Convex

As someone who used to book freelancers, you should negotiate a higher daily rate to compensate for the no sick pay, no other benefits, etc. Surely they will understand the need for this. It's taking the mickey otherwise. The alternative is that they put you on a fixed term contract which could then be extended if the hours continue. Generally these are minimum 3 or 6 months. Presumably you haven't talked money yet (from where it say 'from what I can tell' sorry if I've read too much into that) so its not a done deal yet. D you know what other freelancers doing your job are paid? It's helpful to go in with some knowledge of rates. I'm not saying you have to hold out for the full rate and its an estalished relationship etc etc but you need more pay than a permanent employee otherwise you are in effect being paid less then them once benefits are considered.

i personally prefer a 4 wheeler for balance when you have the buggy laden down and you go onto a bus or a steep curb

i once came out of my house to see some neighbours coming out of their house with an awkwardly shaped bit of wood. i watched as they got almost out of their gate, then saw me standing by my skip, then quickly reversed and carried the wood back in. made me laugh that i caught them. its really crap that people use your skip without asking. my sympathies.

the baby dan is a pretty effective 'fun prison' as we call it here. very sturdy and escape proof for us so far. my baby is happy to be in it provided i am nearby (either in his sight or within earshot and constantly talking) which sort of defeats the purpose. so i am planning to sell it on. so if i need to shower etc, i do it before the other half goes to work or if that doesn't work out, then during the first nap of the day. when he was a bit younger i had him in the bathroom with me but he goes straight for the loo or bin now and has a lick/chew of it, which i don't like!!!

we use either sudocreme or a lanolin based cream (we had various tubes around so its just whatever is handy) but for real rash outbreaks we use metanium after a recommendation on here. its amazing. i used to not use cream unless there was a nasty rash coming up, but he develops nappy rash so quickly i figure its better to prevent than cure.

The nigella birthday cake recipe is good for shaped cakes.

Thank you! Will get one to try.

Hey I'm after a sippy cup to replace my baby's milk bottles. He happily drinks water from a tommee tippee basic plastic sippy cup, but I want one with a secure lid for his milk feeds so I can prepare them in advance and chuck in the cooler bag without worrying about spills. Any recommendations? He is 8 months old.

I reckon an Aussie is ok but we a NOT singing waltzing Mathilda..... Oh ok then. It's a good tune. Will send an email around tonight to get a date sorted!

Looks like the classes are out for the summer. Good idea pickle.... pot luck picnic In the park perhaps (wet weather plan, my house, if no one is allergic to cats?) and if it works out we could start a new kiwi playgroup? Please pm me your email address if you would like to be included! A

Hey, I never ended up going (I used to be amyw, now convex) But I'd be keen to get together with other kiwi families and do kiwi stuff, eg sing maori and nz songs and do the basic words that we learned at school. There are websites with the words t stuff I'm sure and we could get info on the 'latest' kid stuff from mates at home. Any takers?

Hmmm, I feel a sling library recommendation coming on.....

Hi Ellie, Just seconding the other people above who say knowing you had a block of sleep coming up helped me cope with the lack of sleep. For me it was a morning nap where my husband got up with the baby for as long as he could before going to work, usually it was about an hour I think. And I agree the longer term help might be more helpful in the long run, eg cleaner once a fortnight, maybe some mothers help for an hour every couple of days to clear the dishes, cook a meal, etc. Sorry to hear you are so exhausted... I seem to remember thinking things were a lot better at 10 weeks. Also, if you have a group of mum friends, we got a cheap double pram and (actually it was free and only cost was to fix it up a bit) we can take each others babies for walks while one mother sleeps. We have only used it a handful of times but I think if we had had it in the early days we would have used it a lot more!

Maybe a mei tai so it's completely adjustable?

agree with all of these! the only thing to add would be to say to try some out at the sling library (or locally if people are offering!) i have the ergo and really like it, i didn't like it so much when i needed the insert though. people also rave about the beco and the manduca, but you mention you are quite petite and so depending on the size of your baby you might be better off with one over the other or even a mei tai type sling e.g. the baby hawk. gcoakley, i also have a hip carrier which has been a godsend since my baby hit 6 months.

Hello, How did you get on with the liner trials? We are now on poo that is too solid to wash out and too runny to roll off. I ran out of my liners that were too big and I had to fold, so I'm using tots bots liners and they scrunch and they don't catch the yuk. Yuck. So, recommendations please! Sanity girl I will order some bambino mio ones for now, thanks for the recommendation, Anyone who gets on with tots bots liners, let me know if you want them.

I agree with Jo, That sounds pretty similar to us at 6 months. We are now at 7.5 months and he is pretty good at going 7pm-5 or 6am with a final feed in our bed to get him (and us) through to 7am. BUT if it's doing your head in and you really feel its a problem then I think a few people on here have had some success with bringing in outside help. So worth a try if you can get someone recommended. (nb we try to follow a rough schedule but are fairly relaxed about it)

Yes, drop in ?6.50 and you can buy discounted tickets eg a book of 10. For your first session go a few mins early.

Hi, just to second the advice not to buy a set beforehand unless they are ones that fit most babies eg I think tots bots are pretty generic but then again I have heard of babies not fitting them! The nappy lady does nappy fittings and there is a local Rep for one of the nappy online companies. I used disposabes for the first couple of months, then used a second hand kit to check I got on with reuseables eg the extra washing. I found bumgenius and tots bots worked best for us.

How amazing.

Ah yes power pramming and the hv courses are good for meeting people too. Especially the Monday pp class as when I was doing it a group used to have lunch at the cafe after, very friendly and all were welcome.

Sorry to hear this Strawbs. What a frightening experience.

Just in case anyone needs the info. I lost my card and couldn't find out how to get a new one. Finally found the paperwork that came with the card which has all the details on it. If you lose yours you phone 0845 6018076 and they will send you a replacement in 1-2 weeks.

and me. i used to like watching the rhythmic gymnastics.

ok deleting this too. I'm out. ramble, maybe do a search for nct as there is some debate previously waged on this, including some info from one of the teachers who posts on here.