I love looking up and researching different resources and TV shows that inform people of different ways they should prepare for any kind of emergency. Emergency prepping has always been something I wanted to do for years but I didn't know how to approach my family with the idea or how we'd be able to afford it.

Eventually, I slowly started bringing it up to my boyfriend. Then my brother. Then my brother admitted to me that he does worry sometimes when he travels through the barren country side. What if the car breaks down? What if his phone dies? What if he travels to a place where phone service sucks? Winters in Wisconsin can be very cold and if one were to get stranded somewhere by their lonesome, it may take a while for help to arrive.

I wanted to create "Bug Out Bags" for myself, Chhally, and my brother. Bug Out Bags are basically backpacks filled with emergency supplies, all packed up and ready for when shit hits the fan.  The three of us travel a lot and I don't know why I never thought of creating these bags sooner. I saw some emergency preparedness backpacks on Pinterest.com that sold for about $70-$100 each and I also did a lot of research on the internet looking for others who have created their own kits.

The amount of items that go into these bags were overwhelming but if you have some money to spare every paycheck or every time you go to the store, just throw an item for your Bug Out Bag (B.O.B.) into your cart.

Every time I went to ANY store to buy things (groceries, toiletries, snacks, etc.), I would place one or two extra items in my cart for our bags. First I started with non-perishable foods with lengthy expiration dates. I would buy other items as well depending on what store I shopped at. If I went to WalMart or Target, I would buy an extra pack of batteries or flashlights. If I went to the Dollar store, I bought lighters, candles, snacks, tuna, etc. Whatever I could find that was Buy One Get One Free or on Sale, I thought of our bags and what could be added to it.

Our bags are still not as fully complete as I'd like them to be but I still wanted to share what we have so far. Feel free to customize YOUR bags to your needs and area you live in. This is the list I made as well as how much I bought each item for:






The TOTAL COST of all I've bought so far, in the quantities I needed, were just under $100.00. Divided by 3 bags, they were around $30 per bag! We placed all like items in the large gallon sized Ziploc bags. All food items in one, tools together in one, medical supplies and toiletries in another. Our bags don't have the extra set of clothing yet except for extra socks and underwear. I still really want to buy the HEPA Masks and extra jackets.