Step #1...Water

We have all sorts of insurance...health, life, car, disability. It gives us peace of mind in case something devastating happens. We should also have food insurance...that is what food storage is. Insurance that you and your children will nutritionally have what they need, if crisis strikes. With it comes peace of mind, and hey, its the cheapest insurance out there!

Our first step in what to store is...WATER.

The Church guidelines for water storage is 14 gallons of water per person. That equals out to be a two week storage of water. One thing to consider is that is only drinking water. We use water in many other ways, cooking, cleaning, etc...so if possible, you will want to store more water than that.

So, how do I go about it? Well, let's start easy. Purchase bottled water. If you are a member of a warehouse club, a case of bottled water (35 bottles) is around $4.00. You can also often find it on sale at any grocery store...i.e. Smiths is currently selling a 24 pack of Dasani water bottles for $2.99. By slowly stocking up on water this way, you will be surprised how easy and inexpensive you are able to build up your storage.

Another good reason to stock up on water bottles is this type of water storage is the most easily accessed. Have you ever had your water turned off unexpectedly due to construction? For some reason that always seem to happen to me and it always reminds me how important and convenient water bottles are.

One things to remember...look at the expiration date on your water bottles! Because the bottles are so thin, they cannot store indefinitely and will eventually breakdown, so you will want to rotate them.

I read an article not too long ago about the importance of storing food and water and in it was an experience I think pertains to this post...
"Craig Israelsen, an associate professor in the school of family life at Brigham Young University...recently had the opportunity to live off the food in his pantry. In his home ward, the bishop encouraged willing members to test their reserves by living off the food and water stored in their home for one week. The experience taught Israelsen the importance of water.
What we learned is that you have to have a lot of water stored--and that's just for drinking,"he said. Water storage is the immediate need in an emergency."

Up next....water barrels and other containers.