Such a drastic change was an emotional roller-coaster over the years, as I adjusted to a new rural life in a new country with a new husband.
Even more change came when my child Layla was born in 2014; I now had the added dimension of being a new mum in this farming community.
Making the transition from a career to being a stay-at-home mother was fortunately made easier by an organisation known as PAFT (Parents as First Teachers), a research and evidence-based parenting programme founded in 1991.
PAFT supports me and other mums who are a socially isolated with home visits, guidance, information and education to help our children develop during their crucial early years. Since we live rurally, without the support of my family back home, PAFT has provided invaluable support to our family as we try to balance the responsibilities of running a farm and being the best parents we can be.
Sadly, the Government is moving the funding for PAFT to a "more targeted programme". This is a huge blow for our rural community; removing this support will negatively affect my family and other rural families who rely on this service.
It will also have an impact on local PAFT educators, who will likely lose their jobs as a result of this decision, adding to unemployment in provincial areas. I urge everyone to stand with our community during this time by signing our petition calling for the funding to remain for every parent and every child.
Please sign the petition to the Ministry of Social Development to keep PAFT: www.change.org/p/ministry-of-social-development-keep-the-paft-parents-as-first-teachers-programme-in-nz
• Sian van Heuven lives on a dairy farm in Waikato with her husband and 18-month-old daughter Layla.
