Farmington West Provident Living

When we speak of preparedness, we often tend to focus on the temporal aspects such as food, clothing and shelter. We may be tempted to think that temporal preparedness is just temporal, but the Lord said, “All things unto me are spiritual, and not at any time have I given unto you a law which was temporal.” ( D&C 29:34 .) Being prepared isn't easy. It requires commitment, work and faith. In order to truly prepare for the trials and hardship we may face in life, we must be diligent in learning and living the doctrines of Jesus Christ. Elder Neil L. Anderson said, "A stronger personal faith in Jesus Christ will prepare [your children] for the challenges they will most surely face... "Each needs his or her own light, his or her own 'steadfast and immovable' faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, independent of parents, youth leaders, and supportive friends. "The stories of Jesus can be like a rushing wind across the embers of faith in the he...

Do you know what you are preparing for? We often think of natural disasters when we're thinking preparedness, but there are so many other reasons to be spiritually and temporally prepared. We never know when there will be a crisis in our lives, so now is the best time to  sit down and walk yourself through a potential emergency, then figure out what you need to do to get yourself through it.   Check out this woman's story of what she learned from her personal crisis and how she is using that knowledge to help her better prepare for the future. 

 Our gardening and pruning class last Thursday was A-MAZING! We started by learning about seeds, how to store them and how to "wake them up" we you're ready to use them. Seeds from heirloom plants can be harvested and saved for the next planting season. Seeds store longer in the freezer. But before you store your seeds, make sure they are completely dry. Storing your seeds in the freezer extends the life of your seeds, but if you don't usually store them in the freezer, you'll want to freeze them for 24-48 hours before you plant so that they'll wake up and grow faster when you're ready to plant. Our contact for the heirloom seeds we purchased in the stake order is Mitch West.  Next, we learned about pruning. We learned that it's best to prune stone fruit trees (apricots, peaches, nectarines, plums) while the trees are dormant and other fruit trees while they're blossoming (apple, pear, etc.). But it's better to prune than not to prun...

A wood-burning or coal-burning tent stove is typically used for heating or cooking in tents. In camping or emergency situations, tent stoves are great for heating larger tents. Most tent stoves feature a damper at the stove's outlet that can be closed to force the exhaust through an after burner at the top of the stove. Using an enclosed tent stove initially requires leaving the damper and air vents open until a bed of coals has been formed. After that, the damper is closed and the air vent can be regulated to control how quickly the wood or coal is burned. A properly loaded and controlled air-tight stove will burn safely for eight hours or more without further attention. Correct air flow and ventilation are critical to efficient and safe burning. The safe operation of a tent stove requires regular maintenance such as emptying ash pans beneath the wood grate. Routine cleaning of the stove pipes and chimney is also needed to prevent chimney fires. Creosote and soot gradually build u...

For the month of September, we're focusing on emergency preparedness. This post is about one of the most forgotten or avoided emergency preparedness topics--sanitation. When we think of disaster scenarios, we often tend to focus on the destruction that comes during a natural disaster, like the possibility of falling objects injuring us during an earthquake. But there's a more serious threat than falling objects, and it comes AFTER a disaster has occurred. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have compiled a list of health and safety concerns for disasters. Among that list is illness and injury prevention . Because usual hygiene practices may be disrupted after a disaster, the risks of illness and disease are greatly increased. It's important to know how to prevent disease by learning how to properly dispose of trash and human waste, and by making sure you have access to clean water. There's a reason why many third world countries, without proper sewage and wa...

One thing we talked about at our stake class a few weeks ago was cooking with shelf-stable milk and cream. There's nothing better than creamy comfort food after a long, hard day at work or when you're under stress. But how do you expect to be able to make that kind of comfort food if the power goes out and the contents of your refrigerator spoil? The solution is easy--buy shelf-stable milk & cream! Gossner Foods is a local company in Cache Valley, which offers shelf-stable dairy products. Gossner U.H.T. (Ultra High Temperature) Milk is real Grade A milk that has all the vitamins and nutrition of conventional pasteurized milk and is ready to use. No preservatives are added.  Gossner's U.H.T. Shelf Stable Milk is heated to 282 degrees and held for several seconds, then cooled to 70 degrees in a continuous pressurized system. The milk is then packaged aseptically in a special Tetra Pak container. The elevated temperatures are sufficient to destroy all pathogenic and ...

Have you heard about the recent earthquakes  in Utah? There have been several   throughout the state this past week. This phenomena is what seismologists call a swarm. Sometimes they're no big deal, and sometimes they can be precursors to larger, more significant earthquakes. It's cold outside; which means that without proper preparation for winter weather, a power outage due to an earthquake, winter storm or malfunction in the power grid will be really miserable! As you break out the winter clothes for fun in the snow, it would also be a great time to see if you have enough food and water on hand, and several ways to help you keep warm in case of a power outage. Click HERE for some great suggestions on how to keep warm during a power outage. For more information on how much water you should store, click HERE . For more information how much food to store, click HERE  & HERE .

Did you know that there are 40,000 different varieties of rice? Each type of rice has its own taste, texture and properties, that make it work well with different cooking applications.  ANATOMY OF RICE Each grain of rice is enclosed in a tough outer hull, or husk, that needs to be removed before it can be consumed. This layer is removed in all rice types.   Under the hull, the bran layer is  not  removed in all rice types. This nutritious whole grain section is usually tan-colored, but it may be reddish or black depending on the pigmentation in the bran layers. The bran layer may be consumed, but it is often removed when further processing rice.  Once the bran and germ layers are removed, white rice remains. Known as the endosperm, this is the part of the rice that is most commonly consumed.  Found under the hull, the germ, or rice kernel, is nutrient-dense. Full of B vitamins, minerals, and proteins, it helps give rice its color and added nutrition...