2nd Apr
Get your children high on literature with iF Poems; a poetry app for kids and for adults of any age.
iF Poems has 230 classic poems from Lear’s “The Owl And The Pussycat” to Belloc’s “Matilda Who Told Lies And Was Burned To Death” to Yeats’s “An Irish Airman Foresees His Death”.
It is a carefully chosen selection of poems by poets including Eliot, W.H. Auden, Siegfried Sassoon, Lewis Carroll, Walt Whitman, Emily Dickinson, Rupert Brooke, William Shakespeare, Lord Byron, Edgar Allen Poe and Dr Seuss… plus others.
Some of the poems are read by acclaimed actors Helena Bonham Carter and Bill Nighy but there is also the option the app also offers the option for you to record yourself reading the poems – so your toddler can listen to you whenever, wherever.
Other features on the poetry app for kids include the ability to:
* email a poem and email your recording of a poem.
* tap on any word for a dictionary definition.
* save poems to a ‘Favourites’ page.
* search by title, author, first line or by any word.
* get a dictionary definition of any word.
The app can be searched by section – you can look for a ‘Funny poem’, a ‘War poem’ or a ‘poem for Bedtime’ – making it easy and fun to navigate. You can also search by age; poems have been separated the poems into three age groups: age 0-6, 7-12, and 13 and over.
1st Apr
What is a Maternity Exemption Certificate? Having a baby entitles you to some freebies. Yay! But don’t “yay” too loud – you have to take advantage while the offer lasts.
Pregnant women and those who have had a baby in the last 12 months are entitled to free NHS prescriptions and dental treatment. You need a Maternity Exemption Certificate (MATEX) to do this.
To apply, you need to complete an FW8 form which can be obtained from your GP, midwife or health visitor and also signed by one of the aforementioned. Don’t assume that you will be offered the form – health professionals are as busy as the rest of us and often forget… so don’t feel shy asking!
If you need to pay for any prescriptions before you receive your certificate, you may be able to claim a refund. When you pay, ask your pharmacist for an official NHS receipt (form FP57 in England).
And, if you did not apply for a maternity exemption certificate while you were pregnant, you can still apply at any time during the 12 months after your baby is born.
Written by: Andrea Zanin
31st Mar
Here’s an interesting stat: 12.5 per cent of mums are working as freelancers or contractors, claiming it’s the best way to manage work and family (according to a new study by Kingston University).
I fall into that 12.5 per cent and I find that working from home provides the perfect opportunity for me to raise my children and look after my family.
But it is by no means easy.
Distraction after distraction has a nasty way of coming between brain and work. It took me a while, but have the whole multitasking thing down – I am a woman after all; it’s in my nature.
Mother & Baby editor Kathryn Blundell offers five tips to working from home successfully:
1. Accept that something’s got to give. In my home it’s usually… the dishes, the vacuuming, the kitchen floor etc. Cleaning has found itself at the bottom of my priority list – and I forgive myself.
2. Have a work look: an outfit that’s good to go when you don’t have time to think about what to wear, and have a meeting to get to or a client to meet. I have a mental bank of ensembles that I can wear to meet clients – they are haphazardly arranged in my drawers and cupboard but I know that they are there.
3. Make every second count. If you have a spare half hour – use it to spend time with your kids (doing something fun that they love) or completing a chore that will save you time later. If I finish what I am doing with time to spare, there is always a pile of clothes to fold… always. And I always have five minutes to read my daughter a story – it’s one thing I never compromise on.
Written by: Andrea Zanin
30th Mar
When I was preggers I developed Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS) and it drove me crazy. It didn’t really affect my sleep but when I was sitting watching a movie, or my favourite show, my legs would start jittering around.
For me; I felt the overpowering need to move my legs, which I would do, expecting to feel relief but would feel nothing – other than the subsequent need to move my legs. No position was comfortable. Grrrr.
It was annoying and uncomfortable but apparently a common side effect of pregnancy – which usually manifests in the later afternoon and through the night.
The twitching, tingling and cramping I felt in my legs was not conducive to pleasant sitting. And boy, did I complain about it – my poor husband.
Do you need some help for restless leg syndrome? Two practical ways to combat RLS, as suggested by Babycentre.co.uk, are:
1. Regular exercise: gentle exercise in the evening and stretch your legs before bed, and a leg massage is never a bad idea.
2. Reduce caffeine intake: caffeine may make your symptoms worse, so avoid tea, coffee and the usual suspects six hours before bedtime.
Written by: Andrea Zanin
29th Mar
Let’s cut to the chase: Personalised Vintage Nursery Blocks by Chipper Nelly – they’re gorgeous. I’d buy them myself, give them as a gift, share them on facebook, tweet them, ‘like’ them, love them…
… Perfect vintage nursery products, I want them. And you should too.
Each block is solid birch, measures 5cm and is covered in beautiful paper, sanded and inked to give an aged feel, then coated in sealant.
They are customised to order. Five of the sides are covered in vintage imagery – with wood visible in places. The front face is covered in coordinating plain paper, ready for a letter of your choice, which can appear in upper or lower case – as you wish.
The little treasures are then wrapped in spotty cellophane, tied with a piece of gingham and enclosed with a manila luggage tag.
And to tempt you further; the price per block (£5.95) decreases the more you purchase.
Written by: Andrea Zanin
Written by: Andrea Zanin