1+ day, 3+ hour ago (216+ words) With Christmas fast approaching, households around the country are in full preparation mode. Parents have been scrambling to shops, particularly with Black Friday and Cyber Monday, eager to grab the best deals. But amid the excitement, Smyths Toys has issued a warning on its website for parents buying presents this year. The popular retailer has a click and collect service; however, it could spell disaster for parents using it with children in tow. Orders are packaged in clear plastic bags, meaning children could see what their parents have ordered inside, ruining any Christmas morning surprises that have been planned. A notice on the Smyths Toys website says, "Please note your Click & Collect items will be in clear packaging with contents visible." Smyths Toys has extended its store opening hours in the lead up to Christmas, with many locations staying open…...

2+ week, 6+ day ago (1245+ words) By Lisa Salmon, PA Scarlett Moffatt struggled to conceive for years before falling pregnant, and that desperation to have a baby made her equally desperate to be the perfect mother. The TV presenter and Gogglebox star had her son Jude in June 2023, and says before she became a mum she watched parenting videos, listened to parenting podcasts, and even read peer-reviewed university research on the best ways to bring babies up. She says: "It took us three years for him to arrive, and the day after we found out I was pregnant, we'd been meant to go to a fertility clinic. Every year it was my birthday wish, I was blowing candles out and wishing for us to have a baby " we'd wanted him for so long. "I just wanted him so much. I don't think there's anything wrong with…...

3+ week, 3+ day ago (603+ words) A 4-year-old boy who cannot walk or talk, who sued over the circumstances of his birth at Cork University Maternity Hospital, has settled a High Court action with a "3.5 million interim payout. CJ Bohane was one of twins born at the hospital on January 21st, 2021, but his twin brother, Baby Patrick died the next day in his father's arms. CJ's mother, Joanne Duggan of Ringaskiddy, Co Cork, outside the Four Courts, said the day she gave birth to their twin boys should have been the happiest day of their lives. Flanked by her partner, Fionn Bohane, she said "Unfortunately it was the worst." "Sadly, one was left in a little white coffin, and the other with a severe brain injury which will impact him for the rest of his life,", she said. CJ's counsel, Oonah McCrann SC, instructed by Cantillons Solicitors,…...