Every parent has a vast amount of questions and doubts when they first bring that precious bundle of joy home. We all go through it, it's totally normal. Do you know what, though? If your baby is fed, clean and safe, you are doing great. Doesn't matter how you do it; doesn't matter if their socks don't match, or they favour sleeping back to front in a cardboard box under a leopard print towel, so long as they, and you, are happy. Here are my top ten baby priorities and some of the misconceptions that actually don't matter a jot. The pictures are grainy because they are nearly ten years old. Thank goodness for better quality cameras these days!
Following the tragic story of William Mead yesterday, it's time to speak up about the useless NHS 111 service that thousands of patients are being fobbed off with in this country. The NHS is under enormous strain, this we know. It's hard not to notice, with all the press coverage it gets and it's clear the Government are trying hard to 'lessen the strain' on the service. Just today, on BBC Breakfast, it was reported that A&E services are currently on Black Alert, due to too much pressure from an increased number of patients. So, the news report advises that people should only visit A & E if they have a 'genuine life-threatening condition'. And that's where it all falls apart, because we are not medical professionals. 
I can often be found banging on about the importance of breakfast, but why is it such a big deal? The obvious answer is that you haven't provided your body with any energy or nutrients overnight. During the day, we top up fairly regularly, so those eight or so hours without food make up a substantial fast period. There are other considerations though. If you have a whole day ahead of you, at work or school, you are going to be putting demands on your body. Not just physically, but mentally too. Your brain relies on good nutrition to function, so that you don't do or say anything that makes you look daft. Also you don't want to start falling asleep somewhere inappropriate either, because you might look like a bit of a plonker!
