im prepping for a second depression . im also a single mom of 3 boys and my main concern is for them not to go thirsty or hungry.i been stocking up on canned goods,water,rice,beans and so on.i live in an apartment and my space is so limited.i dont want to ayone to think im a hoarder.im just making sure my sons get atleast one meal a day when shtf. im running out of space to save my goods. my closets are like black market grocery stores lol so far i have 100 lbs of rice,about 50 lbs of beans and everything else is canned goods.water i have about 20 gallons,couple soda bottles and i also have couple camping water jugs and 5 gal pails on the side that are empty right now but wont be if shtf .i got 2 boxes that are full of first aid stuff,i have a box full of soaps,shampoo,toothpaste and extra toothbrushes,and being the only woman in the house i have a box full of sanitary pads and tp paper.im telling you i have a mnii grocery store at home loli got lanterns,flashlights,candles,emergency blankets,an ax,i can go on and on and on about my preps. i just feel like im overdoing it sometimes.i wanted a second opinion if im in the right track or im overdoing it. im also looking for ways to protect my apt and my kids. but does it have to be a fire arm? im not fond of them so i been stocking up on butchers knifes. im a sous chef so when a knife goes dull at work i take it home and sharpen it . but are there any other ways for protection? what about glass doors? i worry about that a lot. i wat to start a garden but i dont know how to start. any advice is welcome.
To hell with what others think about it , it's none of their damn business anyway. You've got kids to think about.
A point , don't think in terms of a meal a day , think in terms of caloric intake , it sounds like you've a good start. However keep in mind that both beans and rice are water intensive to prepare , beans more so. You didn't mention cooking , if you don't have one lay in some sort of system , propane is ok and less of a stoage problem in an apartment , one of the *any* fuel modern stoves may be a worthwhile investment.
In addition you might consider laying in a decent stash of stuff that requires no preparation just in case of the possibility that you may have to hunker down and maintain light and noise discipline , the various athletic bars and supplements ( and NOT gatorade.......think Metabollol II and/or Cytomax) are a good bet , MREs a secondary possibility ( though I personally destest MREs).
Firearm..............that's going to end up being *your* choice , however any individual that states to you that there is a substitute when what you really *need* is a firearm.................is a liar.
I'm not outing myself too far , here , but suffice to say that I *teach* self defense , and in the end even if you had been with me for a decade and attained advanced Dan rank , as a single woman I would *still* recommend you buy a decent sidearm and obtain some realistic training , along with purchasing a decent shotgun for the purposes of pure house defense. I'm sorry if that seems brutal , it's not intended to be , but nothing quite says " don't come in" to an unwanted intruder like a load of #1 buckshot.
The corollary responsibility is the development of safe attitudes as regards firearms with your kids. This is a decision only you can make.
An no I don't think you're overdoing it in the slightest. However...and this is another moment of brutal honesty , dispense with the notions of effective self defense with a knife unless you're willing to put the time into the training. And here's the thing if you're mentally unprepared to *be cut* don't consider the bladed weapon as anything but an extreme emergency fallback position.
And *do not* believe the movies or a lot of the Internet bullshit that flies around about edged weapons , in real life it's not a "clang clang" five minute long Seagal sequence........in real life it's over in microseconds , at most seconds and while the other guy may bleed MORE well *you* may well bleed to. The idea being to make the other guy Leak a great deal more.
May as well toss this out there , since some may decide to jump me about this.....research the Tueller Drill folks. Never *ever* under-estimate a bladed weapon in the hands of a trained individual. Not *ever*.