Izodia

We do regular trips to France to see my husband's family. We're big fans of the Eurotunnel. It is a little more expensive but it's much quicker. Firstly the loading and unloading is much quicker...drive on, train goes, drive straight off again. The crossing is about 30 mins which is just enough time for a snack, milk, nappy change, leg stretch etc.

Last summer we decided to try out the ferry with a 1 year old and 2.5 year old, thinking the older child might enjoy it. But the ferry was so large that he kept asking when we were going on the boat! On a busy ferry I found it a bit stressful with two small children darting everywhere.

16 months is definitely within warranty. With proof of purchase, Bugaboo will send you the part you need.

We bought one of these 2 years ago. (Mr Izodia is French after all....)

We opted for the 2.0 diesel over the 1.6 and are glad we did. 1.6 seemed like a small engine for a large car which is often full of people and stuff.

It is nice and roomy. It happily takes our family down to mid-south France a couple of times a year with all our gubbins. And yes, with the rear seats down you can fit a lot in (trips to tip, flatpack furniture etc). So it will be our family workhorse for a while yet.

Probably our main niggle is that somehow the petrol tank is a little small for the size of car. In all previous cars we've been able to get all the way to our French destination in one tank. This one needs a pitstop to refill.

Also to look out for, we suffered from a problem with the rear hydraulic suspension, although Citroen did pay 80% of the cost to repair.

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/citroen/c4-picasso/87704/citroen-tackles-c4-picasso-suspension-issues

That all said, we're pretty happy. It's a comfortable family car at a reasonable price.

We repaired ours with the kit from Bugaboo. Easy to do and did the trick.

Don't forget that if your pram is under 2 years old and you have proof of purchase you can get them to send it to you for free.

I think that's where it gets tricky. When it happened to me, we didn't speak to the agents and the agents didn't speak to us...it all just drifted. But if Foxtons are already breathing down your necks, I guess they'll ask you to leave if you don't sign a new contract. Have you spoken to Foxtons? They might surprise you...unlikely but worth a try.

My understanding of these things is that if you didn't sign a new contract, you would automatically default onto a periodic tenancy contract. Under that, your notice period is based on how often you pay rent. So if you pay monthly, you'd need to give a months notice. Note that it's a months notice from your next payment date.

So in your situation the ideal would be to persuade your landlord and Foxtons into doing nothing.

Flower Farm near Godstone

http://www.flowerfarmshop.co.uk/pyo.asp

Apenn, I'm also 25 weeks pregnant and I'm learning that there's a couple of morals to your tale.

1) We might feel like big whales already, but it's not always so obvious to others.

Only this morning a woman nervously offered me her seat. As I sat down she admitted with a sigh of relief that she was pleased she'd got it right and not offended someone who was overweight.

2) We need to ask for seats if we really want one.

If the guy was happy to give up his seat for a woman with bags when she asked, he would have probably given it to you too if you'd stuck your belly out and asked. I haven't yet built up the nerve to start doing this yet (much to my husbands annoyance) so I can't really talk. And sometimes I honestly believe they just haven't noticed us. Maybe I'm very naive!

I spent 5 days in Marrakech as part of my honeymoon. It does get quite hectic so you'll probably find it's enough. The souks are great fun but there's often someone trying to send you the wrong way or take you somewhere for a fee. Cafe de France just off the main Djemaa el Fna is good to escape into for a quick drink whilst you watch the bustle from on high.

A trip to the Majorelle Gardens is a must. It is good for a bit of tranquility.

If you fancy a morning out of the city and fancy splashing out, I'd really recommend Marrakech By Air. I can't remember the guys name now, but we had a really fun time and he made us laugh a lot.

We also had one really good meal out but I forget where. If it comes back to me, I'll let you know. But for a quick cheap eat in the evenings, the food stalls in the main square are well regulated.

The buses are definitely running, slowly but running.

The bus drivers are doing a great job!

As for trains, only the East Croydon shuttle via Forest Hill running every 30 mins when I came through London Bridge.

On the battery charger subject...we recently bought a Jumpstart from Halfords. You plug it in in the house to charge it up and then take it out to the car. Worked perfectly.

That is great news! So often I've fallen foul of the 30 min gap between trains in the evening, normally by only a couple of minutes.

And yes, the improvement to the spacing of the morning services has been great. I've really appreciated it!

I once got to jump onto a moving train thanks to a kindly guard. I was the only person in the station waiting for the last train. Then a non-stopping train came crawling through, hoping the signal ahead would turn green before it actually had to stop. So the guard leant out, asked where I was going and then stuck out a hand to help me jump on. I was very glad to escape the somewhat spooky empty station and get home a little earlier! And no this wasn't in the countryside in the 1950s. It was zone 4 about a year ago.

"Alan & Hansen" estate agency?

Tuna mush - line a dish with slices of tomato, then fill up with tuna and sweetcorn in a bechamel sauce and top with broken up crisps, preferably cheese and onion flavour.

Thanks everyone. That gives us plenty of ideas.

Yes, the walk had already caught my eye. Did something similar in Melbourne and it was a great way to get your bearings in a new city. And love the sound of the scooters...it sounds like we've got plenty to squeeze in!

Does anyboy have any recommendations for places to stay in Berlin? We're thinking of going for a long weekend but unfortunately I don't think our budget will stretch as far as the Schloss Hotel recommended by giggirl.

I used to get ?80 a months at 14 too. But from that I covered my bus fare to/from school and my school lunches. So that way I learnt to manage my own budget at an early age.

I sometimes see a French guy on the train with his daughter. He speaks in French and she answers in English. Having recently married a Frenchman I'm always in awe. But it looks like it works well...

As for us, no bilingual babies on the way just yet. But when they do start appearing, my French is reasonable and ever improving, whilst my husband's English is fluent so I guess neither of us will ever be cut out by the other speaking their own language with the kids.

So no actual experience on my own to pass on. But I'd follow others in saying try to speak your own language to the kids and try not to be put off by them replying in English.

Another big thank you Barry. It's been great having you on here. You'll be missed.

Yep Lloyds are definitely one of the worst. I really should change.

A question on the pre-paid cards. I did use a travelex one at some point and I think I stopped because my bank (Lloyds) had a charge for when I got travel money from a bureau de change, another bank etc, etc. Does transferring money onto the Fairfx card incur any fee from your bank?

Now this is a strange one...but the guy who makes the stationwide announcements at Canary Wharf station sounds like Dean Gaffney who was in Eastenders donkeys years ago. And I'm not quite sure why, but this tickles me everytime.

A few things for your great Barryness...

First a ticketing question. It doesn't seem possible to buy a travelcard from the machiens that doesn't include zone 1. Do these sort of tickets not exist anymore? Did they disappear when PAYG Oyster started on trains?

The display on the London bound platform seems to be faulty again. On the North Dulwich side of it, only the left hand side is displaying.

The station is looking great. I love the hanging baskets even if they aren't real. It's looking pretty smart...so much so that I've started noticing that other stations just don't measure up to ED and feeling unjustly smug.

I'm also loving the new train timetable in the mornings and I'm actually getting up earlier to make good use of the trains between 7.30 and 8am.

Thank you for all your hard work Barry!

I really loved Casa Mila and Casa Batlo, the houses designed by Gaudi.

But otherwise, just soak up the atmosphere around Las Ramblas or down by the beach.