The Prepping Thread - A Newer Beginning ;)

GaleSF63

MingVase said:

Just googled the recipe and it looks ike a mint version of tablet... Hmmmmmm....

Mint cake is quite a lot harder than tablet.
I wish you hadn't mentioned tablet...  I want some now!

MingVase

I used to have a foolproof recipe for tablet but lost it. It's lethal stuff, you just eatit and make more. There is always the worry that I might eat too much of it and get stuck in this vase.

3secondmemory

Thriftygifty said:

@euronorris oh my goodness the bit with the little girl at the start 😭 it was imo a good film but would I watch it again.... No! I've put myself though it once won't be making that mistake again and it was to late to watch something happy afterwards so was fighting meteors in my sleep and woke up exhausted, then the day rapidly went down hill, thank goodness no school run tomorrow I absolutely hate it.  

I first tried Kendal mint cake at Birmingham Christmas Market it's reasonably priced and pure yumminess, I will be hiding it from the children!

I was looking at rucksacks today mountain warehouse have a 'sale' or pretend sale with some good prices, do you think they will be naff quality? I'm thinking a 65l  or the 65l + 20l for DH and 40l for me based on a family of 5 with 3 children of no stamina for Bob bags/holidays if they ever happen again. 

There’s no point buying a bag that you can’t carry and it’s a really good idea to get the kids used to carrying their own little bags and being responsible for their own stuff from a really young age. 

I wouldn’t worry too much about Bug out bags. Rather than worrying too much about the future, it’s much better to be teaching the children skills like how to listen to you, tying knots, watching the weather. Teach them to think about what sort of stuff they need for themselves and how to improvise. Go camping and have fun – even in the back garden! S killing up is more fun and more productive 😃

Only buy kit that you’re going to use – a lot of mine is army surplus. My boys used to love cooking outdoors - even on the patio. 

mothernerd

Thriftygifty said:

@euronorris oh my goodness the bit with the little girl at the start 😭 it was imo a good film but would I watch it again.... No! I've put myself though it once won't be making that mistake again and it was to late to watch something happy afterwards so was fighting meteors in my sleep and woke up exhausted, then the day rapidly went down hill, thank goodness no school run tomorrow I absolutely hate it.  

I first tried Kendal mint cake at Birmingham Christmas Market it's reasonably priced and pure yumminess, I will be hiding it from the children!

I was looking at rucksacks today mountain warehouse have a 'sale' or pretend sale with some good prices, do you think they will be naff quality? I'm thinking a 65l  or the 65l + 20l for DH and 40l for me based on a family of 5 with 3 children of no stamina for Bob bags/holidays if they ever happen again. 

I agree with 3secondmemory  start them young with rucksacks. We went on holiday when DS2 was 4 months old and DS1 was 2 years 5 months old. DS1 had his own rucksack. It only had his bucket and spade in it but he got lots of oohs and aahs and nods of recognition from fellow backpackers (so lots of positive reinforcement and starting to be part of the 'tribe'). My basic shopping rucksack was 65 l (think I went up to 90 litres at one point). Basic weekly SM shop plus a lot of garden/ diy stuff (fruit trees, 20kg? sacks of sand and cement when I was rebuilding the back garden wall - still standing after 20 -25 years). The other thing I did with the boys was making a rule on SM shopping - if you ask for it, you carry it. They didn't always get it (I remember DS2 standing in front of me asking if we could maybe have a chicken - to supplement our basic cheese/ potatoes/ beans diet) but having to carry stuff home cut down on a lot of requests.

RAS

Thrifty
I'd definitely start the kids on carrying rucksacks ASAP. And thinking about what they need to take with them.

I have problems with one arm/shoulder and that side of my neck, now thankfully resolving, but as a result I've used rucksacks most of my adult life. I have several;

• the alternative to a handbag, large enough to take a laptop, books or some heavy shopping, used daily.
• the little 10L cheapy kid's sac that can be shoved in a larger one and takes a day's needs when away from home,
• the 65 litre adjustable which I use for longer journeys, camping and lugging Christmas presents etc.
• the old 70 litre for things like taking electrics to the dump or lugging plants or compost
• the 35 litre into which I have fitted everything I needed for a week's "backpacking" holiday in England and the Netherlands when using B&Bs, hostels or hotels. And everything needed for a break using a camping pod (including cooker, pans and eating utensils  and emergency food etc), whilst eating out once a day. Did get a carrier bag of food in the nearest town before jumping on the bus, though. Tend to wear the walking boots but pack a pair of light-weight shoes.

For the kids a 10 litre cheapie (mine was sold as back to school by a budget supermarket) can take an extra layer to wear later, or one they've taken off, a toy or two, or their swim kit and a drink. Or their own personal picnic pack when you go out as a family. You'll need to juggle the tightness of the straps to suit the child and might find different styles suit different children. They'll probably be carrying 25 sacs when they go to secondary school anyway.

Karmacat

Loving the feedback on rucksacks, really good.  From a 2 - 3 year old having their bucket and spade in it to a 10 year old having a jumper, a light waterproof, a box of plasters and a water bottle.  And nowadays, probably a spare facemask and some hand gel.

greenbee

Karmacat said:

Loving the feedback on rucksacks, really good.  From a 2 - 3 year old having their bucket and spade in it to a 10 year old having a jumper, a light waterproof, a box of plasters and a water bottle.  And nowadays, probably a spare facemask and some hand gel.

More like 27 million toys and no room for the spare jumper or water bottle... 

Karmacat

greenbee said:

Karmacat said:

Loving the feedback on rucksacks, really good.  From a 2 - 3 year old having their bucket and spade in it to a 10 year old having a jumper, a light waterproof, a box of plasters and a water bottle.  And nowadays, probably a spare facemask and some hand gel.

More like 27 million toys and no room for the spare jumper or water bottle... 

Nooooooooo! 

It would probably be their iphone, power bank and charger.

Seriously, there's plenty of 10 year olds who'd have what I first described - if only cos their mum put it in there.

VJsmum

Our two were started off with rucksacks by packing their own toys to go on holiday - or if we were flying they could pack their own flight rucksacks with things to do on the plane.  Books, cuddlies, writing/ drawing things, maybe a few sweets or chocolate (if long-haul).   As they grew, i got them to put their clothes out for packing, so i could check they had more or less the right things.  Then after that they'd pack their own with a few yelled "don't forget .. " (undies, socks, jumper etc.).

3secondmemory

VJsmum said:

Our two were started off with rucksacks by packing their own toys to go on holiday - or if we were flying they could pack their own flight rucksacks with things to do on the plane.  Books, cuddlies, writing/ drawing things, maybe a few sweets or chocolate (if long-haul).   As they grew, i got them to put their clothes out for packing, so i could check they had more or less the right things.  Then after that they'd pack their own with a few yelled "don't forget .. " (undies, socks, jumper etc.).

It’s also handy that they know they  have their torch, for instance, in the left hand bottom pocket so they can find it in the dark or in a power cut. 

I had to teach the boys especially to look after their stuff and learn to keep it dry and clean. Sometimes they had to learn the hard way but hey, no one died because of wet socks or because they’d lost a favourite possession. 😃