Revolving stars

Recently, we went on a family trip to KL with my mum, PL and Hunter. It was an impromptu trip as we caught the travel bug. After a long discussion, we decided on KL as a destination as the flight time was short and it's a place that we are familiar with. For flight, we took Airasia since it was just an hour's flight. The happy boy who was so excited about the flight that he didn't take his afternoon nap. And by the time the plane took off, he fell asleep without any need for lollipop or such. Accommodation Since we had Hunter in tow, we decided to go for an Airbnb instead.  We got a condo unit at Cheras, which is near to Ikea and not so crowded with people the minute we get out. One of the reasons why we chose this place was the kids friendly facilities (a sand play area, a kids' swimming pool and a indoor playground). Hunter loved this place even till now (3 months later) and would still ask if we are going back there again. Booking.com Transport The G...

 Recently, we have been on a puzzle playing spree due to the rainy weather in Singapore. I had bought these items online awhile back but didn't had the chance to start on them. When we started using them, it was a little tough as H was slightly impatient and whined when he couldn't get them right. However, as we progressed and tried them a few more times, he was able to piece the puzzles independently. Hard at work Piecing the puzzles during breakfast He enjoyed it a lot and requested for them on and off when he thinks about it.  Difficulty of the puzzles Each sets have both easier and more difficult puzzles ranging from 4 - 8/9 pieces. I filter them so that he tackles those with lesser pieces than move on to the ones with more pieces. It helps to build his confidence and within 3 days, he would be able to complete them independently (at 36 months). Verdict: A good buy for rainy days and as Christmas gifts. If you are interested, it can be bought from shopee here . 

 If you are staying at the West of Singapore and thinking of a budget place to bring your toddler, I will highly recommend Clusia Cove @ Jurong Lake Gardens ! Clusia Cove is very accessible by public transport; Just drop off at Lakeside MRT station and take a 10 mins stroll to the Gardens.  It is free for everyone and opens from 8am - 7pm every day, except for Mondays that do not fall under Public Holidays. There is both waterplay and sandplay available, with a wash point, toilets and some stone seats to put your belongings. Vending machines and water coolers are also available. Look at the happy boy scooping up the sand Running around in the water area All wet after all the playing Things to prepare: - Swimming diapers (I use Huggies ) - Sunscreen - Swimwear  (optional) - snacks (no food & drinks to be brought into the play area but stone seats area is fine) - Towel - A change of clothes (for both parent and child) - slippers Tip:  - Go earlier in the day when ...

The long weekend trip to Sinar Eco Resort was our first family trip post-covid. It also served as a birthday trip for PL. As H's school was closed on 2 and 5 Sep 2022, we had to make plans to ensure our sanity. Initially, I wanted to go somewhere further but common sense and logic won out. After much deliberation and consideration, we narrowed the locations to JB and had 2 choices in mind. One is Sinar Eco Resort and the other one is Rainforest Tree House. In the end, we decided on Sinar Eco Resort because of the following points: All-inclusive stay (RM280 per night/pax) H doesn't need to pay since he is below 3 years old. Location (Near to SG. If H falls sick, we could rush back.) Kid's safety (Since it's an enclosed farm, we could be sure that he wouldn't be kidnapped or something along the line. Sorry, I'm just too paranoid) Activities (H loves animals and animal feeding is included in the package) One thing I must say about PL; he is really a do-er. After we...

 The week flew past too fast and it was the weekend again. Our destination was kidSTOP (next to the Science Centre) which caters to kids who are below 8 years old.  We initially wanted to go on 1 May (a public holiday) but when we reached there, the slots were all fully taken up! The staff at the counter informed us that we had to book a slot for weekends and public holidays. Thus, we booked the slots for another weekend on the stop. So, after much waiting, we finally managed to enter this area. The first impression we had was that the area is very small. I'm pretty sure that kids can't really go missing in KidsSTOP. It's divided into 21 areas according to their site map but do not be deceived. They are all close by and you could finish the whole tour in 10-15 minutes (provided that there are no distractions). Site map Below are the areas that we managed to visit: Four Seasons I can only say that the exhibits here are dated and forlorn. There were no one there (even though ...

 Every weekend, we have to rack our brains for places to bring H. As I am a paranoid parent, I don't bring him to indoor playgrounds due to the covid situation, even though the government has loosen the restrictions. Below are the places that we have brought him to (and counting): - Jurong Bird Park - Zoo - River Wonders - USS - Kidstop - Jurong Lake Gardens - Jacob Ballas Children's Gardens - Gardens by the Bay - Playground at Vivocity - Mediapolis - One North - Fire Station Hopefully, the list will provide some ideas of the places to bring your active toddlers :)

Disclosure: I only recommend products I would use myself and all opinions expressed here are my own . This post may contain affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, I may earn a small commission.   H tends to wake up early in the morning and drag me out for walks in the park/garden. Since it was raining, I introduced H to a new activity; button threading. The objective of this activity is to get him to thread the string into the 2 holes in the button. It looks pretty simple but it was not so straightforward for him at first. Look at H hard at work! The idea is to thread both holes so that the buttons will stay in position. If you just thread one hole, the button will freefall out of the string. Initially, H didn't get it and the buttons keep falling off. It took him about 7-8 tries to get it right, and even so, it took tremendous effort. After threading 3 of them, he decided to call it a day. This set was passed down from my aunty when she bought it for my cousin 20 odd y...

 As a Westie, I love the Jurong Lake Gardens. It's a fantastic place to bring H on the weekends (if it doesn't rain). As we take public transport, we always end up starting from the same point and could not finish walking to the end of the gardens. (You will have to take the bus and get down 1-2 stops later to reach the other side of the gardens, which was what we did in the end.) Photos below are from various occasions as we are unable to cover all in one trip. Outing with the grandma Enjoying the gardens Resting after walking for a long while due to his short legs The futile attempt to shield him from the sun At the far end of the Gardens Too hot to sit on the swinging chairs Walking along the path First time at Clusia Cove, coaxing H to dip his feet into the water After 30 mins of coaxing We really enjoy Jurong Lake Gardens a lot, and if you are heading there, do remember to bring food and drinks along as it's quite hard to find them there. Tip: If you are heading to Clu...

 When it was announced that the Fire Stations in Singapore are resuming their weekend Open House, as part of the kiasu parents community, rushed to attempt to visit it (Note the word "attempt"). There are 2 timeslots for the Open House every Saturday: Session 1: 9 - 9.50am Session 2: 10 - 10.50am We failed spectacularly when the queue stretched out to god-knows-where and the poor officer had to go down the queue family by family to inform everyone of the overcrowding situation in the fire station. Since H is definitely not of an age to be waiting quietly to go in for a visit, we decided to skip and return the following weekend. As expected, the crowd during the following Saturday thinned out considerably and we could get in within 10 minutes instead of the estimated 1.5 hour wait. The main highlights for H are the firefighting demo and the photo-taking with the different vehicles (H brought his mini fire engine truck along). H and his cousin holding hands while waiting to tak...