gwod

Ive signed it and I urge everyone to. After the birth of my 3rd daughter the Bounty lady did the rounds of my ward chatting to the other 3 mums about how heavy their big babies were and what a hard time theyd had in delivery. I was dreading her coming to me, Id kept my curtains tightly closed as my baby wasnt with me, she was in ICU fighting for her life, 3 months premature and only 1.5lbs. "Wheres baby?" "upstairs" I mananaged just that word. Id had babies before, so I knew what was in the Bounty Pack, nappies and wipes that were the same length as my tiny little girl, insincere congratulations from baby care providing companies, and a Child allowance form that, sadly, I was never going to need. All those days were difficult, but that day would have been a little bit easier without Bounty Pack

Have you considered having two integrated normal fridges side by side. No American styling but loads of fridge space - super cheapo option.

Absolutely, I took my youngest 2, but there were lots of pre-schoolers there who seemed to be enjoying it. I thought it was fantastic and signed mine up to the workshop afterwards as well where they did lots of drama games and learned the Lobster quadrille. Thoroughly recommend.. and its right by the paddling pool for a little picnic afterwards!

Hello, we did long haul with my girls when they were babies. The disposable bottles (like a bag that fits into a plastic bottle) are fab for travelling. http://www.lenafashionworld.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=1395 They are pre sterilised and pack very small. Also, I didnt sterilise bottles at all after about 6 months. Just washed them well and didnt store milk in them. (Made it fresh each time) I figured that once they could roll over and lick the carpet or chew the toys at playgroup there wasnt much point!

My youngest2 (of 4) are 15 months apart and I found it helpful to have someone to help in the early weeks while I established breasfeeding and recovered from the C/section. It was good to know that if the older kids wanted to run around the park or get taken to a friends house it could be done. My husband was around for the 1st 2 weeks, I had a couple of hours help each day for the next couple of weeks, and then felt able to keep everything going after that, but it was good to have some flexibility in the plan incase Id felt Id needed a bit more help. Best of luck with it all, dont forget to enjoy it!

Just want to reasure you that in my experience, it's not as tragic as Mrs Anonymous of the Guardian makes out. There are sadnesses of times gone that will not return, but the joy of seeing your child flourish and explore the world eclipses that. Just as when they were small there are melancholy moments, but overall, 12 and up are amazing years. You get to see a glimpse of the adult your child is becoming, and the fruits of a whole decade of parenting. Look forward to it!

I would think hard about having my kids at a secondary school where I was a teacher. I think that is very hard on the kids and their friendships and undermines the parent/teacher, They may like the idea now but I think home and school need to be quite separate in the teenage years... good luck with your decision...its a tricky one.

the_duke_of_hazzard Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Thanks. Do you know of anyone that _didn't_ get in > further than Carnegie Library? > > The line seems to be very tight... No but my friend just beyond Carnegie were on the waiting list for a little while (but got a place quickly). This was for the sept 2012 entry. Anecdoally I heard that the catchemnt was about 800 meters.

I know of people just beyond the Carnegie Libary who got places this year - but no-one as far as Loughborough Juction...

Lorenzo Ali http://www.lorenzophotography.co.uk/

How about talsking to your daughter about inviting this other girl over to your house for a play date so that you can help them through any conflict, and also see first hand what's going on so that you can make more informed decisions re play-dates going forward... just a thought... Best of luck with it - its a minefield out there!

I agree with Pickle, if one of my children was biting other children I would certainly remove them from the scene for a while...especially as sometimes sayng no over and over can create a repeat in the behaviour and you have to do something else to break the cycle. Also, maybe its something he does when hes over-excited, in which case a bit of calm time could help. I would be concerned however if it was their first line of defence or if he had been separated for a long time (by this a guess I mean half and hour or more) Certainly something to have an informal chat with them about, especially if you have a prefered method of dealing with it that works that you could share with them...

I think schools try to tailor learning to children's ability, not to their ages, my summer born babies have not necessarily been any socialy or academically slower than their winter born friends and my winter born children are not necessily any more advaced than their summer born chums. When they're little the amount they develop in 6 months can make you feel alarmed about their comparitive age in the year, but they might also be the smartest, and equally, the oldest child in the year could be one that struggles most. A good school will be tuned in to your childs needs, not their statistics....and if it isnt quite working, you can negotiate half days or some other compromise, but in my experience they wont want to miss any of the fabulous playtime that is reception! Have you visited reception classes?...if you havnt had the chance yet, I think you will be surprised how play-based it is, not "formal education" in the way we remember from our education at all, and no more intense than nursery in my experience. PS I am an August baby too and never felt out of my depth at school (though perhaps I would have been be a super wealthy alpha-female had I deferred!!!)

It has been so interesting reading this thread, it seems clear that everyone can see the advantages/disadvantages of being a singleton or being a sibling, and a happy outcome comes from good parenting, not from the shape and size of the family. I have 4 daughters, and often feel guilt that I cannot spare as much time for each of them as Id like, and a lifelong friend of mine has one (by choice) and feels guilt that her daughter doesnt have a sibling. We holiday together and the kids get a real taste of each others lives - I know that my daughter's friend yearns for the mild chaos and bed/ bath/shower sharing, days spent in jointly imagined games and the feeling of being part of a pack that she experiences with when we are together. But at the same time, my kids would love to have the level of one-to-one attention and opportunities she has....train holidays accross Europe, going to Olympics, choosing what she'd like for supper. All things logistically/financially impossible for us. I think its important for our kids and us to see that there isnt a better way, just different ways. For me, the decision to have more children was governed by an undeniable and visceral longing, and I feel extremely lucky to have as many as I do, I cant think there could have been many practical considerations (including the serious health risks and loss I experienced) that could have made me feel or choose differently.

We polish the coin so it looks suitably sparkly!!!

I think you are right to just answer qustions as they arise with whatever you really beleive is the truth, the child naturally asks for and accepts information at a rate they can manage. Part of how they feel about this new information is in how you deliver it, If it comes across as a new tragic truth it is worrying to them but if you just answer in the same tone as you would answer questons about what is for tea or what you did at nursrery today, the child shoudnt be too alarmed. What I have found trickier is explaining untimely deaths, such as children or babies or their friend's parents...then the "they were old and tired" doesnt work and we ourselves are struggling to find answers, I have only been able to assure them its very rare to minimise any fears that it could happen to them or us...but I dont think its possible to make it feel completely OK for them in those circmstances.

You can make little christmas posys very inexpensively from holly, Ivy which you can pick and other evergreens. Maybe a few fake berrys or baubles to brighten it up. A little from the florist supplemented by some forraged bits can go a long way. Tissue paper and a ribbon finishes it off really nicely.

Sounds like theres no-one who has moved anywhere that's less than perfect...

A Steiner Doll is a great, soft, non sickly doll for boys or girls. Created just for the reasons you express. Re your pram, I would recommend you buy a very cheap and foldable one. They can be bulky and get in the way and its great if you can shove it under your own buggy after theyve got bored with pushing it!! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waldorf_doll Loads of sites sell them

"Also if you've had experience of natural vs caesarean birth I'd also love to hear your comparative stories of recovery, or also, positive caesarean experiences as I have only experienced emcs and had a pretty tough time of it so I think I might be slightly biased! Thanks and I'm looking forward to hearing from you Anya" I had 1 natrual(ish) birth, 2 Emeregency C sections (one of which was under General Aneasthetic) and 2 planned C sections. If you think that you would still like to talk to someone with a range of birth experiences to compare, Id be happy to help. PM me if you'd like

Quite right Nappy Lady, go with an open mind and see if you enjoy it, if you hate it as much as you thought you would youve got the perfect excuse for next year. I think everyone feels like this about Halloween as we read so much bad press about it, but actually the community carnival feel on the streets is fantastic and Im pretty sure youll both have a lovely time - let us know how you get on...

Or this might be good http://www.amazon.co.uk/Read-Write-Inc-Sound-Picture-Frieze/dp/0198460392/ref=sr_1_27?ie=UTF8&qid=1350998289&sr=8-27

Yes I like the balance of stuff you should know - and stuff to stretch towards...

Yes, we got them in reception too. I just thought it was really useful to know they make up half of the words in kids books and are therefore pretty handy for anyone who wants more input into their childs spellings. Made for a long post though!

Not so much about tests per se, but we have been give this list of words which I have found very useful with all of my kids, First 16 words in list make up 25% of all words in children?s books; the top 100 make up 50%. Getting these ones down at an early stage really helps with their writing. Interestingly they are nearly all words which would be hard to work out phonetically so just need to get learned parrot fashion. My Yr 1 daughter gets 8 spellings a week - 6 quite easy and on a topic (plurals, endings or something) and 2 challenge words trickier but useful, (beautiful, frightening that sort of thing) the and a to said in he I of it was you they on she is for at his but that with all we can are up had my her what there out this have went be like some so not then were go little as no mum one them do me down dad big when it?s see looked very look don?t come will into back from children him Mr get just now came oh about got their people your put could house old too by day made time I?m if help Mrs called here off asked saw make an