RenF

Hope you see this! Am trying to reply to your PM but your mailbox is full...

I scratched and slightly dented the passenger door of our car this weekend. Has anyone used a local garage to repair this kind of damage and would recommend? Thanks

Here's the link to the clapham one: http://www.nct.org.uk/branches/clapham/breastfeeding-cafe-local-support And, more local drop ins, including Peckham library: http://www.nct.org.uk/branches/lewisham/life-baby/breastfeeding

There's one that meets in Peckham library (unsure which day, sorry). If memory serves, two midwives run it along with breast feeding advisors and the midwives are trained to check for tongue tie and refer to the tongue tie clinic. I also went to a great nct advice group held in clapham south- a bit far out of area but it really was very good and that was where I was really helped to get through some incredibly painful damage. I can't recall the address off the top of my head but it was held in a church hall. I think it may have moved now, but if you google it should come up. As Strawbs said above HV and midwives should have an up to date list too.

Yes gas and elec. Good luck with your search!

We're with Ovo. Went with them after seeing recommendations on this forum and doing a comparison. Decent customer services and website too. Think our bills have been noticeably lower, but we've also got meaner with the heating too!

The only advice I can give (and which was the thing which got my daughter a place) was going in person to the nursery and speaking the the admin/manager. I got the distinct impression that the system a lot of nurseries have in place is slightly different from a clear 'list' that you or I might imagine. Of course, they may still be over subscribed and without places but at least they can't ignore you in person!

We use the calpol vaporiser- but do also give cough mixture if the coughing is persistent (my daughter is 2). I don't think it's particularly effective other than as a soothing thing and makes me feel like I'm doing something at 3am having been woken up for the nth time! I also think that not having the room too warm helps (read this somewhere and found turning her radiator down a few notches worked). Edited to add: actually the Calpol thing is a plug in menthol thing rather than a vaporiser.

Hello, I have a new unopened box of these: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B00068Q7LC 'Hide and squeak eggs'. You are welcome to them, but I am a bit restricted on getting them to you due to work/childcare/ not having a car! Can I post?

I'd try (depending on budget): IKEA Great little trading company Not on the high street (.com)

Cross posted sugarmouse!

Hmm, I don't think that's how will aid works. You make a donation to charity instead of paying normal solicitor fees (something like ?90 for a single or ?140 for a pair of wills is the suggested donation). We're just in the process of getting ours drawn up via a solicitor we found on the will aid website, so will report back any hidden sums to charities/others when we get the first draft. Solicitors taking part in the will aid month get really busy and usually only allocate a certain number of appointments to clients coming via this route- we made our appointment in October and had to ring a few before we got an appointment.

We just keep on rolling in our house- have never tried to adjust bedtime to changing clocks, just adjusted ourselves to the clocks and put to bed at the time we normally would (regardless of whether this means bed an hour 'later' or 'earlier' than the previous day. Seems to work for us, and less complicated than trying to do anything else!

I have no real experience with this (my daughter is younger), but a couple of things struck me reading your post 1- the list of things she will eat is not SO tiny... clearly not the most varied/exciting of diets but seems to be hitting most of the major food groups in some respects? That's not to say it isn't extremely frustrating for you obviously! 2- Is it a texture thing? The meals you describe are all quite sauce based and involve lots of things being combined. Maybe it's texture, or not being able to identify what is in each thing? Could you 'give in' to her need for plain/separate foods at meals but put a spoonful of something a bit more exotic on her plate as a compromise to try? I really don't know what the common wisdom is with 'fussy' eaters (or those who just have a particular palate!) but it sounds like you are being hugely patient, and I like the idea of involving in food prep too. If it helps at all both my sisters were 'fussy' or particular about food, but both now eat a range of foods, enjoy different flavours etc, but remain quite stubborn about particular foods they simply won't eat. They are both healthy and enjoy eating, but just aren't that adventurous.

What about a jug of cool water which you/she could pour over as she wees?

H&M? Gap?

We took our little girl to Sketch for afternoon tea when she was less than a year old. The decor and atmosphere are lovely and a bit fairy tale like which kept her entertained. We had a lovely high tea with a glass of champagne. I was nervous beforehand about the reception we and snotty child would get but the staff couldn't have been nicer and seemed happy to have a small person in the tea room. Pleasantly surprised- we had a lovely afternoon.

You poor thing, this sounds horrendous. In my opinion you're a hero for feeding twins anyway, let alone through these types of problems. My breastfeeding experience is limited to one single baby! Always found kellymom useful and there seem to be lots of resources for recurrent mastitis etc on there: http://kellymom.com/bf/concerns/mother/recurrent-mastitis/ Apologies if you've already found this. All the best.

My second recommendation for Gary who came at short notice to install a new light fitting for us after it came with no instructions or indication of which wires were which! Reliable, reasonable and very friendly.

@laney1 indeed! Great minds etc...

Thank you for the replies- trying to get things in perspective and these have helped.

Hoummus and carrots sticks/celery sticks? Fruit and yogurt Homemade (if you've the inclination) muesli/cereal bars with plenty of healthy seeds/nuts etc but also honey for sweetness? Nuts and dried fruit Things to make a smoothie with ( we do banana, natural yogurt, milk and oats) Edited to add: cross posted with above!

I'm hoping not to come across as too pathetic with this post, but it is something I have been stuck thinking about for a while, and wondered if it was just my experience. Is anyone else a bit lonely? I had my daughter 19 months ago, and in many respects life has returned to (a sort of) normality. I go to work four days a week, my husband and I occasionally get out for dinner/drinks or away for a weekend on our own (much more rarely). I enjoy my work (for the most part). I am the only one in my circle of close friends with a child. Recently I have realised that I do most of the 'running' in arranging to meet up. It seems always to be me suggesting a drink after work, or meeting up at the weekend. Its left me feeling a bit like a desperate needy person! I'm pretty sure its not that my friends have decided en masse to not like me anymore, but I guess whilst I was focussing on having my child and for at least the first year basically being pretty much focussed on that alone, their lives have moved on too. (A couple have got married etc). But given that I am making myself available to meet up, and try really hard to arrange babysitting or my husband to look after my daughter so I can go out, they just don't seem to make the first suggestion to meet up like they used to. Are they just assuming I won't be able to make it? Should I say something? Or should I just keep plugging away in the hope that eventually things will return to how they once were? Or should I just accept that life with a child means being out of the loop of the rest of the world? Any experiences/advice welcome (even of the 'pull yourself together' variety).

Echoing pebbles and Pickle here- but seriously at 4 weeks old you absolutely cannot create 'bad' habits. I do despair of these professionals who so casually and carelessly drop these conversational bombs. Do they really not realise the impact on a new parent?! At that age, the only place my daughter would sleep at night was on mine or her daddy's chest. At 19 months she settles herself to sleep in her cot and sleeps through the night. Yes, we had a journey to get to this point, with some pretty bad bits along the way admittedly, but I'm pretty certain letting her sleep on our chests had very little to do with establishing a long term bedtime routine...

Love the rivoli ballroom idea. Horniman museum? They have the lovely glasshouse outside? Dulwich gallery? Do dulwich college hire out rooms? There's a great space in Borough called the Jerwood Space which has lovely rooms and does weddings but I think also just hires space out. Loads of pubs have rooms above which you don't necessarily have to use their catering for. Also, when looking around/booking my top tip would be to describe your do as a 'family party' rather than anything associated with a wedding- the price goes up tenfold at the mention of the word!