Mumsnet Little Italy 3

[francagoestohollywood]

Welcome everyone

Oh well I am obviously a controlling mum as well then as I would go balistic if any kid drew on my walls dd knows by heart 'si disegna solo su la carta'. Wash off what if you had expensive wallpaper up there! Sorry . See that is one thing I dont have much to worry about as here people don't seem to go round to the others to play . Nipotina has ony ever gone to cousins house. When I mention it to some mums they say oh see you in campo or something. IN the Uk its like want to pop round for tea ?
How is your ds Franca ???

he is in a good mood, thanks rosa. I just hope is not another virus. they are now watching peppa pig (I'm still in pj . It's a gloomy day... ).
I was actually very lucky when growing up because i nostri vicini di casa had a little boy my age and we just had to ring the campanello and play together. When we moved house there were other young families living in the condominio and all you had to do was ring the campanello. It seemed like a very common/normal thing. Maybe it's not done anymore .

Tanti auguri Franca for yesterday. And well done on sorting out stuff. Are you getting on well with the packing or do you still have loads to do? How are you getting your furniture to Italy? My mum needs to send stuff over (she's so far been "moving stuff" in her suitcase) but she said that all the movers for Italy wanted so much money.

Pippi, how brilliant it's another girl! Were you expecting that? We'll definitely have to come up with a name. If you like you can have one of the ones DP thought up - Ada, Drussilla, Agnese.... Lol at the curry, I must admit that's one of the first things I do when I go back to England, get a decent curry in. Indian food in Milan is all the same, it has no flavour and all the rice dishes taste like slightly spicy risotto. Still, I suppose if it was too spicy nobody would eat it here.

Hothell - poor you and the mum from hell. I'm afraid I've told other people's children off before. Only if destroying my house or my DD but I have no qualms coming out with "smettila/non si fa/è maleducato ecc." but then I suppose it helps me being foreign, I use the excuse that we have different standards. Can you not say that to your friend? Or is she Italian too?

Rosa - I've seen a travel cot with a canopy in a camping shop, would something like that not do? DD's still in her cot, I have no plans to get her a bed until she's mastered not weeing at night. Also because we'd have to rearrange her room but that's another story...

Thanks The prices we've been quoted for the move were all hilarious, but the English companies weren't flexible at all, so we are doing it with an Italian company. They'll come and do everything.
I think there is nothing wrong in telling another child off in a nice manner. But it all depends on how much in sintonia you are with the parents. I don't mind at all if the dc are told off by a friend, however I do have a friend who always blames other children, and her pfb tends to make the most of it

It's funny how some people cannot see their pfb behaving like an arse, I like it when other people tell ds off, I want him to respect other people's rules, etc. I don't like it if they shout at him though, or exagerate. For example being shouted at for eating his chicken with his fingers. As long as he eats it, I don't mind he uses his hands a bit.
Have told him different houses, different rules. We are relaxed about some things, less about others I guess.
Hope your dd does not have a virus, what a pain!
Ilove the name Ada, beautifully old fashioned. Go for it Pippi.

totally agree hothell. also : "la regina margherita mangia il pollo con le dita". dc are allowed to eat chicken with their hands and pretend they are obelix .
I like old fashioned names. Ada is nice. Someone called Drusilla was in lessico famigliare. I even like Luisa!

Here there are a lot of pfbs and a lot of overprotective mummies who won't tell their child off for fear of opprimere la sua creatività. WTF is creative about smacking another child or trying to smash up a swing? When I was a babysitter I saw so many mothers that couldn't control their children and I don't think it's doing them any favours. I used to get offered nannying jobs on the strength of my 2 "mindees" actually leaving the park when I called them once. When I first arrived their mother could never take them both out at the same time as they'd run riot in the street and steal things from shops, which is why she had a babysitter, to stay home with one while she took the other out. Maybe I'm just a product of my middle class English upbringing. But then a lot of mamme italiane probably think I'm a bad mummy because my DD has her pancia scoperta in September...

Ada is a name for grumpy old ladies in English, I think there was a character in Coronation St many years ago with that name. That's what it conjures up to me. That's the trouble with choosing a name, we all have different associations and a name one likes will remind the other of a nasty person from school or whatever.

Pancia scoperta is unforgivable

Yes, tell me about it. I get the evil eye from the nonne at the park.

I just realised I must sound very severe, I'm not at all! Most of my mummy acquaintances tell their DCs off much more than I do mine, I'm much more relaxed. It's just that there are certain things I just won't tolerate. If I'd seen someone drawing on my walls I'd have had to gently say something otherwise said child would have ended up spalmato sulle stesse pareti (after all, it washes off....)

Brangelina can you send me a link of what it sort of looks like as the standard travel cots that I have seen here are all 'Box' like and no good as she will be out of them in a flash . Her cot here at home is much bigger than the Uk one and I am thinking that she will be cramped this Christmas when we go up.

I'll try and find a link, I can't remember the brand but it was in a camping shop rather than a baby shop. I know what you mean about them being box like, we've got 2 and one is a funny shape and short, whereas the other is a proper cot shape and length. I'll look for the link later, am making dinner at the mo' so had better watch it or will burn it!

LOL at 'spalmato sulle stesse pareti'!!!
yes it would be the same here I am afraid. I do not mind too much if the child is naughty but the mum/dad tries to control it. like all of you it makes my teeth grit when they think it's funny etc. I don't know how they cannot see it as it is pretty clear to me when dd is not behaving properly.
anyway... go ahead with names suggestions please. I do like greek names, as long as they are easily pronounciable in both english and italian. It also has to be a name suited to a headstrong child (that's how I imagine DD2) -so not Angelica like SIL suggested. At the moment I like Arianna/Arianne (although not sure how it sounds in english) or Heleni.

ah re pancia scoperta: in pg DD got told: 'si vede che e' inglese. fuori con la maglietta di cotone e il poncio'! it was really sunny and warm - what would you do in winter?

where's ellbell?

not sure about old italian names but please go ahead as I am fed up of looking in books or internet and we are in need of help and everything is welcome.

no, you don't sound too severe Brangelina. I'm fond of my walls etc as well. I've been doing lots of thinking about my "parenting" style, and I've been trying to ease some controlling element that i have inherited, unfortunately, from my mother.
It is interesting to be able to compare different styles of parenting and try to get what's best (what I think it's best, that is).
should go and get dinner ready... I'm fed up of always having to think what to cook. tonight is stir fry noodles with peppers and broccoli and salmone al forno.

here's 'bangers and mash'!

Leonie? Pronounced lay oh nee?

Jenny?
I'm not good at girls names, but Leonie is very popular here and I've always liked Jenny for some reason.

Can't follow loads as my baby italian gets lost

Franca, dh confirmed tonight we got the house, but I suspect it'll be bad . near the stadium I think Segrate?

maybe as many of you are not english, or are from afar you might be able to inspire me with (cheap) typically English present for dss teachers? Between them they've got loads, so don't want to spend loads, last year I spent ages making wonderful little traditional decorated Christmas Cakes. Can't be arsed this year. Quick, cheap british. Any ideas?

Rosa, it was like this only a bit bigger and off the ground. I think it was a German/Austrian make but can't for the life of me remember.

Pippi - Beatrice was a second-ish choice for my DD, it's spelt the same in both languages but pronounced differently. It is becoming a bit too popular here though. Another one I loved was Phoebe, but it would be impossible to spell for the Italians and the It version Febe just doesn't do it for me. Finally, I really loved Tea (as in Téa, not the beverage) but it would have caused problems in English and Thea wasn't so nice IMO. It's so hard finding something manageable for all the relatives, I thought DD's name was quite phonetic but my dad still manages to mispronounce it.

Ernest - sounds naff but...shortbread?

Brangelina , thanks shortbread, not bad - or fudge? Is that difficult to make I wonder? Not fudge, I mean toffee.

Another question - anyone help me out with italian rail information? I'm trying to find out about train timetables from Segrate to Porta Venezia, but can't find it....

ignore last bit, found it, segrate is 14 minutes on the train from porta venezia. Not too bad, so I think further out, but better connections than milano 2.

Try Trenitalia.it try this. It's part of the passante ferroviaria so quite frequent and the train is S5.

Segrate is a dire place to live, very dormitory. I presume you'll be living in Milano 2, a Berlusconi-built artificial village. At least you'll have a bit of greenery, though.

oops, x posts. Got to put little one to bad, be back later.