Laughter midnight! Fun-loving walkers don fancy dress for annual charity event

Byline: COREENA FORD

For more information about St Oswald's visit stoswaldsuk.In the early 1970s, Dorothy would often visit her daughter Jenny, who worked at Christopher's Hospice, in London, and she was keen to replicate the level of care given in a place for people of the North East.Families from across Northumberland and Tyne and Wear can benefit from the services at St Oswald's, which has to raise pounds 6.5m every year towards its annual running costs of pounds 8.5m.BBC weather girl Hannah Bayman set the walkers on their way from Newcastle Civic Centre at midnight on Saturday night, along a route passing through the hospice grounds at the halfway point.CAPTION(S):Some 1,400 people left their beds to walk 10k through the streets of Newcastle on the St Oswald's Midnight Walk, transforming the city into a sea of blue and pink in their fancy dress costumes.orgHappy birthday to St Oswald's and here's to 25 more years."HUNDREDS of walkers swapped their slippers for trainers to take part in a colourful midnight charity walk."It was a great honour to be asked to open this year's walk.Around pounds 150,000 was raised for St Oswald's - the Gosforth-based hospice which provides specialist care for adults, young people and children - providing a fantastic boost for the charity as it marks its 25th birthday.Hannah said: "I helped out with filming at the Midnight Walk last year and was really touched by the people I spoke to along the way whose families had been helped by St Oswald's. "It was a fantastic experience to meet so many people who had been helped by the hospice over the past 25 years so it felt great to be here a year later celebrating the 25th birthday of St Oswald's.DRESSING UP These women wore their pyjamas, pink bunny ears and feather boas WALK IN THE DARK Left, women on the walk, centre, Hannah Bayman and Claire Paczo who walked in memory of friend Allison Taylor and, right, posing for a picture"It was a fantastic way to celebrate the 25th birthday of the hospice.""It was a great event - fun but poignant. Thanks so much to everyone who took part.St Oswald's was the first hospice to open in the region, on July 7 1986, as a result of the drive and determination of Dorothy Jameson and her friends.

DRESSING UP These women wore their pyjamas, pink bunny ears and feather boas WALK IN THE DARK Left, women on the walk, centre, Hannah Bayman and Claire Paczo who walked in memory of friend Allison Taylor and, right, posing for a picture

Bedding Sets for Your Nurseries

Baby's room is a very special place where your child spends much time playing or resting. Here a baby begins studying the world and everything he sees lying in the cradle develops his first senses.

If you are looking for something with unisex theme that is neutral and appropriate either for a boy or a girl, you can follow the animal or nature themes in design. This kind of design is very convenient if you plan to have more than one child and have arranged one nursery for them. It is also the best variant when you don't know precisely the sex of your future baby though you will agree that it is better to know what you will have if you want to save your time and money.There is no doubt that you should carefully think about the color and style of the bedding sets for your baby and make a reasonable choice. Let's try to make it not difficult but easy and pleasant!In this great variety of bedding sets you can feel bewildered when you start looking through the list of proposals. Here you can automatically distinguish the sets which are appropriate for boys from those which are good for girls. Bedding sets designed for boys contain spaceship, cars or football subjects and for girls it is better to choose bedding sets with butterflies, princesses or mermaids.Choosing nursery equipment for the newborns becomes a very important thing for their parents and many people start thinking of it when they are just waiting for their baby to be born. Everybody wants to make this place peaceful and bright for the child.

However, if you have children of both sexes in a nursery, it is better to divide the room into individual areas for them and equip each section appropriately. Every child should have his or her own area where the child can develop individually according to his or her interests. It should be a cosy place full of colours and interesting objects that will invite your child to be active and "explore the world". You should remember that the first five years of your baby's life are the most important for his or her mental development. It is a period when your child absorbs all information very quickly - examines what he sees, studies colours, shapes and learns new sounds. That's why appropriate bedding sets for appropriate baby room sets can play a very important role in the mental development of your child and stimulate his imagination. For example, characters from famous cartoons and fairy tales can help you to develop and train your child's memory. If your child is big enough to have his or her own taste you can take into consideration your child's interests and purchase the one the child prefers. If, for example, some special themes such as butterflies or planes are of interest to your child you have no reason not to get one of them.