Ann

Wow, I have those days (occasionally) now but my first born is nearly 20! I guess your lucky your husband can take off two days a month? At the same time you need to have spare time for doing things as a family, I hope. I remember what luxury it was to have a day shopping, hairdo etc... without having to worry about children!

Agreed Sue, it registers for me highly as a 'job I would never want to do'. I don't blame the 'Chuggers', but the cynical marketing strategies.

Buddug, thanks for your post, it gives another perspective on the issue here. This is one of the saddest threads ever posted on this forum. The words 'Man's best friend' really do spring to mind here. This poor dog is clearly grieving and his owner may well be so wrapped up in her own grief that she is struggling; no-one to blame here. I have been very recently bereaved of my own nearly 14 year old Spaniel. I genuinely don't know how she would have coped if I had died ahead of her. Our dogs are more intelligent than people suspect; we are so lucky to have them as family 'pets', family member in my view. I wish this dog's owner our good wishes and absolute confidence that there are enough of us to help her with her dog id needed.

Yes do, I think it's a huge invasion on our personal privacy. I'm all for donating to charity on a what I can pay basis. Just don't want to be accosted on my doorstep after a day's work, even though I don't have young children any more. Have to say I'm rather abrupt with them these days, which is unpleasant in it's self. Would definitely register as door to door free if possible.

Is there an underground dog-fighting thing? As far as I'm aware there were laws passed about this many years ago and certain breeds are illegal. Of course your children are precious , all children are, but I'm unaware of any child being seriously harmed by a random dog attack. The majority of the awful cases reported are where the dog is owned by a family( albeit extended ) member? No offence but I do think some well meaning parents can instill unnecessary fear into their children.

Good point Buggie. Why do dogs get such bad press around here? Granted there are a lot of strong 'Staffie ' type dogs locally but as a dog owner and parent I can say neither have been threatened from any local dog. I'm horrified that anyone would want to inflict pepper spray on a dog. Have we not, as a nation incorporated dogs as part of our lives for centuries at least? Tragic stories of children being mauled or murdered are thankfully extremely rare, as are child murders by humans, but far less so. They've happened before and sadly will happen again. Do dog owners have any legal recourse if such attack was inflicted on their dog?

Well said, have observed the same at Goose Green many times.

slayed

I agree Haerton. I've been a dog owner here for many years. In all honesty I can't say I've experienced any 'ante social behavior' other than an interested dog approaching a bitch who doesn't appreciate their advances! Restricted areas could seriously curtail many dogs' enjoyment of our parks. I have a small back garden and I'm well aware that many local residents have garden at all. Most of us (I believe ) who own dogs are well aware that our park spaces are a premium as this summer has proved. We pay plenty tax in our family too and I'm grateful for the lovely spaces we have for dogs and children alike. On a personal level I would hate our locality to be deprived of dogs; the very fact that we have such wonderful open spaces makes dog ownership as diverse as it is.

Again, thanks First Mate for your selfless efforts. As a dog owner myself I must say your posts are educational (re dogs), and genuinely interesting to read. As others have said, to leave a dog without water is unacceptable in any circumstances. Panting is their only way to reduce body temperature I believe in the same way that humans sweat? That poor dog could have died.

Agreed. It's wonderful local history and thanks for the images posted but in all honesty, what would be the point?

Gosh that does sound a lot. I'm still with Lordship Lane Vets and very happy with them. Although I don't have Pet Insurance I am comfortable that we can pay bills as needed, but realise that's not the situation for all animal owners. I wouldn't assume the Vets think we're all made of money but perhaps they face the inflated costs of running a business in London as many others do?

Yes they will remove but charge you for it. Years ago we came back from holiday to find same, I would have paid a large sum of money in preference to bagging up the maggot infested remains myself!

Fairlawn. Of course Sydenham girls is lovely but it ought to be for the price. It sounds like your private option was your back up as you got nothing from your original application, you have jumped for joy if you had got Fairlawn back in May. At that age friendships are so easily made, she will have forgotten Sydenham from day one! Definitely save your money for secondary school. As others have said, it's important to have her friends close by.

I live near Goose Green, never heard them once, but I would like to take this opportunity to say thank you to our local council for maintaining our lovely parks as well as they do. When the weather has been as fine as of late it's so nice to see our open spaces so well used. What a ridiculous post, pretty poor trolling.

PCM, the Au Pair web site gives guidelines about this. I agree with Badur London would be an attractive location for au-pairs. There is a big difference between what you should expect between an au-pair and a live-in Nanny; they are simply not the same thing and it worries me that anyone would refer to an au-pair as such. To reiterate, my 19 year old daughter (see above post) has no child care qualifications, no police check and no training what so ever in first aid. For E60 a week that's the deal. She's happy, I'm happy and I believe the family are. I know this whole child care dilemma is difficult and I would never say no to an au-pair, but they are not Nannies.

I've never employed an au pair but my daughter is currently employed as such on a short term contract in Barcelona; she has just finished her first year at University studying French and Spanish. Her young charges are aged 10 and 8, so a bit older the ages quoted here. The family are lovely and she's happy to be there. As others have said I think it's the balance between what you expect from the au pair and respecting her (or his) personal space. For example, my daughter's family had a barbecue with extended family last weekend which she was welcome to join in- she wasn't excluded as hired help! Also she has a Uni friend out there at the same time, plus two more doing the same in Madrid who plan to visit. I say this because I wouldn't want an au pair to feel too isolated, her personal well being is important for the situation to work. The last thing you want for your children is too change au pairs every few months. On a practical level her family have offered to pay for her travel into town, so contribution toward an Oyster Card might be nice? Also they have membership for their local Lido and have added her so she can go with the children or by herself on the weekend. The space you describe Mellors sounds great. My daughter has a good sized room with en-suite and separate terrace with sea view! She has been asked to help the children with their English but nothing too formal; in fact their first language is Catalan not Spanish. I think employing an au pair can be invaluable as long as your reasonable with your expectations. Your children will respond well with a happy au pair better than a drudge. Au pair World was the site she used and does give useful guidelines. Thought I would post to give a different perspective!

Hi Sillywoman, My daughter has just finished her first year at Cardiff ( French and Spanish), she has had the best year of her life! I agree with others that Halls and rent are cheaper outside of London and the southeast. The absolute vast majority of her friends from a variety of sixth forms chose Uni's well away from London. As your daughter has said she wants to 'spread her wings', I understand her sentiments entirely. We have two salaries in our family, so I have chosen to pay accommodation and help with living costs knowing that she has fairly hefty course fees to pay for. She is currently employed as an au pair in Barcelona as I type. That said, she has friends who are entirely dependent on student loans and have coped. My overall impression is that University education is worth having at all costs, the value of which could lead to a whole series of separate threads! Encourage your daughter to apply, children are resilient she will cope. Even if I couldn't have supported my daughter in any way financially I would still 100%, nay 1000% choose her to be where she is.

Thank you *Bob*. At times, this forum would be quite dull without you!

Louisa, I remember the debate about Goose Green daffodils but I don't remember any leaflets posted!

Flush

Trace

For The Love Of Ivy -- Mamas and Papas.

We've had it I think. In my case it was like a normal case of 'upset tummy' but I was ill for a lot longer than usual.

You Can Ring My Bell --- Anita Ward