🔦 PROMPTS FOR EXTREME WEATHER PREP

Whatever your faith or personal belief system may be, anchor in to beliefs that make you feel **stronger and more supported,** even / especially when facing seeming chaos and destruction.

Make a list of power thoughts, verses, etc. to reference regularly.

Bonus points if you make a wallpaper and/or record them to a voice memo on your phone.

Create and download playlists of your favorite music to keep your spirits high, calm, whatever you may need.

Ex. “Let Me Be Brave” by Beautiful Chorus 🎶

Note previous challenges in life and how you made it through, what you learned from them, how they made you even stronger, appreciate life even more, etc.

Give yourself (your village, and your team in spirit!) credit for getting you to this point, and to the next.

What basics do you have on hand for various emergencies?

Think backup drinking water for the whole fam, non-perishable food options, flashlights and batteries, portable chargers upon portable chargers, battery-or-solar-operated fans, heaters and/or heated blankets, generator options and know-how.

Do you have or need a flood or fireproof box or safe? What would go in there?

Which family treasures would be stored up high (top shelves, top floor) in case of a flood?

What’s in the go-bag, or on the list and easy to find if you had to grab and go? (Wallet and important documents and ID like passports, cash, fave comfort item for little ones, photos not yet stored digitally)

Where’s the safest place to shelter in your home case of a tornado, hurricane, or high winds? What if you’re in your car?

What about FOOD storage?

We've had two incidents where our deep freeze power never switched back on while out of town, and we had to throw everything out (breastmilk included!).

Think of what you'd need to keep cool if your power's out and how you would.

For freezes, pro tips for preventing burst pipes (like cracking the attic, opening cabinets, etc.).

If you don't have power, you don't have internet.

And cell service is NOT reliable in times when everyone's trying to call out.

How will you communicate with the outside world?

I recommend investing in an old-school, crank-and-or-solar-powered weather radio so even if other options fail (ex. power's out, cell service stinks, and the sun isn't shining much mid-hurricane) you'll be able to get SOME form of news updates as things change.

(Be sure to make note of whatever stations would be relevant in your area, or you'll be scrolling through talk radio and classical tunes when all you want is the weather update.)

We have a backup battery for our (now fiber-fueled) wifi modem so that in theory, even in little outages, we can continue our signal without interruption. And the generator is the big best-case backup.

BONUS: This is also useful for preventing dropped Zoom calls when power randomly blips on an otherwise normal day.

If you're close with your neighbors, or within range of besties or fam members, you may even get and test walkie talkies that could work in a pinch. You won't be out walking door to door in the midst of the storm.

What prep would help your home feel safer in extremes?

Big lessons for my forest-y hometown - regular tree health and trimming (to decrease chances of falling, wind).

Clearing brush, storm drains.

Clearing regular drains in the yard (ex. when we realized water started backing up in our yard quickly, we got these dome-shaped ones so they won’t get backed up with leaves so quickly).

What freeze-proofing can you do for plants, plumbing, and the like?

Ex. covering plants with blankets, spigots with styrofoam.

Tips for prepping sprinklers and such here.

If applicable - roof and attic patched and secure? Solar light options for safety at night if power’s out?

Extreme weather puts the "emergency" in "emergency fund."

When ish hits the fan, that backup money is critical.

You may need funds for an unplanned week or two at a hotel.

Replacing furniture or other items.

A new roof or standby generator.

Waiting for insurance funds to come through. Increases in insurance premiums. (Ick.)

Sometimes there's a pause or interruption to your income.

FEMA / government support may come, but it will likely take a while and won’t cover your immediate needs.

Even if the idea of saving feels boring and unsexy to you right now, let your “I want to be able to support myself and my fam as much as possible in case of emergencies” be a driver to start small, today.

Make it about your kids. Loved ones. Health, safety, well-being.

Start building the habit as a GIFT to yourself, even if it’s $50 a week or month to start.

NOTE: I’m not a financial advisor. I am a finance nerd. I love talking about money as a tool for #onherterms living, how we can change our habits by tapping into our values, etc. so let me know if that’s something you’d love help with.

Two of my fave money podcasts right now:

Money with Katie

Money for Couples with Ramit Sethi

Ideally we know to EXPECT extreme weather, and we have a little advance notice. Sometimes we don’t.

If kids are at school and things take a turn fast, how can you get to them safely?

If it looks rough, how could you keep them home?

Save important phone numbers for contacts at school to your phone.

Make a plan with backup friends, neighbors, or family if you can’t get to them in time (or high water, in our case).

What language can you use to help keep a sense of safety and normalcy to explain what’s happening in age-appropriate ways?

What would you pack in a kid kit of small fun things to keep them occupied and able to play even if you had to evacuate quickly?

Which routines and rituals would help them (and you!) feel a sense of routine and normalcy even if you had to evacuate or "camp" at home?

List ideas for their top items to pack and protect if you have the opportunity. Refresh a couple times a year.

Check out kid-specific resources like books that teach coping skills and consult your own mental health pro for support as needed on the other side of the emergency.

What foods, meds, and paperwork would be in the go-bag for your pets? For safe transport?

If you were without power, what would they need to stay safe, cool in the hottest seasons, or warm in the case of a freeze?

This one sounds extreme, but you'll be so glad you did this pre-thinking if it's your reality:

What backup shelters or accommodations could you get to if you needed to evacuate a few towns over?

Create a list of boarding places, pet-friendly hotels, AirBnBs, etc. that would likely be in a safe range.

If you’ve got a partner, discuss everything here for same-page planning so you know who’s taking care of what and can celebrate every single bit of prep progress.

If you’re solo, or solo while your partner is out of town (looking at you, fellow milspouses!), what do you need to know in their absence?

Ex. Where is [that relevant tool, document] stored? How do you work the [insert appliance] here? How could a neighbor help in their absence?

Talk it through.

Take videos if needed and make a dedicated "just in case" album in your camera roll.

Which loved ones- local and virtual - will you check in with and how?

What if the internet goes down? (We switched to fiber internet recently since it was up for the duration of the outage. Anyone who had power and had fiber internet had uninterrupted service.)

What about a landline?

Who has a generator?

Medical needs?

In recovery days, how can you support each other emotionally, physically?

What are your neighbor’s names and numbers?

See if your solo neighbors are comfortable giving you an emergency contact so you can check in with each other (and vice versa) if they're not answering.

Which FB groups and forums can you join to stay in touch and get the latest, signal permitting?

(Everyone will be looking for places to find heat or AC, water, food, laundry options.)

What about creating a spreadsheet and/or a phone tree or group chat for your block or floor?

Bigger picture: What policies and elected officials could help mitigate your community’s vulnerability and response to extreme weather? How does that impact your voting plan this year?

What happens if (when) you need a break to focus on what’s right in front of you?

If your power is out for a week plus and you have limited access to internet?

How can you still support clients and customers with on-demand offerings? (This thought was very present for me when in the hospital with my youngest years ago, and inspires me to create offerings that allow me to serve my clients AND my family, even when I’m not live on the line.)

How will you communicate with them to let them know what to expect when?

Check out the book Clockwork for inspiration on this front.

If and when you’re in a time of crisis, what matters most comes into clear focus, like:

If you’re in an emergent situation and can’t find a round-up of resources for your community - make one!

My fam and I were in Hawaii for a stint of temporary active duty when Beryl blew through our hometown in July.

Many folks lost power for over a week, in the thick of one of Houston’s hottest summers. Many lost their homes due to fallen trees. Some lost their lives. 💔

One way I could help from thousands of miles away was to leverage the power of speedy internet and google sheets. I searched our community FB groups to find local laundry, wifi, AC and pet-friendly places with power, recs for fence and roof repair, etc.

Did my fam, friends, and neighbors have cell service and internet to actually tap and VIEW the sheet easily?

Not really. Womp womp. 🥀

But as more came online, it sure was useful, and in the moment, it helped me transform anxiety into action when I otherwise felt helpless an ocean away.

If you'd like a blank-ish copy of this sheet to fill out for your community, reply to any of my emails with "COMMUNITY SHEET" (or any other human message ;)) and I can get one to you once I create a clean version.

As I think of more prompts or ideas, I'll add them here.

Which of these feels most important to you?

What would YOU add to this list?

Reply to any of my emails to let me know. (You can join my list here if you haven't yet.)

If you find this list helpful, SO WILL SOMEONE ELSE.

Please feel free to share the link with your fam, friends, online and offline communities.

One silver lining of going through a challenge is the ability to shorten the learning curve for others who may face it too.

I appreciate you taking time to read (scan, at least!) and to do your part from wherever you are.

As I mentioned in this related post:

We're all needed.

Sending lots of love from here.