BellendenBear

We just used kiddiecare.com to buy our second car seat. I will definitely be using them again. Much cheaper than anywhere else I found and they deliver next day if you order before 5. They Emailed the next morning to tell me the hour in which they would deliver. You definitely need to try things out first. Toys R Us on Old Kent Road have quite a good selection with the advantage of parking outside so you can see how well the pram fits in the car.

I agree with EDmummy, this is definitely an easy time to travel with a baby, particularly if breast feeding. Travel light. You don't need nearly as much as you think. With babies, you'll fill whatever space you have. If you have a big car you'll fill it, if you only have a bag you'll manage with that. I went away with my baby when she was 12 weeks on the train (about 3 hours). I took everything we needed for 5 days. Car seat attached to the pram wheels, one of those small pop up cots and a backpack. It's much easier than you think. If you need to sterilise you can also get microwaveable sterilising bags from Mothercare.

anna75 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > mm, tricky. I can see why you want a hb and, > equally, I can see why relatives and friends are > getting nervous about it. > > Are any statistics available about safety/lack of > incidents/lack of MRSA etc? There was research in a BMJ article 4 or 5 years ago which showed that Homebirths are just as safe as hospital births in uncomplicated pregnancies. I'll try and find a link. Not sure about the MRSA thing. I wanted a HB and my mum had the same reaction. She was not very secretly quite pleased when I had to go in to be induced. The important thing is choice and to be in the place where you will be most relaxed. Personally I think that births and deaths should be done in the home where possible. I am a GP, but I know that most of my friends who work in hospitals think quite differently. I'm still hoping to have any future babies in the comfort of my own home.

My experience of the post-natal ward was similar to those above. Hot, noisy, rubbish food and very little support particularly during the night. It's a shame because the delivery ward was excellent. Seems to be the same in most hospitals though. You would think that being in a hospital surrounded by professionals would make you feel more supported, but it doesn't. During the nights I felt very lonely trying to work out what I was supposed to be doing. At least at home I would have had support from Dad, even if he wasn't sure either. But it's not so bad that I think it is worth getting stressed about. Those first few days will be a bit of a daze. And just be assertive. My tips would be to take your own food and drinks. Get people to bring lots of fruit in afterwards. It's boiling in there so light clothes. Flip flops for the shower is a good suggestion. Make sure your visitors during the day let you sleep whenever you can. It's sooooo noisy at night. When your baby finally falls asleep the next one wakes up and so it continues all night with some Mum's seeming to be able to sleep and snore through their newborn's cries!

Find out! I don't really understand why you wouldn't. Finding out doesn't mean that you have a preference one way or the other or that you intend to go crazy with blue or pink. And as for needing a surprise on the day, I think the whole birthing process and being handed your new baby will never be underwhelming. It won't be some huge anti-climax because you already knew the sex. And I think phoning/texting friends to say you have had a healthy baby is lovely in itself without needing to save the surprise for them. The most important thing is that this is your personal decision and certainly not something that others should be judgmental about. Good luck.

You might not gain as much during the final weeks as you think. I seem to remember it slowed down a bit towards then end. The main thing is that you and your baby are well. Don't get any of your old clothes out anytime soon and just look forward to all the miles of pram pushing you'll do this summer to get back in shape.

My daughter had both 12 and 13 month jabs together and was fine.

Why not just use the Techno that you have? Maclarens are great and as has already been said babies seem to prefer facing forwards after 6 or so months anyway.

Definitely see your GP/midwife. Like has already been said they need to make sure you're not dehydrated and make sure you don't have something else underlying such as a urine infection. I suffered badly. Like a really awful hangover that went on and on and got worse as the day went on instead of better. Sleep helps. And eating and drinking lots. But I didn't find anything that really gave any relief (I tried every remedy I could find on the internet and acupuncture) apart from medication. I took half a sickness tablet at night (half because I felt really guilty about it) and it meant I could get through the night without vomiting and function for work the next day. Like JollyBaby says lots of medicines are licensed for this use and are widely used. The good news is that from now on it will all feel a breeze. Labour, sore nipples and sleepless nights will feel easy compared to this stage. Good luck (and I had a girl, maybe it's true!).

I know this doesn't answer the original question of this thread, but just in response to above MMR is now being given at 12 and 15 months in this area on advice of Health Protection Agency due to measles outbreaks. So first MMR is offered at same time as other 12 month jabs. Haven't heard about the 3 doses.

Well said Fuschia! I had been thinking the same thing but didn't quite know how to phrase it.

If you want a home birth you don't have to be registered with one of the midwifery teams. The Kings community midwives do home births too. They have Southwark East and West teams I think. They don't offer the same continuity that the teams mentioned above seem to provide and you aren't guaranteed that your chosen midwife will deliver your baby and come to Kings with you if you have to be admitted. But you get the opportunity to meet all of them before your due date, and all the ones I met were lovely, and I would have been happy for any of them to deliver my baby. In the end I had to go to KCH. And that was fine too. 3 different midwives looked after me during labour. They were all very different but all excellent, and I couldn't fault their care. The general feeling from what I remember from previous threads and from talking to other mums is that KCH and St Thomas's provide excellent care on labour ward, but the post-natal ward experience can be a bit lacking. But hopefully you won't need to stay in anyway. Good Luck!

As has already been said, it is quite usual not to see the midwife until after the first scan. Routine appointments usually start from around 16-17 weeks. It's frustrating, but for the first trimester all you can do is sit and wait. And if you have a cold or anything not directly related to pregnancy, you should contact your GP/NHS direct not the midwives. Good luck!

Another vote for vests under normal tops. H+M have breastfeeding vests for about half the price of mothercare. And the jojo one I bought was about twice as much again and went a funny shape after one wash.

jojobaby, what are you talking about? Gina does NOT promote controlled crying. Controlled crying seems to be the domain of parents who at 6 months or later are knackered and at their wits end, not those with babies who are relaxed and happy at bedtime. GF isn't for everyone, but if you are going to come out against something at least read the book. And please don't imply that others who have benefitted from her advice somehow neglect their child's emotional needs by either ignoring requests for attention or denying them physical contact - where has this come from? Not the books I have read. Someone once said to me that they didn't agree with GF because she advises you to put your baby in the garden and leave them to cry!! It's just not true. I really don't see what is so wrong with providing a bit of structure for a baby and GENTLY encouraging them into a routine. Why do people think that babies know what is in their own best interests? If my baby had her way she would leave the house without a cardigan or coat, but I know that this would be bad for her. Why is leading the way with feeds and sleep so different?

R&A, I totally agree. Different things will suit different parents and different babies. I dipped in and out of Gina and found a lot of her advice really helpful. I don't know anyone who has read her routines and followed them religiously, but most people use them as a guide as to how much sleep an how often etc. I also found her weaning book really helpful. And yes, may baby does sleep 7-7 and I love it!

Sitaram yoga at Kings, St Thomas's or Brockwell Lido. They do daytime, evening and Saturday classes.

JustinSmith Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > > Most people are not aware that doctors get paid > more money from the NHS if they lower the > cholesterol levels of certain patients. Another totally misleading comment. Practice income is affected by QOF scores among many other factors that do not receive the same amount of media hype, but the salary of the individual doctor is not necessarily influenced by this. As for GPs only having short consultations, I fail to see the relevance of this. An awful lot is often achieved during those minutes and usually over several consultations. Lifestyle advice is also given by other professionals particularly Practice Nurses who have more time to spend with each patient. There is also access to dieticians, exercise on prescription and many other community-based support and education programs. There is a popular misconception among alternative and complimentary practitioners that doctors, under the influence of the pharmaceutical industry, spend their time trying to push harmful drugs onto the unwilling. The reality is quite the opposite. A great deal of time is spent trying to convince people that they do not need medication. Stopping smoking will have a far greater influence on cholesterol levels and overall cardiovascular risk than any statin will, but many people would much rather take a pill than make the effort modify their own risk factors.

Justin, you are right to highlight the attempts of the pharmaceutical industry to influence the medical profession. They are a profit-making industry, and they spend massive amounts of money trying to influence usually inexperienced doctors and nurses in their prescribing habits. However, you totally disregard the fact that experienced clinicians will be well trained in the critical appraisal of evidence. They will be well aware of how to interpret clinical research and the validity of various ways of presenting data, as you so patronisingly point out to my learned colleague JollyBaby. Furthermore, many clinicians will actively disassociate themselves from the pharmaceutical industry (see the group 'No Free Lunch'). My own practice has a policy of not allowing visits from Pharmaceutical representatives. It is (or should be) standard practice for GPs to interpret all lipid results in the context of overall cardiovascular risk and to encourage lifestyle changes, particularly smoking cessation and exercise, before medication is initiated for primary prevention. This is in accordance with NICE guidance and Joint British Societies recommendations neither of which are sponsored by the pharmaceutical industry. And we all know that NICE aren't in the habit of promoting expensive treatments. Your notion that we should be suspicious of Big Pharma but listen to someone who is trying to plug a book is laughable.

Parents and in-laws, don't get me started. They all turned up on day 2 after my baby was born in January. It was mid-afternoon and I still hadn't had lunch. At 4pm another 3 walked through the door and when they saw that we were trying to put together a quick sandwich announced that they hadn't had lunch yet either!! I remember staring at the dining table and fighting the urge to crawl under there and hide.

Has anyone got experience of this? I am mad to even consider it? Presumably by that age they are too big to go in the plastic cot things. Thanks

*Bob* Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > The 'wedding list' is a throwback to an age > gone-by when couples were usually setting-up home > together for the first time and actually 'needed' > useful and practical stuff because they didn't > have it and could afford to buy it all, especially > after laying-on the wedding. It was a good thing > to do. > Now it's just an excuse for people to wander > through a department store with a clipboard and > pen, like Michael Jackson in Harrods, ticking > things off, like spoilt children who've been given > a blank cheque. > > Practical items do not include a bumper-edition > Sopranos box set, a Satnav or a LCD television for > the bedroom. > > It's totally impersonal and actually a wee bit > depressing. I whole heartedly agree with Bob. Reading these words warm my heart far more than any wedding ever has. Wedding lists, or Greedy Lists as I prefer to call them, are one of my pet hates. Unimaginative, offensive, materialistic.... I was beginning to think I was the only one who felt this way. When I read the list I always have visions of a wedding-obsessed couple being lead around John Lewis by some orange faced greedy list expert pointing out all the things that you can't possible live without. 12 matching sundae glasses, a gazilion white towels, his and hers badminton rackets... Yuck. And to go off thread slightly, you can now have a John Lewis list for any life event. A nursery list, a Christening list, a Retirement list, a 'Commitment' list. Ahhhhhhhhh.

Breakfast in bed every morning for at least 2 months. Those night feeds mean you wake up STARVING!

Don't do it! We made the mistake of sharing the name with others while I was pregnant, and people seemed to regard it as an opportunity to voice their opinion about the name in a way that I don't think they would have done once the baby was born. My family seemed to regard it as a subject that was open to consultation. I received calls and Emails backing up their dislike of the name with a list of other people they had consulted who had agreed with them. It was awful. I got an Email from a relative in Australia the day I went into labour urging me to reconsider. I was very upset by the whole thing. Next time I definitely won't be telling anyone!

Upper Clapton