'Have nots' vs 'Have Yachts'

Just to be clear I did not come up with that title myself.  That wee phrase was coined by living-on-a-budget guru Sophie Gray of 'Destitute Gourmet' fame.  I like that term, I really do.  For me it describes that ever widening gap between poor and rich in our society, not just in our country but our world as well.  It makes me sad, it makes me feel helpless, it frustrates me, it maddens me and it makes me want to yell at people.  (Don't worry I haven't done that yet).

I am fortunate.  I have experienced both.  I am truly blessed for that.  I grew up comfortable not rich but not poor either.  There were certainly times when things were lean, very lean but we always had good food on the table, a warm house to live in, a good school to go to, clothes to wear, shoes on our feet and a number of holidays scattered through out the years.  After leaving home I could basically choose more or less where I wanted to go and what I wanted to study and I knew that I had my parents covering my back and supporting me.  I got married had a good job for a while, saved some money, spent some money and when we started having children I had the option of being able to stay home full time with our children.  Jamie worked, I looked after the kids. A good arrangement, dare I say a privileged arrangement.  The years went by and Jamie continued to work more or less in the same job and over the years he was awarded pay rise after pay rise.  The kids started a semi-private Christian school and I was still at home raising my babies.  We were blessed.  But the sad thing was, we didn't know it.  Well I think we kind of knew it but we didn't KNOW it, we didn't feel it and we certainly at times felt like we were still hard done by.  That embarrasses me now.  We really had no idea how blessed we were.  We had money in the bank for the following Christmas AND the following summer holiday in January, we could pay all our bills and we had no debt, yet at time we still found ourselves wanting more. Still worrying about money. On reflection of how we use to be I can say we could of done so much more in the world with what God had blessed us with. Oh hindsight is such a good thing isn't is.

Now that we are having a turn at living on the other side of the coin, the 'have nots' (not that we ever had a yacht but you catch my drift) and living on the brink of financial ruin on a weekly basis. I have gained insight that I never have had before. And while its not the ideal place to be, I am trusting that God is at work here and will bring us out the other side having gained a new found appreciation, a new found outlook and a new found faith.  How cool is that?!

Currently in our supermarkets.....

                                                                                                                    Credit Darryn Onekawa Ifbb Pro

I can't think of any other place to see the gap between rich and poor than the supermarket.  It is a well known fact that 1 in 4 New Zealanders are over weight and 1 in 6 are obese.  I think that is pretty appalling but whose fault is it.   I am just saying that it isn't the 'have nots' that are putting quinoa or paninis in their trolleys, nor are they putting in skinless chicken breasts or fillet steak.  I don't blame them, that food is EXPENSIVE!!  A large percentage of them are putting in fish fingers and savaloys, coke and cheap white bread.  I know because I have been tempted to do the same. The mince, don't get me started on the mince.  You can buy cheap mince for $9.00/kg that looks to be a large percentage of fat or you can get better quality mince for a much greater price. I can not bring myself to buy crappy fatty mince, I would rather go without.  It really is a awful helpless feeling, not having the choice or a lot of choice as to what you buy.  Pretty dismal really.   I am very very fortunate to have, in my opinion a moderate set of skills that enables me to make and prepare reasonably healthy food out of not much.  We are fortunate that Jamie is a hunter and more or less a successful one at that. We are fortunate enough to have the space, time and know how to have a vege garden (although it definitely could be better).  And most importantly we are very blessed to have a God that has our back and uses people to bless us from time to time.

Most people in the 'have not' department do not posses those skills etc, making the fact that they have a very limited income harder. They were not passed on the skills to bake and make good meals out of scratch, to garden or to hunt or even the ability to seek out information that will set them up with those said skills.  I am not sure why this is. Perhaps its because they are a generation that was brought up with an "out-of-the-home" working mother.  I have nothing against working Mothers at all, my own Mother was a working Mother and had to work but she was still able to pass on the skills she knew to my sisters and I. Thanks Mum. Perhaps it is the fact that we don't NEED to do those things anymore, cheap food is readily available more or less 24/7 and the choice is phenomenal. Who would of thought that you could have a whole aisle full of different breakfast cereals?!  Perhaps it is the fact that people are just too busy!!  A modern day epidemic.  I thought these skills were taught in school, I know they certainly were when I went through school.  How effective are they? Teaching kids how to cook a gourmet meal using breast of chicken is pointless if  all they are going to afford is a packet of mince.  So if people aren't being taught these skills at home or any decent skills at school then where are they suppose to learn? Hippocrates said "Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food", something I whole-heartedly agree with.  So if this is the case then what is in the trolley of the 'have nots' isn't helping our nations health or their waist lines at all. I can't see how a packet of savaloys is going to be curing anything anytime soon.

In the past few years there has been a surge of magazines, TV shows and recipe books of the "getting back to basics" genre. And yes the interest sparked by wanna-be hottest home bakers and hidden domestic goddesses has been great.  What I find though is that the recipes or the dishes or new way of eating are trendy and expensive and are they doable for the 'Joe-average' person. I don't think so.  When a recipe calls for lemon grass and Bulgar wheat or coconut oil and cacao powder  it immediately becomes out of reach for many people, especially when they have a power bill that's due in two days time with no way or paying it.  I can see the thinking behind when they are buying fish and chips at the local takeaway or a packet of cheap choc biscuits.

I don't know what the answer is. I have plenty of ideas but whether or not they are feasible is another story.  I know that the 'have nots' can have a whole passel of issues that go side by side with not eating healthy or being overweight. I recognize that. From family dynamics, health problems, housing problems, unemployment, to mental health illnesses and problems with drugs and alcohol.  That is why the solution isn't a simple one nor will it ever be a quickly fixed one.  But one thing that I do know, is that people need people, people need people that care enough to help them, to teach them, to walk along side them and their journey.  We are a far too "independent-from-each-other" society of people though.

What are your thoughts??

Disclaimer: The above is entirely my own thoughts and opinions and observations from my own everyday living, by talking to people and my own experiences.  They are not based on statistics or any specific scientific data. I take no responsibility for any actions of the reader.

Easter - The Long Weekend

I love Easter!  Actually I love any excuse to celebrate with family and friends. There just isn't enough excuses to celebrate in my opinion.  Easter though, is up there with one of my most favourite time of the year.  It holds such scared meaning for us as a family, meaning that goes far beyond the humble Easter Egg.
The old 'EB' doesn't get much on a look in around here, yes the kids still get Easter eggs and greedily eat most of their eggs before the weekend is out. I mean come on that is what I would do! (I mean do - shhhh)

Easter weekend is filled with traditions both old and new, ones that even if we wanted too the kids don't let us forget them.  Again I love traditions, they are so important in a family, they are what holds us to each other, what gives us a sense of belonging to something much bigger than ourselves. In saying that there were a couple of traditions that we missed this year!

The wind and the rain threaten to dampen our Easter spirit this year and it nearly did a good job of it too. Our power went out at lunch time on Thursday and when our power is out we have no water.  Of course when we have no water everyone is extra thirsty aren't they!  We hold a family life group at our house every second week and at the last minute had to change locations for the occasion.  You just cannot have people at your house when you are flushing the toilets with buckets of water out of the pool!!  Family night went off without a hitch and saw the kids hunting around the house for various symbols pertaining to the Easter Story. The great big world of blogging is a treasury of good creative ideas for just about anything!
Check it out here!

Easter Friday - still no power! Groan.  I can cope without the power but no water......not my favourite! So after a quick clean up around the house we packed ourselves off for a Easter visit to Grandmas house armed with HOT CROSS BUNS of course (oh and a basket piled high with a few days worth of washing - Grandmas are good like that aren't they)  After a lovely morning of visiting and indulging on Easter treats we returned to our power back on!! Um Yay!!!  I have to admit I was getting a little grumpy about the whole no water thing.  Here is what our afternoon looked like.

Yip clean up duty!!  Not so sadly we lost an ugly old orange tree in the storm!  

Saturday we braved the town to do some last minute Egg shopping (stupid of us really) and to get a few bits and pieces for a shared lunch on Sunday.  Seriously everyone should stay away from town on a day stuck between two public holidays. Its just crazy dangerous!

Easter Sunday - the highlight of the weekend!  Even when I woke this morning and sat reading my bible, the day felt holy and sacred. I often get overwhelmed while thinking about what Jesus did for me, me who is so undeserving.  Brings tears to my eyes just typing this.

But while it was a super special day it certainly wasn't immuned to 'pre-church-I-just-want-to-get-out-the-door-with-the-house-tidy-and-no-one wearing-their-breakfast-on-their-face-and-still-in-their-pyjamas' stress and other everyday battles incidences.  

After all we are all human aren't we and I certainly don't want to pretend otherwise. 

Church was pretty special this morning.  I think everyone comes with an expectant heart and ready to worship and to thank and praise our Father. I love that.

This morning I had goosebumps.

Maybe I am a little bias but Jamie preached an awesome Easter message (his first one ever!) and together the whole congregation shared not only in the taking of communion together but a celebratory morning tea!  What a blessed morning!

Do I dare say that I do find it a little sad when chunks of the congregation are missing due to it being the long weekend and people take the opportunity to go away.  I get the spending time with family and making the most of the long weekend, we have done that in the past plenty of times but they really did miss out on something special today.

We were blessed this afternoon. Blessed with the company of good friends, AMAZING food and by golly a large quantity of laughter.  And the chocolate oh the chocolate! Eggs upon eggs upon eggs and then we can't forget the chocolate game!

Can one ever have enough chocolate?  Today I am thinking maybe.  

(But ask me tomorrow, my answer no doubt will be different.)

We thought that we could put off the traditional Easter Egg hunt until tomorrow. We tried to sell it to the kids by stating it would draw out the Easter fun even further. But alas it was not to be.

The weather wasn't our friend so we had to hide ALL 72 eggs inside! I hear you gasp!  No worries 66 of them were teeny tiny ones and 6 were big ones AND there are 6 kiddies!!!

It is actually quite hard to think of hiding spots for that many eggs when you are confined to two rooms!

Here in New Zealand where get an added bonus day off tomorrow being Monday, which makes the total weekend a glorious four day weekend!

 Ahhh I wonder who will get to sleep in tomorrow morning? I wonder if it will be me.

(please pick me please pick me pick me please)

Tomorrow will see us (weather permitting) doing another post-storm clean up of a tree down at church but other than that who knows. Its so nice having some free days with no plans.

 They can be very rare at times.

What Easter traditions do you have? 

In My Life This Month 2.

I feel I have so much to say, so much to tell you that I have decided to do an 'In My Life This Month' post. Whether or not anyone finds it interesting remains to be seen though.  July is one of those months that I just wished it hurried up and finish. And while there are aspects of winter that is fun and unique to the season I generally don't like winter very much at all. Too much mud, too much washing, too many foggy and grey days and so on and so on.  I do however love having the fire roaring every night and sometimes just sometimes getting to sit and relax with a cup of coffee right next to it.

So anyway
In My Life This Month......

In our home school.......

Since its the school holidays no 'school' work has been done, well certainly not in the formal sense. There is no way my kids would want to do 'school work' while everyone else is on holiday. Funny thing, I get asked that question all the time "Do you do school holidays too?"  Even though we are officially on holiday (even Dad is) doesn't mean no learning hasn't taken place.  We have been Geocaching and learnt about local history, deciphering clues, co-ordinates and riddles (logic).

Possibly the worlds smallest Geocache!

 

We have been very busy in the garden too. From putting top soils into our established gardens to erecting a 'glass house' to planting bulbs, plants and seeds. All which are doing well. (Apart from the lettuce who had their heads and most of their bodies nibbled off by naughty rabbits)

 

 Sophie was so excited to be planting the crop of garlic on her own!  She is especially excited now they have poked their heads up above the ground.

 

 

Helpful Home school Tips or Advice

 

Ummm... I don't know about advice but I am currently working on Pre-planning, Preparation and Time Management.  I am currently waiting for a couple of books to arrive from Fishpond. One being 'The Arrow and the Apple' which is about the story of William Tell. I am planning to feather out a unit study based around that book since my boys are totally archery mad!  The other book is 'The Giant Jam Sandwich' is which I will feather out a unit study for Kaitlyn and probably Sophie even though she is only 4 as she hates to be left out.  We will look at Wasps, Teamwork, Map-skills, Community and of course Chemistry in the Kitchen (aka Jam making and bread making). Exciting. I am really looking forward to it.

 

I am inspired by....

 

Beautiful Women and Real Friendships,  Stunning views from my window every morning, Inspiring Blogs about 'Gentle Parenting',  'Real Food' and 'Purposeful Living'.   Newborn calves born right outside our window, bright red flowers on our Camellia Hedge,  and our three pet puddle-ducks.

 

 

Places we are going and people we are seeing...

 

So apart from our geocaching jaunts and soccer games, we have been to visit family who are in the midst of calving season.

 

And I was super blessed to be able to hang out with some lovely women at a precious friends 'Mother Blessing' or 'BlessingWay'. This is an alternative to the common Baby Shower where the focus is more on the mother and the momentous and sacred occasion that is about to happen.

 

She enjoyed a deliciously thick hot-choc while we decorated her pregnant belly with henna art!



 

This candle is decorated with coloured thread that each women chose and tied around it.  She can light this when she is in labour and know that these beautiful women of strong faith will be praying for her.   

 

 

My favourite thing this month...

 

School holidays! Our garden slowly coming to life. On-going games of Scrabble and the occasional game of Memory.

 

What is working for us.....

Bedroom inspections! Even if a bribe is being offered.  At least they are tidy.

 

What isn't working for us.....

The price of petrol!  It is such a downer.  Being on a limited income every kilometre is taken into account.

 

Questions/Thoughts I have....

I have always thought about writing a book, but would anyone read it? (ok so now the secret is out)  How do I squeeze more out of my day?  I wonder when Jesse will start eating? Is it worth hanging out my washing today? Where can I find a milking goat?

 

Things I am working on....

Eliminating the words 'Hurry up' out of my vocabulary, especially when interacting with my children. Folding my washing everyday...yes I am still working on that.  Being better prepared for school this term.   Ordering my thoughts into action and then completing them.

 

Things I am reading...

Book last read:     The Externally Focused Church by Rick Rusaw & Eric Swanson

                              "How can your church get the attention of your community?" 

Current Book:      The Explosive Child by Ross W. Greene

                              "A New Approach for Understanding and Parenting Easily Frustrated Children"

To Read:               Mission Girl by Fleur Beale

                              Heroes of the Holocaust by Allan Zullo and Mara Bovsun

 

I am cooking...

We have been challenged recently by a number of sources to cut down on the amount of sugar we consume. Not that we were particularly bad but like most people we could certainly do better.  So I have been making a conscious effort to reduce by at least half the amount of sugar I use in baking.  Fortunately we do have an abundant supply of honey so I can afford to have a dollop or two of honey to sweeten things up a bit if need be.

 

I was pretty proud of this batch of biscuits which are both sugar and dairy free. I was making up the recipe as I went along replacing the butter with Peanut Butter (which happens to have half the amount of fat that butter has) and two dollops of honey (harvested from Poppa Peters hives). Best of all the kids like them, so I am pretty happy with that.



 

 

This pizza was made the other day from left over roast chicken and roast potatoes and kumara. Hmmmm was really good too. When you use up all the leftovers from a meal like that I feel like I am getting a meal for free.

 

 

 

I am grateful for....

- Our house. Its large enough to fit us all in and not be standing on each other too much during these winters months.

- Firewood. Friends with trees chopped down have kindly kept us in supply of firewood for the winter.

- Health. Up until today we have been quite healthy. Casey has had a spot of asthma and today Jesse was discovered to have Bronchiolitis (sad face here).

- Gods Continual Provision. Much to the amazement of others (and occasionally ourselves) we are still living on next to nothing.  We have been in some very scary places but have gotten through them by the grace of God.

 

I am praying for....

Healing for Casey and Jesse.

Gods continual provision

To know Gods will for us as we continue to venture forth on our journey.

Wisdom and direction for 'home schooling' and other extra-curricular activities.

 

 

Day in the life photos..

 

Biggest Brother and Littlest Brother





 

What happens when the kids have a real life baby to role play with.  Jesse happily complied and was content to lie in there for ages.

 

Someone has not only mastered the art of crawling but pulling himself up to standing. With one hand even!  So clever!

 

Google and YouTube is a marvellous thing!

Here is our attempt at making a wee stove out of a tin can.

 

The beautiful view off our deck!

I wonder how many babies will be born today.

 

Again Google is a wonderful thing....

We re purposed an old down pipe into a chicken feed dispenser and it worked a treat. 

 

 Feeling very self-sufficient indeed!

 

Being happy doesn’t mean that everything is perfect. it means that you’ve decided to look beyond the imperfections.” - Unknown



 

 What has been happening in your life this July?

 

 





Tidbits of May.

Funny story. I started a blog last night. That's not unusual, I have a huge number of started/unfinished blogs. But this one was about being more disciplined and finishing what I start and I never finished it!  So TYPICAL!  I really have a bad habit of over-thinking and second guessing myself therefore I am not happy with it and I don't finish it.

SO tonight I aim to finish this and I will not allow myself to go to bed until its done!  Here goes....

 

Family

Super important and we are incredibly blessed to have a substantial sized one.

 I love that we laugh ALOT.

I love that my children know each other.

 

Casey (12) and Jesse (6months) having traditional morning cuddles!

 We love to celebrate.

We love traditions, for traditions tie us to each other, to history and to something bigger than ourselves.

Life is truly empty without traditions.

 

Happy Birthday Jayden (10)

 Turning 10 is a big deal around here and comes with a PARTY baby!

Jayden's choice was an Xbox party of course.

It was such a boy day, junk food, Xbox and pizza!

He loved it.

(I am not fan of said Xbox at all, but its not about me is it)

Our boys generally only get the Xbox on a Sunday afternoon for 2-3 hours so being able to play it for an entire afternoon/evening was a BIG DEAL.

Especially since we got together some of Jayden's Uncles and a friend for occasion.

My lounge was transformed to a gaming arena!

 

 

Excuse photo quality as is was really poor lighting.  But I think you get the general idea!

 

 May is always a busy month for us as a family and this year it was insanely busy.  I found that I really had to work at 1) staying sane and 2) Engaging on a simple level with each of my children.
One thing I love about home-schooling is that we have the time and space to really embrace whatever the kids are interested in at any given time. ( and I tell you it REALLY could be anything)  Kaitlyn got a build-it-yourself (but really get an adult to do it for your because its really too hard for you) birdhouse as a present. So she and Jamie got out the hammer one afternoon and put it together.  This sparked an interest in birds and bird-watching consequently this led to erecting a bird-feeder on the fence outside our lounge window so we could observe the birds.

I am not really sure what bird around here is going to be able to fit in there but none-the-less it has been attached to the tree next to the bird feeder.

 We are also currently into sewing. Sewing bibs for that matter.  All the kids wanted to turn at using the sewing machine and desperately wanted to make a bib for Jesse. I love this about them.  So for 'Technology' we had a look at 1)What was the function of a bib?  2)What makes a good bib? and
 3) What things must a bib have?

Then it was a lesson on making and cutting out a pattern.

Of course I would have to put some written work in there somewhere, (much to their disgust). All my children would rather be 'doing' than 'writing'.

 

 Hand over hand, Kaitlyn and I gingerly used the sewing machine together. Fortunately her legs aren't long enough to reach the pedal so I had control of the speed of the machine.  Thankfully no fingers were run over in the process!

 

 Presto!  A Bib for Jesse!

 

Jesse now has a collection of new bibs, thanks to his siblings.

Sophie and Kaitlyn have found a large piece of gold sequined material (how on earth I came to have that I do not know) and thought it would make a good princess skirt. So I guess that is next on the agenda.  Don't think the boys would want one though.

 

I just thought I would put up these photos of Jamie and 2 of his brothers enjoying a Friday morning breakfast. No we do not breakfast like this everyday but moments like these make me smile. I love that they can get together and enjoy each others company over the simple act of having breakfast.  I pray that my children will do the same in years to come when they are adults!

 

Yay! I made it! Finished!

I am so proud of myself right now!