katgod

Can you buy sick bags? The type you get on aeroplanes? Have never seen but never looked. Or if anyone has any other suggestion, other than a Tupperware box, for dealing with the inevitable 'I feel sick' moment on our drive to France? It usually comes to nothing which is why the box annoys me - I am after a space saving solution that will work on the rare moments there is an in car puke! Thanks

Fb was a no no til I got a smartphone. Am now addicted. Many of my old friends (who live a way away) post pretty much every day and it has replaced calls/texts as medium of communication. But my 2 opposite neighbours here in ED are on it too, so can't pretend it is for any useful keeping in touch purpose at all! Just like it. Just easy and addictive. Don't use twitter, don't suppose ever will.

We mainly do self catering keep them up a bit later and then sit outside chatting while littlest one is asleep- bigger ones might be watching a DVD or riding bikes/playing football. And we go with friends so sociable in evenings.In a hotel earlier this year we ate early then went for a stroll and to the playground and put her to bed around 8.30-9. The hotel entertainment wasn't to our taste so no hardship and nowhere really to go at that particular resort. It depends where you are and what there is to do. I would rather sit on my balcony and drink wine with husband while children sleep than have a fractious toddler in a soft play/trampoline type bar full of other English people with noisy children!! But that is just my choice. There will be plenty of small children up late and if you are going to Spain or similar on a package there will be plenty in the dining room too.

I am not having much luck with local amenities. After Myatt's Field being closed last week, today find out Peckham Soft Play is still closed for deep clean and they don't know how long it will be closed for. It is good that it is being closed, but I would have though that the school holidays were the wrong time to close it down indefinitely? Went to the One O'clock Club as Plan B and that was closed too. Just thought would share the info re Soft Play to save others a wasted trip.

Update: the playground us now open but the water remains off.

Sadly closed for essential repairs today (Thursday).Is anyone at Sydenham Wells and able to confirm it is open before we head there? Thanks

Riverbank is near the velodrome so from the map I got with the tickets etonian manor looks closer but I don't know how far it is to the tube. It is quite a walk from Stratford to riverbank but at least huge station is close to the gate.

so far as I know the schools round here offer morning or afternoon sessions, so you get 5 mornings or 5 afternoons, 3 hours per session equals 15 hours. So not is in no way a replacement for fulltime nursery, but if you use a nanny or a childminder or an au pair or are a stay at home it is a bit of a bonus.

Nursery is dealt with by the school. You get the form from the school office once term restarts, and fill it in and wait til they contact you. And getting a nursery place does not guarantee you a school place for Reception class. And not getting a nursery place does not necessarily mean you won't get a place in Reception. So far as I know nursery is first come first served, no catchment etc. State primary schools reopen the week of 3 September, but many will be having INSET (teacher training) days in the first week so best to leave it til the week after to be sure there will be someone there. And of course they will be mobbed with parents buying uniform and paying for school dinners etc, so you will get seen quicker the following week. And avoid 8.45 - 9.15am as that is the busiest time!

8.32 train from ED much quieter again today, as was the Jubillee at 8.45ish. May seem busy to those not used to it, but truly, compared to the avergae Wednesday commute it was a dream.

How are the 'rooms' arranged? The various nurseries my children attended were divided up- non walkers or under 18 month olds in one room then 2-3 year olds then pre schoolers. I would think it unusual to have a really wide age range. Is your child big for her age? Maybe she is in the verge if moving up to the next room? Are you getting nice sticky paintings and other art work? All our nurseries has written observations available on the children. Is there a website or a printed prospectus? Perhaps use that as the basis for a discussion "I see it says x, has my child been able to do that?" most have a room leader who is a bit more versed in dealing with parents, or speak to the manager. Often staff are young and not that confident with parents, whereas the manager should be. It is your money and your child you have every right to ask questions and get answers. Oh and topics- we always had topics, nothing too sophisticated but seasons/animals/vehicles as something to base the play and artwork on.

I have been travelling slightly later this week, today was on the 9.45 ish train from ED (9.42 from ND). Lots of seats, no problem with London Bridge, straight onto Jubillee line, seat, no crowds. I think some people are following the signs for "Olympic venues" which take you out of the main LB station, rather than going down the escalator and straight to the Jubillee line. Maybe it is busier earlier (it wasn't last week when I was on 8.32 train).

London Bridge this morning at 9am was eerily deserted. Same for the Jubillee line. Best journey to work I have had in ages. Really. Not being funny or ironic it was just much much quiter than usual.

Leather seats easier to wipe puke off. Go for the one with biggest boot and leather seats.

I think there is a lot of snobbery about London accents that does not necessarily exist with other regional accents. Dropping aitches, arks, fanks for thanks - these are things I would prefer my children not to do because they will be judged by how they speak. A Yorkshire accent if you are from Yorkshire is fine, but not everyone there sounds like someone from Last of the Summer Wine. And not everyone in London needs to sound cockney/Jamaican. But I think I might be over sensitive because my parents were so obsessed with me not sounding what they considered to be 'common'.

Yes is arks, we had it at nursery, gently corrected, now stopped. 'like' is similarly being gently stopped. Too young to be a teenage affectation, just a way of speaking I don't want my children to adopt.

Oimissus, someone further up referenced a school with 58 per cent 5 a-c as a good school. My point was really that you need to check carefully before always assuming that things are better elsewhere.

well explained. one of the posters above says 'I'll think about grammar school if my child passes' or words to that effect. My experince passed on family and friends in 3 different grammar school areas is that by year 5 all those that can afford it are tutoring their kids in order to pass the 11+. I am not opposed to the system myself, having been through it, but that was a long time ago and it is very different now. With a lot of prep schools in existence mainly to coach the 11+, and all those in state schools who can afford it and want it also being coached, the competition is fierce. And the local 'comprehensive' will suffer because it does not have the full spread of ability that a school in a non grammar area would have. Also, following this thread,and the comment that the 'cloud of the Academy at Peckahm was hanging over' again paraphrasing - and comments re good schools - depending on what your definition of 'Good' is, if using the Ofsted findings, then the Academy is 'Outstanding' and has 50% of children getting 5 A-C GCSEs including maths and english. A good many schools report highter 5 A-Cs without maths and English. And the results there have doubled in 2 years. So in another 2 years it could be a very different story. I am not arguing with those who move, but I think that the situation is not always bettere elsewere, and people need to know what they are going to, and also have a good idea about what they are leaving behind.

how close to 4? Should she be starting reception class in September? If she is 4 before 31 August she should be going to full time school. If you are a late applicant not sure if you do that via the school or Southwark. If she's not 4 til September then Oaktree, Amott Road pre school, half moon montessori, First Steps, Gumboots all get good reviews. If you are flexible on days it helps. There will be others. School nurseries like Heber, Goodrich, Ivydale etc will all have places allocated but there may be no shows in September.

Rowhill combined with a trip to Bluewater, perfect. Rowhill is half an hour and another world away, closest one I know of. Or check out the spas at the big London hotels- Dorchester, mandarin iriental type places if time is short and money no object

moving baby to own room made a difference to everyone's sleep here. We don't live in a mansion, and kept both bedroom doors open, but those few metres made me relax, stopped me waking him up with my restlessness and meant I did not respond to every twitch so he started to settle ny himself.I got up fed and then got back into my bed-part of the 'keeping bed for sleeping' idea I suppose. Worth a try.

Heber reception is 9 til 3.20. Year 3 upwards do 8.50 til 3.30.

Liz I have the book for you. Is a guide to housework. Can't say it transformed my life but had a few practical hints. Deals with 'chaos'- aka Can't Have Anyone Over Syndrome. Deals with danger spots - the places where piles of stuff build up so rapidly etc. I try very very hard to keep some clear surfaces. But pen pots and bowls of Lego, paper clips, hair clips and annoying small toys reproduce alarmingly in my house.

have bf and mixed fed mine, and the circumstances of each child within the family change things too. No1 was bf til 12 weeks then mixed fed then went onto solids at 16 weeks - because that was the guidance at the time and I then stopped bf because I did not want to bfeed and do solids. That was my choice. Not because it was hard or it made me unhappy but because I thought that was the best thing. No2 was bfeed for 8 weeks then mixed fed for a few weeks then bottle fed. Because bfeeding with a toddler is hard work and it suited me and my family to do formula. No3 was excusively bfed for longer beacause that was what suited me then. And on the subject of marketing etc, when i choose to give formula I asked my mum and so my children has SMA which is what i was fed exclusively from the first drop. Because in 197* that was how it was. And 'every feed counts' is a great slogan. And for new mums reading this, truly, with my youngest about to turn 2, this debate seems increasingly less importantas time goes by. Tales of dark cupboards and tubes are horrendous. I tried expressing. It made me feel miserable - so I stopped.

Heber also recently had an interim inspection. It was previously 'Good' and is continuing 'on track' and so won't need another full inspection in the near future.