How Do You Prepare for Power Outages?

We had a some crazy weather in Connecticut this year that resulted in severe power outages across the state. First we had Tropical Storm Irene. While we escaped with only one day with no power and some branches in the yard, many others were not so lucky. The coastal towns were obviously hit the hardest. But then we had the freak late October Nor'easter snow storm that left us with nearly two feet of snow. When our power went out that Saturday evening, I had a feeling it was not going to return quickly.

Sunday morning we woke up to still no power and the house was quickly getting colder. We layered the kids in long underwear, sweatshirts and hats and gloves and they played while my husband cleared the driveway and I started packing for us to leave. I hadn't run out in advance to buy emergency foods or survival food like many other people do when a storm is coming. And to be honest it wouldn't have helped. With no alternative heat source and the unusually frigid temperatures for that time of year, we had no choice but to find some place warm to stay.

We ended up going to my in-laws and thank god for them because our power was out for five days. The entire ordeal got us to thinking about how we could be better prepared for future extended power outages. When it comes down to it, the first thing we would need is a generator to power the furnace and a fridge. There is no way for us to stay in a house in the winter with no heat. Once we had something like that, then we could be part of the crazy people emptying the bread off the shelves at the grocery store.

What do you to do prepare for big storms and possible power outages? Do you stock up on food? Do you have a generator?