sophiechristophy

The key to good porridge (and this massively cuts the cooking time down too), is to soak it overnight like this: 1/2 cup of oats 1/2 cup warm water 1 tsp live natural yoghurt You can soak the oats like this, in the pan ready to heat in the morning. Then, when you are ready to eat them, add another 1/2 cup water, heat until your desired consistency, and enjoy! I personally like mine with a bit of coconut milk block added to the porridge when cooking, toasted coconut, raspberries, strawberries, maple syrup and milk on top! Yum!

Lamb Kofta Kebabs: 500g lamb mince 2 garlic cloves, minced 1 tsp cumin 1 tsp ground coriander Some herbs - parsely, oregano, thyme, whatever you have. Salt and black pepper. Gently combine the above (overmixing will make the mixture tough). Form patties, and put under the grill for about 6 minutes on each side (turning once). Make a salad of finely shredded red cabbage, cucumber, tomato and raw onion and dress with olive oil and vinegar. Make a garlic sauce with 50:50 mayo and natural yoghurt, a pinch dried mint and 1/2 a crushed garlic clove. Serve all together with toasted pitta.

Hi Ruth - in answer to your question, I would say yes, just keep putting bits and bobs on her tray if she has dropped everything thing else. I don't bother to pick of from the floor until the end, that way you only get down on your hands and knees once! Best tip for BLW, is try to kind of ignore them, so long as they have some things on their tray to be getting on with.

All I can say is I wish I was going - great destination choice!

great link bluesuperted! thanks!

Yes :). Just stick it in the oven. x

Dulwichgirl2, I'm not sure that I understand what you mean.

Chicken breasts in a baking dish, top with a nice brand of jarred salsa, and then a top layer of slices of mozarella, and bake in the oven. Yum.

Ok, I had an experience this week, it was at a toddler and parent group, and it has left me extremely annoyed. Why do people run toddler sessions that aren't suitable for toddlers? By this I mean sessions that expect toddlers to sit in one place, sometimes for extended periods of time, where they are expected to follow instructions exactly, where their natural curiosity is limited and even rejected because it is inconvenient perhaps to the session leader? Why don't all toddler sessions give toddlers the freedom that they need to explore, experience and be themselves? It makes me so mad when you as a parent of a toddler are expected to reign your toddler in from doing what is just NORMAL and NATURAL toddler things. It is disrespectful to the needs of the toddler, and offensive to the parent, who is usually paying for the privilege. ARGH! Rant over. Toddler session leaders, if you are reading this, please respect the needs of the toddlers in your sessions, and adjust you activities/expectations accordingly. I say this as a session leader myself - I run toddler cookery sessions - so I know it is possible to create a hospitable atmosphere for toddlers.

Good advice Inkmaiden - rolling snacks are great, especially in the afternoon I find, just bits here and there.

If it is teething related, I sometimes find that offering something frozen first can help, once my daughters chewed through the frozen thing, she can then face something else. These innocent tubes are good, if you stick them in the freezer: hthttp://www.innocentdrinks.co.uk/things_we_make/fruit-tubes/

Try the shower instead? Or just take a break from baths for a bit?

glad it helped :)

Hi Ernie&Kopka, We also did baby-led weaning (and are now doing child led feeding), although the term 'weaning' I think gives the wrong impression of what actually happens when you start to introduce solids to your child. Babies and young children can be very inconsistant in their requirements when it comes to solid food, and I would say 'complimentary feeding' is a better way to think of it rather than as a process of coming off one thing and onto something else. If you are happy to, you may find it very helpful to continue breastfeeding alongside introducing solid options for your baby, for as long as you can, as this can give you great reassurance that your baby is still being well nourished, irrespective of how their appetite for solids is at any time. Breast milk still can still provide a child with the majority of it's nutritional needs, even up until 2. The baby led weaning book by Gill Rapley is a great resource, and an important element to the approach is trusting your baby to know when they are hungry, and when they are not, and being comfortable with that. This may mean that there are periods of time when they really are not eating very much solid food at all, even after the age of 1, as babies and toddlers have different needs to adults, and the three meal a day model isn't always what they need. A helpful thing to have in mind, is you provide and they decide, and also food under 1 is just for fun. If your little one is teething, they may well find something like a carrot something really comforting to gnaw on, even if they don't eat any chewing on it will probably help their gums! Purees are a preference, and absolutely not a requirement for babies.

in case you hadn't heard, from 2013, if there is at least one parent earning more than ?42,476 per annum, their family will no longer receive child benefit.

If you will, perhaps you might like to email/send a letter to your MP. Here is one for inspiration: http://www.mothersathomematter.org/mahm-campaign-letters/110-fairness-inchild-benefit

reading this thread makes me wonder why people even ask others over for a meal? For me, the main thing would be to host people in a generous spirit, serving foods that I know they will like (and catering for preferences where required), and that everyone has had a good time and enjoyed themselves is enough thanks - I don't need something after in writing!

Ergo baby carrier is great - I still carry my daughter in it every day, and she is 19 months. You can use it on your front and back - carrying on the back is great when they are getting a little heavy on the front, and much kinder to your back.

Here is a website with loads and loads of lovely inspiration for activities to do with your little ones! http://www.icanteachmychild.com/

I have been reading a useful book on vaccinations, which parents might find useful: http://www.amazon.co.uk/What-Doctor-About-Childrens-Vaccinations/dp/0446555711/ref=sr_1_sc_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1324244126&sr=8-1-spell

hanstands - bath, brilliant idea! didn't even think of that as we only have a shower sadly :) x Lilygogan - if you start feeling worse or fever symptoms, you can call Seldoc on 02086939066 for an out of hours appointment.xx

hi lilygogan - it may well be a blocked duct, sounds like it. You can help to relieve it by massaging from just above the hard area down towards the the end of the nipple, expressing milk at the same time if possible. this can help the duct to unblock, and if you do it in the shower under hot water, you might find it more effective. There are quite a few threads on the forum about tips for things you can do to help with blocked ducts/mastitis, if you search mastitis you will probably find them. You might want to take some paracetamol to help with the pain. The most important thing I would say is to act quickly on the situation, because the longer it goes on the greater the risk of developing mastitis will be. xxx

Lansinoh breastpads can be hard to track down, which I think is so annoying - once it took me 3 days to get my hands on some, the big sainsbury's in ED was out of stock, the pharmacy's on LL and Rosendale Road were also out. I also once tried a supermarket, superdrug and boots in North Finchley, and none of them had them in stock. The one thing you need when BFing!

Dustin.

Ruth - why does it make you feel upset to have the logic and benefit of leaving a baby to cry for long periods of time challenged? Surely it is more upsetting to consider the crying baby? I understand sleep deprivation is totally hideous (I've been there), and a crying baby is extremely upsetting for mothers and fathers, but that doesn't take away from the experience that the baby is having also.