*Don’t forget this weeks’ GIVEAWAY for food storage BROWNIES! Check out last Friday’s post to enter.*
Since I mentioned Wendy Dewitt yesterday, I got to thinking, there may be some of you who do not know who she is. Wendy Dewitt is considered to be basically a food storage expert. She has such great knowledge and insight on the subject, and I received a lot of my motivation and inspiration for food storage from her. I’ve never met her or seen her in person, but I was introduced to her through a series of video lectures. I want to share those with you today in hopes they can help you as well.
This is a series of 9 videos (it’s all one lecture, broken down into shorter segments) and I hope you’ll take the time to watch them. Even better is if you can get your spouse to sit down and watch them with you. As I said before, it is very insightful and inspiring. I differ with Wendy in styles somewhat, but that is neither here nor there. The information she shares is wonderful and extremely helpful. I hope you will enjoy it!
{Oh, and on a side note, when you get to Part 7 talking about Solar Cooking, if you’re interested in purchasing a Sun Oven (which is the kind she is displaying in the video), I can get you one at a GREAT discounted price. Just check under my ‘Shop’ button above.}
Video Lecture:
- Part 1: “Top 10 Reasons”
- Part 2: “The System”
- Part 3: “Worst Case Scenario”
- Part 4: “Equivalency Page”
- Part 5: “Where to Store it All”
- Part 6: “Pressure Canning Meat”
- Part 7: “Solar Oven Cooking”
- Part 8: “Food Saver”
- Part 9: “Questions and Answers”
Her Blog: Everything Under The Sun
*Don’t forget this weeks’ GIVEAWAY for food storage BROWNIES! Check out last Friday’s post to enter.*
When I first started this website, I mentioned that I’ve had two “Ah Ha!” moments in my life in terms of the spiritual nature of storing food. I’ve shared one of them with you. Well, let me share the other with you now.
I was listening to a food storage lecture by Wendy Dewitt and she was discussing reasons why we should have our food storage in order. Some were funny reasons, all were pretty logical, and then she got to one that just made me stop. And think, “Wow. She’s right.”
She mentioned how some people argue they don’t want to bother getting food storage because they figure when times get bad, some guy with a gun is just going to come steal it all from them. Then she made this comment: “Are you afraid of the guy with the gun? Or are you MORE afraid of becoming the guy with the gun?” Wow. Hm. Then she continues, “Brothers and sisters, what would you do if you were watching your children starve to death? You would lie, you would cheat, you would steal, and I promise you, you would become the guy with the gun. …There is nothing you wouldn’t do to save your child’s life.”
Did you feel it? Did you feel the ‘Wow, she’s right’ moment? She is right! If it came down to it, our spiritual salvation very well may be dependent upon whether or not we’ve followed the prophet in getting our year supply of food. This commandment is not just about having food in our belly. There is something much larger at stake. There are worse things in life than dying… and that is dying spiritually. Don’t wait to see how low you would sink! Do not become ‘the guy with the gun’. There is no excuse for it! We’ve been warned. So get to it. Be prepared!
Happy Friday, Y’all! Today I want to introduce you to a product called THRIVE. It’s a brand of freeze-dried foods put out by Shelf Reliance.
Freeze dried foods are more common than we think. Any fruit you find in your cereal box is likely freeze-dried fruit. And I’m sure there are many other examples out there that I can’t think of at the moment. 
So anyway, this is really not foreign/scary territory.
I was able to try some samples of the THRIVE freeze-dried fruits and vegetables, and let me tell you… they are great! The fruit I just ate straight from the can (still in its freeze-dried state). It’s like eating candy… only healthy!! It’s so sweet and delicious! The vegetables I rehydrated and tested out, and honestly… they pretty much tasted like they were fresh from the garden.
But my absolute favorite part about these foods is the shelf life. They have a 25 year shelf life (when stored in proper storage conditions) which means you can store them away and then not worry about them again for 25 years!! (And once you open them, you have up to a year to use them.) Dehydrated fruits and vegetables do not last as long, so I constantly worry about how long I can keep them on the shelf (since I want them to last as long as possible) without them going bad, etc. You don’t have to worry about that with these. Just mark the date for 25 years out and keep them in a cool place and you’re good to go. Awesome!
Oh, and one other thing to remember about these foods is that they have not been cooked prior to being freeze-dried, so that adds to their freshness. It also means that if you want them to be cooked… you need to cook them after you rehydrate them.
Here are some more reasons you may enjoy THRIVE freeze dried foods:
- Freeze dried food retains 97% of its nutritional value
- It tastes GREAT (even kids love it!)
- It is super easy to cook with
- It is nutritious whole food. There is no processing, additives, preservatives, added sugar involved.
- There is a wide variety of food to choose from: fruits, vegetables, grains, meats, beans, entrees, and cooking basics as well.
- It is also great for people with food allergies
Here are some added benefits of using the Shelf Reliance website:
- They have something called the THRIVE Q. It’s been explained to me like this: Think of it as a NetFlix for food storage. You set up a monthly budget, add different foods you want/need to your “Queue” and each month you receive something from your Queue list based on your budget.
- In addition to the THRIVE Q, there is something called The Q Club, which is like earning credit card reward points, except earning food.
- There is also an easy to use food calculator that helps you calculate the amount of food you need for your family and it can be customized based on any allergens or special health needs.
- Shipping starts as low as $7 and is capped at $15.99 so you don’t spend a ton on shipping.
- And a fun bonus, each can comes with a recipe on the back so you know at least ONE meal you can make with your product.
So if you are interested in ordering some of these freeze dried foods, check out the Shelf Reliance website and then contact Lesley at Info@ThriveToSurvive.biz to receive a 10-25% off discount! WOOHOO!! (Note: You MUST contact her prior to ordering in order to receive the discount.) Lesley also has a blog at: ThriveToSurvive.biz with some more information there, so check it out as well.
And on that note… she would also like to GIVEAWAY {GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED} two bags of delicious food storage brownie mix!! That means there will be TWO lucky winners! Wahoo!! And did you catch that it’s BROWNIES??! He-LLO! CHOCOLATE??!
To enter the giveaway{GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED}, simply leave a comment on this post stating your favorite dessert. (One comment per person please.)
You can earn an extra entry by sharing this post with your friends and family. Either send an email (be sure to include me in the email: GetReady@FoodStorageAndBeyond.com) or put a post on your blog/website about the giveaway (and send me a link to the post). Once you have done either of the above, simply enter a second comment on this post stating which one you did. (Note: You must post a second, separate comment in order to receive the extra entry, otherwise you will still only be registered to win one time.)
You have until next Thursday night at midnight (CST) to enter {GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED} and the winner will be announced Friday (Dec 10th). (The winner will be chosen by Random.org).
Good Luck and Happy Prepping!
Hey all. I’m pretty sure this is going to need to be a lazy week with minimal posting. My mom (who has been here with me since prior to my surgery) is gone now and so I’m just trying to focus on taking care of my girls and myself. However, tune in Friday for a yummy giveaway from some of our friends at Shelf Reliance/THRIVE! Yeehaw! {GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED.}
