Saffron

Thought of this after exploding* some chestnuts in the oven over xmas... self-cleaning 'pyrolitic' oven would be great. *Note to self: Next xmas, must remember to poke holes in chestnuts before roasting.

Sorry, I don't have personal experience of those schools, but just wanted to say that when I was looking for schools for my daughter, I found thoroughly reading the schools' websites to be useful in addition to visits. Also keep in mind that catchments are very small for many schools. So unless you're moving almost next door to certain schools, the likelihood of getting a place can diminish rapidly with distance. Best of luck. xx

The fence is yours, within your property boundary? How much notice, if any, are you legally required to give if the new fence is not significantly dissimilar to the old one, and you covered the whole cost? Certainly if they want the fence changed, there should be means for navigating this without harassing you. However, I'm not sure they have much legal standing in getting you to change a fence on your own property, so long as it's a reasonable design to replace the old one? Having lived as a tenant in a property where the owner had a fence dispute with neighbours, the fence owner came out ahead of the non-owner, even though the new fence actually was different compared to the old one! xx

Communication is often flagged as problematic by parents at my daughter's school, though the school is very good in other ways. There is no return receipt on emails, and they are not always answered. We don't have class reps, though parents have brought this point forward on more than one occasion. :-/

Getting a Postal Order would be faster than waiting for a cheque book. xx

We went to the 'Wonderlab' at the Science Museum yesterday. I thought we'd just drop in for an hour, but four hours later I had to drag little Saff away because they were closing the museum. It is really fab! Everyhting is hands-on, and there are lots of different sections. There are also science shows on rockets and engineering etc. Heaps of fun for kids and grown-ups. :)

Sorry, I only just saw this! On boxing day, we made up a scavenger list, then tried to find everything on the walk to the park and back: a stick, a stone, a feather, brown leaves, a crow, a robin, a squirrel, some flowers, a xmas tree... I think we had a few more. I can't remember. We had fun ticking them off the list. Today hubbie has taken little Saff swimming at wavelengths. The slides are closed, but the bubble fountains are always fun. We're thinking of going to Southbank/ Tate Modern later in the week. Hope you found something fun to do. xx

Perhaps you could start having local meetings for Hope Not Hate in the pub? You know, just for balance. ;-)

Not sure what you mean by Brockley not being green? ...Hilly Fields Park, Ladywell Park and playing fields on the Ravensbourne River, Blythe Hill Park, Telegraph Hill Park... and slightly further afield, the excellent Mayow Park in Forest Hill. The transport links in Brockley/Lewisham are excellent to visit both the Horniman Gardens and Greenwich Park, as well as central London. (Also I would definetly not describe Brockley as posh on any sense. Boring? There's a ton of stuff happening in SE4!) There is an excellent French community in SE4, just ask the French fellow who runs the French bakery in Ladywell. :) Gordonbrock Primary School was just ranked 2nd highest in Lewisham Borough, and made the national top 250. Beecroft, Stillness, and John Stainer are all good primaries too, just to name a few. However, similar to Southwark, many catchment areas are now very small in SE4/SE13. Secondaries seem to have less choice, but so far everyone I know seems to be happy with their choices. Victorian properties in SE4/SE13 are generally spacious (by London standards). SE23 (Forest Hill) is nice too. xx

There is (or was?) a cafe near Telegraph Hill that had a 'Quiet Morning'. I haven't been since my daughter was very small, I can't remember which one it is/was. Their approach was not to say that one type of person is spoiling something for another. They simply had a sign saying when the quiet morning was, and that boisterous patrons/noisy children should come on other days. On the quiet morning, babes in arms and quiet children were fine. Not everyone with a pram or small child is noisy. Some very shy children prefer the company of quiet adults, and certainly a sleeping infant disturbs no one. Plus not everyone uses a pram, and plenty of prams fold, even the bulky ones. I understand that some shops don't have room for more than a couple of buggies, but an outright ban on children during the day in a cafe seems to me like cutting off the nose to spite the face. I guess if they have the clients to support it, that's their business not mine. It just seems weird to me to lump all parents and children into the same stereotype. But hey, I guess it got them free publicity. Ho hum.

Tangentially related to exam results, but excellent food for thought: http://schoolsweek.co.uk/pe-and-re-teachers-make-least-effective-superheads-new-study-reveals/

Jules-and-Boo Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I saw both sets of x-rays so not doubting either > of the dentists. > > Used coconut oil, changed diet, added minerals and > specific toothpaste from health food shop on LL. > Great result! Glad you found something that works. :) xx

Jules-and-Boo Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > just an update - cavities are gone! > > Different dentist - xrays - all clear!!!! > > So - it DOES work! Pleased to read that! What method did you use in the end?

lavender27 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > thank you all, I drank gallons of water and > rested, it has taken 3 weeks to get over it. So sorry to hear that. :( As an occasional migraine sufferer, that sounds just awful! Is that a one-off, or does it usually take you so long to recover? I'm usually better in 24 hours. As a one-off, maybe you were unlucky to have a virus at the same time? But if that's a common effect, I wonder if it's worth having some further assessment? It's not uncommon for other conditions to occur in tandem with migraine. For example, migraine is sometimes co-morbid with other conditions, such as epilepsy. And it's not uncommon for absence seizures to go undiagnosed for some time. (I'm not saying you have epilepsy btw, it's just an example.) Clotting disorders and migraine sometimes go together as well... could explain the aspirin link for some people (though I have a clotting disorder, and aspirin doesn't help my migraines... hmmm). Some clotting disorders are very subtle in their early stages, such as changes to the megakaryocytes (the cells that make platelets). The link between vascular changes and electrical signals in the brain during migraine is not totally understood. If you find something that works, report back to the Forum! Though I hope it's a long time before you need to test any migraine therapies. xx

Landy10, if you read my post carefully you'll find that your HV's advice is not in disagreement. One can further qualify my statement regarding areas of increased risk, to include individuals at increased risk -- depending on with which PCT you're registered. Infant's at increased risk are being prioritised, and the BCG is not being offered in all areas (or to all persons). So the advice you receive will depend on where you live, and whether you're personally understood to have an increased risk. http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vaccinations/pages/when-is-bcg-tb-vaccine-needed.aspx http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vaccinations/pages/bcg-tuberculosis-tb-vaccine.aspx Suffice it to say that lack of its routine use in all areas has been a source of much confusion, but there is a lack evidence to demonstrate its bebefit with routine use. BB100, I'm very sorry to hear about your niece. While poverty and poor housing increase the risk of infection, that doesn't mean, of course, that infection never occurs outside these circumstances. And, unfortunately the BCG vaccination has a low and variable efficacy against TB infection. The reason it's being offered to high risk infants is because it protects against disseminated TB. Because the use of this vaccine differs according to circumstances, it's always best to discus with your HV or GP if you're concerned.

Very pale poos could mean the infection caused the gall bladder to be inflamed. The gall bladder makes bile, which gives poo it's dark colour. If irritated, bile production can temporarily drop. It should get better after a few days, but you could phone seldoc for out of hours advice if you're worried. I had this several years ago after a particularly bad round of likely viral gastroenteritis. My poo was actually white! Not kidding! Very weird, but I recovered fine. Hope your LO is better soon. xx

It's difficult to know the details from your post, but it seems like the initial infection may have been viral. Now your LO has a secondary bacterial infection? The symptoms you describe could fit scarlet fever, which often occurs after another infection. If that is the case, your LO should show definite signs of improving with the antibiotic. Five days seems like a short course of antibiotics. I'm thinking it's usually a longer course for scarlet fever, but this could be down to formulation. You could query this with the on-duty Pharmacist at your local pharmacy. You could also leave a message with your GP's receptionist for a doctor to phone you back (maybe a different doctor!). It seems like there may have been a miscommunication, and you need to clarify this to make sure your LO is getting the right course of treatment. Some GPs are awful, and some are fabulous. Some of it is down to personality, but the rest seems to be down to poor management, which is highly irritating. I would carry on with the antibiotics because that is what you've been prescibed, unless of course your LO has a reaction to them. But also, you definitely need to seek a second opinion tomorrow for clarification. xx

Thanks. I love the idea of active games. I really struggle to get out when the weather turns colder! xx

Do you have a family games console? Would you recommend it? What kind of games do you play? I'm looking at the Wii U, which isn't cheap, but it looks fairly versatile. Any thoughts?

Has anyone tried this or used something similar? http://noisenuisance.org/the-app/

BCG injections available on the NHS are all the same now afaik, and they are not routinely given to older children or adults unless there is suspected close contact with TB infected individuals. The NHS only routinely now offers TB immunisation to under 1-year olds in areas considered to have higher rates of TB, in order to mediate the effects of military (disseminated) TB should the child become infected with TB. So, your children will not be offered the BCG when they are older anyway, unless someone in the family has been diagnosed with TB TB is, thankfully, not highly contagious unless a person is in prolonged close contact with infected individuals, in which case prophylactic vaccination may be offered, for example infected family members or TB healthcare workers. Even then, some areas are opting for surveillance rather than vaccination, because (a) the BCG efficacy is low, (b) adults develop some natural immunity to environmental exposure to mycobacteria, and © because good hygiene is effective at significantly reducing transmission. When looking into the details of stats on this, one finds that the reason that many people from developing countries had TB in London areas was not because they came to the UK with TB. It was sadly, because of poverty and their poor housing conditions in London, which caused many them to contract TB after arriving in London. TB is also a problem in other vulnerable populations such as prisoners and the homeless. To put it in the bluntest terms, it's poverty which puts people at greatest risk of TB. http://www.citymetric.com/horizons/how-did-modern-london-become-tuberculosis-capital-europe-1566 http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vaccinations/pages/bcg-tuberculosis-tb-vaccine.aspx

I had a coper coil (IUD) before and after my pregnancy. I had changed from the combined oral contraceptive to the copper coil to ditch the hormones because they were giving me symptoms of interstitial cystitis. It worked. My periods were a bit longer, but the constant urinary symptoms dissappeared. I only got premenstrual urinary symptoms a few days before my period, linked to natural hormone changes. When my last IUD expired, I switched this January to the Mirena (IUS) to stop my periods, because I'm having a complex problem with low iron exacerbating a rare clotting disorder. I was bleeding lighly off/on for about 5 months. Now, I have cyclical spotting only. I'm waiting for my next round of routine bloodwork to decide if I want to keep the Mirena. Not only has it brought back urinary symptoms, my mood has absolutely plummeted to nearly PND levels. I'm only coping because I know it's caused by the hormones, and I'm pushing myself mentally to fight it. My piece of advice would be, in hindsight, that if you are concerned about mood changes, you need to take a clinical questionnaire for anxiety and depression BEFORE you start the Mirena, so you know where your baseline was. Then retake it at intervals to check if the Mirena could be altering your mood. Also, you could consider having the copper IUD and combine with NuvaRing to mitigate heavy cycles if they become a problem. xx

There is a covered rink in Streatham I think. We went skating at the open air rink in Greenwich/Canary Wharf last year, and it was lovely. There are lots of child-friendly choices to eat nearby afterwards. Not sure about rain. Best to check what the policy is in advance. We watched the weather forecast and booked for the best window we could find.

I wonder if this thread would be better in the Family Room discussion section? It's not uncommon for people to discuss relationships there. Two things that spring to mind... If your wife is an introvert, does she truly get enough time to herself to get her energy genuinely recharged? For deeply introverted people, sex takes a lot of energy. If an introvert is already low on energy, then there's no energy left to invest in a sexual relationship. Time to oneself is the only way for an introvert to really recharge. (Doing chores alone does not generally count!) If your wife is on hormonal birth control, this can also negativley affect mood and libido for some women, as can other post-baby gyne issues. Personally I think there is too much emphasis in the popular media on sex in relationships, as if sex is the primary foundation of a romantic partnership for everyone. That's simply not the case. For many people, sex is not the primary driver of the relationship. For these people, everything else needs to fall in place first, before they feel that the relationship's deep intimacy draws them into sex. It sounds like this might be the case for your wife, while the opposite is true for you. There's no right or wrong. But, if you're deeply mismatched, then you'll have more of an uphill struggle to find common ground. xx

I would not have personally seen an overnight plaster as a choking hazard. I guess the risk depends on what type of plaster you're using. If the plaster is firmly fixed, then the likelihood of it becoming dislodged is minimal. I would be more concerned about the irritation the adhesive could cause, being applied nightly for more than a few nights. Twenty months is far too young for an ADD/ADHD diagnosis, the main characteristics of which are inattention and impulsivity. It is completely normal to exhibit self-soothing behaviours, or to seek comfort, when young children are upset, tired or bored. Unless the skin is infected, thumb-sucking isn't a medical issue so no point seeing a doctor. If the thumb-sucking is problem for you and your LO, then the weight of the argument seems to suggest acting sooner rather than later. Can you substitute a 'lovey' for the thumb-sucking? Good luck. xx