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A 12-Month Game Plan To Be Fully Prepared

A 12-Month Game Plan To Be Fully Prepared

Sometimes it’s useful to have a step-by-step game plan in place so that you know exactly what to do. This allows you to just take action and get the job done.

With that in mind, we were really happy to come across this “12 Months of Prepping” list of actions to take, broken down by month.

As you read over this list, take note that the items that you need to gather or purchase each month are common, easy to find items. These are items that you can pick up at your local grocery store or Wal-Mart. And the actions that you take are actions that any normal person can take without any specialized training.

The next step after you read over the game plan is to set aside a few hours each month to get to work on this list, and take action. If you don’t do something, nothing will change.

Here is the “12 Months of Prepping” game plan as put together by backdoorsurvival.com:

“MONTH 1

Link:  Getting Prepared Month 1: Supplies, Gear and Tasks to Get You Started

SUPPLIES & GEAR:

  • Water-3 gallons per person and per pet
  • Hand-operated can opener and bottle opener
  • Canned meat, stew, or pasta meals – 5 per person
  • 2 flashlights with batteries

TASKS:

  • Inventory the disaster supplies you already have on hand, including your camping gear
  • If you fill your own water containers, mark them with the date they were filled
  • Date cans of food and food containers if you have not already done so

MONTH 2

Link:  Getting Prepared Month 2: First Aid, Personal Hygiene and Home Safety

SUPPLIES & GEAR:

  • Canned vegetables – 4 per person
  • Toilet paper – 3 rolls per person
  • Sanitary napkins – 2 months’ supply
  • Instant drinks (coffee, tea, powdered soft drinks)
  • Family sized first aid kit

TASKS:

  • Change the batteries and test your smoke detectors. Purchase and install smoke detectors if you don’t have them
  • Make an inventory of home contents for insurance purposes. Take photographs (digital are easiest) of your house and contents. Store a copy away from your home.

MONTH 3

Link:  Getting Prepared Month 3: Special Foods, Fire Drills and Home Safety

SUPPLIES & GEAR:

  • Canned fruits – 3 cans per person
  • Any foods for special dietary needs (enough for 3 days)
  • A bag or two of hard candies
  • A large plastic tub or bin for storage of food and other emergency supplies

TASKS:

  • Conduct a home fire drill
  • Locate the gas meter and water shutoff points and attach/store a wrench or shutoff tool near them. Also store special shutoff instruction, if any.
  • Establish and out-of-state contact to call in case of an emergency
  • Identify a location for your storage of plastic bin or tub.

MONTH 4

Link:  Getting Prepared Month 4: Prescription Medicine, Cash, and Things to Keep Us Warm

SUPPLIES & GEAR:

  • A Minimum of a 7 day Supply of Critical Prescription Medicines
  • $100 (or more) in Small Bills
  • Pet Supplies
  • Infant Supplies
  • Extra Storage Containers

TASKS:

  • Package your prescription medications in a storage container and date for annual rotation purposes
  • Pack up warm blankets, sleeping bags, socks and other cold weather items
  • Review your storage area and put stray items in containers that are well marked

MONTH 5

Link:  Getting Prepared Month 5: Sanitation Supplies and Establishing a Community of Like Minded Folks

SUPPLIES & GEAR:

  • Liquid dish soap
  • Plain liquid bleach
  • White vinegar
  • Empty spray bottle
  • Liquid hand soap and hand sanitizer
  • Bar of soap
  • Disposable hand wipes
  • Disposable latex or nutile gloves
  • Canned, ready-to-eat soup – 4 per person
  • Portable AM/FM radio with batteries

TASKS:

  • Make two photocopies of important papers and put one with your emergency storage and one away from your home.
  • File an electronic copy of your important papers on a flash drive
  • Talk with neighbors about organizing a neighborhood preparedness group.

MONTH 6

Link:  Getting Prepared Month 6: Fitness, Energy Bars and Face Masks

SUPPLIES & GEAR:

  • Box of granola or power bars – 1 per person
  • 6 rolls of paper towels
  • Box of N-95 or N-100 face masks – 1 per person.

TASKS:

  • Check to see if stored water has expired and needs to be replaced
  • Put an extra pair of eyeglasses in the supply container
  • Find out about your workplace disaster plans and the disaster plans at your children’s schools

MONTH 7

Link:  Getting Prepared Month 7: Gear, Tools and Skills to Save Lives

SUPPLIES & GEAR:

  • NOAA Alert Weather Radio
  • ABC fire extinguisher
  • Jug of juice – 1 per person
  • Adult and children’s vitamins
  • A pair of pliers and/or vise grip
  • 100 feet of paracord

TASKS:

  • Take a first aid/CPR class
  • Show family members where and how to shut off utilities

MONTH 8

Link:  Getting Prepared Month 8: Adding Supplies, Tasks, and an Emergency Preparedness Kit for Your Vehicle

SUPPLIES & GEAR:

  • Box of crackers or graham crackers – 1 per person
  • Dry cereal or instant oatmeal – 1 weeks’ worth per person
  • 1 box of large, heavy-duty garbage bags

TASKS:

  • Make a small preparedness kit for your car. Include food, water, blanket, small first aid kit, a list of important phone numbers
  • Secure water heaters to wall studs (if not already done)

MONTH 9

Link:  Getting Prepared Month 9: Duct Tape and Drills

SUPPLIES & GEAR:

  • Extra batteries for flashlights, radio and hearing aids (if needed)
  • Duct tape
  • Add an additional 3 days of water to your supply per person and per pet

TASKS:

  • Follow up on efforts to organize your family and your neighborhood
  • Conduct an earthquake drill at home: stop, drop and hold, then go outside. (Remember, and earthquake can happen anywhere as recent events have demonstrated.)
  • Swap out stored medications with fresh versions. Review your prescription medicines and add those that are missing from your kit.

MONTH 10

Link:  Getting Prepared Month 10: Practice Going Off Grid

SUPPLIES & GEAR:

  • Take the month off from purchases. Yay!
  • Or, for extra credit, add:
    • Axe
    • Hatchet
    • Pocket Knife
    • Portable (Folding) Shovel Getting Prepared Month 10: Practice Going Off Grid   Backdoor Survival

TASKS:

  • Become earthquake ready by taking steps to secure appliances, shelves, cabinets and drawers to prevent them from falling and/or opening during a tremor.
  • Imagine your house with no electricity. Better yet, shut off the power for 4 to 24 hours and try to live off-grid.

MONTH 11

Link:  Getting Prepared Month 11: Stock Up on Disposables & Build a Neighborhood Contact List

SUPPLIES & GEAR:

  • Package of paper plates
  • Package of napkins
  • Package of eating utensils
  • Package of paper cups

TASKS:

  • Exchange work, home and emergency contact phone numbers with neighbors for use during an emergency

MONTH 12

Link:  Getting Prepared Month 12: Food, Water and the Motivation to Keep Going

SUPPLIES & GEAR:

  • Expand your food supply
  • Purchase some comfort food or condiments
  • Heavy work gloves

TASKS:

  • Check your water supply and rotate if necessary
  • Check over your stored food and rotate if necessary

MONTH 13

Congratulations. You have completed your year of preparations. Now is a good time to go back to month 1 and review, replenish, rotate and drill. Good job!”

Have some more prepping suggestions? Comment below.

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