oimissus

we went to Becky Byrne's NCT classes in Nunhead which were excellent, she covered everything, natural and assisted. It was very thorough and non-airy fairy. I also went to Lindy Lou's yoga classes above Healthmatters, don't know if they are on any more, but again very good without being overly woo. Helped no end when I got to the pushing stage!

might be worth emailing Sainsbo's - if enough people do they might start restocking them.

we have rubber flooring and you can drop pretty much anything on it and it doesn't break. It's called SaarFloor Noppe tiles and it's the kind of thing you get around swimming pools. http://www.polyflor.com/jh/products.nsf/products!open&family=elem&prodcode=fmist58 we have it in red. It's fantastic. Every admires it (except our ex-neighbour, who after feeding our cats one holiday said 'I have to tell you, I really don't like your new floor.' No, you ^didn't^ have to tell me that, actually!).

thanks everyone. I have having a real wobble about it! I think she thought that she'd be going with friends (though there may well be children she knows) but most people I know go on Saturdays which is out for us as she'd miss too many classes as we're away a bit at the weekend.

I have got an opportunity to start my 4 year old at ballet tomorrow, but the term is 3 weeks in, would that be a problem? She is quite shy and reserved, would all the other children have chummed up already? She is keen to do ballet but I don't want her put off!

US work ethic is insane, the sole reason why my cousin and her husband ditched their plans to move there - they would barely have seen each other! Which would be doubly horrible with a young family. Don't think Oz is as bad.

one irate email to DMC later, I get a phonecall and a face-to-face appointment for this morning. They are having a meeting about the new system and feeding back patients' views, so it looks like it's worth dropping them a line if you're not happy.

yes, I think you could be right - if I don't get an appointment today I'll have to get her up early tomorrow (she would never naturally be awake by then!) and walk down. How this system is meant to work if you're at work I can't think. It's very frustrating - although it's annoying to be on hold for 10 minutes at 8, at least at the end of it you got an appointment, that day, and could get on with the rest of your day! What if they ring back when I'm in the car (or the loo!) and can't pick up? I suppose I go to the back of the list. Sigh.

sorry, I know there's a thread about DMC on the general page but oh my f**king god, they are a bloody shambles. I have got to put my entire day on hold to wait for a call from the doctor's and then an appointment - she's got a rash! It needs to be seen! The doctor can't see it down the telephone!!! Just give me a bloody appointment!!!!!! and breathe.

I would go for a doll that can sit up unaided (so fully plastic rather than soft bodied); when we are doing tea parties or games it's always been really annoying that they can't sit up! You can still put them in the bath, in fact they will dry far quicker - even on a radiator one of the soft bodied dolls we have can take at least a couple of days to dry.

thanks for clarifying Renata.

a final question (not that I'm getting paranoid about the whole thing!) - does the order you put the schools in make any difference bar which schools you remain on the waiting list for (i.e. any school above the one you are offered, so if you are offered choice 3, you remain on the waiting list for choices 1 and 2) - it seems bizarre to me that we might put down school X as our 1st choice, but someone else puts school X as their 6th choice but they'd get offered it if it was their nearest (or were merely nearer than us), even though they don't want it as much as us (and want 5 other schools more). The whole idea of choice seems a bit pointless, if that's the case, which I believe it is.

just to completely double check - we don't need to attach proof of being our child's carer, do we? - Facebook chat amongst Lewisham chums is saying they have to at application stage. thanks!

just reviving this thread as we are thinking of putting Judith Kerr down as one of our choices.

near the Fox on the Hill pub on Denmark Hill.

in our childfree days we would sometimes drive down to Lambeth Bridge and watch the fireworks from there - takes no time to get there, parking (for an admittedly very small car) no problem, not too rammed and a pretty good view.

my daughter (and just about every other child I know!) has it in purple. My mum bought it for her in John Lewis a couple of years ago. And agree about quality, I know a couple of people who've started off with other scooters and ended up with the mini micro.

that's why I said this may be only for community schools - that doesn't include free schools or academies, does it?

if the council tell them they have to, then unless they have a fabulously good reason not to, they don't have any choice in the matter! Fairlawn had to bulge last year, despite only having one hall for all assemblies, lunches and games. They don't want to again but the head said if they were told to again this year, they didn't have any choice not to. That may only be the case for community schools, I know church schools can be asked but they don't have to.

does anyone have any idea when the council are going to announce which primaries are bulging for 2014? I know it's in December sometime. Thought I'd start a thread rather than just PM Renata or James as I know lots of us will be interested to know! thanks

oh, absolutely, Miss Oi at nearly 4 could sleep through most things, but god, when they're tiny and you seem to spend you whole time willing them to sleep - I feel I could have committed murder several times. And don't get me on bloody emergency vehicles with their blaring sirens, zooming past just as the baby has finally, after 2 hours walking in the perishing cold, gone to sleep - I mean to say, what are they thinking?? Anyone would think that lives needed saving:)

getting up to creep out of the room and treading on a Clanger (or one of those bloody RSPB birds) . . . spending the evening shivering because you've left your slippers in their room and don't want to wake child up retrieving them . . . (otherwise lovely) neighbours having loud, slightly pissed conversation on the doorstrp - take it inside, people, it's your own house!!!

we buy helium cannisters from Asda, ?22 does 30 latex balloons. You can get them from Party Pieces too, different sizes.

I read the end-of-year music round ups and take a punt on a CD (which I'm pleased to say I get right more often than not), same with DVDs, I read SFX and get something interesting that we've missed, or an old Dr Who which has been re-released. Or a book. He always wants books.

my daughter has access to cars, trains, dolls etc - and entirely of her own accord she will mainly play with dolls and little people, loves dressing her dolls and dressing herself in princess and fairy stuff. Obsesed with Disney princesses despite never having seen any of them. She never plays with her train set, very very occasionally plays with cars. Though the other days she was playing fighting on the sofa with Gandalf and Thorin (I tried to explain that they were on the same side but it fell on deaf ears . . . ). I wouldn't sweat it. Many of us grew up in the 70s with very gender specific toys (my husband has a very amusing photo of him with his sister and older brother - sister is holding her doll, the boys are each holding what look like submachine guns), but I still had the role model of a professional working mother (and all my aunts - dentist, barrister, head teacher among them), went to uni, never for a minute assumed that because I was female I couldn't do X, Y or Z. You're more important than Barbie! (though I'd go for Sindy, myself, if she still exists.)