Making a Family Storm Preparedness Kit Powered by Duracell

 

Living in Tennessee I have seen my fair share of all kinds of crazy weather. A few years ago we had a huge flood, and an ice storm. While this was out of the norm for us, there is something that is not, and that is severe thunderstorms and tornadoes. I have been fortunate enough to not have had major damage done to my home. But I have been through long periods of power outages, and with 4 cats and a 6 year old, that can be rough. Trying to keep my daughter calm is my #1 priority during storm season, and so I decided to make her a major part of making a family storm preparedness kit powered by Duracell!  With all the electronics we have having fresh batteries to power them is more important than ever. When it comes to batteries in this house, Duracell are the best! 

My daughter was excited to be a part of deciding what would go into our “Storm Bag”, and was already thinking of what she wanted when we entered Walmart to buy the  items needed.

 

Making a family storm preparedness kit that keeps children in mind has it’s own set of challenges. On top of having things like batteries, flashlights, and food, you also need things that will keep your child calm, and you in control. Our first stop during our Walmart shopping trip was the battery section where we picked up some Duracell Batteries so we could ensure we had enough in case of an emergency. After grabbing some batteries, I told my daughter it was her turn to pick out something she would like to have in the storm bag. She of course had no problem picking some things out..

Want to see what all we included in our Family Storm Preparedness Kit powered by Duracell?

 

1. Duracell Batteries- Always have extra batteries!
2. Food and Water- You should have at least a 3 day supply of food in preparation for an emergency. We decided to go for some peanut butter, crackers, beans, tuna, nutrigrain bars, snack crackers, and water.
3. First Aid Kit- Doesn’t it always seem like what can go wrong will go wrong? Like when the lights go out and you skin your knee on the corner of your table? Yeah, me too.
4. A Battery Powered phone charger- Even when the storm passes, you still might not have power, and you are going to want people to get a hold of you (and check on other friends/family in the area) and if you have a dead phone battery, that isn’t possible.
5. A Weather Radio- something everyone should own! Our Tv’s and phones are great for keeping an eye on the weather but when the storm hits we might be without those, and a battery powered weather radio will keep you informed when you need it most.
6. Flashlights- We want to still be able to see when the lights go out right? Some people use candles, but I’ll be honest, I’m not a huge fan. You can’t carry them around (safely), and my cats like to sniff them (yes, the flame) and end up burning their nose. So flashlights and lanterns work great for my family. I let my daughter pick out her own lantern and she chose a small hello kitty lantern that is surprisingly bright!
7. Kids Activities- Keeping kids busy and their minds off the storm can be just as important as being prepared for a storm. My daughter chose a coloring book and crayons, a card game for the whole family to play together, and some playdoh. Another thing we added to our kit was an Ipad and headphones. To keep my daughter clam during a storm I think of 3 things: Something to listen to (to distract from the sound of thunder), something to snuggle (She chose a teddy bear), and something to do (such as playing games on our Ipad, or creating something with playdoh.). These things have proven to work great for our family.
8. Blankets- The last thing I put in our storm bag is a fleece blanket for each family member. We use these for all sorts of things! Keeping warm, something to snuggle, or building a fort

 

After getting our bag together, we decided to try out our new bag by having a “test run” of what we would do without power. So we switched off the lights and had a little bit of fun! First we got everything out of our bag and made sure we had everything we needed. We switched on our radio so we could listen for any weather broadcasts, and broke out the flashlights! We rounded up our cats (who love chasing after the flashlight), read a new story, and made some shadow puppets. I was very proud of how well she did during our test run and I am confident that she is as prepared as our storm bag is for when bad weather strikes. And in good time because we are under a storm alert for this evening!

How does your family stay prepared when bad weather hits? Share your tips below! And Don’t forget to #PrepWithPower using Duracell Batteries!