Convex

He sounds a lot like my son. We were feeding him to sleep, are you doing that by any chance? We found that gradual retreat and teaching him to fall asleep in his cot has helped things. Though we haven't managed to progress to where he falls asleep alone and have just accepted that. Ours is an early riser - if we make it through to 6am it's a happy morning, I really feel my son needs more sleep, on the rare occasions he gets up closer to 630/645 he is in a much better mood. But we are accepting where we are now, always in bed by 10 (us I mean) and take turns having a bit of a sleep in on the weekends. If you find anything that works to get him sleeping later please post back!

Here tis Posted by EJTH February 19, 07:59AM You guys are aware of Ngati Ranana, the NZ Society, Kiwis in London, etc aren't you? Great groups and Ngati Ranana has a lovely Maori/Pakeha (well anyone really) wee group fr kids to learn about NZ culture.

Yes and I was meant to do a kiwi mums drinks to help kick off the proceedings. Very slack, sorry Someone posted about another group so let me try and dig it out...

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I don't believe that curdled mix makes any difference. I am sure I read some celebrity chef Q&A that talked about it and how it doesn't affect the end result. But def beat the crap out of the butter and sugar. I leave mine beating while I measure out the other ingredients, and scrape it down a couple of times. Cream it until its almost white, as someone said. Then switch from the beater attachment to the flatter one (can't remember what it's called... It's the one that isn't the dough hook or the whisk bit) and mix slowly and minimally once the eggs are in.

Would it be ridiculous to suggest the north x road market? They have grown up second hand stuff so I don't see why they couldn't have kids stuff too.

Did you find anywhere? I would recommend Relax in covent garden. I didn't think of it at the time but they are lovely and have never tried to up sell me with products (though have only done nails and waxing there)

i really loved the first class i did, and the songs have been brilliant. i think the key is whether you sign at home, if you do that they will pick it up definitely. we watch the dvd's regularly, these are shockingly expensive, so try to get them secondhand. And don't buy the app - its terrible - it crashes after 1 song and you cant get back in for ages. mine started signing back at around 15months i think, which was the spur to start signing more regularly. he is mostly interested in the animals signs but we are trying to encourage him to use eat, drink, nappy etc as these would be really useful. so... you don't need to do the classes to get your child signing, books/dvds will help and its you signing that is the key. BUT the classes are good - def go to a class to check you like them. I loved them and am glad i did them(although there are some other great singing classes out there that i missed out on - tippitoes i would have gone to more if i hadnt spent all my dosh on sing and sign!)

What BB said, plus mine is really into duplo, building towers, and also playing with a ball.

I also never get my prescriptions sent to lloyds any more, I had 3 issues, found DMC to be helpful and lloyds pretty awful. The time that made me give up on them was them not having my (very common) medication in stock - apparently they had stopped stocking it. I always pick up my repeats and go to either of the ones on lordship lane now. Re DMC, I also find it shocking that its so hard to get an appt unless you wait 3 weeks but having said that when I have needed a doctor quickly for my son they have been really good at squeezing us in.

Also these parts are sold on eBay, if you are a bit handy then you could probably sort yourself.

We took our then 10month old to Cambodia, was really great. In total were in Cambodia / Thailand 2 weeks. Only hitch was, baby wouldn't eat ANY food aside from breakfast (ie, toast and fruit) and pouches we had taken until we got to Thailand where he suddenly agreed to eat local food. There is a local company called exotissimo (sp?) in Siem reap who organised everything for us, as no English travel company would help us due to insurance. We did stuff in the morning then were back at the hotel for late lunch and swimming and relaxing in the afternoon. He did struggle with the heat though, so having air con to retreat to was key. I would go back in a shot, they love kids and we felt very welcome. Did not have an issue with local people pinching and touching our baby, they were very respectful of him (often asking him for a cuddle and he sometimes obliged!) but tour groups were a nightmare, we had to be very firm with them not to touch or try to pick him up. I was gobsmacked at how persistent some of them were.

Otherwise sunshine kids do generic travel bags which are good, we have one for our carseat.

Hi val, Sorry about the theft Maybe delete your address from this thread?

Hello Thinking about some kind of outdoor play table to help occupy my 18mo while we are gardening etc And for general messy okay which he loves Something like this? http://www.elc.co.uk/Sand-and-Water-Table/122808,default,pd.html Any recommendations?

It was seriously good.

Singapore, Thailand are our bet We went to Cambodia (short flight from Bangkok) and would recommend that too

I think reuseables now have come a long way since the 1970's!

I like using them too, pretty much agree with all the above. I started around 3 months I think. I have enough that I only need to do 2 loads a week, which is key for me. I definitely recommend wet bags over a nappy bucket, you can just chuck the bag in the wash. My nursery is happy to use them too, I do supply a few disposables so they have the option (sometimes they put him in a disposable if they think he might do a poo). I also have lots of the same style which I always send in so they aren't having to remember how the different ones fasten up etc. I use disposables at night and on holiday, but I use a planetwise wet/dry bag for day trips, I really recommend these for day trips and for nursery. Overall I think it's a little bit more work but not much once you get going. I enjoy not having to empty the nappy bin so often and I am happier not producing so much waste, but my main motivation is the money saving!

Try buggy pitstop?

Yes, definitely put the offer in now.

> I'm trying to see why a company would be > interested in "making it work" for working mums. > There is the bigger piece around women needing to > have babies for the society to continue, but other > than the social responsibility aspect, what is the > real benefit for companies to have us working mums > doing part-time/ sensible hours when they have a > long queue of capable and willing counterparts? > After all, no one is irreplaceable in the > corporate world, no matter how senior you are! Well. It's discriminatory otherwise first of all. And flexible working has to work from both the company and the employee side, so different arrangements will suit different types of businesses. I have turned down 3-day requests on business grounds, we compromised on 4, and we compromised on which day was the off day. And why lose the experience and knowledge of these people just because they have a life outside of work. Everyone has commitments outside of work. It's a bit crap that I would honestly be more comfortable leaving due to a burst boiler type scenario than a sick child. Bonkers. Aside from that I am very committed to my company and give my all for them and I expect the same from them. And - having to leave on time makes me more efficient with my day. I work less hours now, though still some longer days if a high workload, and I can honestly say I get through more work than I used to, I have become more organised, better at prioritising and better at judging how long to spend on something. So my commitments outside of work have focused my working style into something that I honestly think is better. So shorter days doesn't mean less work gets done!

The key thing for me has been the attitude of my colleagues, well the ones senior to me. Out of my main 3: 1 is horrendous bordering on bullying (I have support to help me deal with this in case anyone is worried!) 1 accepts the times I need to rush of but I can see he is annoyed occasionally, but on balance he doesn't mind as he was happy I came back from maternity leave 1 is very firm that 'I don't care what hours you do I only care that the job is getting done - you need to find a way to make it work and I will support you how I can' I work full-time, and I don't feel guilty. I did at first, but I don't now. I'm about 6 months in. I like my job which is a big factor and I know my son enjoys his nursery. In an ideal world I would have a shorter commute so pick ups weren't so fraught, but my husband does most of these. I do get angry at the attitude that women are assumed as the primary carers and a woman is 'lucky' to have a husband that helps, or does 50/50 with you. I always point this out ie how unfair and sexist this is if anyone says something along these lines. I also get angry that women are judged for their decisions. Families need to be able to make the right decision for them without being beaten over the head with the 'you're a shit parent' stick. Oh and finally - someone gave me some good advice. Never apologise if you have to leave. State the situation, handover what to need to and tell them how you plan to manage your workload. That has helped me immensely as has my blackberry as I can respond to emails so the perception is I am committed etc etc.

Lots of play dates. Take him to the park and let him grub around. At least it's nicer weather! Mine loved the slide too, would crawl over and go down head first and even now prefers that to sitting up. It is frustrating - mine crawled soldier style for months and was constantly dirty, I was desperate for him to start walking, lol! Def try the playground in pr park by the duck pond, there is a climbing bit with a tunnel and slide which is good for crawlers.