2Loulou

Thanks, just called and email FIS, hope they get back to me with something my little brain can comprehend. will post update for future reference. thanks

Oh and my daughter is there the whole week from start to finish, poor thing! :(

Thanks all Yes they showed a saving for the wrap around care in April, my daughter turned 3 in Jan, so that is fine, however, the saving was lower than expected, for 15 hours a week, it's pretty good chunk, they are claiming it's because there are extras in the 15 hours that we still have to pay for (playtime, food etc....)I accepted that but asked for a clear breakdown of what is the funding and what are the extras, but they became evasive and ignored me for a while, then, gave me some rude emails: this is between the council and the nursery, you are getting your funding, so stop complaining! I just want to understand my invoice, they might be right, but I find the reluctance to give clear breakdown a little bit questionable!

Does anyone know how nurseries apply the funding to the monthly bill, I haven't seen much improvement in the cost, and after a month wait the nursery seems quite reluctant to give clear information, and now being a bit defensive about it all (it's a matter between the council and the nurseries....) Anyone has a good idea how it should be worked out? Thanks

We recently applied and were not asked for more than a recent utility bill, so you just have to be there when you apply. And we are in Lambeth too

I think they have to assume a year off but you give them a certain date 6 weeks prior to returning, at this stage you just have to give them an idea of how long you intend to stay off work so they get organise replacement, most contractors can be given 1 to 4 weeks to stop, so that should not be a problem for them I imagine I am not HR specialist though this is just what I have seen in my company

I gave birth to my two daughters there, second time I found the quality of antenatal care went downhill, they have way too many women going there plus those who drop in when in labour, I thought it was mad but it is true... as apparently they cannot refuse them. However, the staff during labor was professional, I even thought I have too many people coming to check on me and told them so! before the birth, I called a midwife called Joe on the helpline, she was ever so helpful and even accepted to see me before I went to work one day. I really think it is a good hospital to give birth, they tend not to give you a lot of attention when you are just pregnant, but you do get a good quality care when you are in labour or have anything serious good luck!

i had a bag full of poaches water, juice milk etc yesterday, I did mention it but the guys were either nice or didn't care, and didnt even open the bag, you usually are asked to taste the milk or food which is annoying cos you want to keep it unopen as long as you can. boots in the boarding area is making a fortune out of this, and is the safest bet!

hi, i was away with my two girls, and guess what, the young one got it too...awful! but no already looking much better, yes happy to meet, now they that they got it, nothing to fear anymore...:)

oh, i am ordering that dvd player today was hoping to get one here but not been that lucky! yes I am going to take a carrier and buggy (still not worked out whether small buggy or big one with storage space) should not be long, but I get panicky on planes and usually hubby ends up taking care of the kids whilst I close my eyes and pray :( this time there is no time to be scared just get on with it...fingers crossed if you ladies did it for long haul flights I can most probably do it! ta

wow to nz!!! i'm only flying to south of france, with a 6 month old on my lap though... I feel like it's going to be a struggle just to get them in and out of the ryanair plane with the lovely passengers pushing their way through! but if you made it to nz, i can do it..I need a portable dvd player maybe cos ryanair has hardly got the security belts for kids!

congrats, fab news and very pretty name xxx

Just starting to chicken out but it's too late now. if anyone's done it before, any tips? also, do you reckon a dvd player could keep my 3 yrs old calm for a couple of hours?!

Just saw that...wow! thanks I do clean the scars dry and moisturise but don't protect them, actually she just started picking all of the ones on her face and neck, not helping do you have a trick for this Saffron, right now I just keep her hands busy with fruits and water...:)

thanks a lot, I was actually wrong about moisturizing, I was under the impression it had to be super dry to heal but I put loads of cream on her a couple of hours ago...as for the sun, we actually forgot what it looks and feels like! but that s another thread

I have it actually, used whilst pregnant and it did get rid of dark patches on my skin I ll check it out thank you

My daughter had chicken pox, she didn't have lots of spots but they were quite big. I am concerned about the scars. Anyone knows of an old trick or a good cream to get the skin back to normal? thank you

One of my neighbors used to do it, I thought it was tough, she never struck me as a bad mum or anything, she was loving and caring and her daughter seemed happy. I would say, whilst keeping an eye on child abuse, one has to understand that parenthood is not easy, and one has to have kids to understand how difficult it is to make a judgment.

when pay is reviewed, all staff including female on ML should benefit too. I would say speak to HR, they must have a strong argument not to increase your salary by a minimal 1% in line with your colleagues

I have been there once too, the staff is extremely nice, the service is terribly slow though, and they kept forgetting bits and bobs so we all ate separately, we didn't mind as we had the whole day ahead of us, we stayed about 4 hours for lunch and coffee. One couple walked out cos their food must have been served late and cold it's not a disaster but it's a shame such a nice place and location is not optimised

Hi Saffron, yes now my mum has agreed in principle to come over and help with little one so my older goes to school, settles in there first, I go to work and get used to it... then put my little one in nursery when we can.hopefully this might work better for us. and yes I think a domestic help would be needed too.

my daughter has v curly hair, at that age i took her to village way, they wre super nice and she surprised me by not moving at all... the other surprise was that she got it for free, as it was her first haircut ever. I m using a spray a loreal one smells nice and fruity and works well when i have to comb her hair

I kind of feel this way too New Mother, the difficulty is that I really want to thrive in my job so in a longer term my children can benefit from it (afford high education, holidays etc...) as well as have a job I love. Some women are lucky to give up their jobs and return without being affected, some would just have to give up forever...it's a tough call

Ahhhh Lottery win is what I need! to be frank, if the mortgage wasn't big I would have taken longer ML to think about what I want to do, but having been pormoted recently can't afford to give up my role, I even felt guilty announcing my pregnancy so need to get back straight into it and full time. Had I not been trying I would have looked for a more child friendly job, where work from home, flexi time etc..is not a favour from your boss when I went back to work after baby1, day one was awful but I enjoyed it so much, having said that, we had our daughter looked after at home, now, she is starting school, I am starting work... the logistics sound scary. I am worried but know that once sorted, I will enjoy wearing clean clothes, taking a shower early in the morning as opposed to whenever you can squeeze it.. and earning more money than smp

I have never been, wanted to have a birthday party for my daughter there but was around the time I gave birth and my cousin who has been to the Chelsea one, said it's just not worth the money! The lady told me at the time to avoid weekends as they get very busy but you can't avoid weekends if you are inviting many people to your party... the idea is nice I guess, but improvements are def needed