Poston's Experience Without Shopping for a Week

Guess what today is? Shopping day! Yay! I finally have milk in my fridge.
Other than the inconvenience of not having any milk, it wasn't really too challenging for us. We usually do fortnightly shopping trips anyway, other than milk or bread, or whatever else we might run out of.

Normally I am lazy and I just give my children cold cereal for breakfast. This week I had to get creative. We had pancakes three times, milkless malt-o-meal once, eggs, sausage, and this morning, the boys begged for dry cereal. They didn't want pancakes again and we were now out of eggs and pretty much everything else too. So I let them. :)

I do have a box of powdered milk mix in food storage that I vaguely considered trying out. But I kept thinking, "We're not that desperate!" It's probably expired anyway. But maybe I should have tried it, so we would know what to expect if/when we are that desperate.

Milk goes in a lot of things, and so I really had to be more creative in other cooking as well.  As a result, I probably fed my children healthier meals at lunch and breakfast. Ya can't do a quick meal of boxed mac and cheese without milk. So instead I'd make a potato, egg, and sausage scramble instead.

Anyway, I've heard there are better instant milks available these days. Does anyone know much about them? Let me know by commenting! Thanks!

End of challenge

For those of you that made it the week without going to the store congratulations.  Now let us try it for a month....
Just kidding.  But what if it was three months or longer. Do you need help in planning a three month menu?  Please take stock of your pantry and see what you need to do to have a three month supply and longer term storage. We would love to help you if we can.

Bro Sis Bickham

Can you avoid the grocery store for a week?

Hello everyone,

            This is short notice but we were hoping to catch families off their guard.  Are you willing to go this week without going to the grocery store?  In most situations we don’t have advance notice, so if you are willing, we would ask you to take stock and participate in our newest challenge.  We will be doing it along with you, and so we have purposely let out short term fresh goods run low, things like eggs, milk fruits and veggies.

Please join with us and then let us know how it went.  Please check in with  All is safelygathered.blogspot.com.

Again, this is starting tomorrow.

Also, we have our next fireside planned for the second weekend in May, and so will be telling you more as soon as everything is positively in place.

Keep on preparing

Linda and Larry Bickham

This is the letter that our hard-working ward preparedness specialists sent to many in our ward today. I'll post it here in case you didn't get the email. 

I found out about this challenge today. When Linda told me about it, one of my first thoughts went something like, "Oh no, I only have about a fourth gallon of milk left." One of my next thoughts went something like, "I'll participate in the challenge all the way...but I'll start a day late. I'll run to the store Monday morning, grab a couple gallons of milk, maybe a couple other necessities, and then plunge in!" I figured since I didn't know about it before hand, and we don't go shopping on Sunday, it would only be fair. I even carried this plan with me for most of the afternoon. And then I read the email from the Bickhams, and about how they let their store of fresh foods run low on purpose, even though they DID know about it. I couldn't very well cheat after reading that, so, starting last Friday, (that was the last day we made a trip to the grocery store), our family will not be making any food purchases until the end of this challenge. 

I guess I can't get away with feeding my children cold cereal for breakfast this week...

So, good luck everyone. I hope many of you will actually participate. We would LOVE to hear how the challenge goes for you, so keep track of how things go, then report to us.

Thanks!