) to sanitize your water.
Interestingly, if you’ve started your 30-day food supply, the liquid in canned fruits and vegetables can also quench your thirst or be used in preparing meals.
And don’t forget your pets … they’ll need water, too!
PLEASE NOTE: Ellie incorrectly makes a comment about using bleach for sanitizing water. CLICK HEREfor the link to the EPA that explains the amount and use of chlorine bleach to correctly sanitize your water.
CLICK HERE to read the transcript while listening to the tape.
Preparation IS Security
We are sharing our tips and ideas – not to frighten you – but to encourage you to consider your own location and situation and to prepare accordingly.
You know we love to hear from you – your ideas, tips, and yes, even your questions.
In the meantime, think ahead and be safe!
NOTE: If you enjoy our life hacks and simple common-sense approaches to sustainability and everyday life, please spread the word. Visit and like our youtube channel and our Facebook page. Sign up for our newsletter – the form’s on the HOME page. Share your thoughts with us on youtube or FB. And, please, share us with your friends. Here’s to your peace of mind because you’re prepared!
Between us, we have over 100 years of experience, and Sam’s only 40!
If you enjoy our life hacks and simple common-sense approaches to
sustainability and everyday life, please spread the word.
When an emergency occurs, such as a power outage, snowstorm, or even a covid lockdown, your family can feel more secure by preparing a 30-day food pantry. In their video for Sunday Snacks with Sam and Ellie, they share some tips and tricks to help you get started.
Each member of the family can choose a meal they love.
Plan a week’s meals (with some snacks) x 4 (a month’s worth)
Check the recipes and list the ingredients.
Inventory what you have on hand.
Determine what you need to add.
Each time you shop, add a couple of the items that you’ll want for your pantry.
Plan your pantry with the oldest items being used first.
(Just like you look for the freshest date when you shop.
You’ll want to use the oldest date first, when you eat it.)
Encourage each family member to double-check the date when grabbing an item for a meal, as well as alert you to low inventory.
Together, maintaining a 30-day food supply is as simple as making dinner!
You’ll be surprised how quickly these simple steps to creating your 30-day food supply will soon have you feeling a little more at ease when you’re threatened with bad weather or another covid lockdown (let’s hope not)! By involving the family, it’s also easier to maintain. In future posts, we’ll share other tips for being prepared. So keep checking back.
NOTE: If you enjoy our life hacks and simple common-sense approaches to sustainability and everyday life, please spread the word. Visit and like our youtube channel and our Facebook page. Sign up for our newsletter – the form’s on the HOME page. Share your thoughts with us on youtube or FB. And, please, share us with your friends. Here’s to your peace of mind because you’re prepared!
Between us, we have over 100 years of experience, and Sam’s only 40!
If you enjoy our life hacks and simple common-sense approaches to
sustainability and everyday life, please spread the word.
Kids love adventures. They love learning new things. But too often they can be easily disappointed by a failure that causes them to feel embarrassed or somehow silly, causing an unwillingness to try again. Or worse yet, that failure may cause them to never want to take on another adventure!
How do we really prepare our kids for adventures in life and do fun things? We think one of the biggest ways is to give them practical experiences, practical experiences including things like going to scouting events, having them take part in our day-to-day lives, and coping with the consequences when they don’t listen.
No, we’re not being harsh here. We’re saying that failing is part of learning. We all know that a baby falls many times before they walk, or a youngster skins their knees while learning to ride their bicycle. But, oh boy, once learned, they’re off and running – or biking – in no time at all. To be confident adults, we need to prepare our children with the tools and experiences to succeed. But we also must help them to see the consequences of choices and to take responsibility. They must experience failure in order to know how to overcome their disappointments.
Join our discussion as we discuss some examples. Then reach out to us and let us know what you think.
NOTE: If you enjoy our life hacks and simple common-sense approaches to sustainability and everyday life, please spread the word. Visit and like our youtube channel and our Facebook page. Sign up for our newsletter – the form’s on the HOME page. Share your thoughts with us on youtube or FB. And, please, share us with your friends. Here’s to your peace of mind because you’re prepared!
Between us, we have over 100-years of experience, and Sam’s only 40!
If you enjoy our life hacks and simple common-sense approaches to
sustainability and everyday life, please spread the word.
Our children turn 18 and the expectation is that they are now ADULTS! Does it happen on their birthday? Of course not, we have to prepare them for the new adventure and journey of entering the adult world. If we’re unhappy that our children seem unprepared, what can we do?
Join Sam and Ellie during Sunday Snacks as they tackle the idea that “18 is NOT a magical number.”
You can follow the transcript by CLICKING HERE while listening to the video.
Our schools don’t teach Home Ec or Woodshop as requirements anymore. And in many homes, mom and dad ‘just do it’ because it’s easier than fighting with the kids.
But that does nothing to prepare our kids to enter the adult world! What can we do to help them out? And no – it’s not better to do it for them!
5 core elements:
Budgeting
Laundry
Cooking
Keeping a tidy home
Maintaining a kempt appearance
In no way, is this list complete. But it is a beginning. Listen in on our discussion. Then let us know what you think.
NOTE: If you enjoy our life hacks and simple common-sense approaches to sustainability and everyday life, please spread the word. Visit and like our youtube channel and our Facebook page. Sign up for our newsletter – the form’s on the HOME page. Share your thoughts with us on youtube or FB. And, please, share us with your friends. Here’s to your peace of mind because you’re prepared!
Between us, we have over 100-years of experience, and Sam’s only 40!
If you enjoy our life hacks and simple common-sense approaches to
sustainability and everyday life, please spread the word.
Well, good morning. Good morning. Happy Sunday Snacks with Sam and Ellie. Today, because we’ve been talking about preparedness, we’re here to talk to you about pantries – your home pantry and food storage. One of the things that are near and dear to my stomach is obviously having food on hand, your budget, and being able to make food efficiently. And when I say efficiently, I mean like cost and taste, its taste is very crucial. No savings if nobody eats it.
Let’s Talk Food Storage
No matter the size of your home, there’s room to create a pantry to store food to feed your family in an emergency situation that could include power outages, storms, food shortages at the grocery store, etc.
Ellie lives in an apartment, She uses a couple of shelves on a bookcase, and under her bed storage. Sam has a home where she uses a small closet (actually a bit smaller than the one in the photo) and in her basement.
But there are a number of places where you can find a place to store some food supplies as well as toilet paper, tissues, paper towels, and other items you use frequently around your home. A shelf or two in your laundry room will work. Remember, they can be placed a bit higher because you won’t be reaching for items as frequently. Another spot, under beds. You can take milk crates and stack them to use for storage or place boards on them to give you even more space. A small corner that isn’t useful for anything could have a small shelf for storage. Get creative, look around and see what spot might be perfect for a few items that will add to your sense of preparedness.
To read the transcript while listening to our video, CLICK HERE.
TIPS:
If you haven’t really started a pantry for emergencies, start small.
Keep items that you know your family will eat.
Purchasing an extra condiment, spice, pasta, flour, sugar, non-fat milk, water, and canned goods for the pantry is a great place to begin. Then when you use your backup, replace it in the pantry.
Sam shares a great point – rehydrating your dried beans in boiling water will have them ready to eat faster.
Ellie shares her best tip by encouraging you to use Google search for recipes:
type in a couple of items you have on hand – add the words ‘easy recipe’ – and see what you discover
Added later– if power is out, you can use an outdoor grill or Sterno fuel, etc. to heat up water or cook items. Not as convenient, but it will help. Do a search to learn more and be safe.
Again, start small. You’ll be surprised how quickly you’ll create a pantry that works for your family.
A small pantry can be of enormous help when you need it!
If you enjoy our life hacks and simple common sense approaches to sustainability and everyday life, please spread the word. Visit and like our youtube channel and our Facebook page. And sign up for our newsletter – the form’s on the HOME page. Share your thoughts with us on youtube or FB. Here’s to your peace of mind because you’re prepared!
Well, good morning. Good morning. Happy Sunday Snacks with Sam and Ellie. Today, because we’ve been talking about preparedness, we’re here to talk to you about pantries – your home pantry and food storage. One of the things that are near and dear to my stomach is obviously having food on hand, your budget, and being able to make food efficiently. And when I say efficiently, I mean like cost and taste, its taste is very crucial. No savings if nobody eats it.