It seems the thing to say at the moment is “Happy EOFYS!” I don’t know about you, but something doesn’t sit right with me as we “celebrate” the end of financial year.
I should be upfront and admit that I like a good sale. Actually, I LOVE a good sale and I hardly ever pay full price for anything. I like to make sure my dollar goes as far as it can, and I am not a frivolous spender by any stretch! Yes, I have been to the stocktake sales. Yes, I have made purchases. Yes, I have bought presents ahead of time while they are at reduced prices. Yes, I have bought children’s clothes a size ahead for when they need them. But no – I have not bought things unnecessarily simply because they are reduced. No, I have not spun into a sale-induced frenzy. And no, I don’t think sale season is, to quote a current tv ad, “the best time of the year.”
I adore occasions that are worthy of celebrating. Birthdays and anniversaries have special meaning for families. Easter and Christmas are also big celebrations in our home. These days have meaning. They are worth celebrating because they have significance. If we begin making celebrations out of events with false-meaning, we reduce the importance of the truly significant occasions.
Of course, I don’t think for a moment that people are actually having EOFYS parties in their homes, but the media messages are getting stronger every year. There are catchy jingles on tv that encourage us to spend up at this “special” time of year, and the shops are decked out in party paraphernalia. Most shopping centres at the moment are not only full of balloons and streamers, but they even offer entertainment and sale-time extravaganzas!
So the question is, how do we deal with this as parents?
I think the first thing is to model wise spending during sales. We are our children’s strongest role models, and despite the bombardment of media messages, our own voices are still heard more clearly by our kids. They will pick up on the subtle, and not-so-subtle things we say and do regarding spending. When I shop with my kids I try to explain my process. The two questions I ask are:
1. Do we need it?
2. Is it a good price for it?
Using these two questions certainly helps when shopping with my four year old daughter! She is already starting to use some phrases she has heard me say, like “Mummy I do need new shoes but these ones aren’t on sale so let’s keep looking.” Or she might say, “Look Mum, these pyjamas are on sale!” which allows me to say, “Yes, good spotting, but you don’t need new PJs at the moment.” End of conversation. Another thing I model is not buying big ticket items just because. If we see bigger items on sale, we buy them and put them aside for upcoming birthday presents. In our home this goes for Mummy and Daddy too, not just the kids!
The second thing I think we can do as parents is to explain why we celebrate the occasions we do. Birthdays celebrate each unique person, the day they arrived, and the life they are living. Anniversaries celebrate the love between two people. Christmas and Easter celebrate God’s love for all people. When you think about it like that... EOFYS doesn’t really rate on the same scale, does it?
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Catherine Oehlman is a SAHM currently being raised by a terrific toddler and a curious crawler. Her background in primary education, love of the mothering journey and compulsion for writing collide on her SquiggleMum blog. Cath encourages other parents from all walks of life to maximise the time they spend with their children.
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