America versus UK

[chell5544]

That sounds like a good system. I've got a student loan but have to start paying it back 1 year after I graduate, regardless of income or if I've even found a job!

There was a time where university was free in the UK I think it still is free in Scotland

 

[minties]

What kittyventura calls a buggy, we call an umbrella stroller here. I just call all pushchairs etc a pram. I hate all the different names!

Minimum wage in NZ is $13.50 for adults.

We call flip-flops jandels, I don't think any other country calls them that.

 

[staralfur]

That sounds like a good system. I've got a student loan but have to start paying it back 1 year after I graduate, regardless of income or if I've even found a job!

There was a time where university was free in the UK I think it still is free in Scotland

I can't even imagine! That would be amazing.

 

[keela]

Credits are like a point system. For example my degree required 6 history credits. So one history course was worth 3 credits so I had to get a passing grade in two history courses to receive credits for my degree. When you have gotten all your credits you get your degree. My hubby works for Mississippi State University and the cost for a year including books, housing, and meals is about $20,000 a year. But if you live out of state I.e. not from Mississippi... It's 30,000 as you have to pay out of state tuition.
This is considered a cheaper school in the area.

 

[KittyVentura]

Not baby related but I'm still confused by "tea". Does tea refer to dinner or any meal? And what do you call actual tea?

Tea is a drink. Here "tea" is also like a mid afternoon snack/light meal usually involving the drink tea and cake. We call meals here Breakfast, Lunch and Diner... But some in the UK call them Breakfast, Dinner and Tea.

What's a high street?

Like a Main Street in the centre of a town or community with most of the area's shops on. So like a little village might have the odd little corner shop dotted in but most would be on the high st. In bigger towns it is usually the main shopping centre of town (outdoors) which is referred to as the high st.

Oh got one. What's a council house? And what's a flat? I always assumed a flat was what we call an apartment - a building with several residences.

A council house if government owned and rented out at a lower cost than private renting. Those that receive benefits and or/do not work might have the cat of council housing rent paid for them... They used to be on council estates. Like set areas of town with just that type f housing in. So in a way a bit like how you describe the projects. But all kinda of families to there and now the councils tend to ensure a certain number of houses are allocated as council housing in each new build to give integration rather than set areas... To try and prevent that "council estate" mentality that gives some council areas a bad name.

Is this a sleepsack in the UK as well? I think I've heard them called something else around here.

https://www.sidsma.org/new_parents/images/sleepsack.jpg

Something else I've noticed (not really a word) is that so many women dress their baby girls in tights with shorts on top. I rarely see that where I am and have never seen a whole outfit in a store where you can buy shorts with matching tights. Doesn't it make it more difficult to do diaper changes? Just curious.

That's a grobag or sleeping bag.

The shorts with tights is one of my favourite looks here. But it is cold, skirts and dresses are a bit awkward with her crawling and rolling stuff and using cloth nappies means most jeans don't fit over her j-LO bootay haha. It's no more awkward than pulling down jeans I think, or even leggings... Just an extra layer.

Do you guys say ketchup or red sauce? I heard both when I was in the UK, is it a regional thing?

CATSUUUUP

Where I'm from pantyhose are like nylons or "stockings?", like tights with feet . I just called them underwear, but panties are like girly underwear.

Pantyhose is the funniest word ever. That is all.

I know the thread kind of got away from baby stuff, but it's been bugging me lol - what's a babygrow? Is that what we call footie pajamas?

A baby grow is one of these... You can't see but it has feet on.
https://i1182.photobucket.com/albums/x444/KittyVentura/672d8f7a5461d7db570718733798ca04.jpg
The same without feet and maybe with short sleeves and legs is a romper...like this.
https://i1182.photobucket.com/albums/x444/KittyVentura/cdaaa9677a217ad4594e0e5aa59fa8d4.jpg

Oh and on Sabrina the Teenage Witch (back in the day) she danced and sung a song that went "shake your whammy fanny, funky song, funky song. Shake your whammy fanny fu-UUUU-unky song".

That provided SOOO much humour here as basically she was singing "shake your fabulous vagina"

 

[chell5544]

What kittyventura calls a buggy, we call an umbrella stroller here. I just call all pushchairs etc a pram. I hate all the different names!

Minimum wage in NZ is $13.50 for adults.

We call flip-flops jandels, I don't think any other country calls them that.

ah so your minimum wage is about £6.90 i'm moving to NZ haha

what are your house prices like?

 

[omfgski]

...

 

[minties]

House prices vary a lot, I guess like anywhere else? I can tell you my rent is $270 a week for a 2 bedroom brick flat with garage and front and back yard (garden?).

There is no way we could live on minimum wage without all the government 'handouts' like tax credits etc.

 

[babybrums]

What exactly are tax credits? Do you get those weekly? Monthly? To me a tax credit is something you may get when you file your income taxes at the end of the year. Are they like that or more like our firm of government assistance - like food stamps and reduced housing? Food stamps are like vouchers for certain food items (you can also get a debit type card that is loaded with money each month). Reduced housing would be paying a certain amount for rent based on income (I think you pay like 30% of your income - not sure).

 

[KittyVentura]

Oh and on Sabrina the Teenage Witch (back in the day) she danced and sung a song that went "shake your whammy fanny, funky song, funky song. Shake your whammy fanny fu-UUUU-unky song".

That provided SOOO much humour here as basically she was singing "shake your fabulous vagina"

HAHAHAHAHAH I could actually hear her singing that in my head when I read it I remember we watched it as kids thinking is she saying... front bum?!

YES. Before proudly singing it around your Mum KNOWING you'd smartarse we your way out of being rude as it was on Sabrina. Like that Meredith Brooks song that gave all us young rebels the ability to sing BITCH in front of grown ups without getting into trouble haha

 

[Meredith2010]

Not baby related but I'm still confused by "tea". Does tea refer to dinner or any meal? And what do you call actual tea?

Tea the drink is always called tea.

The early evening meal is called dinner by some, tea by others. I call it dinner but people who call it tea might think I'm posh or snooty for that.

The midday meal is either lunch or dinner, depending on what you call the above. So people who either say "breakfast, lunch and dinner" or "breakfast, dinner and tea"

And to confuse things further, the evening meal could also be called supper. So you could have:

Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Breakfast, lunch, tea
Breakfast, dinner, tea
Breakfast, lunch, supper
or even Breakfast, lunch, tea, supper

So Tea could either refer to a cup of tea, the evening meal, or a light snack with a cuppa (i.e. afternoon tea) at about 4/5pm depending on it's use.

 

[lozzy21]

Tax credits are a form of benefit but there not like the things you have mentioned. You can only claim the things you mentioned if you are not working. Tax credits are there to help low income family who are working. They come in two parts, working tax credits and child tax credits.

You have work a certain amount of hours, the less you earn the more you get.

 

[chell5544]

tax credits is money you can get weekly or monthly depending on your preference, its money that goes directly into your bank account to help families on a low income. We also can claim working tax credits, which is still based on income but you don't have to have children to claim. Low income families can also get money to help with childcare help as long as you work over 25 hours a week.

Benefits for housing is claimed through your local council, which again is paid into your bank account the amount you can claim varies on income and how much rent is in your local area.

 

[babybrums]

I love this thread! It's nice to know what everyone has been talking about this whole time!

 

[baby287]

Oh I didn't know tea meant a meal sometimes..I read a post with a woman talking about making her baby tea...I was really confused.. I started thinking babies drank tea over there lol

 

[lozzy21]

Traditionally you would have breakfast early, lunch between 12 and 1 and then dinner would not be untill 7/8pm so the Victorians invented tea to be taken around 4 which was a light meal of a sandwich and some cake to fill the gap.

 

[KJM2]

not sure its been mentionef but the food portions in america are just huge. When weve been on holiday in usa. Ive often thought what amerivans must think of our portion sizes being really small. The other wierd thing is in some restaurants they give you salad at the very start of your meal even when youve not ordered it.

 

[mommy0629]

not sure its been mentionef but the food portions in america are just huge. When weve been on holiday in usa. Ive often thought what amerivans must think of our portion sizes being really small. The other wierd thing is in some restaurants they give you salad at the very start of your meal even when youve not ordered it.

Yeah, and we wonder why so many Americans are overweight (not saying anything bad, I am too ).

Some restaurants or certain entrees just come with a salad, didn't realize that was weird

 

[staralfur]

Coming from Canada I found the food in England to be kind of...blah. Sorry ladies. Not that you invented the food or made the food I ate but I still feel bad saying it for some reason.

That being said I don't necessarily think it's a bad thing, we're a bit gluttonous over here.

 

[KJM2]

There alot of gluttonous overweight people in the uk