I did a fair bit of research on this when I was pregnant and I found that there was not really anything conclusive about recommendations. A lot of places said keep your hr down below 140, but then I read other things saying that didn’t matter and was old advice. I just decided to carry on doing what I felt comfortable with. I carried on riding my bike till about 26 weeks, then just concentrated on the gym and did swimming later on, and brisk walking. I tried to take it reasonably easy – not get too out of breath and drink plenty. If you are looking for something to do in the house, then I have heard a lot of people say Davina McCalls pre and post DVDs are v good.

So sorry.

agree re food, take a picnic!

we just went for the sunday, so can’t comment on the rest of the weekend.

Yes, we went last year, thought it was excellent.

Mothercare spin = Quinny Buzz, no? Effectively?

Um, don’t know, we didn’t really look at the Quinny.

RE off road buggies, if you just want one for the park then fair enough, but if you’re doing proper walking surely they’ll just be a ptia. We’d been thinking about one until we went to the world cup race at Dalby last April, and then seeing everyone there struggle with them we decided against it. My wrap is fine for now and we’ve got a proper rucksack for when he’s bigger.

re baby monitors, they’re good for if you’re downstairs with the tv on, you can get to them before they start proper crying and get them back off to sleep more quickly. We don’t have one of those fancy breathing or video ones though, just a basic noise one.

We have a Moby sling which I use when walking, a carrier that GF uses when walking, and also the mothercare spin pram / pushchair thingy with maxicosi car seat which attaches on. We originally thought the spin thing was a bit of a gimmick and bought it for other reasons, but in fact the spin thing is really useful in cafes and stuff as well as it being nice to be able to instantly switch which way round he can face, now he’s older and wants to be looking at stuff rather than flat on his back staring at the sky.

I still miss Salt and Sauce on my haggis supper from when I lived in Edinburgh.

FWIW, don’t bother going to Frydays on Street Lane, we nearly had to get out a new mortgage to afford their fish and chips and it was crap.

We had Wellie put to sleep in Nov, and cancelled the policy with More Than, didn’t have to pay the rest and got a v nice condolence letter, and they pay direct to Vets so all we have to pay is the excess. Can’t fault them at all.

Hmm, I think that was possibly what I had today Domino, but I bet yours was nicer, this just tasted a bit stale. The toffe millionaires cake otoh was lovely.

We’re with More Than, they’ve been great whenever we’ve claimed (twice). I think it’s about £10 a month per cat.

I’ve just tried Chocolate Beer cake. You’d think the holy grail of cakes? was disappointing.

I think you really need to try very hard NOT to make an issue of it, as I think that is only going to make things worse. I was a really fussy eater as a child, from a toddler to about 9ish I would reaaly only eat primula cheese sandwiches, bacon, and chocolate pudding. My parents used to force me to eat, the whole you can’t leave the table till you’ve finished thing, I would then have a tantrum, be carried up to my room and told to only come down if I was prepared to eat.

Yes I suppose it worked, in that I did eat, but I have awful memories of family mealtimes, and I struggle with over-eating now, I have no concept of stopping when I am full.

I just gradually started to eat more things, and now will try anything, but I am determined to try not to make food a battleground for Teddy like they were for me. OTOH I think my dad is just waiting for me to get my comeuppance 😉 we have just started weaning Ted, so watch this space…

ETA from watching HOTT and Supernanny and all that other shite daytime tv (the joys of mat leave 😉 ) getting them involved in choice and preparation seems to really help.

rocketdog, sometimes a real ride just isn’t practical though.

Now that looks like a nice pint….

Dave, if you ever fancy a change of scene, come over and do some Leeds riding, you’re always welcome. Spot of grub & slice of cake at the ready, just say the word. xx

FunkyDunk can you link please, I’m really interested in this as I am training to be a bfing peer supporter at the moment so am doing a lot of reading around this subject. I would really like to read the article – the only recent one I know about was the Mary Fretwell etc one which was actually about introcusing solids & timings but was put a different spin on by the media and came out in a lot of papers as “breastfeeding not always enough” etc. Thanks!

Ah but the latest research is showing that its far from conclusive, and there may not actually be many if any benefits, obviously the baby bonds with the Mother more.

That’s not the case at all, there was no new research just an opinion paper on some previous research, which was twisted and hyped up by the media.

I’m not sure he’s quite expert enough to be passing on tips just yet 😉 how is she doing?

pretty damn good 🙂 Teddy is amazing, learning how to sit up at the moment. Been out on my bike the last two weekends and hopefully will be out again on Saturday, and then my dad is coming up for a visit. GF is happy in his new job. All is good in Flashland. Going in to work for a meeting about my return on Monday, fingers crossed they’ll go for one of my proposals.

as above, actual flu. not much fun. I am lucky though and don’t really get ill that often

3rd recommendation for cruse, I know my dad found them very helpful.

So sorry Elaine x

We are going for childminder, I’ve heard enough nursery nurses say they would not put their child in a nursery to convince me.

well you said “young women” which I would take to mean from about 17-25, not 15, which I would still classify as a girl. And going out alone doesn’t mean hanging out with groups of boys necessarily does it?

Funkydunc yes, but if you’re the sort of person I am you don’t go becasue it’s all too much. With the nct meetups I don’t get a choice 😉

Ah yes, if we’d had that it would have been great. personally I think the money for us was well spent in that with out making the friends I did through NCT I would have just sat in the house after he was born and given myself PND.

– Never go out alone
– Don’t get the reputation of a tramp
– No alcohol before marriage
– No sex before marriage

All pretty good characteristics for a young woman to have.

Really? You think that women shouldn’t go out alone incase someone labels them a tramp??? sorry, what century do we live in??

Also if you’re a relatively shy type like me, baby groups are really hard to make friends in.

It may not be for everyone, but it was absolutely worth it for us (including the BF lesson).

But that happens anyway or at least it did with our NHS group. I think maybe some people think it’s the NCT or nothing…

the nhs classes in our area are 2 sessions in a lecture theater. I don’t think anyone is going to come away from that having made friends.

yes well worth it imo, but i do think it depends a lot on the teacher.

They covered all points raised by funkydunc in our classes. I meet up with our group twice a week and it’s been great.

Remember to feed the baby on take off and landing. Feed on take off may well have added bonus of sending it to sleep!

if you are in the uk, no win no fee does not mean they take some of your compensation.

I’ve just started ringing childminders in preparation of my return to work later in the year 🙁 I’m sure he’ll be fine but I don’t think I will 😉

If she really wants to carry on bfing, I suggest a call to one of these’
National Breastfeeding Helpline
0300 100 0212
National Childbirth Trust
0300 330 0771
Breastfeeding Network
0300 100 0210
La Leche League
0845 1202918
Association of Breastfeeding Mothers 08444 122949

they will be much much better at bfing advice than the midwives are as they are more specially trained.

Don’t let baby sleep in your bed/room.

This is against current SIDS advice. Up to you what you do though obviously, but you need to be aware of associated risks. Having said that I know plenty of people who said they all slept better once baby was in their own room.

I think this is where the 2 schools of parenting become obvious 🙂 A baby, imo, shouldn’t be “trained” There is time enough for that when it becomes a toddler and is capable of understanding things. A week old baby is a blob with basic needs, food, warmth and comfort.

Yup, what M_F said, it’s months before they are capable of thought / association like that. Unless yours are super geniuses of course 😉

The quality of advice on mumsnet is excellent, honestly! whatever your child is doing someone elses is worse. Makes you feel much better 🙂

Teddy went through a long phase of only sleepimg on me, he also went through a short phase of only sleeping latched on, that was not so much fun.

Alright, I’ll amend my words, I disagree with those who say don’t run to them every time they scream 🙂 I think at that age, they scream becuase they need something, even if what they need is just human contact, it’s a valid need as they are unused to being alone.

We had a snowball for the first time yesterday. Retro! Tasted like refreshers.