Yak

I share your pain. I have been avidly checking Traffic England (which has live travel info, and some live camera feeds) and the TfL roads website (which has both live camera signals and message signs) to see if we can get ourselves to Devon on Christmas Eve. I suspect we'll try and make a dash for it, but am starting to load up the freezer just in case not!

LadyR and Ruth_B - I've been getting it on my jawline and neck too - and I thought I was the only one with freakily-located spots! If I take nothing else from this thread it will be not being alone in oddly located pregnancy induced spottyness. I am half way through second trimester and I've had no sign of it getting better (yet...). This weather can't help can it, with the mixture of arctic blasts and indoor heating that we are exposed to. Bring on this "blooming" malarkey that I hear so much about... And welcome, LadyR from another semi-lurker!

My sympathies.....I think it's definitely worth asking for a referral, as others have said. I also third the sunbed / exposure to as much sun as your man can get. I only have it relatively mildly with the odd really bad flare up, but the difference a bout of sun makes to my skin makes we want to cry with happiness. It's made such a difference that we now try and get away in winter for some sun if there are any cheap deals around. (Plenty to Sharm el Skeikh at the moment!) I tried eliminating all dairy products but it didn't seem to make a significant difference - booze and stress definitely worsen it, as does anything tight clothes-wise that isn't 100% cotton. In terms of non-steriod creams to try and control between flare-ups , the only one which doesn't drown me in oil and provides some relief from itching is the Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Deep Moisture for Dry and Sensitive Skin Body Lotion. I didn't find the acqueous creams helpful, really. I suspect you've tried all the above but I thought I'd mention them just in case, pending a referral or going for some other form of treatment. Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

A job lot of pyjamas? They won't love you for them but their parents might!

I had it - to be honest I didn't give much throught to it, as I normally have one through work anyway. I thought the previous position was that the flu jab was only offered to particularly at risk groups, but if you were particularly at risk and pregnant they'd still reccommend you have it. I didn't think the previous advice was that you shouldn't have the jab if you were pregnant. But that's just my rather hazy recollection.... Hope this helps!

And another reccommendation for the excellent Amy, who has been doing wonders for my neck and shoulders. A lovely warming and bolstering massage is just what is needed in these cold dark days of winter...

itunes voucher?

This is great news, if there is enough demand - I'll certainly be putting my name down for it! Thanks so much for organising this.

I could make Friday 14th or Saturday 15th but not Fri 21st or Sat 22nd - it would be great to meet up and compare notes. Snowborder / Mrsf - I have the opposite problem of a big bump - its so small that I get castigated by everyone I know (and people that I don't!) and that somehow I'm to blame! Good luck everyone for the intervening month or so.

If your mum is an EU citizen (i.e. if she's Greek) she should have the equivalent of an E111 form (now an EHIC card, I think) which will entitle her to full NHS treatment. Even if she doesn't have it with her, it should be enough that she's Greek (though you might find it harder to persuade receptionists etc - but an ID card or passport should be enough). If she's resident in the EU (i.e. she's not Greek, or from another EU state but lives in Greece) she will be entitled to emergency treatment. I wouldn't delay if you are worried in anyway at all.

Another first timer reporting for duty here....4th works for me too!

Gosh, this is such a difficult decision. All I have to offer is my own personal experience - I was allergic to all types of pet hair and to dust mites, pollen etc when I was young. We didn't keep pets but I constantly had coughs, colds and asthma attacks even though my Mum was assiduous in keeping our house clean. After 15 years or so I grew out of it all, but would flare up massively when staying with friends with cats - to such an extent that I took to camping in their gardens rather than sleep indoors! But now, I have to say, having cats and having a constant low level exposure to them has really reduced my flare ups. When we first got them (courtesy of EDF I should add) they did get worse. They peaked when the cats were about a year old, but after that they settled down. I still get occasional asthma when they are shedding but on the whole it's manageable. This is mostly down to our excellent cleaner and a very good hoover with a pet attachment. I can PM you the details if you like. So one thing you might like to check is whether it's just cats your little boy is allergic to, or whether there are other factors that are also in play. I can only imagine the heartbreak of sending the cats away and changing childcare arrangements yet discovering his symptoms don't get any better. For me, I'm prepared to put up with the relative discomfort and could not imagine parting with our two - but that's my own health and not that of my small and very young child. I don't really know what I would do if the yaklet (when it arrives) has similar allergies . Best of luck with whatever you decide to do.

I agree that the way they've gone about this is far from perfect. The only point I'd add is that if the only thing that emerges out of the comprehensive spending review and the reform of the welfare system that affects you and your family is the CB reform, then consider yourselves very, very, very lucky indeed.

Wow - thanks everyone for all your responses. Definitely a lot of food for thought there for us to mull on. It's all much appreciated!

Hello lovely Family Roomers, Mr Yak and I have just had our 12 week scan at Kings which was simply super and superbly conducted by all the staff involved (which was a relief!). We've been pondering all the lovely things we'll do once the Yaklet arrives in April 2011 but we've also been thinking about the things we'd like to do before parenthood changes so many aspects of our lives in so many ways. We've identified a lot of the more obvious things to do (grown up holiday / weekend away, trips to the theatre, cinema, dinners out, as much sleep as we can get etc) but I'm sure there are lots of things that haven't occurred to us because we might be kidding ourselves that they are still possible when Yaklet is around. So.... if you had your 6 last months of child-free living again, what would you do differently? And what would you definitely do again?

Also spare a thought for those of us trying to have kids and having no luck - seems after you've been together for a certain period of time it's perfectly acceptable for random strangers you meet at parties to enquire as to whether you want kids, and when you fix them with what you hope is a polite thin smile and a (brief) explanation that things might not be so simple, you are greeted with a barrage of stories about their/their best friends' miracle child / IVF experience / a great woman who does wonders with acupuncture / a fantastic nutritionist... That's when I hit the gin.

Hmm, how long do you have to give up giving up for?

There's Morley college up at Waterloo which runs a whole host of music courses throughout the week and at weekends too - I think Southwark might also use it as their base for their music tuition too. From a quick flick through the guide, there's an elementary string group which rehearses on Saturday mornings which seems to be aimed at getting musicians used to ensemble / orchestral playing - see link here. Good luck to you and your son!

I did evening classes in Streatham for a while with Lambeth College - great for learning the basics and certainly cheaper than Pesh. When I looked into it as an alternative career, florists I chatted to were very keen to point out that (1) there are lots of very early morning starts and (2) you will be permanently cold! I could cope with the former but not the latter, so it wasn't the right thing for me as a career. But I still enjoy messing around with flowers and pulling together a posy or two. All the best of luck in your researches!

I see the BBC's got a feature on this here

try the wicked uncle website. So many great ideas! Yak

Hi Ack Here's some comments to get the ball rolling! Good luck with your research. Yak ack Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Hello everyone. > > A quick introduction: I am starting on a project > (as part of doing a MA at university) on growing > one's own fruit and veg. Or rather, how people can > be encouraged to grow their own food. > > The background to this is that food is getting > more expensive, is increasingly imported (from as > far as Guatemala, India and Thailand for items > such as aspargus, sugar pea snaps and even leeks) > which increases not only our carbon footprint but > also means that often items are not quite > ripe/ready yet. We also seem to eat out of season, > and on top of that waste hundreds of pounds every > year by throwing food away that's been left to go > off because we bought too much. > > So, as a starting point for this project I am > looking for people who either are happy to answer > the questions at the end of this post for me (they > can PM them back to me or just add them to the > thread) or perhaps volunteers who may over the > course of the next few months be willing to fill > in questionnaires/give feedback every now and > again on the things i will be producing in order > to get people to grow some food at home (whether > it's in a window box or in a corner of their > garden). > > It would be great to get a discussion started, or > some feedback. > > Have you ever thought about growing food at home? I'm a recent convert (I started last year and this is my first proper year of doing it) > What would get you started to grow your own? N/A > What's holding you back? N/A though see comments below > Why would or wouldn't it work for you to grow some > food at home? I think a lot of people think that they need a huge garden or an allotment in which to grow fruit and veg. Most city dwellers have limited, if any, outdoor space and I think this is quite a big barrier to many people. But in truth, you can grow loads on a windowsill or even indoors. I'm a street representative with FoodupFrontwhich aims to encourage those of us with limited space to grow our own. There are also initiatives like Channel 4's landshare and some local grants available. > What's your experience if you are growing food at > home? What got you started? I don't quite know how it started but the more I do it the more addicted I become! I started out picking up a few packets of herbs, tomatoes and lettuce seed from B&Q last year. Now have over 20 edible crops growing in our tiny bit of garden, excluding herbs. I would grow more if I had room... > What general implications do you feel growing food > holds/would hold for you? A huge amount of satisfaction when things go right. A form of grieving process when you lose a precious plant that you've grown from seed (I'm still smarting from the loss of one of my best courgettes earlier this week - sad, isn't it?!). I also like knowing exactly how the food's been grown and what it has (not) been treated with and it tastes superb. I've also met loads of neighbours through the Food up Front scheme. On a more personal note, I also found it an invaluable tool in helping to treat depression. > If you have young kids, would you try and explain > food to them by growing some (or have already done > so)? > N/A > Thanks for having a read through this. > And even more thanks to those giving me > constructive feedback. > > Anna

There's also more practical info on how to go about organising the day available at http://www.streetparty.org.uk/ - we're organising one in our street (over the hill in SE5)and stumbled on this excellent website last week.

Hossegor is good for teenagers, as is nearby Lacanau. Great campsites in pine forests, huge dunes, white sand beaches and brilliant waves if they are into surfing etc. Very relaxed, chilled atmosphere. My memory is a bit hazy as I went as a teenager myself (which was a while ago now!) but I don't think it will have changed that much. It will be busy mid-August, but most places in France are busy during that month.

I've had to remortgage....