nancyse15

definitely no thanks.

Try a childminder. IMO, would be better for a baby so young. More of a peaceful, home environment with only one person for your little one to bond with and better continuance of care.

My son loved Diddidance.... it's not ballet but a good start to following instructions and thinking about moving around with purpose.

dummy clips! Oh and buy the Avent ones which sort of click when the handle knocks against the main part of the dummy so that they can find it themselves by sound in the dark if they still have the dummy when they are older...

Hi Anna R, Read this with interest as I'm also back to work in 8 weeks. My son is now 7 months. I was very worried about this when he was 5 months, like your bubs, because he refused the bottle and he hadn't started solids and I just couldn't help wander how we would cope. However, I do feel a lot easier now because he just seems so much more developed and more able to cope. It really is incredible the amount they come on in just two months. I think you should keep trying every day, especially around the time when she starts with the food, as she will getting accustomed to all sorts of new tastes, sensations that one day it just might click. My son, finally took a bottle the other week, thank god, but ONLY filled with EBM. I've tried most formulas, but no, he is not having it. I really want to avoid going the expressing at work route if I can, because I have a 3 year old too, and getting out of the house in the morning is difficult enough as it is without remembering all the expressing equipment etc and I know I'll be too exhausted in the evening to wash and sterilise it all. It's such a stressful time isn't it? I really do feel like I'm counting the days until some sort of impending doom. Stupid really as I went through it all before with DS1 and it wasn't half as bad as I had imagined. I must start looking at it more positively. Good luck however. Lots of good advice from the previous posters.

I remember my midwife said something sensible to me on this matter. She said that a full pool is about the weight of 20 people. Would you be worried about your ceiling/floor if you had a party with 20 people all standing next to each other? Most ceilings should be able to deal with it. Good luck with your birth.

Lasco Kiddi gates are great but expensive

Hi there. For both my children I use Tot Bots which are secured by a nappy nippa and then covered up with a Mother Ease wrap. I dry pail and wash very easily at 60. I think I worked out, 3 years ago when I bought the system that for me washing at home would be cheaper and more convenient than using a laundry service. I am extremely happy with them and must have saved ???. The Nappy Lady website is THE best way to find out all the pros and cons of the different types and Molly is def the one to talk to.

Doh! Sorry, clearly I didn't read the earlier messages properly as this 'tip' of mine was already mentioned by Pebbles and also your party has already happened. Sounded good too.

My top tip is to make it a MORNING party starting around 1030am. As we all know, they are at their best at that time. The party culminates with lunch (which you can provide in individual little boxes, or something easy) and then they all go home leaving you the rest of the day to recover.

Hi. My DS#2 has just outgrown his Amby. Borrowed it from a friend and it was a great success. I think the gentle bounce and the way it sort of encloses the bub is very reassuring for them. Certainly worth trying to get hold of one, second hand. By the way have you tried some cranial sacral? Can work wonders on unsettled babies. Good luck!

I showed my Mr Benn DVD set to my 3 yr old and a 6 yr old friend. They were enthralled. They don't make 'em like they used to ;-)

Congratulations! Lovely news! And what a whopper! Well done. I do love the internet. We were all behind you and how cool that you and your husband updated us all.Enjoy these special early days x

Supergolden - I am sending you lots of good luck vibes for your induction. I had one at Kings in May as I was two weeks overdue, and despite dreading it, and feeling cheated of my long planned for home birth, it was an amazing, relatively painfree, quick birth. I strongly believe in the power of positive thought and that it helped contribute to the easy birth I ended up having. Like you, I was having mild contractions when I was admitted at 8pm. The pessary worked within a few hours and my DS#2 was born by 2am. So. Every birth is different we all know, but just wanted to let you know that some inductions can be lovely. On a practical matter, bring lots of mags, food, music, an ipod, comfy clothes and most of all, your own pillow. Do let us know how you get on....

This happens too often and infuriated me when I was pg with DS#2. I once had an argument with a seemingly 50 year old man who told me he had a bad leg so had to park in the parent bays. Of course I told him to park in the disabled bays but then he swore at me and walked off. I went into the store and complained and customer services were very unhelpful and told me that the age of a child entitled to the bay can be anything up to 17!! Ridiculous and completely inappropriate to my complaint. Anyway the last time this happened, I happened to notice that in store there are parking information leaflets with 'Parent and Child Parking' written in large, red letters on one side. I tucked it under the windscreen of the car that brazenly parked next to me with no child within. Don't suppose it did any good, but made me feel better.... Keep up the good fight!

Try the Waitrose at Canary Wharf, it's a joy to shop there. Also I think there is one in Beckenham. Neither are too bad to get to by car...

I just hope it doesn't go too far and go all Clapham... I love the fact there is still a wide variety of people - not just yummy mummies, although they do seem to be multiplying. I live in Peckham so I do enjoy escaping to LL for a good coffee.

William Rose free range chickens are cheaper than Sainsbury's!

Yeah. Sorry. Sore point :(

What is all this nonsense about Peckham, SE15? I live there and some parts are great! And not all of us talk in street patois thank you very much. Frog on the Green is a great cafe in SE15. I bet if you asked John, he would rustle up a fantastic Flat White. So.. enough stuck up, ill informed snobbery thank you very much.

Def ask your midwife, but I was the same with both pgs. Some people seem to get it worse than others. It's one of the (many) reasons I am not interested whatsoever in having baby #3!!!

Gosh, really?? Are you sure, as I love the guy from Come Dine With Me too. I mean, he makes that programme. In the nicest way, I don't quite think that can be true - although I'm going to check now.

Oh, yes, Numberjacks has frightened my son since he was wee - the Teacher used to have him in floods, and now he is three he is still scared of those Number Takers but loves watching it anyway from behind his hands, bless him. Can't imagine anyone fancying Mr Tumble, but I do rather admire his performing skills. He does make me laugh. The other programme I can't bear is that one based on a farm where the real animals are sort of animated so they talk. It seemed instructive enough on first viewing, but it's awful. The narrator has such a naff voice and the stories are boring. And what about that young bloke who dances on Boogey Beebies? Where did they find him? What a plonker! God I watch too much CBeebies.

Glad I'm not alone in disliking that programme. It's sloppy TV and you can tell that the BBC didn't make it, it's more like a Nic Jnr type programme if you ask me;-). Ok, the message is worthy enough - girls should get out in the fresh air rather than obsessing prematurely about their weight, make up etc, but why did the programme makers spoil it by dubbing it with a woman (def not a girl) with an overtly sexually provocative lilt and animating those 'come hither' expressions. It's horrible and a tad disturbing. My son doesn't think much of it, so we turn off when it comes on. On the matter of a programme I do like, is COME OUTSIDE, it's brilliant. Seems to have been made in the 90's and being re-run ,but it's the one with the 'older' lady and her dog Pippin who go out in their aeroplane and find out how things were made. They visited a toothpaste factory last week so even I learnt something new (and Physics - I'm on maternity leave before you tell me to go out and get a job).