New Adventure - Shelf Reliance

Yes, two posts in one day!  I'm not going to promise regular posting to this blog but I'm going to try to do better.  But here's one reason that I've been absent lately (doesn't excuse 2011 but this is my excuse for 2012).... I have become a Shelf Reliance Independent Consultant.  I fell in love with Shelf Reliance's THRIVE Foods products last Fall and after a few months, decided to take that love and become an Independent Consultant.

As part of my business, I have launched a new blog that is highlighting how I am using Shelf Reliance in our home, particularly the freeze-dried foods.  I'd love to have you join me at the I'm THRIVing! blog as well as here.  This will continue to be where I post how I'm striving to be a Mother Who Knows and then there's the family blog which is almost as neglected as this one.  The I'm THRIVing blog will be my go to blog for recipes as I try to utilize my food storage in everyday ways.

For the month of May, I am hosting a Dreaming Big Giveaway on the I'm THRIVing blog to celebrate it's launch.  So head over and enter today!

If you're not familiar at all with Shelf Reliance, here's some basic information.  To help achieve their mission to help others become more self-reliant, Shelf Reliance has three main product lines:  

•  THRIVE Foods.  These are quality freeze dried and dehydrated foods, including meats and cheese.  Many of these products have a 1-2 yr shelf life once opened, and 25 year shelf life unopened - and yet they taste amazing!  My family has found many of the products to be delicious as a snack - and how can you complain when your kids are eating fruits, vegetables, and yogurt with no preservatives as their snack?  In addition to the products, Shelf Reliance offers a Food Storage Planner to let you identify what foods and how much you would need to store for anywhere from 3 months to 24 months.  You can place small individual orders, sign up for monthly shipments, or purchase everything you need/want in one large order.
• Food Rotation Systems.  This includes the Cansolidator Cupboard which is the prize for my Giveaway.  These systems help you by organzing the foods in your cupboard, pantry shelves or as standalone units.  They work on a first-in, first-out basis, allowing you to see what you have in your shelves.  This prevents you from buying food that you already have, and using up the oldest first before it expires.
• Emergency Kits and Supplies.  I live in tornado country and we often have to take shelter when the storms are on their way.  How nice it would be to grab a fully-stocked 72 hr kit and be able to provide for my family's needs during these disasters.  Whether you need a pre-assembled 72 hr kit, supplies to update your personal kit, or alternate heat and cooking sources, Shelf Reliance can help!  Like the Food Storage Planner, Shelf Reliance also offers an Emergency Kit Planner to help you identify what you need in your kit and you can specify the types of disasters you are wanting to be prepared for.

I have so many things I love about Shelf Reliance - their products, their mission, how they treat their Independent Consultants, and many more.  But the last thing I want to share with you that is a great help to me is the Q Club option.  My family set a goal to build up a home store in our home to help us be better prepared for the future (you can read our unemployment story here).  We had great intent but it was very sporadic and we didn't make much progress.  And then I discovered the Q program.  First you use the Food Storage Planner to identify what you want in your home store.  Second you sign up for the Q, which are monthly shipments of the items in your plan, and YOU set the budget.  The shipments can be automatic or you can adjust them each month to take advantage of what's on special.  In addition by being a Platinum Q Club member (free if you sign up for a $100+ monthly Q), you also can take advantage of a special Q-Pon.  May's special is Black Beans.