hellosailor

That's strange, we haven't experienced any problems like that and we're on EDG too. The usual postman is very good, is it possible that a different postman works different ends of the road? I will ask him if I see him tomorrow if someone new has started or if the road is divided between 2 postmen...

In my humble opinion, the Ameda Lactaline is the best electric dual breast pump out there

I can thoroughly recommend Lori Etienne (bobbly is her forum name) who made some fantastic curtains and a blind for us recently. They look great and the quality is fab, and reasonable rates. Her number is 07817 097 650

Hi susyp it'a totally understandable to me that you would feel like that, my daughter is only 19 months so still a long way before we go through this change, but I'm sure I will feel many of the feelings you do about that emotional shift, not to mention the practical change of routine, the sense of a lack of purpose when every minute has been mapped out all day every day for years. Sorry I can't offer anything much in terms of wise words, sure the mums who have school age children will be able to offer good advice, just wanted to say how normal and understandable what you're describing sounds and that I'm sure it won't continue to feel this odd, and you'll acclimatise to the change and feel less sad when it becomes more 'normal' for your daughter to be gone for those hours every day. xx

crystal7 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Yep. Pure hell. My daughter's favourite place in > the world though so we go now and then. Okish just > after it opens on Sat am. Went once is school hols > and it was awful. Was also 8 months pregnant and > kept wondering if I'd be the first person to give > birth there... hahahahhahahahaha!

Most childminders charge ?50 a day. I have never heard of anyone paying as much as ?60 but perhaps there are those that charge as much as that. ?50 a day is what all my friends who have a childminder pay.

In terms of the social side of NCT classes, I think sometimes people who join a class some distance from them because there's no space in their local class, find that they meet up less with the other mums in those early weeks / months in particular, when it's sometimes harder to get everything together and get on public transport or drive somewhere rather than popping down the road. (Of course the classes would still be v useful, I just have friends who say 'well I never really get it together to see the mums I met, they're all in Brockley and I don't have the car' etc For this reason some of my friends who have not been able to get on an ED course with the lovely Sillywoman, have opted in the past to go the NHS classes at Dulwich Hospital so that some of the friends they make have been within walking distance. Tho anecdotally it sounds like the classes themselves are quite different from the NCT classes - sure people who have done both or the NHS ones can contribute more on this? - I'm afraid I can't much as have only done NCT. Tho I did do the NHS breastfeeding workshop at Dulwich hospital which was ace.

hpsaucey Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Fuschia Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > Isn't it funny how once your child is named you > > can't imagine them by any other name? > > > > What names were short listed but not used? > > > > I called my daughter a very pretty name that I do really like, objectively, but it was not on our list at all when I was pregnant, because although I like it it obviously wasn't one of my top 10 even! My partner just wouldn't agree to any of the names I was keen on, including one I had set my heart on and mentally attached to the baby while pregnant, secretly sure I could persuade him! Mistake! I thought watching me go through labour would swing it but no! I'm not sure what the answer is when you can't agree, other than going further and further down a list so that you compromise on one that was not on either of your lists, which feels a bit counter intuitive, but seemed to be the only way sometimes. My daughter is 19 months now and it's only really in the last few months that I have been able to call her by her name instead of a gazillion pet names, and only recently that I've stopped feeling a pang of disappointment when someone uses her name, I know that's awful! I do like the name, which is good, I just had no intention of calling a child by the name! Perhaps naively I assumed when I imagined having children that I would call them names that made my heart sing every time I heard them called or saw them written down, that I felt totally suited them down to the ground, but I guess when I imagined that I was a moony teenager who wasn't factoring in that two people would be involved in making the decision! I know quite a few people who feel a bit shaky about the names they've called their children, some people who regularly say 'I so wish we hadn't called him x, I really don't like it now!', or 'It so doesn't suit her, what were we thinking!', and 2 friends who have changed their babies names at about 8 months and 1 year (different friends), as they just couldn't get used to them at all. Some of their friends were horrified apparently, but others said it was a no-brainer if they had found they didn't like the name. Anyway, rambled contribution over ,loving this thread!

Mrs TP Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > > > > Saying that one of my girls has the middle name > Loveday and not met any of those yet. Also caused > a few sniggers at the Christening from the other > family there having their children Christened but > sod 'em I love it. I wanted Loveday as my daughter's middle name! But my other half vetoed it. Great name!

Yes that's the reasoning, so you might borrow one from a family member or friend who you trust and you know has had no accidents in the car while using it, but I guess with buying one from ebay etc, you can't be sure.

edtots site has all you need to know! Think the nearest Gymboree is Herne Hill

Another big thumbs up for Rocca, the staff there are all absolutely lovely, we have a great time every time we go!

I would say the bee, ready your requirements, the newer model (bee plus) is wider than the older model (we have the older model and is still totally comfortable for our toddler but the bee plus is that little bit roomier but still just as nippy)

A couple of riends in a similar position have found that some childminders are happy to reduce the number of days when you're not working, i.e I have a friend whose son goes 4 days a week to a childminder when she's working, and the childminder is happy to drop this down to 1 day a week when she has time off between contracts, even if that's for a couple of months at a time. She finds that this works well as he keeps up his relationship with the childminder and other children in her care on that one day a week even in periods when she's at home full time, so that it's easier for him to settle back in when she's on the next project and he's there the majority of the week, (plus gives her a day to get other stuff done even when she's not working!)

shot by the sheriff charge ?15 and both times I asked if I could come in for a baby passport photo pic they said I would have to wait several days for an appointment as they are v busy the place next to Soup Dragaon (or where soup dragon used to be!) charges ?6 for the same service and do it there an then while you wait, I'd try there first!

I agree, my instinct would be that it maybe isn't a hunger issue, it's perhaps that he's started waking early for another reason and wants a bottle because he loves milk and he's used to having a bottle as soon as he wakes up, rather than he's waking cos he's hungry? My reason for thinking that is that I know every baby and toddler is different and some must need more food than others, but the amount you're describing him eating food and drinking milk sounds like it's a v good amount, even if he's not eating everything on his plate, he's eating regularly etc. My 18 month old never ate very well, until more recently, so there have been many many days when barely a morsel has passed her lips, i.e pretty much no solid food at all and 270ml milk in total, and I've been convinced she would wake howling with hunger, but she never has, so it strikes me that they need less than we think! Also, I know several toddlers who have gone from always sleeping till 7:00 to waking up at 5:00 in the last few weeks, so I think it must be to do with summer in some way and, er, biorhythms, or something. Our daughter is definitely waking earlier than usual, and her room is very effectively blacked out, so I don't think it can be the light, more a sort of change of body clock. Having said that, my friend's baby has been waking at 5am for some weeks and she has been able to shift this a fair bit later in the last few days by cutting his daytime sleep down a bit and making the nap earlier so there's more hours between waking up and bedtime, so I wonder if you could try to give him 1.5 hours instead of 2. You're already giving him a nap which ends early in the day so it can't be that he's napping too near to bedtime I guess. Sure it will just be a phase and he'll be back to 7am before long! in answer to the milk question, because my daughter never ate well, I was reluctant to reduce her milk for ages as I thought that it must be the only thing sustaining her! But I reduced it about 6 months ago and there was a radical increase in how much she eats! i.e I used to give her 210ml first thing and then the knock on effect was she wasn't hungry for breakfast, or even really for lunch. I started giving her 120ml instead and hey presto, she was eager for breakfast etc. She has that in the morning and between 170/210ml before bed and eats so much better now that it may be worth reducing milk to increase food intake..

Snowboarder, how is smallest snowboarder eating now by they way? Feels a while since we compared notes! Mini Sailor is still fairly erratic, some days gobbles down food and others, well, I don't have to tell you I'm sure! An oat cake is sufficient!

Yes please don't worry, it's very common. I measured small at some appointments and big at others! Naturally I worried each time, hoho! My daughter was 8lb 9oz. My friend had several extra scans as they were worried her baby wasn't growing at the expected rate (she was measuring small) and her daughter was 9lb 3oz, I don't think the tape measure is that accurate..

signed!

As Pickle says, there is no need at all to buy the liner, once your baby outgrows the cocoon you can use the foot muff. We didn't buy the bugaboo branded foot muff, instead we got a sheepskin foot muff which you can unzip the top part off, so it is a foot muff in winter and a sheepskin liner in summer. similar to the one on the link below, horribly expensive - the most expensive bit of kit we bought apart from the buggy itself - but then again it's the same price as the bugaboo branded foot muff but nicer, and can be used as a sheepskin liner so if you're planning to buy one of those for summer as well as a foot muff now then you'd save money. You can pick them up on ebay for cheaper http://www.greenbaby.com/Stroller-Bag-Waterproof-p-KA65411

Admin, not sure if it's ok to put this up here, apologies and please advise if not, but the family room seemed the most suitable place following recent threads about lack of summer work for young people locally, this is an opportunity that would suit a techie student back for the holidays or similar, or maybe a school leaver who is very technically able... We are a small and creative photo booth events company based in South London. We need someone to help us over the summer on an adhoc basis providing technical support building and troubleshooting our new photo booths. You will need to be good at troubleshooting software and hardware and a good problem solver. Ideally you will be a computing student on your summer holidays and a technical wizard. This is a good opportunity to get involved in a start-up. It is paid work but will also be good work experience for the right person. Please send your CV to [email protected] or call 0208 7613500

We don't use anything day to day, we only use the weleda cream when we see she's a bit pink or metanium if she gets nappy rash, but think quite a lot of people use a bit of cream as a matter of course with every change as a barrier for prevention, but haven't felt the need so far. As Saffron says, prob a good idea to put some on after a bath tho as a barrier in case they get a bit chafey, tho we don't do this - keep meaning to start as is probably a good way to prevent.

the best cream for when they have nappy rash is metanium we use the Weleda calendula nappy cream when she just looks a bit pink but doesn't have nappy rash

Several toddlers I know have had severe diarrhea bugs in the last week after playing in the dirty water at Brockwell paddling pool, including 2 that have had to go to A&E because it was so severe, such a pity cos obviously it is lots of fun, but the water just isn't clean enough..

'Would you break with centuries of Royal protocol to do a sketch with Daniel Craig Ma'am?' '...Yeeeesss, One think's one can see one's way clear'