samstopit

Andy and Sid from cbeebies are both sufficiently hot to get me through a long thursday afternoon.

(Even of the kids are at nursery).

It seems that Rye Oak primary has been left out of this map? We are on the Gardens so 'black hole' territory. St Johns is our closest school, I think Rye Oak is the second closest.

Thanks for your reply Trish. That's reassuring. However we won't be using the Goodrich site so if anybody knows more about the site(s) that St Johns children use that would be great too.

The Rainbow club is the most convenient for us on Ammott Road. Anybody use it?

Hi

Like many of you I'm starting to check out the after school pick up options for my son who will be starting Reception in September. After school club seems by far the cheapest option but I don't know if it will be ok for him, I don't want him to be the only little one.

If anybody has any experience of either of either the Rainbow or Gumboots after school clubs I'd be very grateful for any info. Is it easy to get a place? What time do you need to pick up by? Will he be left to fend for himself or are there lots of staff on site? How many other children will be there on a typical day?

Many thanks

S

Thanks Fuschia

Hi

Does anybody know how to dial 999 in European countries? Does it vary from one country to the next or does 999 work abroad?

Thanks if you can advise - we are covering a few European countries this year so I'd like to know what to do.

S

We've been to Sandy B's a couple of times as I grew up near there and my family live nearby. Some of the chalets are much nicer than others, I'd recommend shelling out extra for the newer ones. The restaurant looks tacky but is actually very good. The pool is great and there is a ball pit too which my kids love. The kids play ground is really good. Marwell zoo is nearby, would definitely recommend it. I haven't been to the Peppa Pig park but I expect we will succumb eventually!

And it's a lovely part of the country. I used to laugh as a child when holiday makers cooed and pointed at the new forest ponies - now I have two little London kids who scream 'PONY!' every time we pass one.

We went to a couple of meetings last year organised by Friends of Peckham Rye where we looked at plans for a 'natural play area' which was going to extend the current one o clock club - some info below which suggests planning permission has only just been granted. There is mention of a water feature.

http://moderngov.southwarksites.com/ieDecisionDetails.aspx?ID=1925

me too, I didn't realise there was confusion over whether or not to use them alternately tbh. My GP and NHS direct were quite clear about using them alternately to keep the temp down.

Having read this thread I'm going to pledge to swap chocolate for fruit / healthy snacks until the spare tyre goes.

Has anybody seen the graze.com web site? They send you your first box free, I got mine yesterday and it was lovely. Nice healthy snacks to keep you off the biscuits.

Good luck everyone.

S

I'll PM you with details.

I hope you don't get too many more unhelpful comments.

Please tell me we are not talking seriously about bringing back the cane?

We had the cane at school too and were hit with rulers. I can remember children being dragged into the teacher's store cupboard by their hair and given the ruler. One girl wet herself with the fear of it and was hit again. This was normal, a state primary school in a nice area.

I for one am very glad that we have moved on this.

Hi

The new SEN and Disability Green Paper was published by DFE yesterday. It's open for consultation until 30th June. Sorry I don't know how to post the link but if you go to education.co.uk then search in publications under 'Support and Aspiration' it should come up.

The blurb says:

Every child deserves a fair start in life, with the very best opportunity to succeed. Currently, life chances for the approximately two million children and young people in England who are identified as having a special educational need (SEN), or who are disabled, are disproportionately poor.

Support and aspiration: A new approach to special educational needs and disability makes wide-ranging proposals to respond to the frustrations of children and young people, their families and the professionals who work with them.

The vision for reform set out in this Green Paper includes wide ranging proposals to improve outcomes for children and young people who are disabled or have SEN, minimise the adversarial nature of the system for families and maximise value for money.

This publication marks the start of a four month period of consultation and a period of testing proposals in local areas from September 2011. The Department will work across government and with local and national partners to set out detailed plans by the end of the year.

The consultation will run from 9 March to 30 June, and the Department welcomes your views on the proposals.

Visit the DfE website for more information

Yes please Fuschia that would be great. I'll PM you.

S

good luck I hope that helps x

Thanks Dullified. Sounds like a plan.

fuschia, which Smiths did you go to? The Peckham one say their Legoland promotion won't start until next month.

Thanks

S

Thanks! I'll head down to Smiths today, needed to go anyway so perfect.

S

I know this may sound disgusting but half a teaspoon of cayenne pepper stirred into an innocent smoothie really works. Makes your eyes water a bit but really wakes you up. The only trouble is people look at you funny in the office.

I never drank coffee before I went back to work but now I depend on it which isn't ideal really.

We have a scuttlebug bike if that's any use?

Hi Mima

Sorry to hear you're having a tough time. I will never forget the exhaustion of those early weeks and the buckets of tears I cried. It does get better but it sounds like you may need some help in the short term.

If you put 'night nanny' into the search engine for this site (top right) you will find a thread with the title night nannies where a poster called flutterby asks about how to find a night nanny. A few of the posters had names and email addresses of how to contact people who can help. Alternatively if you google night nannies you might find some local services come up. Sorry I don't know of any myself.

A night nanny is somebody who can feed (if you express breast milk into a bottle) and change your baby through the night so that you can get some sleep. It's a great idea as sleep will help you to feel better about everything.

Good luck.

S xx

I put my son in nursery one day a week when he was just under 2 and he never settled. I can see now in hindsight that I should have spread it over a few mornings a week to give him a better chance to settle in. Just doing one day a week seems not to work, they have got used to being with you again and don't get to feel at home at nursery. In the end I took him out and waited until he was a bit older, then started him doing more days when he was 3.

I hope you can find a way to make it work.

S x

If you search under Harris Boys school you will find a very long thread started by cn150 on 5th October 2010 which covers all of this ad nauseum.

still chuckling at the cucumber - like poo at the bottom of the slide :)

my daughter was one of those babies who didn't poo for days and then saved it all up for the time we are visiting friends. She would have to be hosed down.

Neither can I. Mine have both had it (chickenpox that is, not the jab) it was pretty awful for a few days but I was glad to get it out of the way.