scareyt

Hi I would also say cosleeping & feeding lying down is really worth a try. My LO would literally only sleep if he was right next to me when he was tiny so we just went with it. You can always change things later if you don't want to do it long term but it might really help you all get some sleep while he's little. Good luck and it does get better!

The soft play in Brixton Rec is great.

VSG the commute from Canterbury to Victoria is pretty knackering - slow trains and not all that frequent. My sister used to do it every day and was very glad when she stopped! I think it's doable for 2 or 3 days a week but would be tough going up and down on that line every day.

You could try the conservatory at the Horniman - I don't think you can book it and would have to get there early as it can get busy but it's an inside space where you can eat your own food. And then you could dash out to play in the gardens if it stops raining or go see the fish in the aquarium if it doesn't!

My little boy will be starting at Half Moon Montessori this September, in "red class" on Monday and Wednesday afternoons to start with. Is onyone else's little one starting at the same time who would like to meet up over the summer for a few playdates? I would love for him to have some familiar faces there on his first day!

Yes I bet there would also be a demmand for delivering packed lunches to nurseries, if the nurseries would allow it. Then Mums could concetrate on just getting everyone breakfasted, dressed and out the door, knowing that their packed lunch would delivered directly to the nursery. I personally wouldn't care if it was all organic for toddlers but did used to at the baby stage. Organic meat would be a plus.

Get one of these http://www.amazon.co.uk/Strikeback-Advanced-Animal-Repeller-Strobe/dp/B001EPB18A/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1341919822&sr=8-1 and also shoot the cat whenever you see it with a water pistol or plant sprayer. There are loads of local cats that used to c**p in our garden constantly - day and night - but the combination of noise repellent and being sprayed with water every now and then seems to have mostly worked. Plus squirting water at them is extremely satisfying.

Hi Anna, It might be a bit out of your way but Bessemer Grange children's centre do a stay and play session most days from 3:00 to 5:00. It's free and they give the kids toast. It's quite a small space and gets a bit hectic on wet days but is really nice when it's not too busy.

On my way!

Second daytime bath - with blue food colouring in the bath water and bath crayons to draw waves etc round the edge. So much fun. (And the blue water is diluted enough it doesn't stain everything blue!)

For calcium I used to make little fish cakes by mashing whole tinned sardines with boiled potatoes, finely chopped spring onions, parsley and a bit of lemon juice. You can make a batch and freeze them, then fry from frozen. Loads of calcium from the little bones in the fish. And they actually taste quite nice so you can have the same thing for lunch together which is always nice. We saw the dietician at Tommys and tried all those formulas too but with no success. Tahini is also good for calcium, a jar lasts for ages and you can spread it on toast. It tastes a bit weird but W didn't mind it.

Hi I had a Wilkinet which I found really comfortable, I found the baby bjorn really hurt me too.

I found the ideas in the No Cry Sleep Solution book useful for getting baby to fall asleep by himself which made a big difference to night wakings. The gist is that it doesn't have to be an all or nothing change, you can do it gradually & stay there the whole time but you are aiming to persuade them to fall asleep without your help. We went from feeding to sleep very single night to baby falling asleep happily by himself using that book and it wasn't too traumatic. There was some crying but it was kind of complaining crying rather than heartbreaking screaming. It did take a few nights of being mentally prepared for a long hard slog though.

My Mum has stayed at the Rosendale Guest House twice in the past and said it was lovely but when I tried to look them up more recently their website was down so I'm not sure if they're still in business. I've read awful reviews of the Diana Hotel. Looked into this for wedding guests 4 years ago and ended up putting people in the Church Street Hotel in Camberwell and the Windmill in Clapham. Which was as close as I could find somewhere nice. Hm but I'm now having a memory of seeing a poster about new bedrooms above the Victoria Inn in Peckham. Still a bit of a treck.

This is a lovely thread and I got a lump in my throat reading Sillywoman's summary above. I wish I'd seen it first time round when I had a 5 month old baby who never slept and felt like everyone I met was more together than me. I'm much more confident with motherhood now but still flummoxed by what to talk to "other" people about - went to a daytime party on Saturday and spent much more time than necessary following my toddler around because I couldn't think of anything to say to anyone! I would happily wear an "I like biscuits two" badge - or maybe pin it on the nappy bag / buggy! Hope to meet you all at the drinks.

Hi I'd love to come but not met anybody from here before - will try my hardest not to chicken out on the night!

Tickets for the Polka theatre in Wimbledon are on sale now through till February if anyone wants to plan ahead! The shows for toddlers get booked up really quickly but are supposed to be brilliant. http://www.polkatheatre.com/whats-on

tomo I'd forgotten all about that pukey/leaky stage but yes you've reminded me of the time I took 3 month old baby to Caffe Nero in Liverpool Street so husband could show him off to colleagues at lunch time, and he threw up all down the dress about two seconds before they walked in. Which was nice.

If you don't need it to be local, the Calthorpe Project near King's Cross is a brilliant venue, my Mum had her 70th birthday there a couple of weeks ago and there were loads of kids. ?250 for the day. It looks a bit scruffy when you first arrive but they have lots and lots of toys and great outside space, so you wouldn't need to hire anything else for the kids to do. It kind of depends on having good weather though as the best bits are outside. What to do about food depends on the timing - if you do it from 3pm till 5pm people will only really expect cake. You could ask a few people to bring a cake each to simplify things. We did a lunchtime party for first birthday with buffet food and did 3-5 pm for 2nd birthday, with some savory finger food and a cake. That was definitely easier!

The new Brockwell Park playground next to the one o clock club is finally open too and it's lovely.

Bellenden Belle I have that same dress and love it too - it was great for bf and I still wear it sometimes even though I've stopped as you'd never know there's anything special about it. It's very flattering for bigger boobs & looks cute with a white bolero style cardi.

The trip trap harness drove me mad until I cut the shoulder straps off it to turn it into a lap belt. Don't always use it now that he can climb up and down on his own but it's still sometimes useful for thawrting escape attempts half way through a meal!

We used a doidy cup for water for a while which I think helped W get the hang of drinking from a normal cup. But I rarely bother with it now and usually use the tomee tippee ones for water because it's much less mess. But he was never keen on milk and the only thing he will drink milk from is this Nuk bottle/cup hybrid: http://www.olivers-baby-care.co.uk/nuk-learner-bottle.html?utm_source=Google-Base&utm_medium=Web&utm_campaign=Gbase It was recommended by a friend who tried everything for milk and it worked for her and us!

We just started going to baby booters at Jags with our just turned 2 year old and he loves it. it's very jolly and informal. They start from 18 months although most kids seem to be a bit older.

Does anyone know if it's ok to park in the pub carpark for this or in the one at the beginning of the path? Would love to come one thurs but can't figure out how to transport everything & persuade toddler to walk up the hill without buggy unless car is very close by.