My family were a working class family, my dad went to work and my mum stayed at home with me and my brother until we were both in the juniors and then she got a part time job within school hours. We never went without anything we needed but we were not spoilt. We had holidays but not many abroad. When my dad passed away he was obviously the bread winner so that was the end of that. He did have life insurance but most of the money paid for the rest of the mortgage on the house and then I guess me and my brother got a little spoiled for about 6 months then that was the end of that lol. My mum has continued to work part time but doesnt earn much and so thefore relied on pensions and stuff I have never just been given anything for no reason, even my first car I had to save up for myself. My mum did help me out but still it was just a £1000 car, not nothing amazing and she did this because she didnt want us to think everything was handed to us on a plate and given to us and that we had to earn things.
I am happy with the way I was raised, we didnt go without but were not spoilt and I am glad we went without things like holidays abroad and brand new cars to have my mum at home with us, to pick us up from school and stuff. I work in a nursery and the kids are there from 7.30 am until sometimes 7 at night, the kids have more awake hours with their carers a week than they do with their parents and that makes me sad!
I dont want to work full time while Alfie (or other future children) are small and if that makes us poor then so be it, but I dont think it makes us like living in poverty or anything. Money is important but is not the be all and end all of having a happy child/family.
And also believe that teen pregnancy is more common within low income families but the statistics are taken out of the bigger picture, working class women are found to have different values, such as putting having a family before having a career (not in priority, chronologically.) Also they are also seen to have more traditional views of family such as the male breadwinner ect etc ugh i cant even be bothered to go into it, I could write so much about it I might aswell go back to a level sociology or uni lol