dug 
Nick and I spent a large part of yesterday afternoon walking around John Lewis with a ‘baby clobber consultant’. This was the first time I pushed a pram in public (strange) and the first time the sheer logistical impact of our soon-to-be-here bairn struck home.
For those of you out there who have not yet thought about these matters, you’ve got your pram - now these days a pram is more than a pram - there’s the car seat module with its extra car base flange module and secondary pram module, the cary cot module (which interlocks with the pram’s one-handed quick-release mechanism, the rain cover and reverse positioning bits and bobs (phew).
Then you’ve got your cot to worry about - they’re all very beautiful and very expensive. Nicki and I lusted for the Swedish-designed curved-on-coaster model, but are still uncertain wether or not to go with the design council hand-made-in-Shropshire model. The whole process is designed to bring out the latent yuppie.
On top of prams and cots, there are two floors of nappies, expressing pumps and other gizmos so complex as to defy explanation. One of these (which I tried on) is made by Bjorn Borg (surely you remember) and involves strapping little guy into a foamy harness with lots of adjustable straps held together with tremendously clever high-impact-plastic quick release mechanisms.
My head is still spinning, and to make matters worse, our aunt Dorothy has offered to donate a nearly knew, top-of-the-range Britax pram which is great but when I took it for a test drive in the shop, it was so short I kicked the rear axle when walking (not good for shoe polish or baby sleep I should think)
On a slight tangent, Nick and I were impressed with the in-store catering and remembered that our friend Matthew, who used to teach at the Cordon Bleu school in Marylebone accepted the job of redesigning all of John Lewis’s catering facilities. If this is your work Matthew, nice one (Nicki recommends the tuna in granary baguette - fresh and light and Dug can vouch for the fruit de mer bruschetta)