Pickle

Having read this thread with interest we visited the 1 o'clock club today. The new play area was being utilised by older children, who all looked like they were having fun. No dog attacks witnessed, and lots of Mums sitting round on the grass chilling out in the sun. The 1 o'clock club itself is lacking space at the moment, but the area out the side being developed is going to be great, with lots of space and it looks like there will be grass/seats for parents to sit on. I know my children are slightly older than many here (4.5 and 3), but I really didn't see the issue regarding gates etc. We were in the 1 o'clock club, gates were shut, and they know not to go out without me. Perhaps I'm just lucky, but they know the rules - and even 18 months ago when they were much smaller the same would have applied. It's not perfect, and not as good as Brockwell Park by any stretch of the imagination - but it's a free resource provided by the council and is better than nothing. Just my two penny worth :)

Having had piercings in the past with both a gun and a needle I would definitely go for the needle option again (if I decide to revisit my past love of piercing, but I think I'm a bit middle aged now). Sounds like a good decision to get it done when you're back in your home country, if it's a common cultural thing to have done I too would feel more secure having it done there. Good luck!

Welcome back Anna. I'd be keen for a meet up next week - would either Thursday or Friday afternoon suit anyone else? Maybe in the picnic area of Peckham Rye park if the weather is nice as it's great for toddlers to explore (fingers crossed summer is here to stay). My kids are away on holiday at the moment (absolute bliss for me, a whole week to myself!) but get back on Tuesday. Pippa x

So sorry WOD. I understand that it's one of the most aggressive forms of cancer, due to it being so difficult to diagnose. Mum was lucky that she was very slim, so could actually feel a lump. Apparently having just half a stone of extra weight may have meant she couldn't feel anything and would certainly have died. I'm not a religious person, but someone/thing was looking out for her.

So so sorry to hear this Mockney. Although I would like to add my happy ending story if I may... My Mum (60) was diagnosed with ovarian cancer just over 3 years ago. Turns out she had known there was something wrong for months beforehand as could feel a lump in her abdomen, but due to plans to travel to the UK to visit me (I'd just had a baby) and not wanting to "spoil things" she said nothing, not even to my Dad, until a few weeks after she had returned to NZ. Right up to having the operation she had managed to convince us all that it was nothing to worry about, just cysts. My world fell apart the night I received a phonecall from my Dad - a staunch kiwi bloke who never shows emotion - in floods of tears saying it was cancer. After surgery she was given various treatment options but refused to have any of them. To this day I don't know what her reasoning was, she refused to enter into conversation about it with any of us. Stubborn is an understatement! However, despite the chances of recovery being so slim, she is now in her 3rd year of remission. She has tests every 6 months and the doctors are amazed. I know that we're lucky, and to fight such a horrible disease without treatment and win is very uncommon - but it can happen. My Mum works in quite a physical job, goes to the gym a few times a week and eats a fairly healthy diet. Wishing you and your family all the best.

I'm so pleased you found all this information helpful, that's great. Jill Dye was a life saver for me, it's great to hear that so many others have had positive experiences too. Her number is in my phone just in case I need help with #3!

I would go for something that means you can wear him on your back. Millie was around 6 months old when I started using my Patapum, which was fantastic - really comfortable for me (despite being someone who's plagued with back/neck problems) and she loved being able to see what was going on around her. Ergo is very similar.

Congratulations!! Wonderful news, and I also love the names.

The taxi driver was John - he used to take great pride in maintaining the flowers round the trees on Underhill, as well as cutting neighbour's hedges, sweeping the pavements and generally taking pride in the area. We used to love walking past his house around Christmas time to see his decorations, very exciting for the kids. He's very much missed by us, my son still asks where his taxi is when we walk past :'(

I have no experience of DVPS, but generally nursery places are offered to the older children in the year group first, and will then filter down to the youngest. It may be that they're in the same school year, but if your son is at the younger end of the year group he may have missed out on that basis.

Otta, I didn't realise #2 was due so soon! Good luck tomorrow, hope all goes well. The Postmark shop on Northcross Road have a few little baby toys at the back of the shop, and Pretty Pregnant also stock some cute things (although not at particularly cute prices!).

Thanks ladies - I "came out" on the winter baby club thread, kind of forgot that most of you wouldn't read that one! Yes, number 3 is due January. I'm officially a nutter. I have had a lovely day, spent money I don't have at Bluewater and just back from a manicure. This is the life :)

The fact that my husband and kids are away (for a whole week - yippee!!), I had no reason at all to be up this morning, yet I was wide awake at 6am. I blame being pregnant... is the baby's way of reminding me that I'll never rest again?! On the plus side, I'm off to Bluewater for a day's shopping :)

Yes, I agree with Helena - having travelled a lot with kids using a variety of carry on options (Trunki, normal wheely case etc.) by far the easiest is a backpack. My two both had their own little ones last time with their colouring stuff, toys etc.

Yep, I braved a trip to New Zealand with mine, at Christmas when they were nearly 4 and 2.5. I was nervous, I'll admit it, but it was a breeze. I took a selection of small new toys, colouring stuff, the portable DVD player (which we hardly used, as the flight had great kids movies - all 3 Toy Story films!), and a selection of snacks. 4 hours into the first flight both kids were asleep, I was enjoying a glass of wine and doing some knitting :) As long as you're prepared you will be fine.

As a daily user of this junction, I don't think a stop sign would help at all. The problem is not cars failing to give way, it is due to the complete lack of visibility. The raised junction which has recently been installed does help a little, but on days where there are cars parked on Barry Rd right down to the junction it is near on impossible to see if there is anything coming down from the church unless you edge out onto Barry Road. Traffic lights would help, but I don't think they'll ever be approved as apparently the accident stats aren't that bad for the junction (which I find surprising!).

What time did you all set off running? I wandered down to Barry Road about 3:15pm but couldn't see any sign (unless you were all a tame looking bunch this year, which I doubt!). Sounds like a good day was had, hope to join in next time.

It's time for me to emerge from the haze of early pregnancy worries and morning sickness - having had my scan this morning I'm pleased to announce that I have baby #3 (eeeeeeek!) due in January. My son is 4.5 (about to start reception) and my daughter is 3 (about to start school nursery 5 mornings a week), so I'm looking forward to actually having some time to enjoy being pregnant and having a newborn - not like last time when I had a 16.5 month age gap to deal with. Looking forward to meeting up with others, we seem to have a nice mix so far of first time Mums and 2nd timers (am I the only one crazy enough to be having a 3rd?!). I'm due 31st January, but due to past pregnancy complications am likely to be induced at 37 weeks. Pippa x

Absolutely lovely news Ruth, congratulations to you all. I love the name you have chosen. Look forward to seeing pictures!

Hi, I've done the flight to and from NZ (which takes me about 30 hours door to door) about 8 times now with my children at varying ages. Take a reasonable selection of small toys which are new, meaning they will entertain your little one for a bit longer than ones he/she already knows. Lots of snacks are a good idea too, as although most airlines will provide food there's a high chance it won't be nice! For the jet lag we've always slotted straight into the time zone we're in once we arrive - so naps at normal times, bedtime the same etc... NZ is an extreme case as it's a 12 hour difference, but generally within a couple of days things have settled down. Get outside in the daylight as much as you can in the first few days, it helps a lot. Have a great time.

I agree. Even at totally low speeds these speed bumps are a nightmare. I seem to remember the contractors putting them in, then pulling them out again and redoing them as the first lot weren't right - I haven't come across any quite as brutal anywhere else. My sympathies to anyone living with one outside their house, we have a relatively gentle speed cushion outside ours and the noise/vibration from that is bad enough.

My son was a very late walker (21 months, runs in the family so we weren't really that worried), and was referred to the specialist team at Kings when he was about 18 months. He still has developmental problems with his ankles and feet but they are due to him being double jointed more than the late walking... but we're due to go for follow ups in the next 6 months. His "problems" don't affect him at all, he's just as active and capable as any other 4.5 year old, but his ankles look quite strange when you see him with bare feet.

I kept them in the first steps shoes until they grew out of the sizes available in them (which I think is around a 4/5 from memory). My son has really weak ankles and we were advised by the specialists at Kings that he should wear supportive shoes to help them strengthen in the right position.

For both of mine I got the Clarks first steps shoes, with a solid yet flexible sole. Fine to wear bare feet when you're somewhere you can be sure is safe, but I think something with a decent sole is necessary if you're letting them walk round in parks/playgrounds etc.

We've got modern stone tiles with underfloor heating... it's lovely in the winter months.