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When meeting up take sensible precautions. Meet in a public place and let others know where you are going.

Original poster

roll call for any Aussie mums in London who want to meet up?

609 replies

quokka · 03/08/2006 19:27

Been here 7yrs now have 2 ds's 2yrs and 6months and am married to a pom so looks like I'm here for the long run! The closest I get to an aussie now is watching neighbours (I know its quite pathetic). Anyway if there are any others who fancy a catch up, I'm in west london?

OP posts:
Kaybee7777 · 04/10/2006 20:03

Cool, look forward to seeing you tomorrow

Original poster
quokka · 05/10/2006 17:18

OMG ds1 has fallen for you big time! Since he woke up he has been asking for you over and over again! He came downstairs and looked everywhere for you, and wasn't very happy when I said you'd gone home

Hope you got home ok and missed the rush.

OP posts:
Kaybee7777 · 05/10/2006 18:07

Ohhhh how sweet
Both your boys are just adorable!

Finally found what i think is the best way to get to and from your place, but I did stuff around a bit so only just got in!

Have just scoffed two choccie biscuits and am sitting down to watch Friends. Thanks again for lending us the baby stuff

Original poster
quokka · 05/10/2006 19:02

only 2 - shame on you!

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Kaybee7777 · 06/10/2006 10:34

well i thought of the chocolate muffin i had eaten earlier and decided against eating the whole packet!!!!!

Original poster
quokka · 08/10/2006 10:23

Have you managed to have a practice getting the car seat strapped in?

Had a bit of a scare yesterday, we thought I might be pregnant again but was a false alarm!

DH got all excited about moving into a bigger house and car, and the possiblity of having a girl, it was quite sweet.

OP posts:
Kaybee7777 · 08/10/2006 20:38

No haven't practiced yet. Got it home and washed the covers first, so they were only dry today. Might take it down to the car tomorrow and have a trial run!

Ohh isn't that sweet that your DH got all excited about maybe having a girl! I take it you're not planning number 3 just yet though

I have a cold today so am feeling a bit miserable, think I might have to stay in bed all day. Have just made banana and choc chip muffins though, they should be ready in about 5 mins and smell yummy

nenep · 09/10/2006 18:50

hello, am new to mumsnet, being a new mum (7 weeks...) originally from Aus - happy to see this thread of fellow antipodeans. We live in central london and I haven't hooked up with other mums in the area as yet, so glad to have a chance to chat about babies (and other stuff) with fellow mums going through the same stuff

Original poster
quokka · 09/10/2006 19:43

Hi nenep and congrats on your new arrival ! How are you finding motherhood? Where abouts in Oz are you from?

Kaybee shame about the cold, drink lots of hot lemon and honey. If you have a really blocked nose try buring some eucalyptus oil, or just put a couple of drops in some hot water wherever your sitting. I hate being ill while preggers as you can't take any drugs!

OP posts:
Kaybee7777 · 09/10/2006 20:27

hi nenap, welcome to mumsnet

quokk - my nose ran madly all night and half of today, but am starting to feel a bit more human now. It is such a pain not being able to take any drugs for stuff, can't wait till i can take my hayfever stuff again!!!

Veggiemummy · 09/10/2006 21:40

Hello

i'm new to this mumsnet thing too, just joined tonight this is my first message. I'm from a place called Mulgoa at the the foothills of the blue mountains in NSW...ok it's in the western suburbs not far from penrith. I've been here 8 years and i'm married to an aussie who now has a british passport, we met over here. i have an awesome 13m.o. boy. I live on the isle of dogs, just near canary wharf. any other east enders out there?

Original poster
quokka · 10/10/2006 08:53

Hi and welcome veggiemummy, Kaybe's in east London I'm on the otherside.

I know a few people who live down the bottom of the blue mountains. The mountains are one of my fav spots in Oz, dh and I had our honeymoon at the Hydro.

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Veggiemummy · 10/10/2006 09:56

the hydro majestic? i think it is called something else now? i used to go past that so often when i was a kid on trips up the mountains, always looked so posh, was it nice?

do you come from rottnest island (not sure of spelling)?

Original poster
quokka · 10/10/2006 10:09

Yep thats the one, it's gorgeous! Its very art deco, felt like we had gone back in time.

Not from Rotto but used to go there every year on holidays from about 2yrs old so have fond memories there. We used to play with and feed the quokkas when they were disease free .

OP posts:
Kaybee7777 · 10/10/2006 10:20

hi veggiemummy i am in south woodford (east london, central line)
Originally from NZ, Wellington, and have been here 4 years. Expecting 1st baby in 6 weeks!!!!!

Original poster
quokka · 11/10/2006 08:30

hows the nose kaybee?

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Kaybee7777 · 11/10/2006 10:02

After two and a half boxes of tissues, it's almost better now thanks!
Just got baby bouncer chair and delonghi heater delivered from tescos! I love online shopping

Veggiemummy · 11/10/2006 10:19

6 weeks to go that is so exciting!! online shoping is great i was on mat leave for a year and my addiction to online shopping reached huge proportions. saved loads of money that way, although i think i discovered things i may have otherwise not gotten but did so as it was online and cheap. now i'm back at work i'm not always home for deliveries but i have a lovely elderly neighbour who collects them for me, i'm sure she thinks i have more money than sense.

have you used kiddicare.com?

i'm working from home today, the house is so quiet all by myself.

Kaybee7777 · 11/10/2006 10:31

No haven't used kiddicare yet, have looked on there for stuff but they haven't had exactly what i have been looking for.
I thought I was going to have to wait in all day for the tesco delivery, now it's come so early I don't know what to do with myself!

Veggiemummy · 11/10/2006 10:47

Sometimes what they have is limited but if there is something you want i.e pushchair and you dont mind having limited selection of colour they are someimes £30-40 cheaper. Plus they have free delivery in 48hours.

i am also a bit of an ebayer these days, very sad. I used to be the manager of a busy team, now i get excited about cheap stuff on ebay, oh well.

I thought what is was working on today was going to really time consuming and basically going to do my head in but it is actually proving quite easy so far.

have you finished up at work? how has your pregnancy been, you must be getting so excited, it reminds me of when i was counting down the weeks and all wanted to do was see what my DS looked like and give him a big cuddle, i kept cuddling my tummy but it wasn't quite the same.

Kaybee7777 · 11/10/2006 10:52

Yeah I have finished work.
Am getting excited , am really looking foward to the baby part but not so much the birth part!
The hospitals near here aren't great so I felt like I had to chose the best out of a bad bunch, and just don't feel overly confident about it. Have started thinking about water birth (or at least labouring in water - thanks to you quokka!!) but don't even know if my hospital has any birthing pools! Have to speak to the midwife next week when I see her!

Veggiemummy · 11/10/2006 11:05

Thats a shame. we actually cheated and went private with a birth center down in tooting south london, it cost a bit but i was really scared about the birth and really needed to feel confident with my midwives, (at the time we lived near the royal london and really didnt want to go there) they were great i still keep in touch with one of his midwives.

They were supportive of a water birth but in the end, DS found it a bit too relaxing and it slowed down the labour so i went for one of those birthing stools in the end and it was great. All i can say is gas & air, i loved it, oh and tens machine, some people dont think they are any good but it was great for the first stage with the gas and air but you can't use the TENS in the water, but then you dont need it because the water helps the discomfort.

the problem with some midwives and the water is they won't examine you while you are in the water (mine did) it can be done, and wometime they will make you go to another toom to be examined which defeats the purpose of being nice and comfy in the water. But having said thay a lot of midwives and hospitals are coming around to the idea so you might be lucky. Which hopsital are you going to?

Original poster
quokka · 11/10/2006 11:14

oh thats what I liked about being in the water - not being examined! I didn't want any intervention so it suited me fine. Its good to know your thinking about the birth Kaybee . Kaybee if your really unsure about the birth and your midwifes at the hospital what about the doula idea?

OP posts:
Original poster
quokka · 11/10/2006 11:17

Oh meant to say about your drivers licence, you wont have to send off your passport if you go to a post office that does check and send. It costs a little bit more but you keep your passport

OP posts:
Veggiemummy · 11/10/2006 11:23

Actually yeah thats another thing you dont have to be examined (ie how far you are dilated) if you dont want to be. Midwives just seem to do it regardless of whether you want to or not. I had it in my birth plan that i didnt want to, but in the end, i was desparately wanting to push, but the midwife wasnt convinced that i was fully dilated, she was willing to respect my descision not to be examined but i have to say i was curious to see if she was right and knew if i started pushing to early it would set the process back a little in the end she was right.

but if you dont want them to do it tell them before hand in you birth plan, as i've heard of midwives just demanding women get out of the pool and follow them into a room and just go for the poke. It is really only necessary to check if you are ready to push if everything is going well. and even then it's up to you. An experienced midwife will have other ways to see if everything is moving along. Gosh i had better be careful otherwise i may started midwife bashing and scare you. They aren't all bad they are just health ptofeesionals who have their perspective which is the safe delivery of a baby.

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