September pontification

[bunyanvillas]

Hello

• Quick Update from Kew +

Just spoke to her - she has her lovely ensuite private room with digital TV. The ward she is on is a low infection one. She is ok for visitors for the next couple of days (her sis/mum/brother are all going to see her) but Friday might be a bit sparse so I said I will pop up. She doesn't need anything but I was thinking about getting some flowers sent up to her? What do you think? I've got the ward details.

Ward visits aren't done until this afternoon and she will know a lot more about what is going on then.

Meant to say ds as well - he is doing fine with her Mum - they seem to have settled into a nice routine.

where's the best place to store potatoes? and, at what age can you stop washing new kids clothes before they wear them for the first time?

MrsR, good news about kew. was about to ring her myself LOL.

susie and i discussed a trip to kew on Friday arvo for a picnic tea but am sure she wouldn't mind if i went up to see kew instead.

Paddle, I haven't washed ds's clothes before wearing since he was born , wasn't aware you were still meant to! & I still haven't found the best place to put potatoes!

Paddle - potatoes a mystery to me. I think should be cool dark places, but sometimes they keep for ages and sometimes they grow potato plants. I'm planted one potato once in a pot and it grew into a hideous plant so we put it out into our landlord's garden hoping it would take over and eat the landlord but it didn't.

paddle imo the best place for potatoes is in a dark dry place and inside a fabric bag which is breathable _ NO plastic they will sweat and sprout within days

I no longer wash before using apart from vests and underwear

mrsR thanks for update, will have to check where Hammersmith hospital is

aha! i think i have found a use for the freebie book bag then thanks!

why do i always feel stressed after doing a big shop? i get anxious about eating all the food

google hammersmith hospital and you should get teh address. it's west ealing i believe.

am racking my brains for party ideas for dd's birthday. i simply can't have anything here, flat too small. am considering doing a cheeky thing @ kew and taking a bunch of party food to C&C. d'you think they'd chuck us out?

hammersmith hospital in east acton, next to Queen Charlotte's and Wormwood scrubs. Wormwood scrubs looks into some of QC's birth centre rooms. Lovely conducive environment.

Wash clothes before they wear them? Why on earth would I do that? Seems questionable on environmentally frienly grounds. Not to mention I would never do work I didn't consider absolutely essential.

Glad Kew got transferred. Do they have any idea what has caused this?

Ducane road! Kew can't seen anything apart from air conditioning units.

My potatoes get stored in a paper bag in a cupboard. Seem to last an eternity.

Sounds a good idea paddle - I don't think your flat's too small though - if I can have ds' party in a caravan! Talking of which, just spoken to dd1's new High School in Rye and they sound amazing - they have an open evening the week of the Karaoke competition so we're going to have to take the whole week off school - what a shame eh?!

AN - they are still not sure yet, still doing tests. But at least she is in the best place for these now.

Hi
kids wd be lucky if I clean their clothes when tehy are wearing them, nevermind before.

Sausage: thurs is fine. see you 11ish. will bring eaties as I've got the munchies these days after weeks of non-eating (most unlike me).
best wishes to kew. get well soon.

MrsR, so glad you have seen sense about that week for the kareoke. I told dd1 and dd2 what a mean mummy you were

yeh fair play on ds's birthday party, that was an amazing achievement. it's not so much the space tbh as the noise, my neighbours would have a blue fit.

why do i care? i have no idea!

i am in the throes of making a very difficult decision. estate agent has said prices will only drop and it's going to take 2 or 3yrs to recover. He predicts it will get even worse spring/summer 09 as lending becomes even harder to come by.

I realise he's in it for a sale so is inclined to influence me to sell but essentially the message is "drop your price and get out now or expect to be here for some years yet". Even if I rent it means long term renting.

So I'm looking at the possiblity that I would sell for less than I bought.

The big question is "how much is it worth to me to get out of here?"

On the up side, I could buy an okay house in a good area for about £160k. It would be a 70s/80s build so not very aesthetically pleasing but big (3 bed) with a drive, garage and large backgarden. When prices recover I could be sitting on an excellent investment.

Arg! Decisions! Decisions!

When are you do, Oxo? November?

I still need to get you the changing table, which I can bring round at your convenience.

oh, btw, I have just cleared out dd's "wardrobe" and have:

heaps of popper vests ranging from 3m to 24m
loads of tights/socks same age range
t shirts long and short sleeve from 18-24m

mostly girly stuff but if anyone has a dd smaller than mine (more than likely!) they could be good nursery/pre-school fodder as you won't care about the glue/glitter/paint etc.

let me know if you want any of it. otherwise off to oxfam it will go.

oh they had you on their side did they paddle? Such a mean mummy aren't I?

What a decision for you paddle - I was thinking about how we'd have to take a hit next year (or we may rent) but from my initial property investment (many moons ago) of £40k cash, we're now sitting on equity of £180k so if you view it thay way does it seem a better solution?

yeh, i was totally on their side

i was talking to H about it all yesterday and he thinks i should get out now. his perspective is that i did well out of my last property and it's all paper money really.

i just can't get past the fact that in december i had £30k cash which i put down as a deposit on this place!!!

if i sold @ 175k i would instantly lose 7k as i bought for 182k. legal and moving fees added to that would go over the 10k mark and that just feels like a lot of money to "throw" away.

i guess i am also quite nervous about making another huge decision. what if i screw up again!

now dd is bigger i feel like i'm getting some sort of a life back and i'd be moving to an area where i don't know anybody (apart from the GPs of course!). OTOH, i don't really want dd to go to the local school here, as good as it's ofsted report might be. in another year she'll be in the system and i will have the headache of pre and post school care which DM, I hope, might be able to help with etc.

ramble, waffle, ramble, waffle.

must do some work!

Athene: am due between 20-25 Nov (they can't seem to decide) but has to be a CS, so will be 10 days before. So, mid Nov. I will not panic. I will not panic. I will not panic.

I'll pass on the changing table, though, thanks. Our house is just too small. Babs will have to be changed on the coffee table and/or bed. It may well put people off their coffee but needs must..

We've put up the cot and it looks beautiful: thank you so much.
Happy to see you anytime though, I do a great range of decaff...

I've been feeling the same as you paddle - dreading our move, will have to make new friends but then one phone call to the lovely lady at the High School made me feel that I was doing the right decision.

What we've agreed on is that, every couple of months, we will stay in a hotel around here and visit our df's. Plus the internet/phone will make it a lot easier.

If you see it as losing 10k - can you not see it as gaining from the prices dropping on what you would buy (or you can put in an offer that would cover this hit - you never know they might accept it!)

On another note, I've been feeling like I'm not needed anymore as ds went back to CM yesterday and Monday and screamed that he didn't want to come home. After visiting CM, now realise its not personal - CM's ds has a massive drum kit and ds wants to play it all day long.

Paddle: it's all relative. I know you will have 'lost' on this flat, but equally the house that you want will have gone down in price too. Best way to think of it is that to live in your flat for as long as you have has cost you £10k. Like renting it.

Its hurts like hell (we got caught in the negative equity mularkey in 1990) but you've just got to think of it as paper money - not real.

I'd sell the flat, and grab the house, very happily. We live in a late 60's house. An ugly house, we call it Cyclops as it has one big window on the first floor, but they are well built and have good layout. And usually have a garage.

There. That's my tuppance.

Where are you moving to Mrs R?

looks like we will need another thread today bla bla bla

done first part of essay fell better now, it is a wonder what can be achieved with no children around.

paddle first you did not really screw up, bad neighbours are a plagues but mostly unforeseen.
only you can know what you can be ready to accept, but now is still a bit better than the early 90's and we got out of that one eventually.

bit more reading before picking dd up

New thread here