Katieb

Thanks both for your replies- i certainly find bird food more costly here than in the UK, may have to save up to buy them the niger seeds!. Kate

I usually buy niger seeds for my bird feeder, but seem unable to locate any in the shops this year, i have tried several garden centres around me and the larger supermarkets - does anybody have any ideas where i could purchase some - if indeed they are called niger seeds here - they attract the greenfinch and goldfinches to my garden. Whilst on the bird feeding subject, does anybody order bird food by mailorder - i certainly do not find people to be so bird friendly over here compared to the UK. Thanks in advance for any bird feeding tips or ideas Kate

I bought some recently from Leclerc, it was in the aisle near puree and bulgar wheat etc, made by the brand Tipiak ( or similar) - went down very well with the lamb tajine!   Kate

Thank you all so much again for all the useful links. Thanks also Dick for the radio broadcast info, in fact, my mother had heard it and stated exactly the same as you - that children who are introduced to nuts etc at a very young age are less likely to be intolerent/allergic to certain foodstuffs, she also mentioned that asthma is linked closely with nut allergies (my daughter has both!). It certainly seems logical though, that if you are introduced to something from birth you build up your own immunity against it. I tried so hard to avoid peanuts and peanut butter whilst pregnant just like many other expectant mums - perhaps it wasn't such a good idea after all. Our specialist has suggested our daughter has "desensibilisation" treatment for her allergy towards acariens, whereby the treatmant lasts 5-7 years and she is given direct doses either orally or intraveneously to build up her own immunity, they cannot do this with food allergies as it is too dangerous but just pollen, animals and acariens etc. It seems a bit extreme, but if it stops her suffering and helps her sleep better at night, it may be worth trying it. Kate

Thankyou for those positive and helpful replies, although i do feel rather upset and insulted by a couple of them. This is a very serious allergy and we are now totally responsable for saving our daughter's life and have to carry the adrenaline jab, antihistamine and steriod medication with us at all times. My main concern is how the school will cope with this and i worry that it will not always be accessible to all staff at all times. I'd still love to hear from anyone who has children or friends at school in France with the same problem. Apparently, fom what i understand, the number of people suffering with nut allergies has increased over the years as nut oil (arachide) is more widely used  these days as it is cheaper to produce - it is not a gimicky or trendy illenss!!! We have had several appointments with an allergerlogue and pneumologiste here in recent weeks, my 7yr old daughter has had numerous blood tests and skin tests and we have the results in black and white of her allergies towards nuts, arachides, cats and house mites - on top of that she has asthma and eczema. She is so worried about having a bad reaction and requiring the anapen emergency injection she is worrying about everything that she eats, so it is also difficult not to be too dramatic about her food but at the same time install the importance of checking everything that she eats. Thanks for those who supplied the useful websites - it is all so helpful and kind of you. Please continue to ask around for friends with children in french schools who suffer this same problem. Many thanks Kate

We have just been advised that our daughter is allergic to nuts (something we have always considered but have now had it confirmed) and she has been given emergency treatment - anapen, antihistamines and steroids which i find all very overwhelming and worrying. Does anybody have any experience with these allergies and situations in France? I am obviously going to have to inform the school (she eats in the canteen) and she will have to have her medication with her at all times, she is only 7 so all school staff will need to be informed fully on the seriousness of this matter. She is already an asthma sufferer so they are aware of her inhalers etc. I know that many french do not take allergies very seriously - i know from personal experience as i work in a hotel and often clients have food allegies which are "laughed at" in the kitchen - just like pregnant english women not wishing to eat unpasturised cheeses etc.  I also wonder, if anyone has experience of allergy, if they have any translated info i could print out for my daughter to keep with her if she is visiting friends and at school etc. My french isn't too bad - but not good enough for these medical terms - it is all a new subject for us and are just trying to get to grips with it. Any help or information would be gratefully received.  Many thanks , Kate.

Just to confirm the situation, the Insurance Company (which is actually Liverpool Victoria - who are apparently Frizzels) are aware that i am a French Resident and that i have a french Insurance Policy and that i am driving the vehicle in France so presently, all is OK. What i am wondering is........is an insurance policy immediately invalid once a person passes away? Thankyou for your time and thanks for your kind thoughts Ernie.

I am in a difficult situation and hope that you may be able to advise me. I am currently borrowing my father's car to drive here in France, i am a named driver on his policy. However he is terminally ill and he will sadly not be with us much longer, however i need to drive the car to the UK this week to be with my family and return to France with it after the inevitable. Would i be correct in thinking that his car insurance will be invalid as soon as he passes away - would i be uninsured driving it? We have another car in France of which my husband and i are insured for. I know i should speak to my Father's insurance Company but i can't bring myself to at the moment. I don't know if it makes any differnce but we are contemplating purchasing the car from my Mother and importing it to France. So basically - can i possibly get any inusrance to drive his British registered car either in France or the UK even though i am not the registered owner and am resident in France. Thanking you all for any helpful advise. Kate

Thankyou everyone who has replied and supplied me with lots of links and info to keep me busy, i'll certainly be buying the Rustica mag this week too. Thanks Kate

I wonder if anybody could suggest a book or web site address relating to the above as we would like to try our hands at planting according to the lunar calendar this year. Thankyou, Kate

Just for info, we have just received a hospital bill for my daughter's stay in hospital last month. We owe about 7euros for the bed each night and extra for our meals - between 3.50 - 6.50euros depending if it was breakfast/lunch etc. My daughter's treatment, care and hospitalisation was free, our expenses are not huge for the 5 night stay, but we did wonder why so many parents did not stay with their young children over night or even during the day. To be honest, i happily pay this small amount to stay with my daughter in a comfortable room as opposed to sleeping in an armchair and not being offered any food or drink when she has been hospitalised in England. Kate   By the way, for our sins, we do not have a top-up insurance...........yet!

Many thanks for those listings. I will give them a try but as somebody has suggested, perhaps i could also purchase a couple of talking books, at least i could listen to them over and over again until i grasp a full understanding of french. Thanks to all Kate

I know it isn't quite TV or telephone but i thought it may be a similar subject........is anybody aware of stories being read in french in the evenings on the radio. In the UK i used to enjoy listening to Radio 4 in the evening - when stories or small plays were read - is there anything similar in french? Thanks as always for any useful replies    Kate

My daughter had attended school for almost a year before she saw the obligatory school doctor at which time it was brought to our attention that she was required to have a BCG jab. We made an appointment with our local doctor who gave us a prescription for the injection, it cost very little (can't remember exactly but less than 10 euros i believe) back to the doctors who administered the injection - trouble free apart from a few tears from my 6 yr old. I was led to believe that the vaccination is obligatory for school children but perhaps this depends on the department? Kate

Could anyone please advise if there is any format we need to follow to cancel an enterprise individuelle or do we just write/contact the Chambres de Commerce. Unfortunately the business hasn't taken off as planned and outgoings (cotisations) out weigh the income. Many thanks for any info. Kate