Are you one of them nut jobs?

You know those specials on TV every so often... the ones with the doomsday stockpiles of food, supplies and generators?  Now, no offense to anybody, but c'mon.  Most people sort of just cock an eyebrow and think to themselves, 'oh they're one of those nut jobs'.    And OK- I was one of them with the eyebrow doin a dance in slight disbelief that somebody would even think to stockpile like that.  

Well.  Well... um... I think FPIES has made me sing a different tune.  

Our food trials are in full swing and I'm making plans to make larger batches of things that I can freeze, and ordering in bulk from Amazon.  We're researching chest freezers to put in the garage, because of course, I can't fit as much as I need to in our little side-by-side fridge.  There is hardly anything that we will be able to safely use that's ready-made.  I just can't handle the fear of cross-contamination issues.   Its hard enough to find single ingredients that fit the bill of being 'safe' that I can use to cook things from scratch.  

There is a certain sick calm that washes over me seeing my growing stash of shelf-stable Livvy-safe foods.  Really, I don't think its at all normal but I can't help myself.   I have nightmares of a massive natural disaster or industrial incident that will prevent the delivery of food and then what will we do?  Is it highly unlikely?  Yup.  Is it still possible?  Yes, indeed.  Currently there is food storage overflow in the storage under our staircase, but its only a matter of time before we have a full-scale weirdo-ingredient grocery store in our garage.  Complete with freezer section!  

Ok, so then I got to thinking-  what happens when the power goes out?  I will likely have HUNDREDS and HUNDREDS of dollars worth of food in the freezer and fridge that will go bad if the power is out for an extended period of time.  Obviously, its time to purchase a generator.  We live in an area where an 'act of God' is highly possible so this is not quite so far fetched a thought, I suppose.  

There's also the fear that we will need to go out of town on short notice.  There is no going anywhere without thorough packing of essentials.  What if when we get there we stay longer than planned?  I can't get a lot of this stuff in a normal grocery store.  I'll have to take a serious load of groceries and pre-cooked food with us just in the event a road trip gets extended.   This requires having a serious load of groceries already at the house at our disposal.  See where I'm going with this? 

We're adding more and more solid food each day, but there is still a vital need to remain on our elemental formula.  Nutritionally, what she is able to get from the few 'safe' foods is not anywhere near adequate.  Not to mention, we don't have a 'milk' available at the moment.  Dairy, rice, and soy are a BIG FAT NO, so we'll have to trial coconut or hemp or the like at some point.  I've hoarded a couple extra sample cans given to us from the allergist and our monthly order for formula is on the side of caution so as not to run out.  We have a can or two or three at the end of the month extra.  Trying to build up a supply of formula for a rainy day as well.   We may end up purchasing some to have a stockpile of sorts, but even the 'discounted' price from the manufacturer is $138 for 4 (very small) cans.  We use upwards of 19 cans per month.  I am terrified of being without formula.  We are completely at the mercy of shipping to get this stuff.  Having something happen in the world that would interrupt this would be devastating.  

So if you ever happen to stop by the house and see what looks like a bizzare version of a Whole Foods isle in the garage...that's why.  

See?  I AM one of those nut jobs!  Thanks, FPIES.  Thanks a lot.