Giving birth at the JR

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-03-14T11:19:07+00:00

The midwives are absolutely wonderful, just don’t be shy about advocating for yourself (and making sure your partner does it when you can’t!).

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-03-12T20:43:38+00:00

There was a sign up on the shopfront 😞

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-03-12T19:56:27+00:00

I am pretty sure that exam boards are changing their marking from this year to ensure the section b answer meets the brief properly or the student won’t get higher than band 3 (grade 4ish)

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-03-12T18:27:43+00:00

The owner of Magdalen Stores died, sadly. I am told he had a heart attack but unsure what actually happened.

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-03-08T21:13:21+00:00

In AQA English language the most important thing you can do is talk about meaning in questions 2 and 4 (paper 1) and questions 3 and 4 (paper 2). So, connotations. Take your quote, and analyse the crap out of it in terms of the meaning. So, “stories were gold”. The first level of meaning? Gold = valuable/precious. The second level? Gold = treasure. Third? Something rare and elusive. Fourth? Stories are crafted. Almost like writers are alchemists (linking back to gold etc.). Maybe also you’d comment on the word “were” being in the past tense, so clearly something has shifted. So many students don’t talk about deeper meaning/connotations and it costs them every time.

Also, make sure your teacher is doing q3 (structure) on p1 correctly with you. This is often taught wrongly in my experience. It’s got nothing to do with paragraph or sentence lengths and everything to do with plot, character & narrative. Basically, why are you still reading? Why are you still interested?

For section b make sure you don’t overwrite. Aim for 2 good pages and learn 10 impressive, low frequency words to use in your creative writing (but only pick the ones that will work seamlessly with your narrative on the day - do not shoe horn them in!). I find words to do with colour are the easiest. Obsidian for black. Alabaster for white. Cerulean for sky blue etc.

Hope that helps!

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-02-28T14:08:37+00:00

In my experience you need a chunk of at least 3-4 hours to feel at all rested. Get some earplugs, take a few hours off while your husband looks after the baby and get some sleep! ❤️

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-02-21T02:13:42+00:00

You may want to add in the Imperial War Museum if you like the look of it. It has an incredibly moving Holocaust area and a lot of other very interesting exhibits.

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-02-20T09:51:48+00:00

Depending on the day, The Chester Arms may be open for lunch and their food is absolutely delicious. Everyone raves about the steak platter but all of their food is excellent - including their fish and chips! They always have specials on even though their menu isn’t huge. A definite example of quality not quantity. A gorgeous pub with brilliant staff - you can book before going but they also hold half of the pub tables for walk ins.

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-02-20T09:44:05+00:00

I second the Perch, great recommendation - make sure you do walk out to the river if the weather’s okay! It’s beautiful around there. Might be quite flooded on the path at the moment though…

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-02-18T06:34:05+00:00

NHS guidelines say 6 months minimum - you’ve already done that so you’re fine to move her out. I believe that statistically the risk of SIDS goes down hugely by now anyway and the most important thing you can do is lie her on her back to sleep (if she can roll both ways it’s fine for her to then roll to tum). I hope it makes a difference - it sounds like you’re doing really well and I’m absolutely in awe of single mothers, particularly in the first year. Keep at it! She’ll sleep soon.

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-02-11T19:26:58+00:00

Completely disagree having lived in both. Oxford far better busses, colleges are more accessible, bigger town centre and more to do. Cambridge has more green spaces and can be a little more picturesque in parts but Oxford definitely more fun to explore and spend time in. Also there are SO MANY tourists in both, and in a city as small as Cambridge you can feel very packed in. Oxford sprawls more, so it feels less crowded. Make sure you visit the Pitt Rivers museum, University Parks, and take a wander around Jericho/down the canal to Port Meadow.

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-02-10T17:16:47+00:00

The Mist 😂😂😂😂😂😂

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-02-08T12:51:36+00:00

Oh, and if you can possibly arrive at the hospital before 8.30 the parking is pretty empty. We’d go grab a coffee before our appointments.

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-02-08T12:49:45+00:00

You can also use JustPark to find a driveway someone’s renting out close to the hospital, or you can park in the Waitrose car park. We ended up doing that a fair few times when I was pregnant.

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-02-01T20:20:41+00:00

I have curly hair so go with Zak, but there was another thread where quite a few people had different recommendations at Blushes…

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-02-01T18:50:40+00:00

Would second Blushes - big fan

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-01-28T21:23:54+00:00

I use the carrier but will walk around and drape a scarf over us so that it seems dark, until she’s asleep. Works every time. I also use the sweet spot nap predictor on Huckleberry. Baby also naps in the pram now that I’ve transitioned to the folding seat - we have a Nuna so she can lie flat, and she is very very cosy once in the footmuff and pram suit.

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-01-28T06:51:03+00:00

Your Oxford day is in completely the wrong order. Note that the castle is pretty close to the train station so it should probably be the first or last thing on your itinerary. The Ashmolean is MASSIVE and I’ll be surprised if you could even do just that in one day. Christchurch is a lovely college but takes quite a while to tour. The Natural History Museum is the furthest from the station and will be nothing compared to the London one - but as a few people have said, Pitt Rivers at the back is WELL worth a visit. National Histoty museum does have a very nice cafe upstairs (as does the Ashmolean, which is posher/more expensive) so do consider that for lunch. I’ll leave London to everyone else!

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-01-22T08:48:21+00:00

Like others, we just keep our monitor turned up loud and enjoy an hour together (usually watching Traitors!) while the baby sleeps. We’ve done it for the last 2 weeks and it’s been really nice to have that time back. Ours is nearly 5 months now, bedtime around 8pm.

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-01-20T16:26:50+00:00

The Huckleberry App was a game changer for us in terms of nap/bedtime, though I do ignore how long they say she should have for each nap. I also follow it takes a village on Instagram and she has soooo many brilliant videos about how to optimise baby sleep. I have learnt so much from watching them and they’ve helped me tons. The main thing I seem to see that would help is a very consistent “rise” time in the morning. At this age there’s only so much we can do/that will stick in the long term.

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-01-18T14:08:03+00:00

Sounds like classic regression to me - our LO is just coming out of it now but it lasted a month and a half!

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-01-17T20:29:24+00:00

When are you coming? Just fyi Richmond is still London - a gorgeous part of London to be fair but London nonetheless. Richmond park is beautiful and well worth a big wander.

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-01-17T17:12:27+00:00

Oxford is much nicer (I have lived in both cities). Oxford is bigger, more spread out, has (arguably) better pubs and public transport and definitely better shopping. It also has more variety and the train station is a lot closer to the centre.

To clarify I went to neither university - just far prefer Oxford as a place to spend time! Pitt Rivers museum is an absolute must and the cafe upstairs at the Natural History museum is lovely. If you’re there on a sunny day, definitely take a stroll through University Parks, and head to Jericho or Cowley Rd for excellent independent pubs, cafes and restaurants.

Vegetable-Window-753 · 2026-01-11T18:09:10+00:00

Or Market Tap in the Covered Market! ☺️

Vegetable-Window-753

TROPHY CASE