canela

why are they so expensive?!!???? and how can you get round them? I hear there's an internet site which gives you alternative numbers or something? why should it cost a small fortune every time you have to ring the child tax line or your bank or something....

mmm, yep, been there too! it really is just a phase and you have to see it with that perspective. for whatever reason that he is not able to vocalise yet, your son just needs some mummy time at the moment. the quickest way to get to the other side of the phase is to give him what he wants. he wants and needs something from you and will keep asking until he gets it. sometimes it's the security that often a mummy gives to children (lots of kids want mummy when sick - even ones a lot older than your son). there is nothing wrong with that - you are not rewarding 'bad behaviour' at all - just responding to a (sick) child's wish to be with his mother. try to encourage your partner not to take it personally - for it really is nothing personal. and at some point during his childhood the tables will turn and daddy will be number 1 for a while

I am inspired! This is cooking weekend!

thank you! I'll give it a go. I think the problem for me is also the fussy kids.....

i can recommend my au pair. she only does one night for us. let me know if interested

thanks. it looks great. but not speedy . i need recipes that are quick and easy too. but looks good for cheapNess!

no - i read that it's not great for vegetarian and we eat mostly veg food. meat once a week. we eat a lot of pulses.

would really appreciate some tips about to provide healthy tasty food whilst working full time. i always cook the night before or early morning as i cannot cook in a rush. tight budget too. i do a lot of until steps and even i am getting bored - plus things complicated by fussy 3 year old. still hiding veg and would really like to stop but no time to do complicated by dishes.

yes i know. don't think her child minDer will keep her on anyway

to be honest, i just can't face the illness over the winter. i don't mind a few colds - it's the tummy bugs that worry me. i know i am over-reacting but i live in fear of the norovirus etc... yes, it's extreme, but i do actually get anxiety attacks over this.... however i am attempting to calm my fears and take the decision based on what is best for my daughter not her crazy mother...

which is better - childminder or nursery? my daughter is just about to get the 15 hours and i had assumed i would send her to a nursery, but now i'm beginning to think more about a childminder instead. mainly i have to confess because i just cannot face a winter of her being sick all the time - which is what happened when my oldest started nursery. i work full time and she's looked after mostly by my partner as well as occasional childminder/babysitter, and really enjoys playgroups and activities but she's not one for big groups of people. i suddenly realised i was just putting her down for nursery because that's what everyone does - but she has a lovely childminder so maybe should just stay there? any thoughts? does it HAVE to be nursery? is it really important?

you poor things! rice is usually recommended for upset stomachs as it has a calming effect - so perhaps rice cakes as a finger food? i'd go for the cooked apple too, and also slices of pear and banana. or grated apple can be a finger food too. or healthy fruit ice lollies? just keep it as gentle as possible for her. hope you are all better soon!

why not eat while she sleeps and enjoy a nice, long, boozy lunch as opposed to one over in about 15 minutes as it would be with your toddler there....

completely agree! also think we i.e. society in general and parents in particular - need to be careful about how we judge people and especially children. not for one moment saying that anyone posting here is guilty of this!!! just that it makes me think. my own child is pretty much bottom of the class in everything academic, but his teacher says he is really happy at school, he is making progress, enjoys learning, and is good at lots of other things that aren't reading or writing based. of course i want to make sure that he is skilled up to deal with the world, but i don't want to fall into looking at only that side of things. which i have to admit is sometimes a wee bit difficult as concerned grandparents etc always point out how advanced other grandchildren are for their age.... he is only 6 and as far as i'm concerned i want him to be able to develop his own particular strengths...

more recycling and rubbish collections

I was scared the first time round which made me put all my decisions in the hands of the hospital staff.....ended up with forceps. it wasn't in the uk and i think people here would be shocked.....no private rooms for most of the birth - just a line of beds separated by curtains. whilst i wasn't deeply traumatised the experience made me fight my corner and get a home birth the next time round. it wasn't available on the nhs and i had to pay a LOT of money for it, but i just really wanted to have a good birth experience and knew i couldn't do this in a hospital. no fault of the staff necessarily - just a result of the way it is all set up. i was more scared of the hospital than of the birth. it was so worth it. i think it's so sad how difficult it is for women to get a birth experience that is right for them. the effects of a traumatic birth can be deep and scaring - surely worth making the effort to give women that bit more support.

ditto mucas

do you want to live and bring up kids in london or have you always thought you would leave one day? either is fine.

to be brutally honest, my question would be how to get husband to look at me like a (apologies for cheesiness) WOMAN rather than a mummy.....

i had 2 boob addicts - one still going at 3. tips are to offer your child food and snacks they really really love - for mine was yoghurt and juice - at regular intervals. and then offer a bottle. lots of kids will take a bottle but you may well find he becomes a bottle addict instead. that's fine - just don't expect him to want to give up suckling altogether - boob, bottle or dummy.

i remember my mum was in a babysitting circle for years. you just use "credits" rather than real money. i'd certainly be up for one in ED.

i second that! most nights it ends up all 4 of us plus the cat!

we don't get a lot but just this year we've started to make the break....the little one is 3 now. we do swaps with my sis over who gets all 4 kids for 24 hours, and also just started leaving them with my mum for 24 hours at a time. this is only now and again and takes a LOT of effort and logistics as neither my mum or sis live in London....but it is so worth it to be able to go out and sleep in the next morning....

mmmmm....I agree that this affects so many couples. how could it not? i think you have to find out what works for you. personally if i sat down with my partner and agreed a timetable he'd run a mile..... totally agree with finding time to just connect. i think sometimes we don't realise how little quality time we spend together, how little physical contact we have, where have the massages gone etc? also how we tend to see each other in slob-around-the-house kind of clothes. i think spend time sorting out those things first and then sex will follow.....it worked for me after a veeeeery long "dry patch". i think sometimes you also have to be honest and think about what else is getting in the way. it's a rare couple that doesn't also find they argue more after kids and there is often some resentment or anger shifting around in the sub-conscious.

I think the real issue is lack of support for those who want to breastfeed but find it difficult. i respect any woman's choice not to breastfeed - as a previous post said we are just lucky to live somewhere we know our children will be fed one way or another - but i do think it is sad when a woman wants to but has little help and encouragement. After 3 days of searing pain i was about to abandon ship when by chance hubby saw a leaflet for breastfeeding support group, i went to the lady's house that night and got the advice and care i needed. which meant i got to enjoy what for me was something i really wanted to do. and whilst the "breast is best" might have got a bit extreme here, it is just as horrible the other way around in some places. a friend of mine at the breastfeeding group i ended up at in spain once was made to leave a plane and catch the next one because passengers complained she was breastfeeding her baby!