sylviamaria

Arlo and Mo in Honor Oak or Hither Green do excellent cakes (chocolate guiness cake). As for vegan, you can go to Catfood Cakes, also in Honor Oak. Their shop is open on Saturdays to the public.

I have not been to Mottingham Farm riding centre, but have heard very positive things about it. It is around ?13 for a thirty minute lesson, though, which doesn't make it a cheap activity! I used to take my daughter to the riding club in Lee, but it has shut down now.

There is this group running in Catford/Hither Green and Blackheath. http://www.forrieseducation.co.uk/notices

by October the weather will start getting cooler and rain is likely. you might want to consider Crete as it is so much further south and possibly warmer?

It was my grandmother's 80th this year and I had one of my daughter's (6 years) drawings of us embroided onto a cushion. Obviously it was a fairly basic line drawing...

I went - really enjoyed it and was very impressed by the numbers of people who showed up!

https://www.uniteforeurope.org/ For anyone interested in making a stand for Europe. March 25th at 11am.

Saied just finished working on our garden and it has been transformed. We are very happy with his work and would highly recommend!

Saied has been around for the past week, converting what used to be a building site into a beautiful garden. Even working through a Saturday to get the job done!

Sue All packaging was intact and all parts arrived. One door had a mark on it and we emailed them and they replaced it within a month (sent it over themselves). We used a swedish company called artmove for the shipping. They were ok, but not great. You could check for alternative companies. Generally very happy with the end result and the pickyliving service. Best of luck with it all!

When my second arrived my first was 2 years 11 months. We stopped using buggies altogether for the first few months - I had baby in the sling and eldest would scoot or walk. Meant I had two free hands and my eldest got used to walking longer distances. Once baby was 5 months old and got heavier, I started using a single buggy for her - the eldest just kept walking/scooting.

Hi Sue, I found their service to be very good and prompt. But you are right - they don't deliver to the UK and you have to sort out delivery yourself which is both a pain and an added cost (though still cheaper in total than getting a kitchen from many of the places in the UK)... Hope this helps! :)

We had to have pilling foundations done because of a tree/clay. We used a pilling contractor separately contracted from the builders. The builders had to come and clear the ground, ready for the pilling contractors, who then took over the site for two weeks and then handed it back over to the builders to continue. It wasn't fun and it pushed the costs higher, but we would not have met building regs otherwise...

My daughter got given this book when she was 5 and she now loves reading the recipes and choosing chiwch ones to make. Simple, but delicious food. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Silver-Spoon-Children-Favourite-Italian/dp/0714857467

Good menu and what a lovely idea! Might give it go ourselves! For future (and for me to remember if we decide to do it): starters - moules mariniere with crusty bread or caponata served with burrata? mains - fish pie or coq au vin? desert - creme brulee, flourless chocolate cake, sticky toffee pudding? Mmmm I'm getting hungry now!

I would steak with home made chips, greens and Bearnaise sauce (or any sauce you like) and a chocolate souffle (easier than it sounds) or panacotta for desert. mmmmm

That sounds expensive but not unreasonable - depending on the type of finish and detailing you are looking for. That figure also probably includes the architect's fees for the drawings and for project managing?

I find Thornton Heath extremely urban - very little greenery, too many cars, pavements and roads in need of TLC and the many houses lacking in character... The train connections are ok both to London Bridge and Victoria(though the the London Bridge works they seem a little disrupted at the moment I think). Personally I have become quite a fan of Catford since moving there 3 years ago (Corbett Estate). The houses are really quite large, good size gardens, good connections from 3 stations (Catford, Catford Bridge and Hither Green) and a lovely community feel. The presence of the south circular is reflected in the lower prices though...

Chryssanthi Perpatidou [email protected] - She won the competition for the cafe at Mountsfield Park in Lewisham which just got planning! https://www.architecture.com/FindAnArchitect/ArchitectPractices/OfficetwentyfiveArchitectureLLP/Projects/MountsfieldParkCafe-144355.aspx

We moved to the Corbett Estate in Catford (SE6) 3 years ago and really love it. There are 3-4 great schools, 2 nice parks in waliking distance (mountsfield and forster), trains from both Hither Green and the Catford stations and a lovely community feel. The houses are very generous, as are the gardens, and there is a community-run playing field/cafe within the estate as well.

We recently finished our kitchen. IKEA carcasses, doors from Picky Living in Sweden (another forumite gave me the details) and corian worktop. Pretty happy with the instant boiling water tap too! :) Wrote a brief entry on my blog about it - http://bighungryfamily.blogspot.co.uk/2016/07/new-kitchen.html#comment-form

I had my second at home through Lewisham and was extremely happy with the care. I also visited the birth centre (in case the homebirth was not possible for some reason) and it looked so nice, I contemplated having the baby there instead of home! Generally very happy with Lewisham for all the care we have received there (A&E, children's A&E etc). Best of luck!

I hope you don't mind me jumping on this thread, but I wanted to ask those who have had au pairs - how do you find it in terms of 'losing' your privacy in your own home? I really like the idea of getting an au pair and think it would be a great opportunity for my kids to get additional input from a person from a different culture/language, but struggle with the idea of possibly not being able to fully relax in my own home? Am I overthinking it?!

I am thinking of getting an au pair in the next few months. Any advice, experiences, information, do's and dont's gratefully received. Particularly on the subject of having someone stay in your home etc! :) TIA

Never tried it but always wanted to http://englishcheesecake.com/ I also love cheesecake! Also I seem to remember that the hummingbird cheesecake is quite delicious.