The Nappy Lady

Can recommend several fantastic restaurants, including one that has a children's play area - it's a joy. I find there are really good options for the children too at the Spanish restaurants, lovely fresh fish, vegetables etc rather than some very poor choices at the regular tourist haunts. Will post some later for you.

My hubby uses a Humax rear seat with panniers but placement is critical & it's a fiddle getting it all on. I have a seat that goes in front of me for my now nearly 3 year old & much prefer it. Check out front mounted bike seats on eBay. Wee ride is one which I borrowed & it was good but the one I have now fixes to 1 bracket on my handlebar stem & I prefer it as I can quickly remove it so it's out of the way when I'm cycling alone. Can't recall the make but it's German I think, possibly no longer made. I feel it's safer with little ones in front of you & easier to talk to them too. Also if you do have a back pack it's not in their face & they can see where they are going.

It's our 5th year here in a row....you'll love it!

Hola from sunny Mallorca! We are in Puerta Pollenca right now, it is very child friendly, plenty of high chairs & indulgent waiters! If you eat out fairly early 7.30 ish there are usually plenty of seats but it gets busy later so book your high chair in advance to avoid disappointment if planning on eating out later. I always take my own medical kit with sachets of Calpol, throat spray etc so if any of us feel ill we can hopefully treat it right away even if it's a weekend. Every member of the family should have a European Health Insurance card - if you google you can get it on line for free. This entitles you to free medical treatment whilst away if needed - keep it with your passports & take with you if going to a doctor or hospital. Spar here sells Cravendale milk which is the same as at home & keeps best in the hot climate. Spanish milk is best avoided we find! Bring Sun Sense factor 50 for the children, it's 4 hours water resistant & brilliant - pharmacy on Northcross Rd sell it. It is really blistering here today so we are using UV suits on them too during the main part if the day. As the previous poster said it's easy to get other stuff out here so don't worry too much. I do agree about the pavements & double buggys - 2 singles would be better for sure. We have a wonderful friend, Spanish lifeguard who babysits for us if you are around Alcudia or Puerta Pollenca I can highly recommend her!

Bee74 this must have been terrifying, so glad you both got home safely & hope you're not too shaken. bee74 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I was swimming with my toddler in Peckham Pool 5-6 > pm. Pool shut and let people out but not in. They > let us out from back door so we would be closer to > car, but car was blocked just outside on the main > street because of rioters. We could not moved for > ten minutes and I was terrified for my little one > in the back as youth was walking past with stones, > etc. Finally two policemen noticed the 5 blocked > cars and managed to move bus out of the way. Got > as far as the pharmacy (ABC?) at the big traffic > lights when we had to veer off towards Goose Green > because of the burning bus on the main road. Some > kids with metal chairs smashed a car just two cars > ahead of me, which had slowed down to let some > pedestrains through. Finally got home going via > Dogkennel Hill... Boy safe in bed now, but what > the hell is going on?!

Gavin, Thank you so much for this, it is much appreciated. I don't understand the gap in play equipment for 8-13 year olds I must say, I feel the adventure playground meets the needs of this age group very well. Personally I feel the 3-5 year olds are the ones that miss out the most at Peckham Rye - too old to find the 1 o'clock club very exciting, too young for the adventure playground & left with a rather dull & old fashioned play area that hasn't had any new equipment in years. I also think the logic is odd, as surely parents using the 1 o'clock club are more likely to be there with a child 2-3 years older than an 8 year old?? Regardless of this, it is great to feel you are pursuing some genuine concerns so thank you.

Look at rearfacing.co.UK & take it from there....

Sorry about the typos - on my phone!

Hi Bishop There is a SLT who doesa drop on at Ivydale Children's Centre once a month. She's lovely & really reassuring & informative. If you call Ivydale School (Nunhead) & ask for Andreas in the children's centre he will be able to tell you when sheis next in. I think he is there even though it is school holidays. One question - is your son being brought up bi-lingual? I suspect you'd have mentioned it, but the reason I ask is that it's very common for bilingual children to take longer to get talking. I'm sure it's all fine, but in my experience if you as a parent are concerned it is best to see an expert. There is enough to think/worry about as a parent without adding to it!

Eco balls & soapnut husks etc - OK on everyday stuff that isn't truly 'dirty' but hopeless on children's socks / crawling baby clothing or cloth nappies - in my experience!! Xx

At Brockwell Park 'Beach/Water Play today. How right they have got it here by comparison. The kind of play area Southwark really lacks.

I ended up with a mouldy muslin & nothing shifted the stain from it so now it's a floor cleaning cloth!

Brockwell Park or Burgess Park for paddling pools I'd say (I hear the latter is not very clean this year).

They made the area bigger Ko, but with a bit of common sense could have moved & re-used the fencing.

Not sure Southwark would be liable if someone gets bitten - it is a public park after all. Surely the issue would be between the owner of the dog & the injured party. However I don't think it's great that dogs can roam freely on an area where children are likely to be playing, mainly because of the issue of them urinating & pooing in the area. Plus male dogs love to wee up something as we all know, so the play equipment is almost certainly going to get 'it'. Such a shame, I suspect the old fencing has been sent to landfill when it would have done the job just fine - that's what really upests me. I generally think Southwark is good about Green issues, but if other been thrown away, what a waste.

LWL, I too am grateful to Southwark for the revamp, and for a 5 year old it is great, and yes the tap issue is easily fixable. However, the point is, fixing it will cost more money, which is not easily available. My 7 year old loves the new swing and climbing frame, but then again, she also has the Adventure Playground to enjoy. My point is that there is a gap in the market, where 3-5/6 year olds are not well catered for with play equipment, and I really thought this area might have addressed that. Personally, I think if they fix the tap issue the 1 o'clock club area will be fine, and actually with the old equipment put back in the new, expanded area it will hopefully work really well for the majority of people. For me, with a almost 3 and 7 year old, it's ideal as I both children will have something to keep them happy. However, I'd still like to have seen a little more water play, which is what I originally raised funds for, and I still think without any greater expense they could have installed a landscaped slide (like the one at Goose Green) and maybe a tunnel, and that would have had more value and been better suited to 3-5 year olds, alongside the new swing, and instead of the climbing frame and the strange posts etc. But hey, I guess we are all going to have differing views, according to our children and their ages.

Snowboarder - tell me more - where in BP, is it free, did you park in BP car park etc??

When I raised all that Cleaner, Greener, Safer money 5 & 4 years ago it was to renovate the old paddling pool or to give us something new but similar - a proper hot weather water play area. A gully with a trickle in it is not going to keep any child amused for long - the natural stream running through the park is more exciting I'm afraid.

I think what is depressing is feeling that a lot of money has been spent, but now more will be needed to - potentially move the fence around the water outlet - eventually put fencing in (what happened to the old fencing that was there & could have been re-used/recycled & would have worked just fine The metal posts with circles on top probably cost loads & the money could have been better spent. The climbing frame again, was no doubt expensive & is suited to older children who already have the fantastic adventure playground. I'm not so much depressed as frustrated. I'm so pleased to have the new play area, but I don't feel it meets the brief in terms of what was needed or expected. I'm also really disappointed by the water play & think something a bit more exciting could have been done. We will still be traipsing off to Sydenham Wells & Brockwell Park etc on hot sunny days which is such a shame. :-(

Hmm, have you got the straps high enough? If reaching to do up yourself I'd think you must have, but guessing you may still have hubby at home & helping you? This really shouldn't be happening so it sounds like something isn't right. Hard to say without seeing you in it though.

There should be 2 straps that clip together to keep straps on your shoulders. You have to reach up behind your neck & clip them together, if you don't the straps always slide off your shoulders. There are on line videos of how to wear in each position if you Google.

I asked the 1 o'clock club staff, she said the new play area (Inc the water outlet) does not belong to them, but the outlet is inside their fence because they have the main on & off switch inside their building. I asked about the gate & big children coming in - she said they can't as it's bolted. So I pointed out the water would only flow if the children at the 1o'clock club pressed the button - she didn't realise there was a button & thought it flowed all the time!! I saw 2 toddlers get soaking wet feet & clothes today in about 10 minutes! Soaked leather shoes - argghh. My main issues: 1) water outlet is more suitable for older children & needs to be on the other side of the fence 2) gully is more suitable for toddlers, if they are to access any of it. Access to the gully alone is totally boring for most children as water hardly flows in it. 3) the incline in the gully seems wrong as it only got as far as the rocks, then it stopped as it can't run uphill! 4) the steel posts with discs on top are a complete waste, really sad not to see more stuff similar to what they have put in at Goose Green - tunnels etc 5) the new climbing frame is great for 6 year olds plus, but they already have the adventure playground. Such a shame not to see landscaping with slides etc for 3-5 year olds which is what the park lacks F - I gather the old 1 0'clock club playground equipment will be put back into the remaining danced off area next week & I think then the 1 o'clock club will be OK. HOWEVER, I think it is really sad that this playground makeover seems to have been done without very much thought about how it will actually work for parents, or what equipment was needed. What a missed opportunity. The water play is a huge let down & most of the equipment, bar the swing is either pointless or too grown up. My little 'nearly 3 year old' was hugely disappointed. :-( People please go to the opening tomorrow morning (10am I think) & tell the councillors all this if you agree!! Molly

Snowboarder - I've got the Ergo & a ring sling. You are welcome to borrow both to try out. Xx

I was told to help until they are 6 but still help my 7 year old now & again. We bought disclosure tablets from the chemist (those red tablets that you chew that show up the plaque). I let my daughter brush then used the tablet so she could see where she was missing. Use 1 every now & again to check technique & hide them away the rest of the timer you get nagged non stop!! My rule is I do the first bit, then they can take over - morning & night. That way you know their teeth are all being cleaned twice a day.

Saw a film where the used a disposable nappy on a gunshot wound!! :-\ I've got the Waitrose nappy cream, it is lovely but I use it more on hands & feet than my face. I have some old muslins that I use as cleaning cloths now, very good for polishing wood or windows. Have thought before that a beaker would be very useful in bed for drinking wine or tea (depending on the moment!!) whilst lying down. Not very romantic though!! PMSL.