[hmjessop]

(Original post by Iorek)
Haha... we have something in common

We attend the same school

Ooh Nottingham Uni? Exciting! I'm not actually there at the moment because I am on my year abroad in France but I shall be returning next year! Do you live in Nottingham then? What are you studying?

[Iorek]

(Original post by hmjessop)
Ooh Nottingham Uni? Exciting! I'm not actually there at the moment because I am on my year abroad in France but I shall be returning next year! Do you live in Nottingham then? What are you studying?

Nottingham Uni it is I am doing the Executive MBA.

I don't live in Nottingham as I work in London, live in Henley. My program delivers the lectures over 4 full days per module and there are 1 or 2 modules every month.

[balloon_parade]

I absolutely love our iCandy. I think when you feel low after having a baby and tired after sleepless nights, it's nice to have a little luxury in your life!

Also, if I am going to be using something everyday for the next two years or so (even more with the iCandy as it transfers from a single to a double so it could be over 4 years, or 6!) through various weathers and terrains, I want it to be high quality, which I believe the iCandy is. We've had ours since March '09 and it is still practically good as new, we've had the odd puncture but it is still holding it's value quite well.


So, I guess there are pros and cons to what type of pram to get and it depends on what you want and need as a family.

[Zenobia]

I don't know about you guys, but my parents never had one at all when I was little? They had something like this http://www.dewoodpecker.nl/webshop/c...nderwagen1.jpg and something like this http://pan.fotovista.com/dev/5/7/000...g_00002175.jpg (yes I couldn't find a better image). And when my sister was born, they figured I should walk. I don't know how pleased they were with with but I don't remember caring at all (apart from the bit where I had to walk =P).

[PinkMobilePhone]

(Original post by Zenobia)
I don't know about you guys, but my parents never had one at all when I was little? They had something like this http://www.dewoodpecker.nl/webshop/c...nderwagen1.jpg and something like this http://pan.fotovista.com/dev/5/7/000...g_00002175.jpg (yes I couldn't find a better image). And when my sister was born, they figured I should walk. I don't know how pleased they were with with but I don't remember caring at all (apart from the bit where I had to walk =P).

Yeh travel systems are a reasonably new set up. I think a lot of people used to have the sort of things that your parents used. Certainly my mother-in-law has mentioned many times that she used a big pram like that first one, and then straight onto a pushchair. Not sure about my own parents, I have never asked them, and I can't remember.

my news - got confirmation email today, Alex has gotten a place offered at Lydia's school for September (which was my first choice). Woo thank goodness

[Iorek]

(Original post by PinkMobilePhone)

my news - got confirmation email today, Alex has gotten a place offered at Lydia's school for September (which was my first choice). Woo thank goodness

Isn't that a sure-thing these days that if you've already got a child in the school that the subsequent ones will definitely be offered a place there?

[HerRoyalHighness]

travel systems are excellent. we used one with ella and just stopped using the pushchair as i wanted to preserve it for next one. so pleased for you PMP x

[Sephrenia]

My mum had a travel system for me. Not that the car seat amounted to much - it was just a polystyrene egg (effectively =P)

[PinkMobilePhone]

(Original post by Iorek)
Isn't that a sure-thing these days that if you've already got a child in the school that the subsequent ones will definitely be offered a place there?

no. It's likely, but it's not a sure thing, especially as there are 2 schools closer to our house than that one is.

[Iorek]

(Original post by PinkMobilePhone)
no. It's likely, but it's not a sure thing, especially as there are 2 schools closer to our house than that one is.

Ahhh... didn't know that.

We have quite a few schools closer to our home, but we picked.... okay actually it is me who picked one that's 10 miles away. Not a bad place, from nursery to sixth form...... hope she doesn't get bored being in the same place for so long and there better be a good RoI for this.

[PinkMobilePhone]

I'm sure she won't get bored. She'll be with all her friends. It'll be nice for her

This is the school that Lydia is at (where Alex will be going too, and later HOPEFULLY Jason) :

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darfiel...Primary_School

it's a good school, they really encourage pupils, Lydia likes it there.

[Zenobia]

(Original post by PinkMobilePhone)
I'm sure she won't get bored. She'll be with all her friends. It'll be nice for her

This is the school that Lydia is at (where Alex will be going too, and later HOPEFULLY Jason) :

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darfiel...Primary_School

it's a good school, they really encourage pupils, Lydia likes it there.

From what I have seen here and on Facebook it looks amazing. I love how they encourage Lydia to learn Spanish and Polish and such. She's going to appreciate that SO much in 10 years, believe me...
I went through primary school fine but my greatest regret, of my life so far, is that no one bothered to teach me extra things while I was bored out of my mind.

[balloon_parade]

When you have a sibling in the school you're pretty much a sure thing, the criteria is, distance, special needs and siblings and if they didn't get in you could just appeal and you'd be fine anyway.

We haven't found out yet for Sept, I think it is around the 20th April we find out in our LEA.


Hope everyone is well x

[Iorek]

(Original post by PinkMobilePhone)
I'm sure she won't get bored. She'll be with all her friends. It'll be nice for her

This is the school that Lydia is at (where Alex will be going too, and later HOPEFULLY Jason) :

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darfiel...Primary_School

it's a good school, they really encourage pupils, Lydia likes it there.

Wow a beacon school, I always look for real estate near beacon schools... never a shortage of tenants who are willing to pay my stupidly high rents. Only problem is the wear and tear on the house is somewhat accelerated

For Emily, I really had a tough time deciding where she should go. Finally weighed it all up and decided to do what was best for her.

She goes here :-

http://www.theabbey.co.uk/Abbey-School/

There were 4 others nearer but 1 was full and it only took in kids at 4 rather than at 3 so I would have needed to put her in another nursery, 2 didn't want to take her in mid-term and the final one had a headmistress who wanted an extra "donation" for a spot.

Now got to find a way to make it up to the DW as she is still upset at where I enrolled the LO.

[PinkMobilePhone]

(Original post by Iorek)
Wow a beacon school, I always look for real estate near beacon schools... never a shortage of tenants who are willing to pay my stupidly high rents. Only problem is the wear and tear on the house is somewhat accelerated

For Emily, I really had a tough time deciding where she should go. Finally weighed it all up and decided to do what was best for her.

She goes here :-

http://www.theabbey.co.uk/Abbey-School/

There were 4 others nearer but 1 was full and it only took in kids at 4 rather than at 3 so I would have needed to put her in another nursery, 2 didn't want to take her in mid-term and the final one had a headmistress who wanted an extra "donation" for a spot.

Now got to find a way to make it up to the DW as she is still upset at where I enrolled the LO.

It looks like a good school. Why is your DW upset about it?

We can't afford private school for the kids, but TBH the school that they're going to is good anyway.

Actually I went to private school myself, from the start of Transition, to the end of Upper II (incidentally, WHY do private schools call their classes Lower I, Upper I, Lower II, Upper II etc? It confused me loads when I then went into a state school at the beginning of Year 5 lol)
I didn't care for it much to tell you the truth. The teaching quality was excellent, but I was bullied a lot by girls who thought that I clearly wasn't posh enough to be there, because my mother drove a Volkswagen Golf instead of a Jaguar, and I had a pet cat instead of a horse!
Meh!

There are bullies anywhere you go though. I then started in a state school, and got picked on by the other kids for speaking "too posh" haha. Oh the irony!

[Iorek]

(Original post by PinkMobilePhone)
It looks like a good school. Why is your DW upset about it?

We can't afford private school for the kids, but TBH the school that they're going to is good anyway.

Actually I went to private school myself, from the start of Transition, to the end of Upper II (incidentally, WHY do private schools call their classes Lower I, Upper I, Lower II, Upper II etc? It confused me loads when I then went into a state school at the beginning of Year 5 lol)
I didn't care for it much to tell you the truth. The teaching quality was excellent, but I was bullied a lot by girls who thought that I clearly wasn't posh enough to be there, because my mother drove a Volkswagen Golf instead of a Jaguar, and I had a pet cat instead of a horse!
Meh!

There are bullies anywhere you go though. I then started in a state school, and got picked on by the other kids for speaking "too posh" haha. Oh the irony!

Re : Lower / Upper..... more to do with an old tradition, many British sylabus schools overseas also follow this practice. If I'm not wrong it's something to do with the exams they had to do prior to 1950 when it became GCE and then GCSE. These days many privates are using the Year or they go by Early/Junior/Senior rather than Lower/Upper

Re DW being upset.... she doesn't like independent schools, she doesn't like those who send their kids to such schools and she doesn't like those who go to such schools..... strangely she fell for me

Her reasoning is she will be 22 end of this year and doesn't come from a background that would normally send their kids to an independent school, she didn't want to feel out of place if she had to go see a teacher or be among other parents there. There is also the money issue, she thinks we already pay taxes and council tax, why pay more fees to go to a school.... and she genuinely believes I picked the school because one of my directors has a daughter there and it's also where a lot of my friends from a Polo club send their girls to and I'm just doing so to "join the clubs/ranks"

The original plan was for us to send Emily to the nearest state school, but after we moved homes the nearest state school is just not what I'm comfortable with, plenty of chav like parents that send their kids there and it's now a tired and overcrowded school. DW wanted to stick to the original plan and wanted either that school or the next state school. She thought I would stick to plan and would take her stance..... but then the few things she gave me a "veto" power on was on education related matters....... I decided to use it before I lose it

[h82think]

Hi all

Motherhood is so much fun... but so exhausting too I guess something I'll have to get used to

Can anyone recommend a toy for a baby who cannot hold his head up but loves to kick his feet?

[thru sun and rain]

There's the kick piano but nit sure on age .

(Original post by h82think)
Hi all

Motherhood is so much fun... but so exhausting too I guess something I'll have to get used to

Can anyone recommend a toy for a baby who cannot hold his head up but loves to kick his feet?

[balloon_parade]

(Original post by h82think)
Hi all

Motherhood is so much fun... but so exhausting too I guess something I'll have to get used to

Can anyone recommend a toy for a baby who cannot hold his head up but loves to kick his feet?

We had something like this:

http://www.chicco.co.uk/OurProducts/...0/Default.aspx

And you can move it round into different positions and then as a toy attached to the cot. At work we get lots of different materials and put them over the babies legs and let them kick them off, or you could just kind of hold them a bit over his legs and let him kick them! Or you could go swimming, lots of leg kicking there.

How is little Henry? It is exhausting but it gets easier, I promise!


A little wedding advice guys, I'm making little activity packs for children who are attending all day, (there are 7, including Bella and Milly) aged 1-6 for my wedding at the moment I've got:

Tiaras for the girls
Inflatable guitars
Trucks for the boys/activity rattle for 1 year old
Stretchy stick men
Alien mask
Smiley face stickers
An under the sea plastic toy

I was thinking of perhaps printing off a few colouring pages, like for the interest of each child and having some crayons and maybe a small book each, but other than that, do you think that is enough?

Also, do you think I should have something for the children who didn't come to the day? Like a few more inflatable guitars or glow sticks or something? I just want the parents to enjoy themselves and not worry because their children are bored, plus I obviously want them quiet for the speeches

Hope everyone is well xxx

[Amandeep_Psych07]

I found out my cousin is 13 weeks pregnant and I wanted to get her a gift to say congratulations! Any recommendations? I was thinking about some nice beauty products so she can pamper herself, or a maternity massage... do you think it would be good? Thanks