ClaireClaire

Hello, thanks all for the replies. Yes, I have access to a dietitian who has taken me through the 'stuff to avoid' and given me some marketing bumpf ? though I still haven't sent off for my free samples and got myself sorted out with the GF food prescription. Thanks for the tip on Glorious Fodder - that looks amazing. I think that's top of the list for the kind of help I need?. I know there are lots of blogs out there and GF recipes etc, I just do not have the headspace to research it. I am too busy looking after hubby + kids, and don't have time to look after myself basically!! So just to have access to a takeaway now and again would be a big help. Know about Olly's in Herne Hill, thanks for that. Haven't tried it yet but do intend to. Haven't tried any rice noodles yet. I joined Coeliac UK as soon as I was diagnosed, which was about 4 months ago now - the electronic directory is fantastic. I think it is the takeaways and convenience food that I'm missing the most? Coffee + croissant in the morning, or being able to walk into a pub/cafe/restaurant if I didn't feel like cooking. Finding something to eat when I'm out and about has been difficult. I've had a couple of salads at Pret, and a soup at Eat, but aside from that I've been relying on Nak'd bars. I know I just need to put the time into sorting this out but I seem to have some sort of mental block against it. Maybe some sort of denial that I actually have to be GF for the rest of my life!! Agree with the suggestion that maybe the best thing is to make the family meals generally GF. We have been doing that already to some extent. Thanks for all the advice - :-) Claire

Hello, I was diagnosed coeliac a few months ago and have been on a gluten free diet, but as a busy working mum with 2 kids I am not finding the time to investigate my new eating options properly. I have a basic repertoire but I'm stuck on limited choices, and it's beginning to wear me down a bit. Has anyone been through anything similar and can offer advice? Does some wonderful person exist who could come in and do me a lovely varied GF meal plan and do the grocery shopping? Someone who can home-cook and deliver me a nice GF meal, takeaway-style?? I know they are basic things and I really should be able to do them myself, but it doesn't seem to be happening. If it had been my child or my husband diagnosed coeliac, I'm sure I would be making the time to do this, but as it's myself, it just seems lower priority and the months are ticking by and I'm still eating Genius bread and boiled eggs for every other meal!! Grateful for any tips. Claire

Hello, thanks for the responses on this. Just want to feed back here to say that I have contacted the school directly as ed_pete suggested, and am reassured. In previous years (e.g. 2012 and 2013) it appears that they have offered the Methods + Applications papers as an alternative to the "Mathematics" paper, as the previous posters have said. The reason for the figures not adding up to a clear either/or pathway is that some pupils might have performed poorly on Methods/Applications and then taken the "Mathematics" paper as well. The results in 2014 as far as I understand are based solely on the EdExcel "Mathematics" exam, which is offered either as the easier "Foundation" level, or the harder "Higher" level. As someone else has noted, the highest grade possible for the Foundation paper is a C, whereas the Higher paper allows grades up to A*. I did get an indication of what the 2014 maths scores are, but I won't post them here as they are still subject to remarking and therefore unconfirmed. But I was reassured by the preliminary figures as they seem in line with the GCSE results for other subjects. Thanks again to those who posted, and also just to add that I was impressed with how quickly the school responded to my question. Finally just to say that I was advised to refer to the DfE website for school performance info: http://www.education.gov.uk/cgi-bin/schools/performance/school.pl?urn=136298&superview=sec&qtype=LA Claire

Thanks very much uncleglen I suspected it was something along those lines... so is it the case that students will EITHER take "Mathematics" OR the two linked exams of "Methods in Maths" + "Applications of Maths"? Is it not the case that the basic Maths paper is obligatory? I'm still a bit unclear, because it looks like, in 2013: the number of students sitting "Mathematics" was 112 the number sitting "Methods in Mathematics" was 137 and the number sitting "App. Mathematics" was only 53. I notice that Alleyn's and Dulwich College for example both seem to have the straightforward "Mathematics" listed in their results tables. Is there a hierarchy of difficulty in the different options for Mathematics GCSEs? Apologies if these all seem like stupid questions... I appreciate that there are different exam boards (Excel and AQA etc) and that there might be Foundation or Higher papers available. if anyone has any further insight to help me figure out Charter's results I would be grateful. Many thanks

Hello, I was wondering if someone could help me interpret the GCSE results for Charter. I haven't found the full subject list of the 2014 results for Charter, so I am only looking at 2013 and 2012, as listed here: http://www.londonschooling.com/?page_id=1081 I'm struggling to understand why the Maths scores seem so low? Perhaps I have the wrong data, but this is what I am looking at (from the website link above) 2013 A* - 0 A - 3.6% B - 20.5% C - 41.1% D - 34.8% 2012 A* - 0.9% A - 0 B - 2.6% C - 58.8% D - 37.7% If this is accurate, it seems to indicate that most people achieve Cs or Ds...?? However, I notice that there are two other maths-related papers ("Methods in Maths" and "Appl. Maths") where the scores are better. Similarly, the "English Lang & Lit" figures are pretty abysmal, however there are also entries on the table for "English Literature" and "English Language" separately which have a more reasonable grade distribution. I'm probably missing some rather important part of the picture - would any kind person be able to help me make sense of this? Many thanks, Claire

Hi Damien, Just left you a voicemail to discuss some work I need done - installing mains-operated interconnected smoke alarms in a number of flats. Look forward to hearing from you. Claire

Hello all, Apols, not strictly FRM but this is always the most helpful place! So, I have a plot of land in south London that I would like to have valued. It is more or less just an empty plot. I'm trying to find a chartered valuation surveyor to value it for me. I've tried a couple of estate agents for leads - no luck. I've also spoken to a chartered buildings surveyor, who said he is not the right man, and that I need a chartered valuations surveyor. Would be grateful for any recommendations? many thanks Claire

Just want to keep this thread going, and encourage people to try this butcher... Today I got: 3 large free-range chicken breasts 4 free-range chicken thighs 8 rashers of thick cut bacon 6 extra large free-range eggs ...for ?10.55!! He's at the Plough end of Lordship Lane, just opposite Sainsbury's Local. Look for the green and white striped awning. Closed Sundays and Mondays.

Hi! Any wild Irish salmon available do you know?

Hello, Just wanted to flag up this butcher again. He is on Lordship Lane, just where it meets Landells Road, opposite Sainsbury's Local. I got 6 free-range chicken thighs there yesterday, nice big ones, for ?2.50!!! And a box of large properly free-range eggs for ?1.20 -- that is half the price of what I would have paid at Sainsbury's! Do check them out if you're passing. They haven't got the plush trappings of WR, but they have good quality stuff at very reasonable prices. Claire

Hello, Just wanted to ask others whether I am being unreasonable. Last week, I borrowed 2 children's DVDs from the library. One was in good condition; the other was scratched up and unwatchable (didn't even get as far as loading in the DVD player, so not just slightly faulty, but totally unusable). This has happened to us many times before; in fact, this is why we often borrow 2 at a time, to increase our chances of getting to watch a movie at all. In every other case, I've taken it back to the library and explained, and they have apologised and given me a refund. No problem. The DVDs were due back yesterday. I took them back today, 1 day late. I expected to pay the ?1 late-fine on the good DVD, and I expected to explain to the librarian (as I have so many times before), that the other DVD was unusable. The librarian I spoke to today agreed to credit me the rental cost of the faulty DVD, however, remarkably, she insisted I pay the ?1 late fee on that same faulty DVD that she had just nullified the rental charge for. Is it just me, or is this absurd? Claire

Hello all, Not really a family room issue, but lots of people in here have experience with building works, so maybe one of you can help... So we have had a whole load of works done on a building I'm associated with. This particular chunk of work has cost around ?30K - there is another chunk coming which will cost around ?150K. We have a surveyor managing the project - he put together specification and put it out to tender. 4 companies tendered for the work. We have now been billed an amount greater than the amount specified in the tender. Certain issues have come up which may have involved more work than they expected, however no contingency was made for these items. Contingency was made for other possibilities which did not arise. I have 2 questions 1. Is it allowable for the contractor to bill a higher amount than was tendered? 2. Is it standard practice to be flexible with the part of the budget allowed for contingency? That is, say ?1000 contingency was made for floors; and when the work was done, no extra work was required on the floors, but it turned out that extra work was required on the windows. Is it standard practice to allow the contingency to be used for a different item? Any help appreciated thank you Claire

Sorry, only just seen these posts Thanks very much unlurked and Pugwash.

Anyone know of any West Indian social groups locally?

Just wanted to post another recommendation for Greg. He came at a half hour's notice to fit a dishwasher for me - it should have been an easy half-hour sort of job, but for all sorts of reasons (poor workmanship by previous contractors, mostly) it turned out to be quite complex, involving removing the kitchen worktop and crawling under the eaves to get at the water pipes. Greg got everything sorted, to a very good standard, and at a fair price. Claire

WorkingMum, I will pm you.

Hello, Yes I agree: the problem is that those types of messages come from a whole variety of sources, not just fairy tales. I think what's important is to sort of have a controlled exposure to these messages, in an environment where you can discuss them together. Banning things (toys/games/books/costumes) hasn't been that helpful in my house. I sensed that my daughter was a bit hurt if I made any negative comments about the dolls she played with, or Disney princess costumes she liked, or whatever it was, even if I tried to do so in a constructive way. I think she took it as me trying to over-ride her choices and impose my own preferences on her playtime. Basically, she took it as a criticism of her personally, rather than a criticism of the toy/costume/whatever. So I backed off from that one, and took the strategy of supporting her choices, whether I agreed with them or not. I just made very general positive comments like, "That looks like fun!" while maintaining a bit of distance from it. The ultimate aim is to bolster her assertiveness and self-confidence, and I think my current strategy does that more effectively than my previous attempt (i.e. simply banning barbie dolls etc) did. [Obviously this is just my experience, and other parents might find a different strategy works better for them.] Sorry, I do have a lot more to say about all this but I am supposed to be working! Will drop back in when I have some time to add more. Claire

Hello, just wanted to give this thread a bump and recommend this excellent book: "Great Books for Girls" by Kathleen Odean http://www.amazon.co.uk/Great-Books-Girls-Inspire-Tomorrows/dp/0345450213/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1363085638&sr=8-1 It lists 600 books with strong female lead characters, organised by reader-age, genre, etc. Here are the criteria the author used when making her selection: "I looked for [books about] strong girls and women who faced the world with courage, either from the first or after overcoming their fears. I found female characters who are creative, capable, articulate, and intelligent. They solve problems, face challenges, resolve conflicts, and go on journeys. These girls are not waiting to be rescued; they are doing the rescuing. Nor are they waiting for a male to provide a happy ending they are fashioning their own stories." I strongly recommend getting hold of a copy. Claire

WorkingMummy, Yes, also concerned and have been since my daughter was younger (she is now 6). The Cinderella story and others like it have problems, I agree; I do not think they are harmless at all. I have a problem not only with those princess and fairy-tale books where the female has to be rescued and her story ends with her being married off; but all those other books and TV shows where females are under-represented or do not exist at all! (Why, amongst the Octonoauts, which my daughter loves, for example, is there only 1 female character? And why is it that only the 3 male characters get to go out on missions? This sends the message that boys are at the centre of the action and get to do all the exciting stuff; girls have to watch from the sidelines. There are numerous books, TV shows and films that are (perhaps unwittingly) based on this paradigm, and I don't think they are at all harmless.) I recommend a book called "Great Books for Girls" by Kathleen Odean. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Great-Books-Girls-Inspire-Tomorrows/dp/0345450213/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1363083548&sr=8-1 Here's one extract from her introduction: "Sexism starts young. Research shows that even preschoolers harbor negative views of females and positive ones of males. In one troubling academic study, three- and five-year-olds viewed a videotape of two infants playing side by side. Half of the children were told that the infant on the left was female and the one on the right, male; the other half were told the opposite. The children proceeded to describe the infant they thought was female as 'small, scared, slow, weak, quiet, dumb and soft.' They described the one identified as male as 'big, mad, fast, strong, loud, smart and hard.' The SAME infant was rated in negative terms when the children believed it was a female, in positive terms when they believed it to be a male." [p3] And the exposure to gender-stereotyped messages intensifies as the children grow older. Have a look at this one, for example: http://www.rachelsimmons.com/2011/04/the-astonishing-sexism-of-hollywood-and-what-it-means-for-girls/ Anyway, I'm sure there will be a variety of views on this; my view is that gender stereotyping will creep in early and insidiously unless you are aware of it and take steps to counteract it. Good luck and WorkingMummy if you would like to discuss further, please PM me. Claire

Maria, I have sent you a PM Claire

Another recommendation for Airport Direct Services! Good communications, friendly and professional driver, arrived on time, helped with bags, had the right car seats for the kids. Will definitely use again.

Hi, I'd suggest trying superkids http://www.superkidsswimmingschool.co.uk/ I've sent you a PM Claire

Hello there, We're going to New Zealand for Christmas (to visit family), and are planning to take the kids out of school for the last week before Xmas holidays. Can any Heber parents advise me on the best way to talk to the school about this? I seem to recall there was some discussion about this on the forum a few months ago, but can't find the thread. Can I just write a letter explaining our circumstances? If the headteacher doesn't give us permission, and we go anyway.... what happens then? Appreciate any advice. Claire

Really? No plain white polo shirts? I missed that the first time round. Ok, that is weird. Why on earth would they be disallowed?? (Of course, I've just bought 6 plain white polos from Sainsbury's and diligently ironed on labels! Ah well...)

Hi, I'm a big fan of this book http://www.amazon.co.uk/Reading-Lesson-Teach-Child-Lessons/dp/0913063029/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1346870179&sr=8-1 ... which is called "Teach your child to read in 20 lessons", if the Amazon link doesn't work. We used Jolly Phonics as well once my daughter started in Reception, but I still prefer this book which takes the old-fashioned approach of starting with words like 'cat', 'dog', etc, and gradually builds up. (I know Jolly Phonics is fun and a lot of kids take to it, but it just seemed like a lot of extra stuff to have to learn! But I'm not knocking it, I know it works for a lot of kids.) You can buy all the Jolly Phonics stuff online, Amazon has everything as usual. If you know that your son's school uses Jolly Phonics, it's probably no harm making the investment now to buy the pack. (Basically, the workbooks 1-7 and the CD with the songs. There's other stuff too, but less useful imo). Having said that... having re-read your post, it sounds like he might not be quite ready for these materials yet? If not ready for these, then start with letters and matching letters to sounds. There are lots of pre-school books in places like WH Smith appropriate for this level. Tracing over letters and saying the names, associating objects with the first letter of their names (C is for cat, etc). Also the Cbeebies magazine usually has pre-reading activities like this, and then the kids get all the stickers and toys etc. hope that helps Claire