Tip of the Day: Days out for Mother's Day
Just for dads, Just for mums, Fun & activities, Places to go / holidays, Tip of the Day
We've been celebrating Mother's Day since the 1600s, and chocolates and flowers are perennial favourites. But what many mums want is simply some quality time spent as a family, having fun. Preferably outside the house, with no washing up to do afterwards.
Here are some ideas from the National Trust for days out around the UK this weekend, from delicious high teas in stunning locations to quirky events suitable for all the family:
Bateman's, East Sussex
Mother's Day English tea, 14 March 2.30pm - 4.30pm
Visit the beautiful home of Rudyard Kipling deep in the Sussex countryside and treat mum to a traditional English Tea of sandwiches, scones with lashings of jam and cream plus a slice of Victoria sponge cake.
Normal admission charges apply plus an additional event charge of £8.50 per adult. Booking is essential for this event, please call 01435 882302.
Belton House, Lincolnshire
Mothering Sunday, 14 March 10.30am - 5.30pm
Why not treat mum to lunch or afternoon tea on her special day? Drop into the gift shop for special deals on pampering products. Relaxing mini massages available in the afternoon (small charge applies). Normal admission charges apply plus small additional event charges. Booking is not required for this event.
For more information please call 01476 566116.
6 Feature-packed baby changing units
Babies, Baby essentials, ParentView
If you've got the room to fit one in, a changing unit can be a serious time and back-saver. The units enable you to to keep all your changing bits in one place, and many of the options come with a removable baby bath. Whether you like the classic wooden look, like the East Coast Clara Dresser Changing Unit on the right (Auravita, £58.41) or the more modern lightweight options, there are plenty of options available to you.
The main benefit of having a changing unit is that it keeps everything in one place, and if you're strapped for space, you might want to look at one of the units with wheels, so you can pop it away in a wardrobe or cupboard when it's not in use.
Tempted to splash out? Look at these options for inspiration.
Diary of a 5-year-old: Hairy lips and swimming
Friday
On Fridays we go swimming. I'm still learning it. We have a swimming teacher called Malcolm. He's really nice but he looks a bit funny because he's got three eyebrows on his face. Mummy says the bottom one is called a mustache but it looks exactly like the ones over his eyes. Honest it does. We read a story once in kindergarten about Yetis. I think Malcolm looks like a yeti who shaved but forgot a bit on his mouth. Emily says it's to keep his lip warm when he gets out of the water.
Swimming is brill. I used to have arm bands like orange balloons but Malcolm says I don't need them anymore. It's scary without arm bands. You're not allowed to stop moving your arms or your legs or you sink under the water. That's bad because you can't breathe under water. Unless you're a fish. Or an octopus.
Mummy Bloggers' Friday Roundup
Exciting times in the land of MumBlog, friends. The first conference for UK parent bloggers has just launched. At this event you get to, y'know, meet other bloggers in real life! And have conversations that don't start with @! Scary, I know. Also launching this week is the MAD Awards - where the UK's best parent bloggers will be crowned. Watch out for more news of that on ParentDish next week. And finally, some lucky families are being offered a free holiday in Denmark, in return for blogging about it. Good times, people.
But if you're wondering where blogging will fit into your busy life, Little Mummy has this advice.
Also this week: A standing ovation for More Than Just A Mother who's pleased to report that she's getting some adult action. You go girl!
More mundane matters for Sharon at Three Kids and the Cat, who's battling with the devil's dust. And Karen at The Real Mamma Diaries has a poignant reason to remember Mother's Day this Sunday.
Here on ParentDish this week, we were feeling a little peckish, but then our appetite waned when the only thing on offer was breastmilk cheese.
Finally, I was asked this week if bloggers can nominate themselves for this roundup, and the answer is: yes you can. Just don't get the hump if I don't choose your submission, as the roundup may already be full for the week. Sometimes people will nominate a post, and I will go and look at their blog and choose something else. But it's always good to hear new voices, so don't be shy about putting your blog forward – either leave a link in the comments box below, or tweet me about it.
Should new mums in maternity wards be bombarded by companies selling them stuff?
Babies, Pregnancy & birth, Latest news
Hospitals have come under fire for letting more and more commercial companies into maternity wards to sell their products to new mums.
If you've given birth in a hospital recently, you'll probably have a vague recollection of hordes of people coming to bother you every five minutes.
Some ask for your details - address, phone number, email - while others try to sell you something directly.
Most hospital trusts have contracts with private firms, receiving fees or commission from them in exchange for allowing them access to patients.
So mums who have just given birth or are recovering from surgery can be bombarded by sales reps.
If you find you're being emailed by all sorts of companies afterwards, it's probably because you gave your details to somebody.
Bounty, for example, give out those lovely goody bags with lots of useful stuff in them - and then ask for your contact details, which they can sell on to other companies.
Twitter Follow Friday on ParentDish UK
Here are our favourite parenting Tweets of the week from some of the parents we follow on Twitter. Follow ParentDish UK on Twitter to join the discussion!
Jmomma07@Jmomma07 My 3yr old offered the dog M&Ms if she goes potty outside....his reward for going on the potty.
boycrazymom316@boycrazymom316 my son told me I was "beautiful just like the monsters"!!! mmmmmmm okay! :)
VeryBoredHouse@VeryBoredHouse anyone elses kid just parrot questions back at you 'what do you want to eat?' 'eat??' gahh
ThePrude@ThePrude Knitting another shawl out of baby alpaca yarn (grande) this time...alpaca is addicting! It's poor man's cashmere after all! ;)
DiaryofaNewMom@DiaryofaNewMom There was a pregnant woman in my spinning class. Like pregnancy doesn't offer enough opportunities for puking?!
B: What is the breech position?
The breech position is the term given to an unborn baby that is positioned in the womb with its buttocks facing down, and the head under the mother's ribs.Additionally, if the baby's legs are tucked up, this is known as 'frank breech'. If one or both of the legs are pointing downwards, this is known as 'footling breech'.
Up until 36 weeks of pregnancy, a breech baby still has time to turn. However, from this point onwards, a breech position is less than ideal as it makes natural childbirth an extremely difficult process, although not impossible.
Ask Joanne: I want a baby at 40
Babies, Pregnancy & birth, Ask Joanne
What's your dilemma about any aspect of life as a parent? Our experienced life coach Joanne Mallon is here to answer your questions. Send your questions in here and say if you'd like your name to be changed.
CC writes:
I gave birth to a stillborn baby boy last October. Post mortem results came back that there was no medical problem with the baby, and my blood tests came back with no problems.
We decided straight away really that we wanted to try for another baby. I already have three children aged from 19 to 11. Without a baby I don't feel I can get over the loss. I have just turned 40 and my husband is 42. It's been three months but nothing has happened as yet. Do you think I should go to see my doctor as we can't try for ever as age is not on our side?
Here's the life coach's reply:
Lovely landline phones for children
Recently, Joanne wrote a post about her ten-year-old daughter who wants a mobile phone. The main argument presented by her daughter was that all her friends had one (an argument I'm sure many readers will have heard at one time or another)With children as young as four or five getting mobile phones, it can be difficult to resist their pleas. However, it might be worth considering alternative options.
If their main reason for wanting a phone is to keep in contact with their friends, it's a good idea to remind them that they can use the landline (especially if you've got a decent free minutes deal!)
Not convinced them yet? Here's a selection of fun novelty landlines, like the Lips one on the right from Nicomm for £9.45, to get them to pick up the phone.
Achtung Baby or Tschüß
Roughly pronounced "choos" (as in Jimmy), and weirdly aesthetically pleasing, I never expected the word Tschüß to set me off on a life muse. It's North German slang and basically an amalgam of adieu, ciao, adios, cheerio, toodleoo ect. It's a cool word, but last week it caused somewhat of a ruckus as I picked Finje up from Kindergarten.Lulling me into a false sense of security, she appeared rather chipper despite her customary disgruntlement at being removed from the House of Fun. A short stroll to the car, cheerfully chatting about the events of the day, which apparently charmingly included Mikael sneezing snot "right across the dinner table", up into the kiddy seat and seat belt on. Starting the engine coincided with what can best be described as a blood-curdling shriek from the back seat. She was quite suddenly inconsolable, grief-stricken beyond words. Big fat salty tears cascaded down her little pink cheeks.
For a split second all my senses gridlocked. Oh God, had I trapped her finger in the door? Was this heart-wrenching sound a delayed reaction to the pain of amputation? If I looked down would there be a little digit lying on the tarmac? Or appendicitis maybe? Daytime terror?
Oh no.
