...and we got pregnant.
When "they" say that having a baby changes everything, they aren't kidding. Suddenly money was a worry, my education was put on hold, and we were not living the life in which we'd envisioned raising our children. Our plan had been to be financially stable, educated country-dwellers before children came into the picture. But isn't the whole preparedness mentality focused around learning to thrive even when plans fail? There was no reason we couldn't start practicing preparedness and self-reliant living right away. We began working toward our goal, children in tow.
GARDEN
Our first step was to plant a basic garden in our urban backyard. Our tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and zucchini plants were a huge flop that first summer. We chalked it up to our poor gardening skills until the second summer, when we discussed our dead tomato plants with the neighbors. We learned about the damage black walnut trees can do on tomatoes and that our area is full of them. Raised beds solved the problem.
Even with our summer garden, times were anything but bountiful. Money was tight and we soon had a second baby on the way. It was time to buckle down, shave costs, learn the old ways, and become minimalists in order to better find the self-reliance we were working for.
Anyone who has children knows that you don't have much free time, especially in the early years. I believe that when you involve your children in your daily activities, changes that may at first seem like hardships can turn out to be joyous, rewarding experiences. Let young children "help" as much as possible even though it may take a little longer for the job to get done. We save time in other ways; not watching any television is one way.
CLOTH DIAPERS
Alongside the development of our garden, we hung a clothesline and switched to cloth diapers. After hearing about how much work it is, I was surprised to discover that I love cloth diapering. With almost no extra energy generated, our garbage output has measurably decreased, too.
The initial investment in these products can be great, but now every time I look at the price tag on a box of diapers at the store, I feel the rewards of our purchases of cloth.
FOOD STORAGE
We've begun building a substantial food storage system. Saving money in the previously-mentioned areas has made this more budgetable. We've started canning some of our own food and saving seeds from our summer and fall garden crops. We keep a number of seven-gallon water containers in food storage, as well as a water purifier, purifying straw, and water-purifying tablets in our emergency kits. Every time we to to the grocery store we buy something for our food storage shelves, even if it's just an extra can of beans, as our weekly budget allows.
One thing our family has done to cut costs is avoid "kid foods." Our children simply eat what we eat. Because they only eat good food, their bodies love good food. If a time comes when we have to eat out of our pantry, battling with toddlers to eat only the food that's available will be one less thing worry about.
SURVIVAL KITS
Since we live in a town, we prepared a survival kit so we can all be out of the house and ready to go in a matter of minutes. Our car survival kit is stocked with non-perishable foods, water, a water filter, wool blankets, a few extra clothing layers, a wide array of tools and ammo, a sling or carrier for each child, and a first aid kit. In addition to that, we each have a "go bag." One contains ammo, water, knives, tape, a small fishing kit, plastic bags, food and extra warm clothes. The other holds mostly things for our children - pajamas, sweaters, shoes for each - as well as a compact raincoat, water, non-perishable snacks, and disposable diapers (they take up less room and can be dealt with more easily). We check and re-evaluate our "go bags" every season, making sure everything is still there, that the children's clothes and shoes still fit, etc.
RAISING SELF-RELIANT CHILDREN
We value independence and try to offer our children many opportunities to learn how to do things themselves. They see us working and want to help. They help feed our animals, and we hope those small animal skills will prove useful down the line when we have goats, chickens, and rabbits. They help choose some of our garden seeds, tend their own little garden box, and help water the garden. They help gather ripe produce and are learning how to handle foods gently and what different vegetables look like during different stages of ripeness. In the fall, we work together to fill their little red wagon full of acorns and nuts for our food storage shelves. As babies, they came along in baby wraps and carriers, as older children, they are right there, enthusiastically contributing to the work.