tarafitness

Nice kitchen!! :-) I really like the utensils hung above the cooker on the splashback. Do you find they pick up oil residue when you cook? We're getting a large pan rack to go above the island, but that would be great for spoons and fish slices, etc

Sorry for the delay in replying. Benchmarx have been fantastic. We've been dealing solely with a chap called Tom in the Peckham branch and he's been incredibly helpful and accommodating. I would like to say though that Jade from Howdens in ED was also super friendly and helpful, and we really liked the design. It's just that we were able to buy the whole kitchen for substantially less from Benchmarx, and also match the existing quality tall larder we had as the units are the same. Re the microwave. I think it depends what sort you want to go for. We had to get a 600mm cupboard for ours as it's a combi microwave, oven and grill and so needs a bigger unit. You might be okay if you just go for a bog standard microwave? Yes we've lost space, but then we've got an island now in the middle of the kitchen thanks to the extension. I think if it still was a galley kitchen we might have thought twice. Tara

I don't see why the units can't be installed in an existing space. My OH installed the existing tall larder unit we have, after ripping out the impractical cupboard we had in its place :-) Yeah, the spice rack thing is awesome. We were originally going to go with a full height pull out cupboard, but we needed to have enough space for a 'proper' integral microwave (i.e. with oven and grill facility), so had to sacrifice it and went with a small cupboard will pull-out space rice instead (see attached pic). Forgot to mention in my earlier post, my OH was keen to leave our new side return wall exposed (as he'd seen it in our builder's portfolio and thought it looked good), so have used reclaimed yellow stock bricks for it and installing down-facing lights on it, hopefully it should look quite nice. To save space, we're also installing a hanging pan rack above the island. We already had two by the same company above our cooker (which we'll need to sell on), and they're great quality and free up your cupboards for more important things... like tupperware! ;-) Tara

It looks like we'll be coming to the end of our project, just when yours starts :-) I posted about it yesterday on the awesome kitchens thread. It sounds like we're having something very similar done as we're extending into the side return and joining our dining room to our kitchen to create a family room/open plan kitchen space. I'd recommend checking lead times with suppliers, as we're only *just* scraping in time with the bi-fold doors as we weren't told that they'd take 4-5 weeks to supply and fit. have you decided on colour scheme and how many units? Attached is how our kitchen will look along the back wall, and in the middle we'll have an island with our washer/dryer, dishwasher and sink. In the picture of our kitchen, both units to the right and left of the cooker contain deep drawers for things like tupperware and pan overflow (we're installing a pan rack above the island). The little lower cupboard will have a pull-out spice rack, and the cupboard underneath the microwave will also have deep drawers for things like rice and pasta, tins, etc... our kitchen comes from Benchmarx, and was substantially cheaper than the Howdens quote. The units are very good, they're the ones that Wickes sell (but again, cheaper). We already had a tall larder unit with pull out Blum drawers so we knew of the quality. We're keeping the tall unit (it's on the left of our fridge/freezer), but changing the doors to accommodate more child-friendly handles as the ones we had on it are rather sharp edged! Feel free to PM me if you have questions about the work we're having done :-) Tara

we have a range cooker, and we bought a stainless steel splashback from John Lewis. It's hygienic and looks good too! :-)

shaunag, I do the same :-) my son is in a cot bed in a side-car arrangement, but I've found that if he's tucked up with me after an early morning feed, then it buys me a few extra hours of peace!

Have any of you (or know someone who has) had a granite/composite sink fitted? We're thinking of going for a Schock Solido 1.75 Bowl Cristalite Undermount Kitchen Sink, but I'm worried how hardwearing the material is, and/or if it's prone to staining? Thanks, Tara.

Hi everyone We're in the process of having our kitchen made awesome (I hope!). We've had a loft conversion and side return extension and are due to move back in a few weeks, fingers crossed. We ordered our kitchen from Benchmarx. This is because we already have a tall larder unit that we bought last year from Wickes and have been very impressed by the quality of it (and the Blum pull-out drawers). Benchmarx do the same kitchen units, but cheaper, and they also do everything else it seems! We've ordered our granite worktops (for either side of the cooker and the island) from a company recommended by the same chap in Wickes who recommended us Benchmarx - Imperial Marble and Granite Ltd. We've gone for black granite in 'Star Galaxy'. I wanted to get the darker more pure black, but they dye it to get that colour, and it therefore has the potential to become stained. We're having black limestone tiles, which will work well with the underfloor heating, and matches our patio. We're also having aluminium bi-fold doors fitted by a company recommended to us by our builder, called Pinnacle9. We're keeping our existing American style fridge freezer, washer/dryer, range cooker (with stainless steel splashback) and dishwasher, but have bought a new integrated microwave/grill. Now all that's left to decide on is the sink and tap. We'd like to get a professional hose one, and we're yet to decide on a sink, but I think it's likely to be a ceramic 1.5 bowl one, as I think the contrasting colours will look good. Also need to decide whether to get a hot water tap. Does it totally replace the kettle? Any sink and tap recommendations gratefully received :-) Tara

There is quite a serious sleep regression that takes place around the 8 month mark. Plus, there's Leap 6 (see the Wonder Weeks book, and app too), and that can promote wakefulness. My almost 8 month old was sleeping for quite a long time during the night until recently. I also think that it's a hunger thing, since he's become more mobile he's clearly needed more milk during the night as well as the day - as he takes a full feed. Could you try offering boob/bottle at that time to see if your lo is hungry? Until they're 1, milk still makes up a massive part of their calorific needs.

curious bump

Hi there My son had posterior tongue tie - which was unfortunately missed the first time round by the otherwise fantastic lactation consultant/midwife who came to see us at home when he was a few days old. He was getting progressively more visibly gaunt, and his weight dropped down to the 9th percentile (50th at birth). I noticed the lip tie (as that's often indicative of the PTT) and went to see the same lactation consultant again who agreed that he had quite a serious tie. Unfortunately the referral process to King's was a 2 stage one, so he ended up waiting another 2 weeks to have it rectified... this was far too long in my view as he was 6 weeks by that point and had gotten used to feeding without the use of his tongue - which was firmly rooted to the base of his mouth - so he had to in effect learn how to feed again afterwards, which took many weeks. The actual release itself was over very quickly, but having to starve him for hours beforehand was incredibly stressful as he was feeding almost constantly at that point (but obviously getting very little out) and was hysterical by the time he was seen. They had to distract him and attempt to calm him down before they could assess his latch properly. I was in tears too, I think mainly because my son was so upset and every part of me wanted to feed him, but also because of the huge relief when they agreed that he was very tongue tied. It was a very emotional time back then! I'm very happy that he had the snip as he's now in the 78th percentile for weight and we're still going strong with the breastfeeding at 7 1/2 months. I didn't do the massage because it distressed him too much. I'd have the odd purposeful prod/stretch around under the tongue, but nowhere near as aggressively/forceful as we were shown (which seemed absolutely fine when they demonstrated on our hands... another case when it comes to the underside of your baby's tongue!). There are mixed views as to whether it actually has any effect on re-attachment or not. If I have another child I will get them checked immediately for tongue tie. I wouldn't have it released if it didn't affect feeding - unless I could see that there was no mobility and therefore would inhibit his ability to eat solids. I know that my son wouldn't be able to move food round his mouth as effectively as he does if he hadn't had it snipped. x

Hi ladies As a heads up for those not in the facebook group - there's another picnic planned for this Wednesday at 12pm. In the same place as last time - the enclosed picnic area of Peckham Rye Park. Hopefully see you there, keep your fingers crossed for good weather! Tara x

Knomester, I'm so impressed by your perseverance, it sounds like you've had an horrendous time, it's awesome that you're still going :-) Bubster, feeding is completely pain free, and - when he's not being a fusspot - an absolute joy. However, it took about 5 months to get that way. I can identify with your 'masochist' comment, as at times it just felt like I was punishing myself by continuing to breastfeed and not just move onto formula. However, I didn't get past a few days breastfeeding my older (now adult) son, and it's something that has played on my mind for a few years now, so I was determined to give it my best shot with this baby. Plus, I'm really, really stubborn. With my eldest I also had serious nipple trauma, but he wasn't tongue tied (that I know of), so I think it was down to a poor latch... which I also think might be true to a certain degree with DS2, as once I had help with it (from Nicky at the Albrighton Rd breastfeeding caf?) - and stopped using the nipple shields - it cleared up entirely. He didn't start gaining weight until the frenulotomy though. My breastfeeding issues read like an AtoZ of ailments, I think I had most things - painful cracked and bleeding nipples, thrush (both of us), vasospasm (still have, but not painful any more, and I think it's more to do with his clamping down when he feeds, thus reducing blood flow), blebs (nipple blisters that needed opening up with a needle after each feed), mastitis twice - the first resulted in 3 lumps which I stupidly left and ended up with one turning into a full blown abscess that took 5 weeks of antibiotics and 4 separate needle aspirations at the Breast Clinic at King's to clear. DS2 was also gaining weight too slowly, and dropped from the 50th percentile to the 9th, and was looking visibly gaunt. Added to that were the marathon feeding sessions - an hour to an hour and a half in total - so by the time he'd finished feeding, it was often time to begin again! Dinner times weren't fun, but I did get rather adept at one-handed eating, whilst the other arm supported my feeding baby! As previously mentioned, I didn't didn't heal properly until I stopped using the shields, but without them I'd have given up breastfeeding within a few days as I was feeling completely traumatised by the pain I was experiencing (I basically had to fix my gaze on my baby when feeding as, if I looked away, it would hurt even more... it felt like someone was using a cheese grater on my nipples, or rubbing them with cut glass!), and also by the amount of blood my son was vomiting back up (I didn't allow visitors for a while as I hated the thought of him spewing blood on his grandmother!). I can't use the normal medium sized ones though as they were too big and rubbed on the area, and if it wasn't for my OH's heroic dash to Mothercare Lewisham at quarter to 5 on New Year's Eve, I don't know what I'd have done! DS2 slept most of his first night in his crib (actually, that was the only night he slept in his crib as he refused to after that!) and didn't feed at all really. On the second night he fed *all* night, which I think is when the majority of the damage took place (although I also think my milk coming in played a part, as it's hard to get a decent latch when you're dealing with something so engorged). My milk came in that next morning, so he was obviously doing the right thing, I was just completely unprepared for it (our nct breastfeeding class didn't cover things like cluster feeds, so I didn't realise what he was doing was completely normal). The shields were an absolute necessity, they just unfortunately stopped my nipples healing fully and also prevented adequate milk transfer because my son was tongue tied and would latch on - but then slip down the teat - so that he was sucking it like a straw and not getting much out. After the tongue tie release, my son's latch improved dramatically. He stopped making clicking noises, and I didn't hear the sound of air rushing in (like if you're drinking from a sports bottle and you release the nozzle). It took a while for him to be able to maintain his latch though as he he'd spent the first six weeks of his life with his tongue firmly rooted to the base of his mouth, and had to learn how to use it to feed. Although I feel like I've been a bit unlucky in the troubles I've encountered breastfeeding, I also feel incredibly fortunate with the amount of support I've received. My OH has always been 100% behind me and never questioned that I was doing the right thing or tried to force me to use a bottle - and is extremely complimentary and appreciative of how well our son is doing, he's really massive now (well, long and relatively slim), is developing nicely, feeds himself well, smiles all the time and sleeps for long stretches at night (which I attribute to co-sleeping, that's another thing that saved our breastfeeding journey). I belong to some really lovely online breastfeeding and general baby support groups, and have a great NCT group too. In our group, all 6 of us ladies breastfed our babies, 5 of us to 6 months, and 3 of us exclusively. I'm sure that's unheard of in some parts of the country... maybe even in some parts of London! Interestingly, 3 of our babies were tongue tied. This area is so bf friendly, I never feel uncomfortable feeding in any of the pubs, caf?s, parks etc, and the breastfeeding caf?s are wonderfully supportive and helpful. We're really lucky that King's College Hospital is nearby, it seems to have a clinic for everything, and I'm so grateful that I was able to get my son's tongue tie released there, and my breast abscess treated without the need for lancing. I didn't always have the best experience at the clinic though, as one of the times I went, the consultant reinserted a needle that she'd pulled out of the infected area - thus causing a very painful secondary infection - and another time I went, I explained the issues I'd had to a different consultant, who flatly told me to "just give up then"! As I said at the beginning, it took 5 months for things to fall into place, but that was due to DS2 going through the mother of all fussy phases from weeks 10 to 20, and by that time I knew how breastfeeding felt if it was going well. The last 4 weeks of that phase were just dreadful though, he screamed and cried and refused to feed during the day unless I was walking around with him (often having to also sing songs to him too! It's a good job that phase is over as he's over 9kg and there's no way I could feed standing up now!), I actively looked forward to him waking in the middle of the night for feeds as it was the only time he didn't fuss and actually appeared grateful for my milk! If we went out in public I'd have to take him into a disabled loo to nurse him as there were no distractions, or just take him home and into a darkened room. It was around that time that I had my second bout of mastitis, which I attribute to his not draining my breasts properly. There are quite a few developmental 'leaps' around that time though, and if it wasn't for the Wonder Weeks book and app I'd have questioned if I didn't just have the child from hell! But like I said, everything is going pretty well. Sometimes he feeds a lot, sometimes not so much, either way, my supply adapts really quickly. Weaning doesn't appear to have made any difference to his milk intake, but then we're taking a baby led approach, so not a great deal is going in yet! I'm so grateful to be able to feed my son anywhere at any time, without the need for forward planning, and I also appreciate the comfort breastfeeding provides for him ("when in doubt, whip 'em out!" ;-) ) The current challenge is that he's so big and strong now that it's not so much the issue of him pulling his head away if he gets distracted while feeding... he just climbs off me instead! He's also just had two teeth pop through - bottom thankfully - so I'm apprehensive about biting... but as a friend pointed out the other day, there's always nipple shields! Hope that helps, sorry it was a bit of an essay but I'm on my laptop instead of phone for once, and I got a bit carried away! Tara x

Hi Bubster, I didn't end up taking my son to a cranial osteopath in the end - but had considered it, I've heard good things about them. I just wanted to add to this thread that for anyone whose baby is undergoing (or who has recently undergone) a tongue tie release, it took *weeks* and not days (as my GP advised) to see a marked difference in feeding. I'd say that milk transfer improved reasonably quickly, and seeing Nicky (who runs the breastfeeding Caf? on Albrighton Rd) really helped my son to get the best and deepest possible latch (after my plea for help to our group's NCT breastfeeding 'advisor' was completely ignored). She also helped me to stop using nipple shields, which enabled my nipples to heal completely. However, I think that because my son had had his tongue basically glued to the floor of his mouth for six weeks, he was used to not using it to feed, so had to learn how to use it from scratch. This took at least 2 weeks. My son also has upper lip tie, so I found that using the 'flipple'/'exaggerated latch' technique helped too. Another thing that helped breastfeeding was simply his getting bigger and therefore his jaw increasing in size! I suspect he might still be a little tongue tied as he finds it hard to remove food from the roof of his mouth, but our daytime feeds last about 4/5 minutes each side... as opposed to 90 minutes for both as had previously! Tara x

We have the Motorola MBP36 and are very happy with it. You can remotely move the camera, the night vision mode is fabulous and you can pair additional cameras to the parent console.

Hi ladies Just in case any of you are not in the Facebook group and/or haven't heard, tomorrow we'll be having a get together in Peckham Rye Park - in the enclosed picnic area to the top right corner of the park - tomorrow from 12. Bring something to eat, drink and sit on (although there are benches there). See you tomorrow! Tara x

I hope to make it along to this also :-) x

I'd say,London overground from Denmark Hill to West Brompton and then district line to South Kensington. can also go via Victoria but it does get very busy and there are no lift facilities

Me too, Cazfay!! Can't wait :-)

I'm on mat leave from next Tuesday so hopefully will be able to make the next weekday meet also :-) x

Hey Philippa, glad you can make the meet, I'm hoping to get along too, cake is always welcome in my books :-D See you tomorrow at NCT (unless you're a totally different Philippa!) Tara x

Sadly I can't make that, but any days after Monday 25th Nov, I should be able to as that's when I start my leave... Can't come soon enough! :-) x

Ooops, read this wrong, thought you were after buses to Lambeth Bridge!

I know what you mean and I always try and do that myself... but 5 days of full time work at 6 months pregnant usually overrides my good intentions! ;-)

I think it's looking as if most people can make the 6th and not the 28th. Will pop the 6th in my calender now just so I don't arrange anything else for that day :-)