Thriving Through a Crisis

1. Children will not eat what you have just because they are hungry, it needs to taste good to them and be appealing.
2. If your food storage consists of mainly wheat, rice, and beans, you are likely to face allergy challenges with wheat and taste bud exhaustion with rice and beans.
3. It's worth the price to have an abundant supply of freeze-dried fruits and veggies, and a variety of grains and spices to add variety and minerals to your menu.
4. Your financial reserve is critical because no matter how much food you have stored it will not pay your utility bills or your rent/mortgage, or buy gas. (All things done in wisdom and order.)
5. Your ability to think openly and creatively is key to generating added income when needed.
6. It is vital to know your strengths, talents and other resources to find ways to make them pay.
7. None of the above matters if you don't have faith in a loving God who provides all things for you.
8. Gratitude opens the doors to the necessary faith and the openness of the mind to get the ideas you need to create solutions.
9. Willingness to let go of all preconceived ideas about life and your path (that are not aligned with God and faith in Him)in it is an absolutely critical component in your ability live peacefully in the present and believe in a good future.
10. Knowing that you are the child of a powerful creator gives you peace of mind and power to create what you need. (If I am the child of a creator, I can create too, and He will help me.)
11. If you're angry at God, the best person to tell is Him, He understands, and will give you the peace, love and reassurance you need to forgive Him, or to see more clearly what He has done FOR you.
12. The best friend to have in a crisis is the one who will kindly remind you what you have and help you build on that.
13. The most useless waste at any time, but especially in a "crisis", is trying to find out whose fault it is. Placing blame doesn't fix any problems it destroys relationships, and the relationships are the best asset anyone has.
14. Deciding what you want is the hardest part, once you know that you take it to God and it's not always the way you want, but it comes out for the best, and your willingness to follow makes it easy.
15. Some say the way to Hell is paved with good intentions not acted on, but the other way is through no intentions at all. Failure to achieve what you desire is less torture than wandering aimlessly because you have no desire at all.
16. God is VERY patient, way more patient than me. :)
17. The limit to what you can do is determined by your willingness to allow yourself to do it and to receive help.
18. When overwhelm washes over you a deep breath and the question "What is my first step?" can diffuse overwhelm and you can start one step at a time, looking at one thing and the next and the next.


Liz King Bradley

Phenomenal Freeze-Drying!

Freeze-drying is a process that allows food to be shelf stable while retaining the maximum amount of nutrients. Whether eaten every day or saved for the future, Freeze Dried products will taste great, stay fresh, and contribute to overall health. They last longer and are healthier than foods that are simply dehydrated. They are ideal for simple snacking and substitution in recipes. Because these foods are harvested and dried at peak freshness, you can have nutrition and great taste all year round.

I'm not a nutritional expert, but I can tell you that when I started eating more freeze dried fruits and veggies in place of the startch-carbs I'd been consuming I felt a tremendous difference in my health and well-being, (and nothing went bad in the fridge because I didn't get to it fast enough). In addition to less going bad in the fridge it meant less trips to the store and a substantial savings in my grocery budget without sacrificing nutrition. Freeze-dried produce could even be better than the"fresh" produce from your local grocery store because it is picked and frozen ripe. (If you live in a major agricultural area with a farmer's market, that would be different. However in that case, you could use freeze-dried to supplement in the "out of season" times.)

My children like the freeze-dried fruits AND veggies for snacks...straight from the can! So when I'm busy there are always plenty of nutritious snacks for my kids, I just grab a handful of this and that and they get to dig in and I don't have to feel guilty! The only caution is that because they weigh less you may be tempted to eat too many. My solution is to drink more water while consuming the freeze dried produce, we all need to drink more water anyway. :)

What's in your food???

Ever noticed the insane amount of people with food sensitivities and allergies? Ever wondered why there are so many more now than there were when we were kids? Robyn O'brien has done extensive research on the matter and has information everyone should at least hear and have a chance to decide about for themselves. Our family has switched to Organic foods to promote greater health. Think quality before quantity and make decisions from a place of peace and abundance. Never settle, especially when it comes to your health and the health of your family.





Do some research, think it through and consult your ultimate source for truth, your God.

Here is a great place to purchase your own bulk non-GMO grains, their prices include shipping.

Here is an allergen report from Thrive foods that tells what's GMO Free. Go HERE to order from them.

Healthy Food on a Budget!

Getting involved in emergency preparedness and storage doesn't mean you go through life afraid, but that you face life on life's terms and embrace the fact that obstacles come to all of us and chose to face them head on by being prepared and using what you already have to provide for today and tomorrow.

Anyone who watches the news or even just goes grocery shopping knows that over the last year prices at the market have skyrocketted and from the way things look it's not getting better anytime soon. Just like we would buy stock, or a home, or a car when the price is low and we know the prices are going up, it's a great idea to buy foods that are healthy , nutritous and storable! Freeze dried produce is picked ripe and flash frozen, before it's vacuum dried. It retains about 98% of it's nutritional value. It is a good investment in your health and your family's health to stock up on some freeze dried foods, as well as whole grains in a wide variety. We use it daily for snacks, desert, soups, casseroles, smoothies, etc. I'm so happy with it that I talk about it all the time, which is why I started this blog, then I decided to become a consultant to help others get the foods they need to Thrive! :)  (I still shop at different places, I like a good price for a good product.)

In addition, when you make more from scratch and learn to utilize the power of sprouting, your beans and grains, etc. can become more like a vegetable PACKED with nutrients and energy.  (See the "Sprouting Basics" tab for more.)

Freeze Dried Yogurt???? YES!!!!!

The Freeze-Dried Yogurt bites are new to Thrive. If you're like me, when you heard "Freeze Dried Yogurt" maybe you gagged a little...or a lot, but these are TO DIE FOR. I compared them to regular yogurt (name brand not store brand) and the flavor was stronger, the fat and sugar and calories were lower. If you're into making your own yogurt, I've been told these can be used as starts. They are pricey, but they are so rich and tasty you don't need a lot. QUALITY versus quantity! If you want to try them out first, try the pantry cans. They are about the size of a 15 oz. can of veggies. Bit for bite it is much cheaper to go for the large cans, but it you're not wanting to commit yourself without tasting them, try the pantry cans. My favorites were: Pomegranate, orange, passionfruit (not necessarily in that order. Compared to those, vanilla was bland, but my children are not as adventurous as I am when it comes to food so I thought I'd play it safe. Try them, you'll be glad you did.

Shelf Reliance/Thrive