Emergency Planning with Baby: Baby's 72 Hour Survival Kit ...

If you are heading out of town for the weekend or working on getting the house sorted ? this is a family planning activity that everyone should add to their list.?

A few weeks ago my family headed out of town for a family trip and we were totally prepared? or so I thought! During our week away our family was staying at a family resort that includes camping, trailer hitch and cabin options. Our family chose to stay in the cabins as we have just welcomed our little baby girl to our growing family of 4! With all of this excitement I packed all things that we would need for staying in a cabin with electricity, running water and of course the luxeries of home. Little did I know that there would be a flash storm at our resort.

As the wind picked up and I gathered the little ones from the beach to get away from the blowing sand. Being with 2 other families, I also welcomed in a friends kids and their families. I was thinking that we had everything we needed. But as the wind was blowing, we also had torrential winds within 10 minutes and the addition of thunder and lightning.?The lightening and wind passed through our campsite and had the power to nock down over 5 trees, squishing campers and a Camero parked in their site. We had the luck of having a safe spot to be but many in our resort did not.

As all the families gathered to cross the street to the designated safe spot the power went out. The power remained out for 6 hours until service could be restored. With this all families were stranded under the cover of an overhead walkway wondering what to do, and how to take care of their little ones. We were all scrambling to contact others that had left the resort, find their kids and prepare with candles, flashlights and rain gear needed. In less then 20 minutes the storm passed and everyone gathered together to distribute all the things our families had needed and take part in the clean-up of a resort that many of us call home every year!

Our family like many others did not have the survival items needed and this also made me realize that our car was also not prepared for a storm while on the road.

I have reached out the BeeSafe.ca to provide a Baby Survival Kit for all moms heading out on the road and would recommend packing this for trips and in the event of an emergency when at home. I would recommend that this is something that everyone in your family is aware of. The major point to keep in mind is that it takes 72 hours for most governments to get sorted in an emergency, and unlike our little storm you may be left in the dark and without a safe place for 3 days till they arrive!

Baby?s 72 Hour Survival Kit

If you have a new baby in the house you are likely consumed with late nights, feedings, diaper changes, gurgles, coos and all of the joys a new baby brings.??Simply leaving the house can seem to take forever, since you now need to make sure you have all your supplies for baby, even if you are just going out for a few hours.??What if you had to leave home quickly in an emergency???Would you have everything you needed for baby?

You might already have a?Grab?and?Go Survival Kit?for your home, but babies and toddler have unique needs when it comes to a survival situation, so packing a baby kit to add to your Survival Kit is essential.??It doesn?t have to take a lot of time or money, and most things you probably already have at home.??Many things can be picked up at a dollar store or in the travel/samples size section of the drugstore.??You can even think of it as an extended diaper bag.??Here are some suggestions for a stand-alone baby survival kit for evacuations or to toss in the car when you?re going somewhere where you might unexpectedly get stuck spending the night (just remember that if you do use the supplies, replace them as soon as you get home so it?s ready for a real emergency):

• Clothing: socks, hat, 2 sleepers, a onesie and a sweater (you can layer all of these if necessary).???You can pack the clothes in a large Ziploc bag or vacuum pack them with a vacuum-seal bag to make the packages smaller. You?ll need to change the clothes frequently at first (every 3 months) and then less frequently thereafter.
• Diapers:??Lots of diapers ? I have a week?s supply, so you might want to vacuum pack these so they take up less space!??Like clothes, you?ll need to change this stash every 3-6 months as well.??Even if you cloth diaper baby, put disposables in your emergency kit in case you are without water for washing.??I also keep?3 basic prefold cloth diapers and a one-size cover??with a bit of washing powder in my kit, in case I run out of disposable diapers.
• Baby care & cleaning:?travel baby soap, lotion,??wipes, a few washcloths, small bottle of hand sanitizer, packet of tissue
• First aid items: sunblock, mini first aid kit,?instant cold compress, infant ibuprofen, scratch mitts, hand warmers
• Feeding: bottles, bowls with lids, spoons, a washable bib.? You?ll want to add your favorite infant formula?and as?the baby gets to solids, add a box of baby cereal and/or some?dehydrated (you can make it yourself!) baby food?along with your formula.? Put formula in the kit even if you are nursing?What if dad is the one home with baby when they need to evacuate and you can?t meet up until a day or two later?? Baby still needs to eat.
• Comfort items:? a few small toys and a couple of blankets (also ziplocked). I keep one cotton blanket and one fleece blanket (dries quickly) in my kit.
• Water: add a few bottles of water to mix the baby formula (you need something to re-constitute the formula and dry baby food
• Plastic bags: for dirty diapers, wet clothes, etc.
• Name Tag & Photo:?Put your name and phone number on the tag as well as any allergies.??Also include a photo of baby to show in case you are separated.

Be sure to keep your baby?s kit with your Grab and Go Bag, and keep a carrier or sling with the kit. In an emergency you want to have your hands free to carry anything else (in our case, holding hands with a preschooler and a dog on a leash!) In our house, we keep our kit and Ergo Carrier all together in the front hall closet.??Happy preparing!

Source: http://www.coquitlammommy.ca/emergency-planning-with-baby-babys-72-hour-survival-kit/

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