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Birthday fun for young (and old) ones at Timezone

August 25, 2018

If you know the Kao kids well, you would know that they’ve grown to love games. Any kinds of games from team sports and Running Man missions to candy crushing and arcade gaming.

Their father even has an arcade console with joysticks hooked to the tv at home for the kids to redeem their screen time with.

So imagine how much of a celebration took place when my kids learned that we could have a party to celebrate Becks turning 8 at Timezone Vivocity – the largest of Timezones in Singapore – and that it would come tagged with three hours of non stop arcade play.

The boys were the ones who had a party before the party first, I tell you.

While the birthday girl carefully pondered who the 15 kids that made up the invite list were, shopped meticulously for her cake, and desserts online, and scrutinised my design for her invitation card.

That’s THAT difference between having boys and raising girls, and what the reactions are about having a party. Just sayin’.

On the day of the party, we were introduced to our party host from Timezone who very warmly made sure we were all settled in to the party room, which we had exclusive use of for 3 hours. The room came complete with a refrigerator, microwave and a sink for washing. It also had ample seating for a party of 10-20 guests, a projector screen, laptop and speakers.

Party host trying to interest the two girls who were the earliest with some colouring

The cherry on the cake for me was this awesome, awesome view looking into tranquility.

My view before madness (children) entered

 

Which…. was not at all enjoyed by the kids (well, at least the adults did!) because no one was found in the party room the moment all the guests have arrived. The party host explained some basic rules for using the complimentary Timezone cards provided for each guest and the kids, well, they were soon off and nowhere near the party room!

These 8-, 9-, 10-year-olds were in game wonderland, why would they waste a minute?

Paying attention to the party host explaining how the cards work for the card readers

Queuing up orderly to get the Timezone cards that come complimentary for them as party guests

Rush is setting in! Getting their ticket buckets

Ready, set, go!

Each guest gets a card that lets them play X number of times in the arcade depending on the colour of the card readers. The yellow card reader games has unlimited number of game plays which included the car racing, the dancing machines and the motorbike races.

Have you seen a whole row of girls in full focus? Here’s some girl power for you.

6-year-old Nat racing with 13-year-old Godsis

The blue, green or red card reader games are for up to 32 tries and those games were lots of fun too, and what I felt most of Becks’ girlfriends and the boys enjoyed. They included carnival games like hoop throwing, shooting, fishing and ticket jackpots. These games let players win tickets, which then can be exchanged for items from the Timezone store! Talk about motivation for tapping and trying all day long!

This was like at the 15th minute mark of play, omg

This game lets the player think and work on precision to win real prizes including sought-after gadget; no surprises why I found Ben here

BFFs fishing away

The rainbow card reader games were best enjoyed as a group. Only 5 taps of the card were allowed for these – which included the mini bowling, bumper car rides and VR rides and roller coasters.

This is the Rabbids VR coaster which her friends dared to try but not the birthday girl

These, unlike bumper cars of days old, cushions the bumping impact with the foam and makes it completely safe for kids to go MADDDDD

A friend commented that she’s never seen this side of Becks: chatty, cheery and smiling non stop

I love watching my little girl play with her friends. These girls can be squealy one moment and feisty another!

My birthday girl and her friends went in throngs to play the bumper cars all those 5 tries they were allowed on their cards. It was a whole new world hearing how loud and shrill 10 girls screaming at the same time sounded like.

What I liked most about hosting a party in an arcade was the fact that I could see how my kids, especially Becks, interacted with her friends. They travelled in packs to choose a game together, learned the tricks of scoring and doing well for each game together and had so much wholesome fun.

Groups of girls squealing at a corner. Boys guffawing at misses and hits. Adults getting excited while games are at play. There was so much laughter, it was truly satisfying to hear.

What I loved above all else about having a party at Timezone was that the adults – from parents to grandparents – can join in the fun at this party. At the ages at my kids are at most of their parties revolve around climbing, laser tagging, indoor playground cray-craying. It was nice that for a change, the gramps could join in the fun. Like when the birthday girl, her friends and Grandma were at the fishing table trying to reel a fish in! That was truly precious to watch.

For that matter, most of Becks’ party guests’ parents also joined in the fun instead of dropping them off. It was a lovely morning and afternoon spent on fun and games, and family bonding.

Grandma reeling in her catch

Grandpa looking on and giving advice

These 2 had a great time catching plushies – love it that there’s something for a 3-year-old too

It was a really no-stress, all-fun kinda party that Saturday morning. I think the only source of stress came from herding the children back in to get some lunch and to sing the birthday song. I know the kids didn’t mind at all one bit not having lunch or cake; even the birthday girl dashed out the moment the cake cutting was over.

Not many left at the table :p

Happy 8th birthday, my big baby!

She loved the cake and topper although she didn’t eat them at the party!

The lovely Timezone folks also brought her to the Timezone store to choose a birthday gift. This came as a surprise to her (I knew!) and she was thrilled to befriend Gudetama.

After the party was over, all the kids made a mad rush to count their tickets and shopped at the store for their tickets’ worth. Some went home with bouncy balls while others lugged back some sweet and memorabilia. Now the boys tell me they’re wishing that they would have their parties for their next birthdays here. I’m rolling my eyes because I know 3 hours ain’t gonna be enough at all for them.

At least I have till next year to decide.

YAY, all birthdays done, and my little girl turned 8 having a blast at the arcade with her best friends and family! Thank you, Timezone Vivocity, for the awesome party!

For more details of Timezone flagship store’s Party Package details, check out what you get for 3 hours of non stop fun here.

Disclosure: We were invited to experience the Timezone Birthday Party Package. All opinions here including squealing girls and the mayhem produced by mad kids are our own.

Happy days Holidays!

Finally Seoul

May 7, 2018

We’re finally headed to Seoul this summer.

Like finally.

I’ve waited so long for my kids to be ready, specifically in the food department; and I am proud to say after so many years of training them to enjoy kimchi, gochujang-based soups and spicy food, they ARE ready.

I know that at ages 9, 8 and 6 we can do a great deal of walking in Seoul. Without much fussing and whining. No way was I gonna lug toddlers to Seoul.

And after so many years of watching Running Man, this trip will finally make sense to them, now that they are older.

Having finite resources, I kept in mind to plan an epic Seoul trip that would be both memorable and awesome – for me and the family . I think travelling with the kids at these ages are great – we can engage in so much conversations, and they actually remember things. Our London and Scotland trip last summer was epic too and till now, we still speak fondly of all the places we’ve seen from the museums and the zoos to the places we chilled at and the things we ate.

And I also had a personal goal way before this trip was made reality: I wanted to learn the language and be at least conversationally fluent and able to read some basic Hangeul before going. I got that going for almost a year prior to this coming trip.

So, Seoul for a good 16 days – what say we!

Our motto for our family holidays has always been IMMERSION. Hang out, chill, take our time. Enjoy the sights and scenes and soak in the culture and soul of that place thoroughly.

And I am hoping this is immersion enough!

Kao Family 16D15N in Seoul, Korea

Day 1:

  • Arrive and settle, chill and be completely present

Day 2:

  • Myeongdong and Nanta show in Myeongdong

Day 3:

  • All day Jimjilbang at Siloam Sauna

Day 4:

  • Children’s Grand Park

Day 5:

  • Insadong & Dongdaemun: check out Tapgol Park & Poo Cafe!

Day 6:

  • Cultural Learning Day: Gwangwamun Square, Gyeongbokgung, Bukchon Hanok Village + Gwangjang Market for dinner (yep, I planned the trail in this order!)

Day 7:

  • Noryangjin Fish Marekt and Yeouido Hangang Park; do the Hangang cruise at night if we’re up for it, if not just watch the Rainbow Fountain at Banpo Bridge

Day 8:

  • CoEx Mall and Gangnam – shopping! And maybe Kimchi Museum?

Day 9:

  • Explore Hongdae Day: go to Ewha and Hongik, then cafe-hop and check out Thanks Nature Cafe (see sheep), Molly’s Pop (try exotic flavours ice cream) and Meerkat Cafe (see meerkats)

Day 10:

  • Free and Easy – revisit what we didn’t get to do or do something we enjoyed a lot and can’t get enough of. I am guessing maybe go to Children’s Grand Park again or stroll along Cheonggye Stream

Day 11:

  • Same as Day 10, maybe do CoEx Aquarium (feeding programmes are from Tuesdays to Fridays)

Day 12:

  • Day trip to Nami Island and Petite France

Day 13:

  • Namsan Day: go by cable car and head to observatory; chill

Day 14:

  • Explore Yongsan and do the muesums – War Memorial Museum, National Museum of Korea, Children’s Museum; stop by Yongsan Electronics Market

Day 15:

  • Free and Easy – shop, eat, pack in this order

Day 16:

  • Have breakfast in the neighbourhood, go early to Incheon Airport and explore!

===

I’m hoping this is immersion enough! Share your experiences if you’ve been to Seoul, and hit me with recommendations, if any!

 

Family life as we know it Food, glorious food! Happy days Invites & Tryouts Motherkao loves... The Kao Kids

Cold spell spelled W-A-R-M-T-H for the family (ft. IKEA serveware)

January 26, 2018

[Sponsored – this post is IKEA-inspired]

The five-day cold spell where temperatures dipped to 20-22 ÂșC as a result of the monsoon surge earlier this month not just inspired us to take out our winter wear and thicker blankies, but also prompted us to go shopping at IKEA.

Because steamboating* time draws nigh!

Inspired by the never ending stream of Insta-stories and steamboat feasts on my newsfeed, I decided to gather the extended family to ride the cold spell together at a place where having steamboat is never exactly comfortable (read: no airconditioning) but will now be because the weather would, for sure, bring the chills.

My parents’ place would finally be perfect for that steamboat feast which we would otherwise be eating while perspiring endlessly.

And the opportunity shall be seized.

So off to the Gramps’ we go, but not before going to IKEA for some inspiration. This dinner was also in part all about welcoming the new year, and spending it with people we love, and I thought it’d be brilliant to dress up the dining area a little more to accommodate our party of 9. The extended family consists of Grandpa, Grandma, Yiyi, Jiujiu and all of us from the Kaos.

Most of the time it was usually hard to fit in everyone with all the food laid out for steamboat occupying most of the table, and so we usually take turns to eat if it was a steamboat affair.

This year, I was determined to seat everyone at the table to 打邊爐 in the cosiest fashion and so the first thing I purchased for the occasion was this beauty:

For a steal at $39.90, this beauty quickly transformed into a handy cart for our fresh food. Couldn’t been more pleased with having thought of using this like how the restaurants do it.

Next, I took the liberty to get the FULLKOMLIG table cloth (at a steal for $9.90!) and really also because the description says “The table cloth is made from a material that is always smooth directly after washing, so that you don’t need to iron it.”.  I figured a table cloth will always set the mood for a cosy time together, as well as invite the diners to stay longer at the table. I know my mom would probably scream at the impracticality of a white cloth on a round table while having steamboat, but at that price, it was worth taking the risk.

She didn’t scream at me by the way.

Because I had gone over and set it up like this:

While shopping at IKEA, I had also grabbed some new dinnerware like the VARDAGEN sauce bowls for our sambal chilli, the VARDAGEN bowls in 2 different sizes for soup and rice as well as a few sets of TREBENT chopsticks to symbolise happiness for the year. As a gift â€œç­·ć­ (kuĂ izi)” represent â€œćż«äč (kuĂ ilĂš)” which means happiness in Chinese culture.

Always glad to bring more kuĂ izi to the house!

And so with the table set, the reunion of the family began; first with taking our first 2018 family picture, followed by filling our tummies with food for the soul.

This is a first on two counts: you see me in a cardi seated at my parents’ and we fit in 9 people round the table

Time to tuck in to get some warmth on so many levels.

My wish this year is for more cold spells and more monsoon surges so we can always take refuge in the warmth of family whenever it’s cold.

~~~

Disclosure: This is the third of three in a series of collaborative work with IKEA. IKEA sponsored all the dinnerware and serveware we’ve used in this post. All ideas here are our own. #IKEASG#ad#sponsored#incollaborationwith #IKEA

See the previous IKEA posts here and here.

Everyday fun! Food, glorious food! Happy days Invites & Tryouts The Kao Kids

This year’s Thanksgiving Dinner by the Kao kids’ (ft. kids-friendly recipes)

November 28, 2017

[Sponsored – this post is IKEA-inspired]

Now that the kids are older, I have every plan to work them hard. I mean, why not? They are bursting with so much creativity, so much energy, and so many ideas it would be such a waste if I don’t tap on all these while they are still willing.

So I told the kids that in November, they’ll have to cook up a Thanksgiving dinner for the family.

I was surprised there was absolutely no protest and zero whining. In fact, they were excited. They started talking about what they could do – should we make sunny side ups, Mama? shall we bake a big cake? maybe we can make some pasta? hmm, how about some cookies? ok,  let’s make chicken wings!

I had to source and tweak some recipes in order for a few things to happen: one, the family gets a complete meal; and two, the meal prep and work is something that an eight-year-old, a seven-year-old and a five-year-old can manage on his/her own individually.

I needed more tools in the kitchen to assist their meal prep, and so also we headed to IKEA to get some shopping done.

This was what we did. This was Thanksgiving dinner, prepped by the Kao Kids. #iamaproudmama

~~~

First to enter the kitchen last Saturday afternoon (which we dedicated as our very own Kao family’s Thanksgiving Day) was Becks. She loves to bake. She love treats. And she is all ready to make us an orange pound cake.

Chef Becks is pictured here in her best festive garb, the VINTER 2017 children’s apron, complete with a chef’s hat. Fits her to a tee, and gets her in the mood for baking. I think this girl takes after me – we both love to bake!

Before she started work, I laid out the ingredients and utensils she might need and did a run through of the steps and what she would be doing with what (equipment / utensils).  Becks is an auditory learner, and she functions better being told verbally what to expect. I followed this really easy recipe here from Del’s Cooking Twist and ran through the steps with her, all while pointing to the equipment and tools she would use:

First, the eggs and sugar that Mama’s prepared and measured go into the KitchenAid; second, the flour and baking powder will be sifted with the IDEALISK Flour Sifter; third, the butter needs to be melted in the saucepan; fourth, the orange needs to be juiced with the SPRITTA Citrus Squeezer,and lastly, the batter needs to mixed well and poured into the moulds on the baking tray to be popped into the oven.

Step 1: Eggs and sugar gets beaten well

Step 2: Sifting the flour & baking powder (actually just clicking away!) with IDEALISK

Steps 3 & 4: While the butter is slowly melting in the saucepan, use SPRITTA to squeeze juice out of one large orange

Step 5: Mix the batter well and pour into baking moulds – we used the BAKGLAD baking moulds to give us 2 cute foxes & 2 bears

Of course, Mama hovered around the kitchen as her assistant and preheated the oven, handled all electrical appliances (I helped with the melted butter, for sure!) and doubled up as sous chef when she needed me to. But these 5 steps were more than doable for this seven-year-old, and Becks was more than able to rise to the occasion in making four mini orange pound cakes for our Thanksgiving dinner.

In fact, [spoiler alert], they turned out so well, that a friend tried (she came by while we had dinner and sampled some) and wanted to order from Chef Becks so she could give away as gifts for Christmas.

~~~

Next to enter the kitchen was Ben, all ready to handle some protein.

I modified this recipe by Ina Garten, by tweaking some of the things to our liking (no thyme, 1 lemon instead of 4) and making it less daunting for Ben. Actually, to prep this dish, in my opinion was the easiest to do, just ’cause the chicken spends more time in the oven than anything else. But preparing this dish takes the most guts to do – as it requires massaging the cavity and every bit of the chicken – and so it was tasked to the oldest kid among my three.

You don’t see his disgusted look here, but he was basically squealing for the first minute of touching the chicken.

How cool is my eight-year-old chef in his TOPPKLOCKA apron and chef hat, touching protein for the first time in his life

After he became familiar with how cold and slimy the skin of the chicken and cavity felt, he was all ready to stuff and rub ’em all in. In went the garlic cloves and quartered lemon, some butter, salt and pepper.

And then the skin was rubbed with olive oil, salt and pepper before it was covered with streaky bacon rashers. He worked atop the KONCIS stainless steel roasting tin with grill rack, which contained the mess efficiently and let him pop the chicken straight into the preheated 220°C oven.

~~~

So there needed to be carbs for the dinner, and I decided to task the youngest for this. Doesn’t sound very easy for the youngest to be preparing the mains, but hey, the solution was pretty straightfoward. We would be skipping the pasta and mashed potatoes, and having all-day breakfast for dinner instead.

‘Cause this was the EASIEST recipe I could find for a five-year-old to do. And I thought: why not?

French toast for dinner, it is.

With this really easy recipe, you’ll pretty much get pretty carbs on a plate in three steps, and this was as easy as it gets for a fiver.

All you really need is a large stainless bowl and a whisk and uber large pie dish (the BLANDA BLANK 36-cm stainless steel bowl, VARDAGEN balloon whisk and VARDAGEN 32-cm pie dish are ideal for this task), some eggs, white bread, honey, salt and single cream and you’d churn out the staple in no time.

Of course, Nat had to be heavily guided by my verbal cues. He listened and worked as I instructed: whisk together the single cream, eggs, warmed honey (so it’s more loose liquid), salt, and then pour mixture into the pie dish.

When we were ready to eat, he dipped each slice of bread into the mixture in the pie dish and let the bread soak for 30 seconds on each side. As he removed each slice onto a rack and worked with more bread, I fired up a non-stick pan with butter and cooked each slice till golden brown.

Then we’d slot the slices of french toast into the oven for another 5 minutes for that perfect crunchy bite.

~~~

Would you please have a look at the finished products after about 5 hours of labour in the kitchen? The adults helped with the plating but look at these gorgeous browns, and bursts of colours!

Serving ware really do dress up the dish: the roasted chicken sits on a VARDAGEN oven dish, the french toasts were plated with raspberries, blueberries, strawberries drizzled with maple syrup on matt-glazed DINERA plates and the cakes rest on the festive VINTER 2017 side plates.

Thanksgiving dinner by kids, for the whole family.

We couldn’t wait to tuck in.

This Thanksgiving, our hearts and bellies were full.

On this cosy dining table for our family of five, I had food prepared by my kids for the first time ever. This Thanksgiving meal wasn’t just tasty. Every bite of what I ate melted every ounce of fiber in my heart.

And I gave thanks for that.

Disclosure: This is our first of three in a series of collaborative work with IKEA. IKEA sponsored all the bakeware, cookware, utensils and tools mentioned in this post. All ideas and creativity are our own. #IKEASG#ad#sponsored#incollaborationwith

Happy days Holidays! Motherkao loves... The Kao Kids

Dunfermline, Scotland – and 5 things to savour with kids when you’re there

July 14, 2017

Cold and rainy Dunfermline, Kingdom of Fife, Scotland

Cold and rainy Dunfermline, Kingdom of Fife, Scotland

One huge reason why we decided to head to the UK with the entire family in tow this summer was because we had family in Scotland, and we wanted the kids to reunite with their granduncle and grandaunt again. They come to visit often, but we’ve never visited them in the UK, and so Fatherkao and I thought it would be an adventure to take the kids all the way to the Kingdom of Fife.

Sounds really like heading back to medieval times.

Fife, still commonly known as the Kingdom of Fife, is a historical county of Scotland. Fife is divided into 3 districts: Dunfermline, Kirkcaldy and North-east Fife. We flew to London first, then took a Virgin East Coast train for about 5 hours to Dunfermline, where we would stay with family for a week. That became our base to explore Perth, Stirling, Glasgow and Edinburgh.

Much little is known about Dunfermline, except that it’s the hometown of the great Mr Andrew Carnegie, one of the greatest philanthropists our world has ever known. There’s certainly more to the town and former Royal Burgh called Dunfermline, and here it is, 5 awesome things to do with kids (Motherkao’s version) in Dunfermline, as experienced by us.

If you ever head there; you’re welcome.

1.  Have steak bakes at Greggs

Arguably you could say that you can find this awesome bakery all throughout the UK and you don’t really need to go to Dunfermline for it. Tis’ true that you can get your sandwich and pasties and score a £2 steak bake and coffee lunch easily anywhere anyway. But I say, it’s tastier here in Dunfermline for the reason that it is waaaayyyy colder here with summer hitting 10-14°C and having your piping hot pasty, pizza, calzone, bacon roll or bake dripping with steaming bubbling goodness for breakfast or lunch is one of the best things we ever did in Dunfermline.

Awesome hot piping bakes

And for sure, it was also tastier because we savoured hot bakes on a cold rainy summer day with family.

2. Spend a day at the Dunfermline Carnegie Library and Galleries

This spectacular ÂŁ12.4million place was recently built in Dunfermline and houses a museum, exhibition galleries, local history Reading Room, new children’s library and a mezzanine cafĂ© with stunning views over the landscaped garden to Dunfermline Abbey and the Heritage Quarter and features the world’s first Carnegie Library. You could easily spend a day or days here FOR FREE. We walked through the galleries again and again, learning the wonderfully rich history of the former Royal Burgh of Dunfermline, about Robert the Bruce and the history involving England and Scotland, their kings and their queens – stuff that my Literature and History classes were made of.

Museum fun: navigating our way around

The famous people of Dunfermline

Which I thoroughly loved.  I studied English Literature and History for most parts of my growing years wearing school uniform, and museums excite me.

 

Role playing was fun – costumes of kings and queens

 

View of the Dunfermline Abbey

Rainy day at the Galleries

Anyway.

The kids were made to read, listen, watch and just appreciate the immersion of being at the Library and Galleries. And since it was a rainy day that day and we didn’t fancy walking around in the rain and in the cold, we spent a good time just soaking up the quaint little town this way.

Enjoying comics from the comics shelves

Role play time

Hanging out with the Gruffalo

The Very Hungry Caterpillar read and reread

Enjoying the Children’s Section of plentiful books!

I must say the library is one of the most impressive I have seen – and that the civic mindedness everyone has towards the care of books, and the consideration of others around was truly worthy of respect.

3. No sweat at Pittencrieff Park

I have never known what it’s like to play with abandonment in midsummer day till I watched my three kids in their child-likeness embrace the swings and slides at Pittencrieff Park.

And what a joy it was capturing these smiling faces.

The sun’s shining down on us but we ain’t feeling it

So many times they asked for Dada to give them a push and they got bolder and bolder on the swings

Fun times!

Of swings and merry-go-rounds in 14°C weather – we could go on and on since the sun doesn’t set till 10.30pm in summer!

Back at home, I can’t even last beyond an hour in the park or the playground. The humidity, the mozzies and the relentless heat would usually end up killing most of the fun. And the kids would end up sweaty, grumpy and very quickly quarrelsome.

Not here in this park. Not in this weather. Not on this holiday.

We could even take time to roll on grass, lie on grass and smell the flowers.

Big thanks to Mr Andrew Carnegie who many decades ago made this park possible for the people of Dunfermline. Granduncle told us the story of Junior Carnegie not being allowed in parks as a little boy because places as fun as these were only for the rich, and that he swore he would make it big enough to make parks free for everybody.

So here we are.

4. Hello again, Dennis the Menace

I grew up a Xennial and lived a largely analogue childhood where I would watch Dennis the Menace on tv (no cable last time) and then read lots of Beano Annuals. There was also Heckle and Jeckle, and Looney Tunes and He-man and Flintstones on tv for most part of my preschool years and so you can imagine it was such a blast to the past for me stepping into Brewers Fayre at Crooked Glen at Fife Leisure Park that has a Beano-inspired indoor playground.

Having lots of fun at Brewers Fayre at Crooked Glen, Fife Leisure Park

The kids were, of course, just happy to have indoor playground time. And the husband and I were just happy to be revisiting childhood once more having dessert and sipping coffee/wine.

5. Getting on the train and enjoying the view

The view of the countryside and of coastal England from London to Edinburgh and then to Dunfermline was a breathtaking one. Gives a whole new meaning to counting sheep because plenty of sheep was what we saw. Including oxen and horses, quaint cottages and pavements lined with flowers blooming in full glory.

Train rides are made of these

…Lots of snacking

… Lots of drawing and doodling

…Chattering and reading and bonding

Beautiful views are soul food.

The beautiful sights to take in

The town of Dunfermline was beautiful and rustic and I loved it every time we got on to the car or train because the view outside the window never looked so good. So good that it recharges and refreshes the soul.

Town views

Love these houses

Dunfermline at 10.30pm

Soul food is good “food” for kids, especially city kids who are inaundated with screen time, worksheets, and schedules of tuition, swimming, enrichment and all the et ceteras. They need to learn to look out of the window, count sheep and do nothing, all while imagining and inventing a world in their imagination on road trips and train rides.

~~~

We’re missing summertime Scotland like crazy now, back in humid and hot Singapore, and wishing big time for some more wanderlust dust to be sprinkled upon us once more.

Goodbye, Dunfermline

Going Out! Happy days Holidays! The Kao Kids

London numbers

June 2, 2017

1 hour delay due to inclement weather.

13.5 hours on a full flight.

1 hour to clear customs.

15 minutes from the airport to Paddington Station.

 

Waiting for the Heathrow Express

Waiting for the Heathrow Express

London Dreaming_June 2017_Kaosgotravelling (2) - Copy

London Dreaming_June 2017_Kaosgotravelling (3) - Copy

 

 

Onboard the Heathrow Express

Onboard the Heathrow Express

Paddington!

Paddington!

6 hours hanging out with 2 grumpy, tired kids, 1 especially prone to hissy fits.

7 hours behind in local time and severely jetlagged.

2 chirpy birds up and awake, tinkering around our AirBnB apartment at 4 in the morning, local time.

1 superbly supportive and strong spouse, tirelessly making things happen, like breakfast at 5am with only 5 hours of sleep.

1 sensible child (which makes me feel very strongly that from age 8 onwards is the age to bring any child on a long trip) who has been channel grazing across 4 British home shopping channels all morning. Hurhurhur.

~~~

We are here in London, in awesome midsummer weather where the sun rises at 5am and sets at 9pm and where the Kao kids can get their fix of rolling hills and vast expanse of spaciousness and rich culture.

Where it’s also the much needed time I need to reconnect with the family and be fully present.

Hopefully, we will be returning with 5 hearts full.

 

Going Out! Happy days Holidays! The Kao Kids

UK dreamin’

May 28, 2017

child-997231_1920

There’s dirt on my shirt
And leaves in my hair
There’s mud on my boots
But I don’t really care

Playing outside is so much fun
To breathe the clean air
And feel the warm sun

To stomp in a puddle
Or climb a big tree
Makes me quite happy
Just look and you’ll see

Dirt on My Shirt by Jeff Foxworthy

 

(Self) Examination Happy days

Counting my blessings

April 4, 2017

Dear Lord,

What was on your mind when you gave me these?

KaoKids_Reminisce - Copy

These very beautiful little people. And this wonderful person who chose to marry me.

Birthday Lunch_MotherkaoApr2017 - Copy

You must be thinking of how blessed, how loved, and how happy I would be.

With these people in my life.

For 36 years of life. For having these people in it. And for everything You have given.

Birthday Cake_MotherkaoApr2017 - Copy

My heart is full.

And filled with gratitude.

Happy days

Happy Rooster Year!

February 9, 2017

Alright, no more monkeying around.

Time for a really cocky year.

This Year of Rooster marks my 3rd cycle of being a rooster, and I am wishing that this year, I will strut my stuff and be the best rooster in the Rooster Year.

Don’t want any cock ups.

Just wanna wear the rooster crown tall and proud.

May this year be one you will do the rooster strut and not cock up at all.

Happy Lunar New Year, or whatever that’s left of it!

CNY 2017 (5)

And this is how we 'bai nian'!

And this is how we ‘bai nian’!

Going Out! Happy days Holidays! The Kao Kids

The suite life, at Legoland Malaysia Resort

November 7, 2016

We love to cross the causeway for this reason.

We’ve done staycays in SG but nothing beats being at Legoland Hotel in Malaysia. It’s a combination of many things – from the dancing disco lifts and treasure hunt in every room we check in (you solve a mystery and get access to a treasure chest of Lego gifts!) to the minifig trading at the lobby and the themed rooms with every possible Lego detail to put the kids in complete Lego fantasy.

The kids absolutely love, love, love being at the hotel. They love bugging the jitters out of me and Fatherkao with can we buy? buy? buy? pppplllleeeaasssseee at the Lego shop, fixing swords and sticks and spaceships from the massive pool of free flow Lego bricks at the lobby, gorging themselves silly at the breakfast buffet in the mornings and looking out from the room into the theme park and water park and talking non stop about the many adventures to be had in this place.

They weren’t even that excited at Disneyland.

The children always dream of coming back.

Which makes me feel my experience at Legoland isn’t totally complete if we’ve not stayed at the suite. We’ve stayed at the premium and deluxe themed Pirate, Kingdom and Adventure rooms but not the suite yet.

This time round last weekend, because we had company and made an entourage of 8 people + 1 toddler, we could finally stay in one. The suite can take up to 2 adults and 6 kids or 4 adults or 4 kids or 3 adults and 5 kids or whatever permutation you can make to make 8.

There are 2 bunk beds, 2 pull out trundles, 1 king-sized bed and even a spare baby playpen, complete with two baths (one tub and one standing) and a dining area with an awesomely huge ass TV and a separate kids TV area, all overlooking some of the best views of the water park and theme park on the highest floor.

At least that’s what I had at the Kingdom Suite.

Ta-daa! The view when the door flings open. Photo credit: Legoland Malaysia Resort

Ta-daa! The view when the door flings open.
Photo credit: Legoland Malaysia Resort

The sleeping area for 6

The sleeping area for 6

Complete with own TV viewing at the side

Complete with own TV viewing at the side

legolandninjago_kaokids-25

The luxurious kingdom king-sized

With a dresser area

With a dresser area

The awesome living area

The awesome living area

Where my 3 kids had 2 more for company

Where my 3 kids had 2 more for company

And there's also a coffee machine, hooray for Krups!

And there’s also a coffee machine, hooray for Krups!

Check out the number of bath robes and bedroom slippers

Check out the number of bath robes and bedroom slippers

And the Mothercare playpen tucked nicely on the top shelf

And the Mothercare playpen tucked nicely on the top shelf

The awesome spacious toilet - this is toilet #1

The awesome spacious toilet – this is toilet #1

And this is toilet #2 with enough space to line 5 children up to take a bath two by two

And this is toilet #2 with enough space to line 5 children up to take a bath two by two

And these are awesome toiletries arranged like a jigsaw puzzle which we never got from the premium/deluxe rooms

And these are awesome toiletries arranged like a jigsaw puzzle which we never got from the premium/deluxe rooms

PLUS...the awesome view from the suite windows

PLUS…the awesome view from the suite window

Just makes my kids sing ‘Everything is awesome!’ on repeat mode being in this place!

So is the experience complete yet? It’s a yes for me, for sure. Being in this suite is sweetly relaxing – the space, the view, the details in the room and the wonderful Legoland hospitality.

As for the kids, it’s looking more complete than ever.

legolandninjago_kaokids-13

These happy faces say it all. Our emptied wallets say it all too.

~~~

Disclosure: The suite life has been experienced in a 2D1N stay brought to you by the Kao family and their friends. It is not free, although we received a media rate at time of booking. No monetary compensation was received and all opinions here are my own.