October 08 - New Year, New Thread.

[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
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) - 50ft - 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

Bloody hell Star! Does she want the moon on a stick too? She better be good for that kind of deposit. What does she need all that for?

Quick tip for those of you craving something sweet. Try a couple of nuts instead (if you have some obviously) as this often takes away the craving.

Pistachio - I love your cake habit. Thanks for the heads up about the course. I am getting more excited about it though......

star - do you always have to pay her in advance for the month? I can understand her wanting the month's notice money, but I would have assumed that the monthly fees were payable in arrears. That's how my cm friend does it anyway, but obv she's only a sample of one!

Dd and I are planning on baking a choc cake containing aubergine tomorrow afternoon. We just have to hope that ds doesn't fall asleep on the way back from the gym in the morning, or our plans are all screwed!

I've ordered the book... should be here soon.

she is new to cm - used to be a nanny so just said she got the info from other cms in the area. She's really good but I can't afford that
She wants to be paid weekly. We agreed on that. I said I'd pay month in advance and she said she'd prefer weekly, which is totally fine with me. I think maybe she doesn't realize how impossible that is for us... I've just emailed her.

sorry for the earlier double post. not sure what that's all about! I must really want butter.

I like your cake habit, too pistachio.

That's the good thing with DS being best friends with the nursery owners grandson. We often owed them months of fees but as they knew us so well they knew we were good for it! We were members of the parent's committee and apparently the members of the committee were the worst culprits for late fees.

Star - If she wants your business and she wants to build up a good reputation she is going to have to be flexible and understanding. Getting paid on a monthly basis or in arrears is better than not getting paid at all.

do these cakes have icing? I love sweet icing. Not that rolled out thick play doh like stuff that people put on cakes here. (royal icing or whatever it's called! yuck!). I also don't like the way jam seems to be so commonplace in the middle of cakes... it just doesn't belong there! Sorry, I'm not overly American but with cakes I must put my foot down

CSWS - Good luck with the cake baking.....mmmmm..... cake. I might make some cupcakes tomorrow.

I offered to do a direct debit or standing order so she'd be sure she would get the money each week... I would most definitely never pay late as I've never paid late on anything. and I would also not leave her high and dry without at least a month's notice. I just wouldn't do that. She'll always get paid and she'll get proper notice when the time comes... but I can see how she can't just trust me when she doesn't know me. Anyone who does know me, though, knows I'd never leave her without pay even for a day.

yes, the choc heartache pistachio. at the skin. Um, can we just not mention the sugar please .

I think you should offer the month's notice and one week up front if you are going to be paying her weekly.

Agree with CSWS. That sounds like a fair arrangement. There needs to be some balance, she needs to make sure she's covered if you turn out to be a wrong'un (which we obviously know you're not) but she needs to be fair to you too.

Blimey Star, she wants a lot doesn't she!

Just to give you an idea, I paid my CM a 2-week deposit and that went towards my first month's fees. I pay her at the beginning of the month.

I agree with CSWS - a month's deposit and a week up front is more than enough, surely?

Pistachio - that late night baking is exacly the sort of thing I would do! I was about to start, but then I found a couple of old quality street and that's kept me going.

it does sound fair. I'm happy to pay a month up front in advance if it goes toward those fees. But I cannot afford an extra 800 upfront for a months notice...
I just can't.
I'm still paying childcare fees right now - it's not like I'm saving up money - I'm going straight from paying one person to paying another.

I could manage that, aubergenie. I wonder if the cms in the area just told her to aim high or something??

I feel really awful because she's so great and I want a place with her, but just can't afford that up front.

Help! I have a dilemma! As I mentioned I have been invited to the NCT social on the 6th as a way to meet everyone. They are having a three course meal. I have asked if there is anything I can have considering that I am dieting and they have sent me the menu. It is mega lardy (creamy, oily, rich) and even if I just had a main it would still cost me £30. I really want to go and I really should go but I am going to be unhappy with the food choices. She I suck it up and just eat a three course meal & break the willpower I have built up (and increase my appetite again ) or do I not go and worry about looking like I'm not committed?

Could you just eat a small portion of what's on your plate? So you can be social yet still not have to eat loads of that stuff? That's what I would do. hope that helps...

Ah but Star, you have amazing self-control! I'm not there yet with the control. I would have eaten all the Christmas truffles!

Well to be honest I need to cut out the wheat because of me! Everything is either pastry, creamy or oily. Stupid fatness. I think I am going to give this occasion a miss and explain about restricted diet etc. It won't be the end of the world and I am sure that I will be the first of many things I can attend. If they question my commitment on that basis then more fool them.

On the plus side, I had a FABULOUS driving lesson today. I went on two very busy roads and didn't cry have a nervous breakdown.

Myjob - How are your gorgeous poppets this morning? Hope they're feeling better. M has developed conjunctivitis in sympathy for N! Hers is very mild though so I'll let it run it's course. If it gets worse I'll take to the doctors, I've dealt with about 1000 doses of conjunctivitis with DS!

Star - Any progress with the CM?

Shame you're going to miss out 50ft. Are they likely to have some other non-eating get-together soon that you can go to?

Glad the dcs are better today Myjob.

S has finally sprouted another tooth. I told dp's brother that he was teething yesterday and he said he was really relieved because he was starting to worry that he'd gave to have some kind of operation to bring his teeth through when he was older.

I'm in a baking mood but can't make anything from The Book as I've only got weird veg in the fridge.

I'm curious about the veg you have in your fridge aubergenie... what is it??

50ft sorry I wasn't meaning to agree that they would question your committment if you couldn't go. I just think it would be nice for you and dinner is a nice social event.
One thing I do to keep myself from eating the whole portion is to talk a lot (hmmm, thinking that won't be a problem for you?? ), and take small bites and chew slowly, drink loads of water before hand and during - then you'll need to use the loo which takes up meal time and you'll feel less hungry.

Yay for S' tooth aubergenie! Q just got his 7th tooth and we hadn't seen any for a while, either!

Glad the DC are better myjob

The cm hasn't emailed me back...

commitment
and
beforehand