How to Prepare for a Hurricane, Blizzard (or Pandemic)

Originally this post was supposed to be about how I personally prepared for Hurricanes in Florida (because it’s about to become hurricane season) and Blizzards in Massachusetts, but I am currently using these skills to make life a little better during this Pandemic. So, I’m going to share some secrets that I have learned and used so that you don’t have to leave your home as much for groceries.

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I am a not what we call in America a “Doomsday Prepper“. We actually have a show about these people who actively prepare for Apocalyptic situations that are likely not to ever happen.

I like to prep on a small scale for small things. Growing up in Tampa Florida meant preparing for hurricane season. Hurricane’s can be rather severe and they can even stall out over an area which is never good. Power loss during those times is very likely as well as flooding, water contamination and even losing the roof to your home. Fortunately, I’ve never had to go through something like that, but it wasn’t uncommon to walk into a grocery store and see water and shelves emptied. It’s usually recommended that you stalk up on things like food for a few days, batteries, flashlights, candles, and water.

When I first moved to Boston in December of 2010, I remember walking into a grocery store only to see people stalking up on water. I remember asking one local what was going on and she explained that there was a major blizzard coming through. Thankfully, having my experience from Florida I was able to prepare for blizzards in the same way.

AND NOW WE’RE IN A PANDEMIC!!! I only leave my home once a month to get food. I’m doing it by buying reasonable amounts for a month, and I’m not hoarding toilet paper. So here’s how I go about preparing in a calm and safe manner.

How to Prepare for a Hurricane, Blizzard (or Pandemic) by autumnbecomes.me

1.) The more time you have to prepare the better. For things like Blizzard and Hurricane season, those happen every year, so I have plenty of time to buy things at a reasonable pace.

How to Prepare for a Hurricane, Blizzard (or Pandemic) by autumnbecomes.me

2.) Stick to your budget (kinda). If you’re not buying food for an extended time like now it’s good to consider what you spend in a normal week and stick to that. So for example, if you spend $100 on food for the week for you and your family, then times that by four which is $400 and try to stick to that.

How to Prepare for a Hurricane, Blizzard (or Pandemic) by autumnbecomes.me

3.) Stick to what your family normally buys. Seriously, no one needs a lifetime supply of toilet paper. There’s no reason to empty shelves of canned green beans if your family doesn’t like them. You want to buy things that if you end up with extra after the time you needed those items you’ll still eat them. So for example. My husband and I LOVE to eat this Chili recipe I have featured on my blog. It freezes really well too, so I will often make a ton of this right before the snow season starts so that I can just defrost it and there’s dinner. So for me to buy lots of beans and garlic and tomatoes is normal. I know we’re going to eat those things even after the winter so nothing goes to waste.

How to Prepare for a Hurricane, Blizzard (or Pandemic) by autumnbecomes.me

4.) You can freeze Chicken eggs! I started doing this recently. Amin and I LOVE our eggs. We have them over rice for lunch, we have them in dishes for dinner and of course for breakfast. THIS article helps show you how to properly. The only thing they aren’t so good for is being cooked over easy.

How to Prepare for a Hurricane, Blizzard (or Pandemic) by autumnbecomes.me

5.) You can freeze milk! I have milk for drinking and I use frozen milk for cooking. Milk is one of the first things that seems to go bad next to veggies. So to be able to take some milk and freeze it for when I have a recipe to cook is awesome! I don’t recommend drinking this. Its color will change to a yellow instead of white due to the fat content, and the texture and flavor can change, but it should be great to cook with.

How to Prepare for a Hurricane, Blizzard (or Pandemic) by autumnbecomes.me

6.) You can freeze most veggies and fruits. I currently have frozen spinach, chives, bananas, mangos, and red bell peppers.

How to Prepare for a Hurricane, Blizzard (or Pandemic) by autumnbecomes.me

7.) Put Onions in your Pantyhoes. I’m not joking! This makes them last longer and makes them easy to hang in your pantry.

How to Prepare for a Hurricane, Blizzard (or Pandemic) by autumnbecomes.me

8.) Freeze bread! I learned this one from my mother. She use to get french bread and freeze it and then thaw it out and make the most delicious French Toast. Seriously it tastes like it was baked yesterday! I freeze french bread, bagels, sandwich bread, and English muffins!

How to Prepare for a Hurricane, Blizzard (or Pandemic) by autumnbecomes.me

9.) Freeze your Butter! I’ve been freezing butter for years. It’s another thing I learned from my mama.

How to Prepare for a Hurricane, Blizzard (or Pandemic) by autumnbecomes.me

10.) Freeze your cheese singles. I buy Cheese slices in bulk and then I pull out what I need and thaw it out slowly. The only thing that can make this a little weird is that sometimes it can get light speckles on it (probably from the fat content), but it’s still awesome on egg sandwiches, tuna melts, and hamburgers!

So I hope these little ideas help you Stay Safe Inside a little easier. Also even after this pandemic, if you happen to see a sale it’s cool to stock up on things you know you’re going to use and just freeze it. Even if your kitchen is small I would highly advise investing in a mini chest freezer. You’ll save money, in the long run, cashing in on sales and trust me, when you’re having a lazy day, or you don’t want to cook dinner because you’re been shoveling snow you’ll be so happy to just pull some soups or chili out and heat it up. Knowing that you’re eating something that you prepared really separates this from microwavable.

If you have any survival tips you’d like to pass along let me know in the comments below! Fear can make you hoard things like toilet paper and then make your friends laugh at you. Just get what you think would make your life easier, remember to leave something for others and don’t buy things you don’t need okay? Life continually moves and changes so what might be difficult now won’t be in a little while. Everything is temporary, and this too shall pass. Talk to you later and have a wonderful day! -Heather Autumn Astaneh

How to Prepare for a Hurricane, Blizzard (or Pandemic) by autumnbecomes.me