The Garden Fence - help and support in tough times

monnagran · 2 March 2016 at 5:26PM

I read about children in inadequate clothing with a wry smile. Our 3 year old flatly refuses to wear anything with long sleeves. She will wear hats happily, mitts at a push, but sleeves? No way. Every morning that she goes to nursery begins with a pitched battle over jumpers, cardigans, fleeces or coats. Mother usually wins but little one is dragged off sobbing and screaming. Reportedly, the minute she gets to school most garments are removed.

How pleased I am to be free of taking school trips and outings. My blood runs cold still when I remember a famous trip to a London theatre. We counted heads before we left the theatre on our way home. Correct number. We counted heads again when we got to Waterloo. Correct number. It was when we sorted them out ready for boarding the train that we realised that one of the children was not one of ours. A child from another school had attached herself to our group and made friends! Of course the horrible truth dawned that our missing child was still in the theatre foyer.
I won't describe what happened next but it involved phone calls to the theatre, the distraught teacher of the interloper, our school to reassure parents who were waiting for their darlings to return, one child to be returned to the theatre and another to be retrieved. Then there was the debriefing and repercussions.
When we finally limped home one parent foolishly asked me if I had enjoyed my,"day off." My reply was flippant, unprofessional and unrepeatable.

I have never said this on any forum before because it is tantamount to blasphemy, but I LOVE my tumble drier. I well remember rubbing DS1s board stiff nappies in an effort to make them pliable enough to wrap the scratchy things round his tender bum. How different from DS2s TDried soft, fluffy comfortable affairs.

x

ivyleaf · 2 March 2016 at 5:35PM

I've just been unpicking, or trying to unpick, the waistband of a pair of pyjama trousers; they have elastic and also a drawstring, and I wanted to take the elastic out and just use the drawstring, as every time I wear them I wake in the night with my tummy hurting because of the elastic.

I've unpicked the actual casing, but the wretched elastic is stitched to the edge of the fabric all the way round, with an overlocker of course, so there are still umpteen lots of stitching to unpick :eek: I think I'm just going to have to cut it off and have a narrower casing.

Okay, finished moaning now

THIRZAH · 2 March 2016 at 6:40PM

I had a silver cross pram too. I'd put a hot water bottle in it about half an hour before we went out so it was nice and warm (I took the bottle out before putting the baby in the pram ) and there was room for plenty of blankets. It seemed easier to push than a pushchair but of course did take up quite a lot of room in the house.

When DDS were at infant school I'd often go on school trips to help. Not only were some of the children inadequately dressed but some would turn up with their packed lunch including a large bottle of soft drink in a flimsy carrier bag. On several occasions I end up carrying stuff for them in my rucksack. Then there were the travel sick children . I always took several strong plastic bags with me.

nursemaggie · 2 March 2016 at 6:58PM

Yes pollyanna I do live in the North West. Across all of the threads there are lots of us from the NW and NE. Floss lives in Blackpool, Ginny knit in Manchester. Maybe we should have a meet up in the summer.

I laughed at the idea of me putting books, glassware, pans, the vacuum cleaner, the ironing board, box of DGCs toys, brooms, mop and bucket and and all the other things I can't find room for on over door hooks.

I have had some really good stainless steel ones for about 10 years. they don't fit because the doors are too thin. I could not hang the pans on the kitchen door, for one thing the doors are too flimsy plus we have taken the kitchen door off because you cannot access the fridge with the door on.

How Frustrating ivyleaf.

Floss · 2 March 2016 at 7:34PM

nursemaggie wrote: »

Yes pollyanna I do live in the North West. Across all of the threads there are lots of us from the NW and NE. Floss lives in Blackpool, Ginny knit in Manchester. Maybe we should have a meet up in the summer

That sounds a fab idea!

We also had a coach built pram, mine was a coffee coloured Marmet back in 1986

Plenty of miles walked pushing it, with one baby, then another baby & a toddler on the pram seat up top!

When I was at primary in the nearly 1970's we had welly pegs with our names on and black slip-on pumps for inside school, and my boys also had them in the 1990's, again with the black slip-ons.:)

pollyanna_26 · 2 March 2016 at 8:05PM

Sorry Nurse Maggie I was thinking coats etc . Never mind back to the drawing board !
It always amazes me that one original post can transport us all back to different decades . I could have done without the sick child reminder though :rotfl:My good friend had a son who was sick every time we went on a coach and felt less worried sitting with me . In the end the head teacher bought a very smart washing up bowl , bottles of dettol and a load of tissues and gave them to me .Oh the joy ! That memory has been buried for many years - thanks for the reminder

monnagran · 2 March 2016 at 9:01PM

All this talk of coach built prams. I don't think mine was coach built , probably M*th*rc*'re, but big and heavy. We lived at the top of a 1 in 7 hill. Think oxygen and crampons. I used to push this pram up this almost vertical hill with baby in pram, toddler sitting on end of pram and all the shopping in the tray under the pram. Sometimes I thought that each step I took would be my last.

How come I was still fat?

Life is so unfair.

x

camelot1001 · 2 March 2016 at 9:18PM

My children had a silver cross coachbuilt pram too, it was wonderful. As we had a dog that needed walking every day I used to put a hot water bottle under the matress if it was really cold. There's only 14 months between the oldest boys and if the eldest got tired sitting on the pram seat I would put him at the other end and he would have a snooze!

At the school I work in there are quite a few children who come inadequately dressed - thin little shoes and thinner little jackets. We keep lots of spare uniform including school coats that I make them borrow at break times!

THIRZAH · 2 March 2016 at 10:05PM

I'm in the north-west too-about 12 miles east of Manchester.

nursemaggie · 2 March 2016 at 10:06PM

I had same make as you monna not so big though but still managed a baby in the pram and a toddler on the pram seat. Was offered a Big coach built pram when I was expecting DD but had to decline. Could not see where I was going.

PLEASE READ BEFORE POSTING

The Garden Fence - help and support in tough times

Comments

Categories

Get our FREE Weekly email full of deals & guides - and it’s spam-free