Comments on Just Chicken Feed: This Stuff Matters

awesome post - my husband and I were just talking ...

2008-06-01T21:02:00.000-04:00

awesome post - my husband and I were just talking earlier tonight about wanting to make sure our kids grow up with a strong work ethic and understand the value of a dollar and not just have that entitlement mentality. Good for you guys for standing firm...it's so easy to cave and try to keep up with the Joneses!

can't wait to read more!

I adore this entry. I've missed you while I've bee...

2008-05-03T22:10:00.000-04:00

I adore this entry. I've missed you while I've been on my hiatus. It's so good to be back.

I really like this post. Especially this part,"I w...

2008-04-26T18:42:00.000-04:00

I really like this post. Especially this part,"I want to make sure that the choices we are making as parents are the right choices. not just the socially acceptable ones."

This is an awesome post. Every word of it was com...

2008-04-24T23:12:00.000-04:00

This is an awesome post. Every word of it was completely true, in my opinion. I think that the way you handled your son wanting his own batting helmet speaks volumes about you as a mom. Way to go!

I loved this post, and I needed the reminder, too....

2008-04-24T20:51:00.000-04:00

I loved this post, and I needed the reminder, too. Thanks :)

Thank you for this post, Jenni. I hate all the st...

2008-04-24T11:10:00.000-04:00

Thank you for this post, Jenni. I hate all the stuff but I am as guilty as the next. My kids are spoiled by us and lots of other relatives. I just started my daughter in soccer. I never thought at 3 to do cleats, shin guards, and all of that. We showed up in typical sneakers and play clothes and was astounded that so many had these things. These are 3-5 year olds that are being introduced to the sport for the first time. And of course the thought went through my mind that perhaps I should get those things. Ugh. stuff stuff stuff stuff. Blah.

This post really, really, really resonated with me...

2008-04-24T10:23:00.000-04:00

This post really, really, really resonated with me. It brought tears to my eyes, actually, and I've been mulling on it since I read it yesterday.
I'm a new reader of your blog, I will subscribe and look forward to reading more from you. :)

I applaud your efforts to keep your kids out of th...

2008-04-23T23:06:00.000-04:00

I applaud your efforts to keep your kids out of the materialistic trap so many of us are in.

About the helmet? I bought my daughter one for one reason: lice. Think about it. $20 to Wal-Mart is cheaper and easier than a whole round of lice removal for the whole family...JMO.

I am de-lurking. (is that a word?)I came here in t...

2008-04-23T21:02:00.000-04:00

I am de-lurking. (is that a word?)I came here in the first place because the blog title (Just Chicken Feed) intrigued me. Hehehe I have always enjoyed your blog and I would like to add you to my blog roll if that is O.K. with you.

You're awesome! We have so much crap, and I love e...

2008-04-23T20:37:00.000-04:00

You're awesome!

We have so much crap, and I love every bit of it. I'm afraid I'll forget how cute they used to be playing with it when they get older...

It never ceases to amaze me how little kids need t...

2008-04-23T14:03:00.000-04:00

It never ceases to amaze me how little kids need to be happy and how much more we give them. By indulging every little desire, I fear we teach them that happiness is in material objects, not from simple pleasures or relationships.

I have to tell you- I agreed with everything you said right up to the Taco Bell part. Girl, you're pregnant. Let's not get crazy. ;)

My kids are older, and have NEVER been big sports ...

2008-04-23T12:07:00.000-04:00

My kids are older, and have NEVER been big sports fans. Our 'solution' has been to spend *effectively* on their choice of hobbies: computers. One wants to be a computer animator, the other wants to run websites. (They're 15 and 13 now.)

To make them aware of the cost, we tallied up their last birthday, New Year, and miscellaneous presents and told them that IF they chose not to have the spread-out gifts, we could get them a fairly good secondhand computer and ONE fun program each, but that was it.

They thought about it, and have been INCREDIBLY happy with the solution. They don't nag us for the lastest gizmo or game, because they KNOW the money isn't there, and as a result they've consistently chosen games with LOTS of replay value.

When my oldest's laptop was stolen while he was taking a class at the community college, he was *devastated*, and *FURIOUS*. He kept ranting, wanting to know how someone could steal his college class assignments, his reference notes, and all his personal files, especially his in-progress animation.

Even when we can afford to replace his laptop, he knows that the most valuable properties on it were intellectual, not physical. His brother asked for a 16-gig thumb drive *instead* of a game as a result.

It hurts *me* that we can't afford to replace the laptop straightaway, because he was the victim of *theft*, of someone else's greed.

What an AWESOME post!!!!! I think things like thi...

2008-04-23T11:17:00.000-04:00

What an AWESOME post!!!!! I think things like this ALL THE TIME!!! I too worry about this materialistic culture and how in the world to teach true appreciation in it. You said it all so perfectly. Our kids play sports too, and what you described about his first game is how I feel so often. We buy cleats at Play it Again sports or wear hand-me-downs. Most of their equipment is used. We went to Dick's last year because our oldest (13 at the time) HAD to have cleats to play and we couldn't find his size anywhere used, even on our church listserve. We went to the shoe section and I immediately went for the two cheapest models. I don't even see the more expensive "cool" ones because we would NEVER buy them. While we were there, one of his teammates came in with his dad. They went immediately to the most expensive cleats, the "cool" ones. The ones that cost over 100.00. And I sat there and wondered at the mentality that most parents seem to have that of course they buy and buy and buy for their kids, and not economical things, but the most expensive just because they are "cooler". And I wondered how people afford it. If they are buying hundreds of dollars of equipment for every season, every sport, every child, every...well, the list goes on, that adds up to thousands of dollars. Seriously, how do they even do it? If you had two incomes, that would help, but still. Are they all in debt? I just don't get it. And it's always a struggle to not feel guilty when all the parents around us are spending on their kids like that. But the value of things is such an IMPORTANT thing to teach kids. We just have to keep praying and plugging away on it.
TTYS - Sniz

A-men to THAT. Crap multiplies like rabbits. Les...

2008-04-22T22:27:00.000-04:00

A-men to THAT. Crap multiplies like rabbits. Less is more.

Great post. I just finished reading Angela's Ashes...

2008-04-22T20:25:00.000-04:00

Great post. I just finished reading Angela's Ashes (story of an Irish boy growing up in abject poverty if you haven't read it) and I've really been seeing some things different lately. How many shoes/jackets/cloths does one person really need?

What great lessons to teach your kids!

2008-04-22T18:30:00.000-04:00

What great lessons to teach your kids!

I wonder sometimes when my kids will figure out th...

2008-04-22T17:49:00.000-04:00

I wonder sometimes when my kids will figure out they have less stuff than other kids. They have a small toy box that's half full, but they don't seem to be missing anything.

I huge puffy bubbly glowing heart you.This was bri...

2008-04-22T17:11:00.000-04:00

I huge puffy bubbly glowing heart you.
This was brilliant. I hope that there are more parents out there like you and that I can remember this when our time comes.

This is exactly, to a tee, the same thing I strugg...

2008-04-22T16:05:00.000-04:00

This is exactly, to a tee, the same thing I struggle with all the time. I grew up in a lower middle class family. We had no extra money. I wore thrift store clothes. But I was happy, and a hard worker, and valued everything I had.
Now I am concerned that my kids will not learn those values I hold dear, and how exactly I teach them those things. It really is a struggle.
Great post!!!

I love the coach's response. And, I know exactly ...

2008-04-22T15:41:00.000-04:00

I love the coach's response. And, I know exactly where you are coming from...and although my child is very spoiled, I do feel guilty.

I don;t think you have to worry about your kids be...

2008-04-22T15:33:00.000-04:00

I don;t think you have to worry about your kids being materialistic at all. The fact that they don't ask for everything shows that they don't expect everything. If you want to buy your kids cool toys 'just because', why not? :)

I struggle with the same thing. I want to give Al...

2008-04-22T11:25:00.000-04:00

I struggle with the same thing. I want to give Alexis more than I had (which isn't hard to do given that I had next to nothing), but I don't want to spoil her. It's so hard to maintain balance when other parents are out there taking things to absolutely crazy levels.

That coach? Is a very wise man.

What a fabulous post! I think it's a cycle that pr...

2008-04-22T11:14:00.000-04:00

What a fabulous post! I think it's a cycle that progresses with every generation... we all start out thinking that we want our kids to have "more" and completely forget about the consequences of that kind of mind-set.

This is a great remind to all of us to be thankful...

2008-04-22T10:19:00.000-04:00

This is a great remind to all of us to be thankful and thoughtful for all that we have!

I truly loved this post. I really believe that my...

2008-04-22T10:06:00.000-04:00

I truly loved this post. I really believe that my kids and us have way to much STUFF. Stuff begins to bog down our lives.