National Preparedness Month

September is national preparedness month, and it falls during the perfect time to think about this stuff. With back to school starting and the beginning of hurricane season, plus winter is around the corner, September is the perfect time to think about these thing.

Being prepared for anything is a must these days. With hurricanes wreaking havoc all over the world, or the fires in California, it makes me really want to prepare for something. Watching the news, these are the questions that have been going through my mind lately when I see disasters. I'm sure I'll be adding to this list of questions over time.


Pets:
What do I do with my pets in an emergency?
Can I bring them with me to where ever I am evacuating?
 If not, where can I bring them?
 If I am staying home, do I have enough food for them for multiple days of being stuck in the house?

Thankfully, a lot of animal shelters and vets will open their doors to pets if need be. Plus, some emergency shelters will allow you to bring your pets with you. Each town will be different though and you should know where to go a head of time.

Kids: (for me it's my nieces and nephew, but most will apply when I have children of my own)
Where will we go if we need to leave?
Do I have enough food and drinks in the house for the kids?
Do I have anything to entertain them? (yes, I know!)
Where are all the flash lights and batteries? Do I need more?
Where can I charge our cell phones so we can use them if we need them?

Other:
If someone needs medicine, do I have enough? Where can I get more if we are out?
If we lose power, how long until the food is no good in the fridge/freezer?
Do we have enough propane for the grill so we can cook if we lose power?
If it snows, can we get to the snowblower/shovels? Can we get to the wood pile for heat?
Do I have enough gas in the cars in case we have to leave?
Can I access water? If the pipes freeze or get turned off, will I have enough bottled water to flush the toilets or wash things?  Note: during a snow storm, our water was turned off (water main break! yikes) so we heated up a pot of snow to have to flush our toilets.
Is the generator set up properly?


Good websites/apps for info

• WMUR app. I have this installed on my cell and it updates me constantly on everything!
• Call 211 for non-emergency information!
• Massachusetts Alerts app put out by MEMA.
• Check MEMA.com or FEMA.com
• https://www.mass.gov/be-prepared-for-emergencies-and-disasters has some great info!
• Follow local police on social media (not just your town but surrounding towns and state police)
• Join local facebook groups to get updates from other people
• https://safety.macaronikid.com/articles/5993b3151f397745e4eb090c/september-is-national-preparedness-month
• https://www.popsugar.com/moms/photo-gallery/35948232/image/35948233

Tips:

• Buy items you will use that don't need to be refrigerated, in case you lose power.
• Have a car charger or portable chargers for your cell phones. We bought 3 at Walmart last year for like $5! They charged our cell phones and kindles a few times before we needed to charge them (which we just plugged them into the car charger or brought to work with us)
• Make lists on your cell. I use the memo app that is on my smart phone. I have one list for where certain things are in the house (extra batteries, flash lights, candles, etc). I have another one with links to specific websites that will update frequently. I have another with if we need to evacuate, what I should bring.
• Call 211 if you need information about shelters, getting medicine, needing transportation, where to get food, etc. Basically all non-emergency questions should go through 211
• download WMUR (NH) and Massachusetts Alerts apps onto your cell phone

Buyer beware

This past week had me thinking about recalls. I was shopping with my nephew in one of those 2nd hand stores that people donate to for charity. I can't remember which one it actually was, but we went into a Savers, Goodwill AND Salvation Army that day looking for Harry Potter books. Any way, as we were heading up to the check out counter, I looked at some of their baby gear. They had a bumbo that was recalled. No big deal, I let the guy know at the counter and went on with my day.

Later that night I started to think:

1. Did that guy really listen to me when I told him it was recalled? Did he take it off the shelf?
2. What if someone had bought it before I told him? 
3. And how many of recalled baby items were sitting on their floor?

Being a 2nd hand store manager and a buyer, we check every item that comes in. If something is recalled, we tell the person it was recalled and give it back. Some items, like the bumbo, I can easily get the recall piece for. Others, like a drop side crib, we don't take the risk. Some people have no idea their item was recalled.

I took a short survey of mothers in a few of the groups I am in on Facebook. A lot of them don't look up recalls for their items. Granted, most of them do register their big ticket items and should get contacted if there was a recall. Many admitted that if they were selling their item (to a 2nd hand store or donating) they don't look up any recalls for it.

After reading some of the responses, it made me think..

Facebook market place is a popular place to sell baby equipment. Do people keep track of recalls if they are selling it online? Do people do their research before buying something online?

So, I'd like to take a moment to share a few ways as to our we find out if a product is recalled. 

I literally google it. I will type in Bumbo Recall into the google search and it will tell me what, if any, recalls there are. Usually it will take me to the Bumbo website where I can request a recall piece to fix the issue, sometimes it will take me to the .gov websites that list all.

If there is a year on the item, like a stroller, I will type in 2011 BOB Jogger Recall.

We check recalls.gov often too. This site allows you to sign up for emails, which we get too, that list the most recent recalls on all items. 

If you shop in our store, or any other Children's Orchard nation wide, we check and double check our toys and equipment to make sure they haven't been recalled. Even some clothes and shoes have been recalled. Please be extra careful buying from other places or online. Most people are honest and would never knowingly put someone's child in danger, but some people don't care or are just trying to make a quick buck.

If you have any helpful tips for people concerning recalls, please feel free to comment below!

Note: this isn't meant to make anyone feel like they aren't doing everything they can to keep their child safe. It is being written because of what I have seen recently at other 2nd hand stores and on Facebook market place. 

Online shopping/ Stores closing

Last night, while watching T.V., I saw multiple ads for online shopping. While I was watching the commercials, I was also on Facebook reading how everyone is sad that stores are closing.

As a someone who works in a small business, a brick and mortar business, I can tell you exactly why stores are closing.

We have become too reliant on online shopping. I know, I shop on Amazon too! However, because I work in a store, I force myself to go to a few stores before turning to Amazon. 

If we continue to shop online, we will continue to see stores closing. And what happens when stores close? We lose jobs!

Please do my store a favor. Shop in stores! Shop small, local businesses. Support your neighbors who own businesses. 

The Children's Orchard franchise once had 100 stores nation wide, we are down to less than 30. Stores are closing left and right for us, and other stores! 

Think of stores as being on the endangered species list. Pretty soon we will be extinct, if we don't do something about it. Please, shop in small stores like us!

From a grandmother's perspective (Stephanie): It's a good learning experience for children to be out in stores. It is a good place to teach them how to behave in public. If we don't teach them, no one will. It helps them learn how to interact with people: have eye contact, speak with adults or other children. We can teach them to respect other people's property.

Online Selling?

Are you selling your children's stuff online? Facebook groups, craigslist, even yard sales are a lot more work for less money! Did you know, you could easily bring your child's clothes, toys and equipment to us and get money right then and there?

I have spoken with friends who sell online or at yard sales, and I have also sold at both. Here are a few things that is better when selling to The Children's Orchard!

1. Less time spent dealing with selling!  Between taking photos, posting to the numerous sites you use and waiting for people to respond or show up, selling things can take hours or days! If you brought the items to us, you could save yourself some time. We look at it when you bring it in, and let you know right then and there if we can buy it!
2. Meeting a stranger somewhere or having them come to your house can be dangerous! Selling to us is safe and convenient. We are located in a plaza with many people around plus we have only a few buyers, so you work with the same people over and over again

When you buy online:

1. You never know if the item has been recalled, unless you constantly check the list of recalled items. The Children's Orchard does that for you! We NEVER have recalled items in our store!
2. You can't return something if your child doesn't like it or it doesn't fit! Here, at the Children's Orchard, we allow you to return things! We know it's hard to shop with and for children. Kids are picky and they grow fast!
3. We go back to meeting a stranger somewhere. You never know who is placing the item online! We live in a dangerous time, why risk it?

Why waste your short time with buying and selling online? Come into our store and do both at the same time!

Support small and local businesses before they all close up!

Election 2016. President Trump

Last night and this morning, after hearing that our new President of the United States of America is Donald Trump, all I saw were negative posts on Facebook. Posts about what to say to their children that a hateful man is now our President! Whether you are a Trump supporter or not, use this as a teaching lesson:

• Teach them that they won't always get what they want (especially the non Trump supporters).
• Teach them to love instead of hate. If your first words out of your mouth about our new President is that "he is a hateful, horrible person", remember that your children are listening. Instead, say something about how the people chose or in 4 years he may not be President. Make your hatred for him into a positive somewhere. There has to be at least 1 good thing you can come up with to tell them. Go back to that age old saying "if you have nothing nice to say, don't say anything at all"
• Teach them about the election process. 
• Teach them respect by showing them you can respect someone you don't like or agree with. They will need that lesson in the future. There will be that boss that makes them work more than they are paid for or that neighbor who is a jerk or that aggressive driver that will flip them off for going speed limit. 
• Show them goodness. Even if the world is falling apart, be there for them. Be a great role model for your children. If you see something you don't agree with, explain to your children why you think it isn't right. 

Don't just tell or explain things to your child, show them. If you don't want the world to be a hateful place when your child grows up, make it so by showing them you don't hate. If every mother/father shows their child a better world, their children will make the world a better place. Good things can be achieved by the smallest acts: That mighty elm tree started out as a tiny seed.

So, let me take this moment now to congratulate our new President. 

President Trump, I hope you do more good than bad in the next 4 years. In my eyes, you have a clean slate starting out. I want to believe you can "Make America Great" again, please don't disappoint. Good luck over the next 4 years!