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| The view out my front door most of the year |
Because of the crazy weather we can get, I believe its always important to have an emergency kit in our trunk. I change the kits twice a year, when the winter tires go on I put in the winter kit, and when the winter tires come off I put in the summer kit. This fall as I was preparing the winter kit, I was doing some Googling, some Pinterest-ing and some You-tubing. Soon I was overwhelmed with the need for flint and steel. And extra shelters! And hunting knives!! And everything we could possibly need to survive a winter zombie apocalypse!!!
Wait a minute... I had to stand back a bit and remember that my needs are going to be different from some single guy working up north on deserted utility roads. Or a family in Texas with a baby. I had to think about MY situation and MY worst case scenario vs MY realistic scenario. And of course every kit will have the personal constraints of money, space and expertise (seriously, I wouldn't have a clue what to do with a flint and steel).
So my realistic scenario will be driving on the highway with Big C (9yrs old) and Little R (about to turn 7yrs old) in the back. Hubby G is occasionally with us, but because of his work schedule usually it's just me and the boys. So there we are, toodeling down the road, and bad weather either forces us to pull off onto the shoulder, or something causes us to go off the road. Now we're stuck and we need to wait for help or for the weather to get better. So it is not unforeseeable that we may need to spend a night in our vehicle as we wait for our turn with the tow truck. My concerns are first aid/safety, warmth, food and water, and something to stave off boredom. Seriously with two boys, if they're bored, they're fighting. And that will possibly force me to leave the vehicle in search of help, which will ultimately find me frozen to death mere feet from a highway gas station or something. I don't want to be a headline.
And one of the most practical reasons to have an emergency kit is because I find myself digging into it here and there for this or that. So as Calgary is going through record breaking highs this week, I thought now would be a good time to haul it all out, go through it all, replenish and reorganize.
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| Emergency kit in trunk |
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- extra warm clothes for the me and the boys (sweaters, sweatpants, extra socks)
- bag of kitty litter to help with traction should we get stuck
- three fleece blankets
- extra toques for everyone
- an assortment of gloves (including fingerless gloves)
- three metal cups (plan to warm drinks over a candle if we're stuck for a long time)
- an umbrella
- a shovel (which has been used many times to dig out of snow ruts)
All of these items are just extra items laying around the house. The socks don't even match! One thing to keep in mind, it's not always you that needs a helping hand. All these items I would happily give away to someone else who was in a spot of trouble.
Next is more of the fiddly stuff, this I keep in a bin inside the big bin.
- XXL heavy duty garbage bags, I use these all the time. I have two that are cut open to lay flat, they cover the entire back of my Jeep (with the seats down). I can then put wet, messy, yucky stuff on top (ie bottle return day, buying mulch/dirt for the garden, tires, etc).
- a little thing of wet wipes
- mini first aid kit with some extra items (extra bandaids, lady supplies, contact case and solution, etc)
- two emergency ponchos, they're fairly flimsy, but I would tie the coloured one to my antenna to help a rescuer spot us
- a set of dust masks
- big bag of tea lights. In an emergency, my plan is to keep four or so lit at a time to keep the chill off.
- bottom of a terracotta pot as a candle holder
- matches and a mini lighter (every survival guide I've ever read always recommends having two sources of fire)
- some lengths of twine
- a few folded grocery bags
- a little Ikea toolkit (I also have one in the house and one in our camping trailer, love these little kits!)
- a wee little box of what I think are replacement fuses (but I have no idea, not even sure where they came from but I don't dare get rid of them in case they're important)
- Fix A Flat
- flashlight (with working batteries, I have them in upside down so they don't wear out)
- a scraper
- a big bag of food (granola bars, trail mix, tea, drink mix). I'm forever taking snacks out of here so often refill it
- and last is the big S.O.S sign that can go in the window.
This is the entertainment part of the kit. As I mentioned, if I have two bored boys, they're fighting. Luckily they're best of friends most of the time. So if I can keep them engaged, things are usually much smoother. And in an emergency, the last thing I need is to wear my referee hat.
- pencil case with assorted pens, pencils, markers, etc
- books ('find it' books are great for something like this, you can make a game out of it)
- deck of cards
- yahtzee sheets and dice
- blank notebooks
- more books (including joke books)
- sudoku puzzles (I have printed off 4x4 and 6x6 versions)
- instructions for a new card game
- "Fill A Word" and Sudoku books for me
If we're going on any length of a road trip, I usually have the boys pack a bag with current books they're reading and any other things they may want to have at our destination.
Here is everything all nicely packed up. It really all does fit into the big bin. It is a lot of stuff, but I think its mostly practical things. Again my main train of thought is if we're stuck for any length of time in bad weather, we will mostly just need to stay comfortable. When the roads are bad, often its just a matter of time before a tow truck can get to you, but it could take many many hours.
Here is my Car Sick Kit and First Aid Kit. These do not go in the trunk in the big bin. These live in my middle console right up front with me. I like to have all these items right at hand as I use them a lot. Both of my kids suffer from car sickness from time to time. Having a Car Sick Kit has been invaluable!
- stack of plastic cups they use as a sick bucket
- wet wipes and kleenex to clean up with
- pile of grocery bags to hold dirty wipes and kleenex's
- big ziploc bags. After they've been sick, I'll put the cup and contents into a ziplock until I can get somewhere to dispose of it. Also sometimes I'll need somewhere to put dirty clothes if a mess is made.
The first aid kit also gets used a lot. I'm constantly replenishing this one
- bigger pack of wipes (you seriously can never have too many wipes. Even without babies anymore we still always have them scattered around)
- lady supplies
- handwarmers, we rarely use these, but there have been a few times after extended sledding that they've been a life saver on the way home with two boys with frozen hands
- assorted medications (gravol for everyone, I get car sick too, ibuprofen, antacids, etc)
- bandaids, especially the big ones for scraped knees
- wet ones (ok, maybe I'm overdoing the wipes a bit)
- hand sanitizer (I will always choose a proper hand washing, but sometimes that's not possible)
- hair elastics and clips
- pen and pad of paper
And in the middle of this pile, I always have a whistle close to hand. If you're ever in an accident or emergency, there are many reasons why you may not be able to call for help. Even if you can, a voice is often hard to hear. A whistle is incredibly loud with minimal physical effort. Three short blasts always means "HELP!".
Now this is where you probably think, "Whew, she's done!". Well... not quite. There are a few items missing from these photos.
- Booster cables - I always have a set of these in my trunk. They're not in the picture as I have a spot for them with the spare tire and forgot to grab them. While I have been lucky not to need them myself (knock on wood!), I have used them to help boost other vehicles. These are so very important when our temperatures can often be -35C or colder.
- Sleeping bags - I have three kids sleeping bags that I keep on the ready. I don't have these in my trunk on a day to day basis, but if heading onto the highway I always pop them in.
- Winter coats, boots, gear - Often we don't want to be wearing our heaviest winter gear for a long car trip. So instead we'll wear warm sweaters during the drive, but we always make sure to pack our big coats, boots, etc into the trunk.
- Gas - in the winter I try very hard not to let my gas tank get below half. Yes it means a few extra trips to the gas station over the course of winter, but it's well worth knowing we can always make it home safely even if a trip takes much longer then normal, or that we can heat up our vehicle if needed throughout a long wait. Don't forget things like extra windshield washer fluid and stuff too!
- Food and water - I always pack food and water before any trip. I don't keep water in my kit as it would just freeze. So I bring what we might need on a trip by trip basis.
- A small utility knife/multi tool. I do not have one of these yet. While I don't need a big hunting knife, I want something I could use to cut a seatbelt if needed. I will add this to my console as soon as I find one I like!
And one last thing to keep in mind. Bring extra if you have extra people with you! If Hubby G is joining us, I always make sure to pack extra stuff for him. On the odd occasion we're traveling with our dog in the winter, I make sure to have coats, food and water for her too. And always be ready to help out your fellow traveler. I know I can boost another car, shovel out snow ruts, have some extra food to offer, etc.
I hope you find this helpful. This is what I'm comfortable with carrying for my situation. Your needs might be very different depending on where you live. There are a few things I have that I'm wanting to field test to see if they really will work in an emergency situation, when I do I'll post my results.
So I'd love to hear what you keep in your Winter Emergency Kit. Where do you live? What would be a likely scenario for you? Do you have kids and what extras do you plan for because of them?
Safe winter travels everyone!
