sarahf

We started using our buggy board when our son was almost 21 months. He was actually quite late to the walking game (19 months) but got the hang of it quite quickly and is a solid little thing. I tend to use it as a back-up to walking so DS will already be wearing reins that I can still hold onto whilst he is on the board. He did fall a few times on our first 2-3outings but has been fine ever since. Sometimes he refuses to go on as he wants to walk, which can be tricky when in a rush. However, we can cover a few miles with it. Good luck!

I also had acupuncture with Dan Bevan - the points for inducing birth were painful but I think effective. However, it's always impossible to know what really triggers labour (other than the baby deciding that it's time!). I had reflexology all the way through both of my pregnancies and loved it. Again, not sure if they triggered labour but so relaxing and also very lucky to have had two easy births. I had reflexology treatments from Charlotte Allocca at Touch Therapy (Alleyn Rd or Neals Yard, Covent Garden)- she is amazing!! Good luck with your birth.

Hi. I'm a bit of a latecomer to this thread (a house renovation has mostly made me forget that I am pregnant!). However, we are expecting our second child in the third week of December - we already have a very cheeky 18month old son! We moved from Dulwich in July to Herne Hill. If there is still space on the 28th, I would love to come and meet you all. My husband may have to work but I'll know a couple of days beforehand. Sarah

Another vote for Imperial China (it's on the Leicester Square end of Lisle Street, small entrance over a little bridge). However, my new dim sum favourite is Grand Imperial, which is in The Grosvenor Hotel at Victoria Station. The food is fantastic - hybrid of Royal China and Hakkasan - and dim sum menu good value if you're hungry. Giles Coren gave it a spot on review, although he complained of the dire service and attributed it to racism against gwei lo (white people). However, I would like to reassure the EDF that the staff are not racist at all - I am Chinese and have been prostrate by how bad the service can be. For great dim sum, I can cope with a bit of rubbish service (although, to be fair, sometimes it's good and seems to be improving) but not racism.

Hi Kim - thank you for the post! Really glad to hear that the exhibition is lovely. Hope that you have a good weekend away. JBoylen - it's great that you can join us. Shall we meet at the ticket desk at 2.30pm?

Ouch - 16 times - I hope that Taliyah feels better soon. rougepamplemousse and I are thinking about a trip to the gallery on Friday afternoon, around 2.30pm. Does that work?

Hi - I would love to meet up but sometimes struggle with the window between morning and afternoon nap. I wonder if anyone would be keen to do something one afternoon? I've been meaning to see the Van Dyck exhibition at Dulwich Picture Gallery (LO is 10months old and not yet mobile so need to embrace galleries whilst I still can!).

Hi Ruth We looked at both for our son as his 'stage 2' pushchair - we started off with the UppaBaby Vista but wanted something for travel. Our son is a rather large and seemed more comfortable in the City Mini, which has a slightly wider seat. Although the City Mini is almost as wide as our Vista, it's so much lighter and nippier. As mentioned by Belle, the fold is amazing and I have had strangers comment by how fabulous it folds (admittedly, have started doing it in a rather ostentatious - look! only one hand! kind of way). Our son also sleeps really well in it. We bought ours from the A3 Baby Barn and got a free rain cover. The hood is, however, good enough for brief showers. It is the 2012 model and I think that it's meant to have better access to the basket but you still really need to access from the side. Also, our brake seems to have become stiffer. Definitely doesn't pass the flip flop test but a small complaint for a fabulous pram.

We had a fantastic week at Martinhal in Portugal two weeks ago with our 10month old son. The resort is built for families with a great creche, kids' club, lots of thoughtfully designed play areas, good restaurants, a gym, tennis courts and a lovely spa. One of the on-site restaurants even has a sandpit and trampoline next to the restaurant so that parents can enjoy a slightly more leisurely lunch. However, the best thing about it being a family resort is that no one looks on disapprovingly if LO decides to have a bit of a sense of humour failure. Martinhal is on the South-westerly tip of the Algarve. It's a really easy 1hr20min drive from Faro airport (we found it and I am a terrible map reader - we missed the first turning) and on an unspoilt coastline - often compared to Cornwall due to its popularity with windsurfers. The hotel and self-catering houses are beautifully finished - high quality furniture and you can rent anything that your son might need - travel cot, high chair, pushchair etc. We got a fabulous low-season deal where we got a 2-bed, 2-bath Ocean view house on half-board occupancy for about ?940 - for all three of us! BA fly from/to City, which is such a low hassle airport and the flight is around 2.5hrs. My husband and I had a great time at Martinhal because our son was so happy and relaxed. It was very easy to stick to routine because there's no time difference and the childcare was great when we needed it - we used the creche for about 5hrs in total and had babysitting for 4 nights The babysitters (10 euros an hour) also work in the creche and kids club so your son can get to know them during the day. O Terraco is the resort's 'fine dining' restaurant - the food is very good (not quite as good as Eyre Brothers near Old Street but a similar menu) and the wine list is outstanding. What really makes this place (and I honestly have no affiliation - we just had an amazing holiday) is that the staff are genuinely lovely and adore children. If you have any questions, just PM me!

Strangely, I found this post whilst searching for baby class suggestions and although I think that the topic has been exhausted, I have a stationery company and am endlessly fascinated by etiquette and good manners. I love sending and receiving cards and letters (hence the career choice) but appreciate that it's not for everyone. Certainly, I've received cards that have been less meaningful than a thoughtful text or email. In fact, my brother-in-law sent a thank you card after he stayed for 4 nights over Christmas (we always have both families here for Christmas)that was addressed to my husband and failed to acknowledge me - despite the fact that I had done all the cooking whilst trying to look after our colicky son. It's April and I'm still cross! I really like newcomer's rule of thumb - that works for me. Also, I think that Saffron's 'text first, card later' is more than acceptable. It's nice to say 'thank you' immediately and a text is guaranteed to arrive. Embarrassingly, I have had a couple of cards that have gone astray in Royal Mail (one finally turned up 4 months after the lunch!), so at least a text, email or FB is a bit more timely! As a lot of the posts suggest, a good host looks after their guests. If we cannot open our doors with grace and warmth, then it's best not bother. However, I do think that there is sometimes a lack of good guests. In my book, stating a wine preference (new mother - am assuming that he said that he only drinks first growth claret as opposed to saying that red gives him migraines?!) is rude. My theory is that it's sometimes hard to be a good guest until you've been a good host. Until you have run around like a headless chicken: re-making a failed meringue, dashing out for a missing ingredient despite having spent a fortune in the supermarket with a cranky baby, setting a table etc. etc., you will never truly realise how awful the sound of the phone is when two guests call to cancel with an hour's notice. Whilst on my soapbox, 'bad/unthinking guests' seem to be particularly prominent at weddings, especially when there is a 'no children' policy. I am amazed by people who become emotionally manipulative or incandescently angry when they discover that their children aren't invited to a wedding. Whose day is it anyway? When did we suddenly become so self-important that we thought that we could tell a couple how to have their wedding? My business partner found a line in an old copy of Debrett's that stated: the essence of good manners is to make everyone feel at ease. I think that's perfect. Etiquette can sometimes feel too stuffy and, quite frankly, pointing out that someone isn't following etiquette is very bad manners! However, as Saffron eloquently says, good manners are reciprocal.

OK, it's not LL but they do deliver to East Dulwich - Indian Dining Club isn't just the best Indian in the area, it's the best I've had in London - counting all the Brick Lane restaurants, Painted Heron, Cinnamon Club etc. They do a good balance of more modern/adventurous dishes with old favourites. Also, we've found that if it's not on the menu, they can often do it if you ask. If you fancy the walk, the restaurant is lovely too.

I also bought an exercise ball and it does help a bit. There are also some good exercises on YouTube - try searching on 'pregnancy sciatica exercises' and 'pregnancy backache exercises'. Reflexology is a less scary alternative to acupuncture - I go to Katie Sedgwick who has also treated my sciatica with craniosacral (sp?) - it makes a huge difference. I also found Amy Eddison through the forum (making the most of first pregnancy and no childcare to juggle!) and she does a wonderful pregnancy massage - affordable too. I hope that you find something that works.

Just another recommendation for Amy who I discovered from this post. I have been seeing Amy regularly since the beginning of the year and it's such a lovely pregnancy treat. Amy is really friendly and manages to find all those areas of tension - even ones that I wasn't aware of! Now that I am in my third trimester, it's really helping with my sciatica and general back ache. My husband also goes regularly - although for deep tissue/sports massage! He says that he walks out feeling taller after a combination of hot stones and Thai.