yummers

My daughter goes to the south London school of ballet on a Saturday at Harris Girls and absolutely loves it. Highly recommended.

Think that Elizabeth Pantley recommends that at 18 months a child should have around 13-14 hours sleep total, decreasing to 13 hours by 2 - other "sleep experts" seem to recommend similar from my memory. Think how this is spread over naps and night time really depends on your LO. My 21month old has a single nap of 1.5-2 hours. She goes down for her nap sometime between 11.30 and 12.30 depending on how her day is going. She then goes to bed between 18.30 and 19.00 and wakes up sometime between 06.00 and 07.00. I always let her sleep as long as she wants. We had a little bit of difficulty going to sleep last month, but seemed to sort itself out with a bit of perseverance, as most baby/toddler sleep things seem to! Hope this helps.

I did a Bobbi Brown lesson before my wedding which was great. They do lots of different lessons which I think are really good and their ethos is about enhancing and looking natural which I really like from day to day. I love their make up too. Tricky to attend if you may find getting to central London difficult however. Maybe Stratford might be easier? Sali Hughes is great. My essentials are: - good moisturiser - BB cream (I use Estee Lauder) - mascara (currently using Clinique which I like, but not wedded to any in particular) - natural colour lippie/tinted lip balm - eyebrow brush and eye shadow in a colour that is slightly darker than your eyebrows. This one sounds bizarre but is key. Your eyebrows frame your whole face and whenever mine are coloured in and "done" is when I look most pulled together. Was edgy as hell about it to begin with though... Another option may be to consider a make up artist coming to your house to give you a lesson? They should be able to advise on good products for you and show you some new techniques. Would be expensive, but in the interests of then only buying what you need, plus convenience, may be worth it if it is something you can stretch to? I'm so jealous of your blank canvas. Have fun!!

Depends what you want...canvas/leather? Lots of pockets vs more streamlined? I treated myself to a Whistles one when I went back to work. Love it. Roomy enough and love the fact that it has a zip all the way around the top. Very high quality and no concern about hardiness, although it is a fashion bag rather than an expedition rucksack so not built to take quite as much! If you want something similar then it's worth looking on the outnet to see if they have anything, or Grazia often do a 25% off at Whistles thing...

Ooooh, sad I won't be able to make it tomorrow. Rubbish work! Although last long shift...hurrah! Hope to see you all soon xx

I gave birth at kings 18 months ago and was told that I had to register at Lambeth, in Brixton, as Kch is in Lambeth (other side of the road and it would be in Southwark!). No choice! Would much prefer to go to Southwark. Will do that this time for sure, based on my new knowledge!

Highly recommend Anya. Her pregnancy and post natal pilates classes are excellent.

Shanie from manipediwaxclub. She is friendly, fastidious about detail, and really good about working around kids. http://themanipediwaxclub.com/treatments/waxing-menu/

Lucy - really good link and makes a compelling case for the services to remain open. Do any of the local councillors have any more information they can give us?

Hi all! Sad I've missed previous meets but hopefully will make this Thursday. May be a bit late depending on toddler bedtime... Hope to meet some of you there! Holly

Hello! I'm due my second mid October, so still early days, but already getting excited. My daughter is 16 months now, so am a bit petrified of the thought of having 2 under 2, but sounds like there are a few of us in a similar boat, so we can all be moral support for each other! Looking forward to meeting you all at some point. X Holly

I'd also like to recommend Jo. She's friendly, trustworthy, and cleans my house beautifully. It always smells amazing and is always spotless after she has been, which is a lovely start to my weekend. I also love the fact that she brings her own products. Firstly because then I only have to have small amounts of my own cleaning products in the house (which then get sparse use, ahem), and secondly because they smell sublime and are all natural.

Yep jelly tots in Herne Hill is good. Other options that I find good for my 15 month old are tiny gym in Camberwell leisure centre, and bubbly bees which is on townley road. All payg. Bubbly bees is especially good for littlies. Have a look on edtots for times.

Golly you poor thing. My daughter did a very similar thing at 12 months for about 6 weeks. She had been really good about going to sleep and then became absolute monster. I put it down to teething (Calpol/ibuprofen certainly helped and we now have 4 new molars) plus separation anxiety. There were a number of occasions where I would have to get in the cot with her to settle her before getting out when she was really sleepy! Then did a bit of gradual retreat, but mostly ended up with her falling asleep with my hand under her cheek. After a while she started to let my husband put her to bed again as long as he laid on the floor next to her cot (on a specially bought mattress!) while she fell asleep. It got gradually better and then after about 6 weeks my husband was able to put her to bed and leave the room. For the last 6 weeks she positively encourages us to leave her in her cot when she goes to bed, waving and saying bye bye. She is now 15 months. I Don't know if any of my experience will help as it sounds like you've tried most things, so what I really wanted to share is that I'm sure it will get better again. Grit your teeth, have lots of relaxing time once bedtime is done, and I'm sure very soon things will be looking better again. Lots of cuddles in the day and peekaboo if you think there is an element of separation anxiety. Good Luck!

I have been going to hummy mummies for over a year now, and absolutely love it. It really is such a lovely activity, both for me and my baby. Richard is fantastic and chooses great sings for us to belt out. The atmosphere is welcoming and relaxed, meaning I don't worry when my baby starts rampaging! Quite simply, it's great.

Hi - I attended the Jelly Belly sessions (in both parks, and also a pilates course). Both Zoe and Kellie are excellent at keeping everyone motivated and the exercises are great - I could usually feel the effects the next day! Classes are fun and all welcome. Also, the postnatal plus class was great once I felt like I was up to it. Their website is http://www.jellybellypt.com Another woman runs classes in Hilly Fields/Greenwich; I haven't used her so cannot comment, but here is the link to her website anyway: http://www.fitnessformummies.co.uk/mummies/index.html Hope that helps.

My 1 year old attends Piplings ED for 2 sessions a week. Agree that getting hold of the administrators is quite frustrating, but have also found that once you are in things are much easier; for example, we found organising an ad hoc day recently to be trouble free and got a very swift response from the manager. Also, we received notice of an available place only 1 month before my return to work, despite applying 4 months before hand; so OP you may yet hear from them! Regarding the care, I am very satisfied. My baby obviously can't tell me how it is (!) but all the older children at pick up and drop off all seem very happy. Whilst settling her in the care I saw was genuine, with all children smiling, laughing, and engaged. I found that all the nursery staff were engaged with the children, whereas at some nurseries I visited I found some staff to just be observing, and not really interacting. Generally very happy with my choice, but also feel your pain. So tricky when you have a return to work date and don't know if you have childcare sorted. Good luck!

Jelly belly. Kellie is excellent. Classes are small, so you get individual attention, and she is fan with the babies. Knows her stuff, too!

Bed nest for us. Brilliant invention and worked really well, especially as it is height adjustable. Also, you can hire it rather than buying it, which may be of use if you don't plan on using it after this baby.

You could try Shanie, of manipediwaxclub. She does an excellent gel Mani and pedi. My pedi always lasts about 6 weeks and my sister's Mani's last a good 2, despite running after a toddler. Her website is www.themanipediwaxclub.com and her number is 07976480008. X Ed: should probs make it clear that She is a mobile beautician...

I would also like to highly recommend Alan. He is a lovely guy and did an excellent job; managed to fix the lock without having to fit a new one and was honest and upfront about everything. Really good value and I will definitely use him again for any lock related problems! Thanks Alan!

We got our appliances from Boots appliances online. They were the cheapest, and I got loads of boots advantage card points (about ?100 worth) which meant that all my toiletries were free for a while. Would def do that again!

I'd just like to recommend Shanie. She is lovely and brilliant with children too, so you don't need to worry about your children being there whilst you have your pampering! I have had an excellent wax - very thorough and relatively painless as waxes go! I have also had gel pedicures which have been consistently blissful, beautifully done, and long lasting. Very happy to recommend her! Thanks Shanie!