Winter is creeping up on us; darker days, colder temperatures, bitter winds, chilly nights, and now the snow has even come upon us.

There are basic things people do to prepare themselves for winter; bring out your winter coat, relocate your shovel from the back of the garage to the front door, and look through your closet for your snow boots.

However, there is one thing that not everyone prepares for though; getting their car prepped and ready for the cold. Some may not realize how important it is to winterize your car at this time, but it is crucial that you get these necessities if anything bad were to happen to you, or a friend you’re helping.

1. Before you can go out on the road, you should have your car checked out and always full of gas. Take your car to the shop so they can check on your oil, your brakes, fill your antifreeze, check the tread on your tires, and your heater.

2. Before you go anywhere, always tell at least one person where you’re going and when you’re leaving. Even if you want to surprise your family that you’re coming home, you could tell your dad that you’re coming home and surprise you mom, vise-versa.

3. Once you get your car checked out, you should prepare yourself with things to put in your car. Put it all in a duffel bag, and stash it in your trunk (or your backseat if you can’t get at your trunk from inside). For clothing and warmth, you should have pair of mittens, a scarf, a hat or ski mask, long underwear, heavy socks, a thick sweatshirt, a blanket-preferably a wool blanket, and a thick sleeping bag.

Some things you might already have in your car that you should have now are things like jumper cables, flashlight with fully charged batteries, a radio, car charger or portable charger, and an ice scraper with a brush.

4. There are a few things you should bring to keep yourself occupied if you’re waiting for someone to come pick you up or help you out of a situation. You should bring a book or magazine, a metal container that you can easily melt ice or snow with, hard food such as jerky, candy, and nuts, and a crossword or Sudoku book. As for the rest of the essentials, you should have multiple flares, a lighter, toilet paper, a first aid kit, a folding shovel, rock salt, sand, and a whistle.

This is a lot more to add to your car every winter, but I would rather be safe than sorry. You can never take too much precaution during the Midwest winters knowing how unpredictable they are. Instead of buying all of these things separately, you can always go on Amazon and purchase an AAA 65-Piece Winter Severe Weather Travel Kit for $29.82, or go around town and purchase things from Walmart, Shop-Ko, or any auto part store. Be safe, be smart, and watch out for other drivers as well as yourself!