The Stats of Life

This episode features Koa and Duffy who have a rapidly growing construction company leaving them with precious little time for their kids and each other. They also volunteer and have just embarked on a home renovation. They have a good working relationship but is it at the expense of their romantic one and time with their children? We meet Paul and Cory who work full time but keep their weekends free. Free time is sacred, particularly in the summer when they want to spend as much time as possible at their cottage. For the last 12 years they have managed on one salary, but they have four kids who all play sports at a high level. The rising cost of fees and equipment proved too much for one salary so after a 12-year absence, Cory went back to work as a teacher. Money stress is reduced, but they are still trying to find the perfect work-life balance. And finally we meet Jodi, a woman in her late 30s who dreams of making a success of her line of women’s work wear. In order to do that she has to juggle several jobs in the gig economy to support her dream — it is an uncertain existence and she is barely making ends meet. Can she make a go of it?

This episode features Anne Marie and Peter, a couple who struggle to control their three kids' screen time. Rules and systems are regularly established and just as regularly ignored. They have a camping trip coming up, and mom and dad are hoping they can enjoy time together as a family. Will the kids be able to resist their screens or will the trip dissolve once again into a fiesta of bickering and recrimination? Another couple, Lee and Jordan, encourage their kids to be as tech-savvy as possible. They both work in the high-tech world and worry their kids will be left behind in the job market because their school system doesn’t teach enough tech. Their 12-year-old daughter is already into coding and they couldn’t be prouder, but their 11-year-old son seems more interested in hockey, and that’s got them worried. Can they dazzle their son with the fun possibilities of technology to get him excited for the future of tech that his parents have embraced? And finally, Aly's off-the-grid lifestyle is her ideal way of life despite the lack of creature comforts: no running water and no electricity. But she has to make a living and her soap-making business cannot be done without on-the-grid technology. She purchased her first solar panel. Can she get her business off-grid too?

This episode features a couple who have one dog who has over 25,000 Instagram followers. He is a husky mix rescue named Tacoma. His fame gives his owners a limited amount of sponsorship, such as a monthly box of treats, but Tacoma needs many more followers to make his fame profitable. Already keeping his fans interested requires a constant stream of freshly creative posts. His owners wonder if it’s worth it? Or is it simply a burden? Sacrificing everything for her seven cats is not a question for this cat owner. She spends every penny she earns on her show-stopping cats. Getting prizes for her cats is all that matters — whatever the cost. Can she break her record and get three of them on the winner’s podium at the upcoming grand cat show? “Finding their happy” is the motto of this woman who specializes in rescuing senior dogs and gives them a decent end to their lives. She has 10 of them, a limit set by her husband, but there are no limits on what she will do to give her pooches a happy ending. There is an end of life bucket list which includes a frolic in a private park, ice cream and a favourite toy.

This episode features a couple who want a bigger house and a bigger yard for their two kids and two dogs, and they are confident their house will sell fast. Their small town has just landed a huge contract to build a natural gas plant worth $40 billion. The population will double and people will need somewhere to live. Six hours after they list their home they get an offer. They worry did they price it too low? Will the offer go through? It is time to downsize for a retired couple. It makes sense financially but emotionally it is way tougher than they imagined. The hardest part is letting go of a lifetime of keepsakes and memories. And they worry they will not get the price they need for a comfortable retirement. Finally, a couple is conflicted. They don’t want to leave their supportive community, but the 45 minute commute to work is taking its toll. They also want to enroll their daughter in a French immersion school. They decide to forego an agent and sell their house themselves. But the market is slow and after a few months of little activity they wonder if they have made the right decision. Should they consider an agent?

This episode features an 82-year-old woman whose schedule is full with all her various activities — which includes volunteering. She wants to add even more onto her volunteering plate but her health, particularly her eyesight, is failing, and her children want her to slow down. She doesn’t. A couple in their 60s who planned every aspect of their retirement, including moving to their dream retirement town, encounter the one thing they didn’t plan for: loneliness. It takes them by surprise, but through volunteering and community activities they make fast friends. Now they have one more thing to take care of and it’s not easy: talking to their children about their end of life plans. How will that go? And finally, a 72-year-old widow was tired of coming home to an empty house; she needed to design an alternative. She bought back the large family home where she and her husband raised seven children, and placed ads seeking like-minded women to form an "intentional community." Five women now live together. It saves on costs and provides companionship and support, but the founding member finds she still carries most of the responsibilities. How can they divide them up? Can they turn their intentional community into an official co-op?

This episode features a couple who are just managing to balance their budget. They both earn a decent wage and have a solid nest egg of savings. Childcare is their biggest expense and with a second baby due soon, they worry that will tip the balance. Will they manage to still enjoy the occasional special night out? Or will a second child mean they incur more debt than they can manage? A couple who both earn a good wage, spend way beyond their means. In order to bring in some extra cash they invest in a rental property, but the cost of fixing it up is higher than they expected. They are running out of time and money and are drowning in debt. And at the opposite end of the scale, a remarkably frugal couple — who once experienced the stress of being in debt — vow never to spend more than they earn. As a debt counselor, the wife spreads their gospel: only buy something new if you can afford three of them. Now they want to buy a house — a custom-built house. How can they do that without going into debt?