u/Loud_Fisherman_5878

Our daughter has just started reception and has been coming home with a bag of wet pants and tights every day. She’s been toilet trained for years but in the last year she will only go when reminded and has accidents every day. She’s probably autistic which I’ve heard can mean she is less likely to recognise the feeling of needing to go and I’ve heard some people have watches that beep/ vibrate every hour or so to help them remember.

Has anyone had any success with this? Any watches to recommend?

Did other kids catch on and tease them about it?

I know this sounds like a ridiculous question but advice would be appreciated please.

I have a OS map and will be setting off into the Yorkshire Dales at the weekend. I’ve not really used a physical map before other than pre-phone era when I’d use an A-Z to navigate around cities but it looks fairly easy to understand and I’ve checked what the markings etc mean, and had a good look at the route I want to take on my map.

I’m just a bit worried as it all seems a bit too easy- I know you can do multiday courses on map reading so I must be oversimplifying it and missing something really important? Will I be ending up getting lost on a mountain sixty miles from where I’m supposed to be?

My daughter turns five soon and is having a party. We already have a decent number from family friends, nursery etc but want to include some from reception- the problem is she has vetoed about half the class list either because a certain child ‘doesn’t play with her’ (which I usually take with a pinch of salt) or because they’re mean to her (in which case I agree with her that they shouldn’t come).

The school hasn’t mentioned any policy about needing to invite everyone but I’m a bit worried about being selective so early on. People might come thinking they will get to meet everyone else from the class which is a big appeal of early parties but there will probably be at best about six from the school. I’m also worried about people hearing and feeling left out or thinking that we’re being cliquey early on! Am I overthinking this or is it a bit of a faux pax to invite only half the class?

It is a hall party to capacity isn’t really a problem but I don’t want to invite people who possibly aren’t nice to her (I am sure most of them are but if one or two are genuinely mean then she shouldn’t have to have them there) but also don’t want us to get labelled as mean early on and have her alienated either!

Sorry if this is a silly question, I’m newly returned to the UK so still learning how camping works with regards to our seasons!

I’ve got a bit of time at the end of October (probably Hallowe’en night which is the Saturday at the end of schools’ half term if that makes a difference) when I’m hoping to camp in the Lake District but I was wondering if there will be other people camping then when it is likely to be quite cold and dark by about 4.30.

I’m very happy if the site is quiet and calm but I’m a woman camping alone and would probably feel a bit creeped out to be completely alone on a site. Is there generally a decent presence at this time of year or is it more seen as too late for most people to want to go?

I’ve just got back into camping after many years off and I’m kicking myself for not doing it until the start of autumn!

My first camp was last weekend and surprisingly cold (I loved the overall experience but it was a long cold night and that bit was miserable!). For that I just figure I need better equipment but it is the early darkness I’m trying to figure out. Like my next potential camping date happens to be Halloween and from a quick google it looks like it will be dark from 4.30! Is it just a case of being comfortable cooking etc in the dark, sitting up for a bit and then trying to sleep at about 7pm?

For my camp last weekend, I was able to keep wandering about looking at the scenery until about 8pm so it feels like it will all be quite different!

My half marathon is next Sunday so eight days away and it only occurred to me this evening to read up on how this tapering business worked as I am planning my last long run tomorrow morning.

It turns out I probably shouldn’t do a long run just eight days before the HM so I am wondering if I should skip it and in the upcoming week just do a couple of shorter runs? The problem is that I did a 10k trail race a week ago so didn’t do a long run that week either (and the 10k was a lot of walking due to steep trails), which means by the time I do my half, it will be three weeks since my last long run which was 18km.

My previous long runs were 15km which I did three times with the plan of doing 18km twice before the big day but now looks like I might not get that second 18km in.

Can anyone give any advice please? I’m not chasing any particular time as this will be my first HM in a decade but I do want to feel good during it and obviously avoid any injuries!

This is a bit of a silly question but if anyone has any tips I would really appreciate it! Both of my last camps were on coldish evenings so the inside of the tent got damp overnight. There’s a mesh layer inside so it’s fine until I try to get out and I haven’t figured out a way of doing it that doesn’t involve getting at least my arm soaked with cold water! Especially annoying during midnight pee trips because then I’m cold and wet afterwards when I try to sleep! Does this happen to anyone else?

I know the obvious answer is to wear better shoes but I have my second trail race coming up and it might be my last as I did my first a week ago and realised I prefer road running. I therefore don’t want to replace the trail shoes I have as I probably will only wear them once so want to try to survive the next race with minimal pain!

After the first race, I had blisters on the outside of my little toes and the nail of my biggest toe hurt as I was running. Is it as simple as wrapping everything in bandaids or would they just come off/ cause other problems? Any tips would be welcome please!

My daughter starts reception this September and turns five at the start of October. She wants a party but I’m not sure that if we hand out invites in her first week, will people be booked up for a party just four weeks later? At her preschool, invites seem to come out about two and a half months early so five weeks seems short in comparison!

I’m wondering if we just do her party a few weeks late so people get more notice or is this probably unnecessary?

edit: thanks for the responses. Sorry, I don’t think I explained very well- I am planning to hand out invites immediately (in the first week) but am wondering if five weeks notice is enough or should we push her party back so there is more time for people to respond/ be less booked up etc

We are not from this country so not sure of the etiquette so advice would be appreciated please!

My youngest has been invited to a three year old’s birthday party. We are excited for her to go, however we have realised that it is on a weekend where my husband is away so I will look after both our kids.

The party is in a hall and parents will stick around so if I take the invited child, I will need to stay there with my six year old. Is it okay to ask the host if I can bring her too? I am not expecting her to get lunch and party bag etc, she simply needs to be there as we have nowhere else for her to go that day.

Is this bad manners to ask? If it were a paid-per-child party I would of course offer to pay her entrance fee but I think this is not the case here and we will not take their food etc so no extra cost for the hosts.

I would not ask if it weren’t the childcare issue, I know it generally isn’t okay to turn up with lots of uninvited guests!

Hi, I am hoping for recommendations, reviews and tips please!

What I am hoping for is a 10km-15km race through scenic nature, so probably trail although road paths would be good too. Ideally somewhere that I could camp nearby afterwards with things to see and do for the rest of the weekend. Also friendly races with a bit of community would be great as I tend to do these things alone but trying to meet more people with this shared interest!

So far I have found the Lakelands Trail Keswick run and Mavericks Kielder Forest gravel race, which both sound great (unfortunately on the same day though so if anyone can help me decide between them then that would be greatly appreciated!) but if anyone can recommend anything else then that would be great! Thanks

I’ve heard the Lakeland Trail events are really good and am looking to sign up to some. I’m also really keen to make some runner friends who like trails, being out in nature, camping etc so am looking to join a club. My local trail club is on a night I cant attend but I‘ve seen Lakeland Trails has a club and from what I’ve seen, it involves meeting up at the events (although I might be wrong on that). Has anyone joined before, is it a good way to meet likeminded runners? Or any other national clubs they can recommend please?

My current club is lovely but no one is bothered about events and would be great to share these experiences with other people sometimes!

I wasn’t quite sure how to phrase the title! I would like to hear any experiences please.

My almost 3 year old has always been ’high energy’, as they call it. Constantly charging around and nursery have mentioned a few times in the kindest way that he isn’t great at listening to instructions/ doing what everyone else is doing.

I’ve been quite keen to get him into some sort of sport as I think he would enjoy it and it would help him burn some energy but his listening skills might be an issue. We did try a gymnastics class once and he was rugby tackling his sister rather than doing the circuit that the teacher had planned…

I’d be curious to hear from people with similar kids. Did you end up having to stop the activity until they were a bit older or did the activity help them develop the skills of paying attention/ following along? Any recommendations for activities that worked well would also be great please!

It could be that I was just being particularly stupid the day that I tried it, but I found navigating the Meanwood Valley Trail ridiculously hard! I was fine until I got to the edge of Meanwood Park and then it was just a frustrating two hours of losing the path, trying multiple different directions, eventually finding a signpost, following it and realising there is no signpost at the next fork etc etc. I spent so much time using the GPS on my phone that it really defeated the point of getting out into nature!

I would really like to try it again but I barely have time to hike these days so nervous of using my upcoming hiking day to end up so frustrated again! Does anyone have any tips or know a good resource for this please?

I’ve tried googling but the main website insists it is well signposted which just wasn’t the case for me. At times I would come across a signpost in the other direction so I would make a point of searching around to make sure I hadn’t missed one and nothing (or at least if there was, it was very well hidden!)

Tomorrow is my first parkrun in ages and I am so excited! Looking forward to getting ready, having a coffee and driving over. Just because I want to think about parkruns right now, please share your parkrun routine!

That’s it really. My kids are four and two and I turn forty in a year. Everyone I know who already turned forty is childfree (except my parents’ generation and older) and they had house parties or went on special trips but I’m not sure how it would work for me.

For a house party, do I just pack the kids off to bed and hope no one makes too much noise? If I rent an area of the pub, would I allow kids up to a certain point and then my husband takes ours home and either stays there or hands them over to a babysitter and then comes back (actually that could work!)

I love the idea of visiting a special bucketlist place but unfortunately the places I see as really special are not that great for little kids, as I would be there to trek up a mountain, scuba dive or explore the nightlife. We have nice holidays as a family doing holiday camps in/ near Britain so it isn’t that I hate travelling with my kids, just it wouldn’t feel like that was for my fortieth, it would just be our summer holiday.

I spent a big chunk of my life ignoring my birthday as had been taught that it didn’t matter and I’m trying to appreciate myself more now, both for myself and to set an example to my kids that it isn’t shameful and self indulgent to want to feel a bit special occassionally, and therefore I would like to mark the occasion.

I’d love to hear from some parents what they have done or would plan to do, or any parties they have been to that worked really well!

Looking to book a trip for a half marathon for next year and would love to try for one of these areas. Can anyone recommend any please? I’d especially appreciate anyone who has done multiple and can give insight on the differences as I am finding it hard to pick!

The considerations for me are atmosphere and scenery, well-organised, and ideally not TOO difficult to get to as I will probably be on limited time. I’m not too bothered about a PB course or a certain size of race.

I can fly to any capital from where I live and then could travel a few more hours but not too much.

Thanks!

I have a relative who lives several hours away who I’d like to see but am torn about how to do it because it feels weird to invite myself to their place. On the other hand, I don’t want to invite them to mine as it feels like an invitation to spend a lot of time and money to travel to me without me having to put effort in! So I’m willing to go to them but not sure how to ask this?

Can anyone who knows the route give me advice on this please? My situation is that I grew up in Nottingham but haven’t been back as much as I’d like since leaving twenty years ago. I am considering a trip back to do the Robin Hood half and hoping it will be a run down memory lane!

My issue is that I have a hopeless memory for directions and street names so looking at the route online isn’t helping, but I’m trying to find out if the route takes you through a lot of the places that make Nottingham ‘feel like Nottingham’ (for want of a better phrase). I know it goes past the castle and through Wollaton Park but, for the places in between, does it showcase the beautiful city centre that I remember or does it more skirt around it sticking to the major roads?

Sorry if this is a vague or weird question! I miss Nottingham a lot and definitely want to come back for other visits but a run through it sounds like a fantastic way to see a lot of it but just trying to get my expectations right beforehand, so if anyone has any insight on this it would be appreciated!

I know it varies by circumstance but interested in hearing what other people are up to!

For instance, we have a two and four year old, one of whom is autistic so we get a few more meltdowns than maybe average and means that parenting solo can be a bit of a challenge. Manageable but tiring.

I’ve taken a ten day trip at the start of the year (my parents and siblings live on the other side of the world so there is no quick way to visit them) and have two 24- hour trips planned for later in the year (ie go away Sat lunch time, back Sunday lunch time).

My husband hasn’t done anything like this this year and could probably do with a break but he isn’t interested in travelling alone and doesn’t know anyone here who would be up for trips so he just doesn’t go. Which is fine as he is happy with that but it makes me feel like it is a bit unbalanced against him! I‘ve encouraged him to take the time for himself but there just isn’t that much that he would like to do whereas I would happily go away more often to visit family in other cities if it were easier to.

Just keen to hear some other examples so I can gauge how much on average other families leave one partner to solo parent so I know if I am being wildly unfair or if this is very average!