October 08 - More birthdays to go!

[CantSleepWontSleep]

10th Sept (Due 1st Oct) - loulou33 - Boy - Joe Louis David - 6lbs 12oz
16th Sept (Due 8th Oct) - Ksal - Girl - Emma Rae - 6lbs
21st Sept (Due 5th Oct) - myjobismum - Girl - Naomi Caitlin - 5lbs 10oz
2nd Oct (Due 12th Oct) - star6 - Boy - Quinlan - 5lbs 15oz
3rd Oct (Due 26th Sept) - purpleflower - Girl - Rebecca Jill Erzsebet - 8lbs 10.5oz
4th Oct (Due 30th Sept) - Aubergenie - Boy - Stanley - 7lbs 12oz
8th Oct (Due 6th Oct) - ronshar - Boy - William Dexter - 7lbs 11oz
9th Oct (Due 17th) - Marthasmama - Girl - Martha - 7lbs 10oz - Elective c-sec
10th Oct (Due 1st Oct) - CantSleepWontSleep - Boy - Duncan Elliot - 8lbs 4oz
12th Oct (Due 4th Oct) - pistachio - Boy - Thomas Fraser - 10lbs 2oz
16th Oct (Due 11th Oct) - heather1980 - Boy - Alexander James - 9lbs 5oz
17th Oct (Due 10th Oct) - pepperrabbit - Girl - Jessica Rose - 7lbs 15.5oz
24th Oct (Due 29th Oct) - Ekka - Boy - Matthew - 7lbs 15oz
26th Oct (Due 20th Oct) - jenwa - Girl - Phoebe Jasmine - 9lbs 2.5oz
28th Oct (Due 23rd Oct) - RachieW - Boy - Jack - 7lbs 4oz
31st Oct (Due 20th Oct) - KnickersOnMaHead - Boy - Samuel Paul - 9lbs 11oz
5th Nov (Due 29th Oct) - Honeymoonmummy - Girl - Poppy Grace - 6lbs 15oz
5th Nov (Due 30th Oct) - MamaG - Boy - Harry James - 10lbs 9oz

How does 6 December suit everyone? Is that too far in advance? Have just checked train fares for next month or so and will save £50 if I book for the 6th...

Ooh there's just a few rooms left in Travelodge Covent Garden... [excited emoticon]

I think I can do 6th HMM. Hotel in Covent Garden will be lovely!

I had S's feet measured again yesterday and he's now 4 1/2H!. Had to get him a new pair of shoes as he's walking around in the park a lot these days so needs outdoor footwear. £30! I know I've just got to get over it, but still. I don't know how people on really low incomes manage.

We don't have a really low income, but I do think £30 would be unaffordable for shoes in our house (DH would differ, saying, spend it if he needs it!) But I've been lucky to find shoes that are cheaper and they fit his feet fine. He still wears the leather shoes quite a bit outside. Trying to find wellies for him for wet days. He walked around like a silly drunk person with them on at bluewater, though so I'm not sure!
I THINK 6th December would be ok for a meet up but we might have another thing on then... not sure. HMM covent garden hotel would be nice. I had an email the other day about £15 travelodge rooms - I'll see if I can find it.

I can't do 6th December I'm afraid .

I cant make the 6th either. Children and a very active social calendar.
In fact the only Sunday I can def do is the 13th. I could make the 20th but am out the night before so I may be hungover tired!

We've been really lucky because a work colleague of mine has given me loads of clothes for S and I've literally only had to buy a couple of packs of sleepsuits for him so I can pay for shoes from Clarks but it must be a killer if you've got more than one child.

We never had any money when I was growing up but my mum always insisted that we had proper shoes from Clarks and I think it's probably rubbed off on me.

I was wondering about wellies too. I wonder if it makes it more difficult for them to walk while there still a bit unsteady.

Star - Your dh sounds like my dp. He won't spend money on anything (Yorkshireman!) but if I say, "But it's for S." he caves in straight away.

exactly, aubergenie!! My DH does the same. SO tight with money but if it's for Q, he'll buy absolutely anything.
We get all of our clothes given to us for Q, too. They are all in pretty much new or very lightly used condition and all from baby gap, gymboree, hanna andersson, monsoon, some dutch shop, oilily... lovely lovely sturdy beautiful clothes. I told her I'd babysit for free anytime - or do anything she wanted because I'm just so grateful!

I dont like to talk about shoes. Especially in August, January or April. Any other time of year I dont have a problem or if they are for me

I shudder every time I walk past Jones or Clarks. The scene of many a battle between my mum & I. Now being replayed word for word between DD1 & I. Big feet, narrow ankles!

Ronshar, sorry for not replying earlier about allergies, M is teething and kept waking so I decided to go to bed earlyish....

We've had RAST tests which as you prob know have a scale of 0-6 with 6 being the worst. So M is a 5 for nuts, milk and egg, 4 for soya and 3 for wheat & fish. They have given us a handout which lists things for a milk wheat & egg free diet but its not always wildly helpful eg for foods allowed it suggests 'milk substitute' .

tbh, they have suggested that for now he & I avoid soya and any fish that we haven't already given him, but not to remove anything else from his already restricted diet and then after Xmas to consider removing wheat. But as I said, he eats wheat now and has a little residual eczema which we control with hydrocortisone and moisturisers. So I'm debating whether it is worth removing wheat if that is all we have to deal with IYSWIM....

Are there allergy specialists or something? We are currently seeing a paediatrician and dietician and have seen a dermatologist but she has pretty much said she doesn't need to see us unless M has a flare up as his skin is so much better. But if you have any other suggestions for these allergies they'd be gratefully received. Plus I've not really been given any idea when/if we can try to reintroduce things. Its a bit frustrating. I should probably start a thread in allergies, rather than bore everyone here

Right, now off to read the rest of the posts - sorry this was rather dull!

star - only have a min as on way out, but just wanted to check something. It sounds from your post like you don't have to pay your friend if you are on holiday and have Q with you - is this right? A normal childminder will still require paying over the holidays, so might not work out as cheaply as you think.
When I used a good childminder up here for dd, a couple of years ago, I paid her £4.50 an hour, which included nappies and food. What is the hourly rate for your friend or another cm?

Ekka yes there are Allergy specialist. Does your paediatrician have a special interest in Allergies? Go to your Gp and ask if they can give you a referal. Thats what I did when I realised the ENT team at hospital were not really going to help more than they had tried already.
The other thing you may want to consider is Homeopathy. I am not real fan but with allergies that severe I would perhaps give it a go!
There are lots of allergy threads and generally get some great information. Medical and everything else for good measure.

Star. First of all she is breaking the law. Taking payment when she is not a registered CM is naughty.
I know you say she is a great mum, we all would be if we have nanny's to do the bloody hard work. I would be fabulous, with loads of cash and domestic help.
The things that make us crappy mummies are normally the rubbish domestic chores that take us away from time with the children.
We could all be great if all we have to do is spend quality time with them. I would be the happiest woman alive if I never had to put another load of washing in the machine or clean the toilets.
So I would tend to agree with your counsellor and think that perhaps your friendship is a little uneven. Sorry.

Why dont you have a look around for a CM or nursery that you like. Remember that when Q is 2 he will get 12.5hours of nursery care free. Also nursery is great for language development etc which of course you know all about
Sorry to sound hard. Dont shoot me.

all posts will be deleted. She does it for free. CMs near me for csws(copy/paste)

CSWS: CMs near me that I have interviewed/chatted with, would not charge for times when he was not in their care (if I was on holiday from school...etc.) as long as those dates/weeks were laid out for the year at the start of the contract. One CM wouldn't do that, 3 others would. I know, unusual, but it's there.

Ronshar - I agree about nursery. He will most likely go to my school at age 2 really lovely program - for half day, 5 days a week if I get a bursary/scholarship for him.

ronshar - she doens't have a nanny anymore - i was saying compared to her nanny when her 1st was very young. She does all childcare for her kids herself and gives everything of herself to them. But does have a housekeeper (but a very big house, so impossible to do on her own iyswim).

maybe she is registered.
I hate the panic and ridiculousness ofsted has created. stupid ofsted.
ugh. I am so stupid and irresponsible posting sometimes!! blah. I've requested 4 posts be deleted by MNHQ. So sorry I said anything.
csws to answer - it's nearlyl £2/hr more than a cm in my area. well, let's only have this conversation on our private locked fb group.

myjob just money. Seriously - it stresses me out. Q and I both absolutely love her. She has taught him so much and is so good with him. Everyone says so!

The CM that S will be going to in Jan does school term-time only too Star. They're hard to find though aren't they. Not paying for holidays is going to make a huge difference to us. She charges £40 a day and that includes food and nappies. I just hope that DP has got a job by then otherwise we're screwed.

If you use a registered childminder you can pay in childcare vouchers which are tax-free. This can save a substantial amount each year. I'm pretty sure your dh could get them through his work if it's not something they do at yours. Might be worth thinking about?

Oh and Star - Asda home shopping cheaper than Tescos. The website's not great and you have to book your slot quite well in advance so need to be organised though (which I'm not usually!).

we can get vouchers here at my work.
And CMs here are about £40 / day for the hours I'd need, too. And it would include nappies and food. It just seems like a very low wage to some who are used to paying a housekeeper 370/week for 7 hours a day iyswim.
Now, I bring nappies, wipes, food, etc (tbh I'd bring food anyway to a cm ), I often have to buy 2 of things like the activity station and bouncy chair. Had to buy another carseat (£70), and it costs more per day. But, friendship is worth that. well, I'll wait until I can get back on fb and talk there. (after 3.30pm).

Just looked at fees for my school for semester for a child in my grade level. £7,745 . That's £15,490 per year! For a 5-7 year old!
2/3 year old programme is closer to just £6,000 per year as it's only half day. Crazy!