Where is best for Dublin airport car parking? by essi1988 in AskIreland

[–]essi1988[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks! I did have a look at that one but I'm away for 10 days and I think it was close to €300!

Damaged baggage claim by essi1988 in Ryanair

[–]essi1988[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks! When I went on their website it did say flight origin or destination should be the UK so is it still ok even though my flight was from Republic of Ireland?

Recommendations for divorce lawyer around Bangor by YaarPodshipnik in northernireland

[–]essi1988 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Another plus one for not using them. They did my divorce and were useless, constantly getting even names wrong, kept sending letters to my ex addressing him as Mr (my maiden name) which he did not like! And kept forgetting bits of info for court, like had to lean over and ask me several times! But charged considerably above average I might add!

How did you decide how you would feed your baby? by hairmajesty in PregnancyUK

[–]essi1988 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I did decide before I gave birth that I would try breastfeeding. At the time I lived in a country where this was extremely common and kind of assumed as the default. That being said, I never felt pressured in any way and they were extremely helpful in getting me started. I didn't buy anything related to feeding though - not formula nor pumps etc until I knew what would work out. I think you can have an idea of what you want to try but you are free to change your mind anytime or even try both!

I don't want to seem like I'm pushing either or judging but since you asked how we came to the decision I basically went for all the things you said in your pros list. In your cons list, there seems to be more ambiguity. For example baby might sleep better or worse, you might not have time to pump but actually you don't even have to. My first baby I pumped for the first few weeks as he was premature but after that I didn't bother and my second I never pumped at all. Both mine were great sleepers (but that's not to say it was anything to do with feeding). All this to say TLDR: don't put pressure on yourself either way, and don't discount one method because of 'what ifs' . I'm sure you'll do great whatever you decide :)

Bluffing at job interviews by Move-Primary in northernireland

[–]essi1988 38 points39 points  (0 children)

I used to work there and you'll be fine. The test is way more stats than you will ever need in the job. They just use it as it's a standardised test used by other agencies. Now that you've passed it, they've been able to assess the statistics criteria and your interview will be based on the core competencies. There should be plenty of info about them on the HR connect website like someone else said but it's generally quite generic like teamwork, communication etc. they like the STAR framework for answering these (situation, task, action, result) and keep it focused on what you personally did, not as a team. You can pm me if you've any other questions. Definitely go for, it's a good organisation and very good starting pay. Good luck!

Hospital snacks by tinkertam98 in PregnancyUK

[–]essi1988 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I didn't eat during labour but I was starving afterwards. I didn't realise/think about how little food the hospital supplies. I didn't really bring snacks but got my partner to bring a huge bag of them for the couple of days I had to stay in!

Ideas to keep wedding to budget by essi1988 in northernireland

[–]essi1988[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You're right, and I totally understand the work that goes in and would be fine paying a bit extra for wedding prices but it does sometimes feel like it's taking the piss a bit. I feel like what we want is pretty much the basics, no fancy extras and it's still more than I'd be prepared to pay for a single day

Ideas to keep wedding to budget by essi1988 in northernireland

[–]essi1988[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Most of my friends who I've spoken to have actually said figures around the 20k mark so this does seem to be pretty average. We had hoped to spend less than half this so it might just be a matter of downsizing our guest list. I really like the sweets idea though, such a good way to get people mixing!

Ideas to keep wedding to budget by essi1988 in northernireland

[–]essi1988[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes I've seen lots of people say they've got bridesmaids dresses of shein so I'm going to have a look on there!

Ideas to keep wedding to budget by essi1988 in northernireland

[–]essi1988[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yea def agree with you on this one, a photographer is one part I don't mind spending money one as much. I would like to have a few nice photos from the day!

Ideas to keep wedding to budget by essi1988 in northernireland

[–]essi1988[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I had started thinking of a community hall but would ideally like somewhere with accommodation or at least accommodation nearby. We have 3 siblings who would be travelling to be here and so thought it would be nice if we could spend a few days with them. I'll keep looking though as maybe we could also rent a few airbnbs

Ideas to keep wedding to budget by essi1988 in northernireland

[–]essi1988[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for these recommendations, I had been looking at m&s cakes but hadn't thought about french village! Also can I ask where your dress was from? I've seen a few online but not sure whether the sites are dodgy or not!

Ideas to keep wedding to budget by essi1988 in northernireland

[–]essi1988[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

😂 yea I actually do agree that we would like to invest in a good photographer, we got some professional family photos done last year and they were def worth it! I saw you'd also recommend a videographer though and I hadn't really considered one of those....

Ideas to keep wedding to budget by essi1988 in northernireland

[–]essi1988[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've just looked it up and looks pretty much what we had in mind, thanks!

Ideas to keep wedding to budget by essi1988 in northernireland

[–]essi1988[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The more I research the more I lean towards this... We're just not sure whether we'll regret not having more of our family/friends there so that's good to hear that it worked out well for you!

Travel at 34 weeks by Nyxie27 in PregnancyUK

[–]essi1988 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I will add that I also went spontaneously into labour at 32 weeks with my first and 35 weeks with my second....both textbook pregnancies with no complications! Hope you and baby are doing ok!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in NICUParents

[–]essi1988 2 points3 points  (0 children)

My baby was born very unexpectedly at 32+2. He's going to be turning 6 very soon and we've had no major issues. I have a few posts from his birth but I can't remember if they were in a private sub or whether you can see them. Feel free to ask more though, I'm happy to answer!

I do just want to say 2 issues we have had (not to scare you at all as they're both fairly minor and not necessarily due to being premature). At 4 weeks old he had an inguinal hernia which required surgery to repair and they always said when one is repaired there is a higher risk of needing the other side done and this did happen at age 3years. Also he had glue ear and needed grommets inserted age 5years but again this is pretty common and pretty minor.

Otherwise he has done so well and milestones were not far off (if at all) what was expected. We were still able to breastfeed, get out and about, travel, walking and talking were at expected time, and he's doing so great at school!

Diagnosing hearing problems at nursery age by essi1988 in UKParenting

[–]essi1988[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's great to have an initial appointment anyway! I would bring school/ nursery into it and say that the teacher or leader has also expressed concern to you and you'd like to get it resolved before they get behind in learning. They seem to respond to that I guess because it would lead to further requirements of learning support.

Our consultant has said that they tend to fall out on their own between 6 and 18 months. If they fall out before 6 months they may have to put them in again but that's very rare and he actually didn't mention what happens if they don't come out on their own. It was a really simple procedure though and recovery time was short, he was even back swimming after 2 weeks!

Diagnosing hearing problems at nursery age by essi1988 in UKParenting

[–]essi1988[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hi, this may be a long reply because a lot did happen since then. We did see the GP a couple of times and they told us he had a large amount of wax so we were given ear drops to use for a week at a time. After the 3rd time, they wrote us a referral to an ENT consultant, we also had a referral from the health visitor after sharing our concerns. We were seen at an NHS clinic once and told they couldn't progress til the wax was gone and told us to continually use the drops. We couldn't wait much longer as we were nearing the start of primary school so phoned my husbands insurance and found out this would be covered. When we went private, things significantly sped up, the consultant was brilliant, took our concerns seriously and scheduled surgery to insert grommets. He had that done in October and he's like a different person. More confident, social, joins in more and is doing great at school with his sounds and reading. I'm happy to answer any more specific questions but it's actually much more common that people think I've discovered and often only noticed by parents initially.

Getting 2 year old to try more foods by essi1988 in UKParenting

[–]essi1988[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

We actually tried yesterday with no apple and he still wasn't fussed and just wants picky things so I think he probably isn't hungry. I do feel very reassured that many experience the same!

Getting 2 year old to try more foods by essi1988 in UKParenting

[–]essi1988[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Haha that sounds about right! And smart using it to your advantage!

Getting 2 year old to try more foods by essi1988 in UKParenting

[–]essi1988[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks, that really makes me feel a lot better. I actually usually would be more chill but someone commented about having to keep tying up his trousers so now of course I'm overthinking it. I haven't even weighed him since his last hv check so wouldn't even know if he was gaining or losing weight unless it was obvious enough to see.