October 14, 2009
· Filed under Uncategorized
If there was one thing I was terrified of, after getting over the initial shock of dealing with a new baby, it was weaning. It just seemed such a scary thing. But very few kids get to 4 years old wit
hout being able to eat a McDonalds Happy meal (some will only eat these which is a whole different issue!) so it can’t be that difficult!
Babies are individuals and develop at different rates and so won’t all be ready for weaning at the same age. Experts agree that babies should not be weaned before 4 months of age. Somewhere between 4 and 6 months, babies may start to show an interest in your food. They may be less satisfied with milk, demanding more feeds or waking up hungry instead of sleeping through. These signs may mean they are ready for weaning. It may take a few weeks to get your baby used to having food regularly, so it’s best not to delay starting weaning beyond 6 months of age. Otherwise it doesn’t give your baby time to get used to the new sensation of eating, before they really need the food to provide extra nourishment.
As with most things I started by buying a good book. I would recommend any by Annabel Karmel They all seem good but pick one that has information on how to make the first purees and examples of weaning charts in them. The other place I found helpful was the heinz website www.heinzbaby.co.uk. It has some great information and I particularly found the plans on how to gradually increase the amounts and introduce extra meals really helpful. Even though they promote their own products they do have great recipes for home made.
I found a braun hand processor invaluable for making purees and later for chopping vegetables finally. You need something that washes up easily. I also saved any jars or plastic containers from any shop baby food I used to freeze my own homemade food in. I used to sterilize them in my steam sterilizer.
Weaning can also bring challenging behaviour too! Once my kids were big enough I moved from an infant seat to a highchair and always used the straps. That way they got used to it from the beginning and I never had to deal with a toddler climbing out half way through the meal. Get them used to a bib from the start too and they are less likely to rip them off later leading to stained clothes. Any grabbing at bowls or spoons was met with me holding their hands firmly and adding a firm no. I wish it was that simple now they are 5 and 8………..
August 9, 2009
· Filed under Uncategorized
If any of you have kids aged 5 -16 or know anyone who does,check out www.kidsweek.co.uk where you can currently book for a selection of shows and activities where the kids go free with an accompanying paying adult. During Kids Week (14-28 August) a child aged 5-16 years old can go free to any participating show when accompanied by an adult paying full price. You can also purchase up to two extra children’s tickets at half price. Shows include High School musical stage show, Stomp and The Lion King. There is a limited allocation per show and the offer is subject to availability and not applicable to tickets previously purchased. Booking is now open so check it out!
August 4, 2009
· Filed under Family Life
Long car journeys can test even the happiest families. With the acquisition of 2 Nintendo DS game consoles from Grandma last Christmas I thought my boys would be sorted. But there was something refreshing about the fact after 30 minutes into our first long journey Andrew looked up from Fifa 09 and asked to play “I spy.” I spy can get a bit wearing, particularly if you are stuck in a traffic jam on the M25 so here are a few more games you can play
ALPHABET GAMES
Go through the alphabet naming an animal that begins with each letter. Then you can move on to boys names, girls names, countries,food…. the possibilities are endless depending on the age of your kids!
HANDY ANIMALS
Make up different kinds of animals by using one or both of your hands. Can you make a slithering snake? What about a butterfly? A dog? A snail? Take turns to guess what animal each of you are making. You can also make up short stories of big adventures for your clever hand puppet creations.
TRAVEL SONGS
Leaving On A Jet Plane? I Like Driving In My Car (It’s Not Quite A Jag-u-ar). Think of as many songs as you can that are about cars, boats, planes, bicycles, or other means of transportation. Then, you can extend your songs to include other themes or words: “Love” and “baby” are good ones.
FLIGHTS OF FANCY
What are all the natural and man-made things you can think of that fly? That roll? That move on two legs? Or four legs? That slither on no legs. Things that bounce or buzz? If you’re travelling on a boat, then think of things that can swim. Travelling by car? Then think of wheels.
SIZE MATTERS
What’s the tiniest means of transportation you can think of? Maybe a Little Tikes car or a Gee wizz electric car. 
And what’s the biggest? The Airbus Giant jumbo? Name all the different methods of transporting humans you can imagine, starting from the teensiest.
Other things my kids love are story CDs. We have a collection of freebies that my parents collected from the Daily Mail but you can buy them in places like WH Smiths and Tesco quite cheaply. Our favourites are Paddington and The Cat in the Hat. Andrew likes The Famous Five whereas Matthew is a Mr Men fan. (the intro music on these is very repetitive and can drive you slowly insane!). Focus on the family do a fantastic series of Radio broadcasts called Adventures in Odyssey which I thoroughly recommend for kids aged 7 and above. You can get these from Christian bookshops or websites.
July 25, 2009
· Filed under Pregnancy, websites
One of the most confusing things when you are pregnant is what you can and can’t eat or do. I found this article on the Junior magazine web site which looks at the most common things that should be avoided and actually looks at the real risk to both mum and baby. What is quite amusing to me as a pastor is how they have used a “sin rating” from 1-5 for how harmful something is, 5 being the guiltiest! Here is the summary
| Pregnancy sin |
Pregnancy Sin rating |
| Cigarettes |
4-5 |
| Alcohol |
1-2 units a day 1- 2, heavy drinking 5 |
| Caffiene |
moderate consumption 1 |
| Soft and blue cheese |
4 |
| Bagged salad,fruit and veg |
3 |
| Oily fish |
2 |
| Raw or partially cooked eggs |
1-2 |
Click on the link here to see the full article and to also get a list of seven ways to earn your pregnancy halo! Under handling stress try prayer instead of yoga!
July 21, 2009
· Filed under Uncategorized
Having just had to return my children’s school uniform because when I got it home it was too short, I actually have measured my little giants up against the M&S height chart. Andrew is now going into aged 11 trousers when he only turns 8 in October. Anyway that led me to thinking about car seats and whether he now needs one. A quick google came up with a fantastic site www.childcarseats.org.uk. which contains a wealth of information to make sure you are not found breaking the law. I recommend a visit. Needless to say my eldest can now travel without the booster. He’ll be driving before we know it!
Another good read is the link on the junior magazine website for carseats. Health professionals now recommend that babies should not be left in a car seat for longer than two hours, and ideally less than one hour. This is because research suggests that sitting small babies in semi-upright positions may have serious health risks. Babies ‘tummy breathe’ – so squashing them into unnatural positions, as in car seats, restricts their breathing and maybe their digestion. Restricting a baby’s breathing can lead to oxygen desaturation – i.e, when blood oxygen levels fall so low that not enough oxygen reaches the vital organs, especially the brain. Experts believe, variously, that this can affect a baby’s development; or cause bradycardia (slowing of the heart) and apnoea (temporary suspension of breathing), both linked to cot death. Newborns, low birthweight and premature babies are most at risk. So if you are driving to your holiday destination plan in a number of breaks.
March 22, 2009
· Filed under Book Reviews, parenting advice
If there is one thing I get questioned about the most it is the subject of potty training! With two boys who seem unable to aim down the pan and regularly spray anywhere but, I would encourage you to keep your children in nappies until they are 18! As that is probably socially unacceptable and also expensive, here are my views on making it as stress free as possible!
Having gone through it with two children I would say timing is everything. All the books will tell you not to start potty training a few months before or after any major events or changes. We did not heed this advice and started potty training Andrew 3 months before Matthew was born. He was almost dry during the day except the odd accident now and then. Then Matthew came along and it all went haywire. I thought my mum was going to kill him as he would wait until I sat down to breast feed and then would wee all over the lounge ( laminate flooring is a blessing at these times!). As he was not yet three, the health visitor advised we put him back in nappies and try again in a few months. We did and it was plain sailing the next time. With Matthew we waited until he was so obviously ready and with his more structured loving nature, he was a breeze. Having an older brother also helps!
So how do you know they are ready? The best book I have found is “Potty training in one week ” by Gina Ford. She gives clear guidelines on when to start looking for the signs that you child is ready and then how to prepare them for their first big day without a nappy. Then when they are ready, you chain yourself to the house for about a week as your child exercises bladder and bowel control. It sounds too good to be true but if you follow the guidelines and prepare well, by the end of 7 days your child will be nearly accident free. Check out the Gina Ford website for FAQs
If that all seems too structure for you try looking at ” on becoming toddlerwise” by Gary Ezzo and Robert Bucknam. As mentioned before, this book give 3 different methods of potty training so you can choose which one suits you and your child best.
Whichever method you choose be comforted by the fact that most teenagers do not start university wearing nappies! Some kids take longer than others but they all get it in the end.
A couple of practical tips which I found helpful
1) Make sure you have plenty of pants/knickers. They can be cheap and cheerful but buy them in size bigger than your child needs. This means they are easier for them to pull up and down.
2) Invest in a portable potty. This is an amazing invention which you can get in Tesco or Mothercare. It consists of a sturdy plastic ring with foldable legs that you attach a plastic bag onto with an absorbent pad. The child sits on it like a potty but the mess goes into a bag that you can detach and throw away and it collapses into a changing bag. Brilliant! It saved me many a red face or wet seat in the car!
February 3, 2009
· Filed under Family Life, Pregnancy, marriage
I know you will get sick of me saying it but I am passionate about building strong families. At Every Nation church we want to facilitate that happening so we promote various courses that will help you on your journey.
Marriage preparation course.
Starts Wednesday 11th February from 7:15 to 9:30, for 5 weeks in Surbiton, hosted by Annelise and Waldi Schoonraad.
The Marriage Preparation Course is for any couple who is engaged, or looking to get engaged and who want to develop strong foundations for a lasting marriage. The course is based on Christian principles for relationships and it is suitable for people with, or without a church background. The cost is £40 per couple which covers course materials and refreshments.
The Marriage course
Starts Wednesday 11th February from 7:15 to 9:30, for 7 weeks in Worcester Park, hosted by Mark and Taryn Robb.
The Marriage course is for any married couple who wants to work together at and invest in their relationship. It doesn’t matter if you’ve been married for less than two years or more than thirty.If you have a strong marriage this course will help you make it even better and will reinforce your good habits. If on the other hand your marriage is in difficulty, the course will help provide you with very practical tools to help you work through the issues. While the course is based on Christian principles couples are welcome with or without a church background. Many couples who are not churchgoers have enjoyed and benefited from doing the course. The cost is also £40 per couple to cover refreshments and materials.
Expectant Parent workshop
Saturday 9th May 10:00 to 12:30 in Ealing at Dan and Amanda Smart’s home.
This is for first time parents or those expecting who have not previously attended a course. This is just a morning where we can pass on some stuff that we think will be useful for you to know about having a new baby in the house. We will also talk about some of the books that we found helpful and try to answer any questions you may have about labour and those first few months.
For more details or to register for any of the courses please email me on asmart@everynation.co.uk.
November 4, 2008
· Filed under marriage, websites
As the credit crunch hits, nights out with our spouses seem to be more difficult to afford. However there are some good deals to be had so you don’t need to spend a months grocery budget on one night out. I recently subscribed to Martins money saving tips at www.moneysavingexpert.com which has lots of money saving tips including up to date restaurant deals. For instance, at the moment you can download a voucher from the Gourmet Burger Kitchen website to get a buy one get one free deal on burgers or main salads. Visit the women’s website handbag.com and you can download vouchers for 2 for 1 main meal deals at Zizzi’s, ASK and Cafe Rouge.
November 4, 2008
· Filed under Family Life, websites
I have just hit a new season in my life! Recently my youngest son Matthew started reception and here I sit, at my laptop, with out anyone begging me to go on the CBeebies website! I cannot believe how quickly this stage has come round. Some of you may be ready for it ,some not, but applying for schools can seem a daunting task, particularly if you weren’t schooled yourself in this country. But help is at hand. I came across this fantastic web site today called Directgov -public services all in one place. It covers everything you need to know about children and education from things to look for when choosing a school to how to prepare your child for the first day. It will also help you find the different schools in your borough.
Here are just a few things I found helpful.
1. Do visit the schools in the area and visit more than one or two. That way you can compare them and get a feel for what is “normal”
2. Talk to the local mums at the park or at any place where your kids hang out. They will know have siblings at the schools and be able to give you the inside scoop.
3. Do look at the Ofsted report but don’t use it as your only deciding factor. It doesn’t give you a full picture of how your child will do at that particular school and changes may have occurred since the report was conducted. For instance a new Head teacher can make a huge difference.
Above all don’t leave it too late. As your child turns two I would be thinking about next steps. Every three and four year old in England is entitled to 12.5 hours of free early learning per week, in nurseries, playgroups, pre-schools or at their childminders for 38 weeks of the year.
Although most parents in England send their child to school, you do have the right to educate your child at home. As a parent, you must ensure your child receives a full-time education from the age of five. The Directgov/learning and development link will give you information on how you go about doing that.
October 6, 2008
· Filed under Family Life, marriage
It’s not often I read something in my inbox that gets me stirred up to blog immediately but today it has happened. The Care for the Family email arrived with an article called The Ten Second Rule. How it just takes 10 seconds to start an affair. I urge you all to read it. It’s very sobering but if you think about the colleague and friends you know, you can only acknowledge how accurate the picture is that Rob Parsons paints. No-one gets up in the morning and makes the decision they want to get a divorce or wreck their marriage and family. It is just a series of small bad decisions that could be avoided in those first 10 seconds…
hout being able to eat a McDonalds Happy meal (some will only eat these which is a whole different issue!) so it can’t be that difficult!
