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Family life as we know it Invites & Tryouts Milestones and growing up The Kao Kids

Family Life As It Is [Outdoor fam photography with Bespoke Photography]

April 8, 2019

We got our family photos updated recently, and in view of how posing in a studio would be challenging (HAVE YOU SEEN MY KIDS LATELY? They make all sorts of funny faces!), we grabbed at an opportunity to have our family photographed outdoors instead with Bespoke Photography.

I liked that I had no idea what to do for our one hour photo shoot BUT the Bespoke Photography’s photographer had many ideas and still gave me full autonomy to decide. He supplied suggestions, colour schemes, outfits, and even asked me to send him shots and styles that I would like to recreate.

I had initially wanted to head to Gardens by the Bay, but truth be told, I would be too tempted to run into the Cloud Forest if the heat got unbearable, so I went with the photographer’s suggestion of going to a lesser known place in Canterbury Road for a picnic, some frisbee and football with my kids, and lots of running around.

And we got more than shots of us playing frisbee and football that lovely Saturday morning.  I love it so much that the photographer captured the little moments of us doing things together – observing, talking and piggyback-riding.

These are very precious moments to me.

It’s not every day that someone comes along and captures the kids at play, but it is every day that the kids play this way. Surely then, I need to remember my kids playing in their wildest, and happiest.

The days are long but the years are short, and soon, childhood is but a memory. We certainly had the opportunity to freeze some moments in time that Saturday morning.

Just one hour, about 70 photographs captured, and I got naturally edited photographs within 2 weeks!

There’s a lot of sentiments just browsing the photographs again and again and I must say Bespoke Photography offered a much-needed service in my busy-ness to allow me to slow down and give thanks for my active, healthy and happy family. Definitely something to budget in at various milestones of our family life, and I am glad we now have pictures accurately depicting what family life is like, with the kids being 10, 9 and 7.

Check out their very reasonable rates here.

Disclosure: We were invited to a one-hour photo shoot with Bespoke Photography. All the running and sweating and exercise was done by the Kao family and not stunt doubles. No monetary compensation was received. 

Food, glorious food! Invites & Tryouts Motherkao loves... Reviews

Sweet treats are made of these – ft. family-friendly casual dining at Brunetti

October 27, 2018

If you’re looking for a family-friendly and waist-line friendly place to eat in town this festive season (and don’t wanna think about ERP charges at the same time), you need to head down to Brunetti.

Because here’s a PSA for all of us who are conscious about the desserts we are ingesting so as to NOT HAVE to make new year resolutions for next year we probably can’t keep: Brunetti’s just launched their range of vegan, eggless, gluten-free cakes.

My family and I were there for dinner a while ago and I have to say, we went to dessert heaven and back!

Clockwise: Tre Gusti (gluten-free): flourless sponge layered with 3 layers of dark, milk and white choc mousse; Vegan Strawberry Cake: strawberry cake layered with strawberry cream & fresh strawberries; Vegan Chocolate Brownie: 75% dark choc brownie covered with roasted hazelnut; and Vegan Peanut Butter Cake: PB cake with PB sauce & crushed peanuts

The cake on the left: Eggless Banana Pecan Nut and it’s layered with caramelised banana on the inside. I am so gonna be trying that the next time.

These cakes make for perfect indulgence for a birthday or any occasion that calls for cake. I couldn’t stop eating the Tre Gusti, for one. We had the whole cake and while 2 slices were cut and shared on the spot, the rest of the cake was finished in 3 days.

Yes, I finished the entire cake all by myself and didn’t share it with the kids.

The flourless cake was great to ease any sense of guilt and it brought pigging out to a whole new level.

I kid you not: I finished the whole of this triple-layered choc flourless cake in 3 days all by myself. It is soooo good.

My kids pigged out on gelato, macarons, profiteroles and popsicles that evening.

A word on the pistachio gelato – you absolutely need to try it.

They opted for popsicles first! The one in the middle is not the 4th Kao kid but our friend’s 3-year-old!

Love that this is the promise of their desserts!

Gelato scoop – one for each kid !

Of macarons, profiteroles and chocolate cakes

The pistachio gelato was so good, I finished it all

And just in case you thought I fed my family desserts for dinner at Brunetti, we had a hearty meal of pastas, risotto and pizzas but I would tell you at Brunetti, dessert was our main course.

The carbs were mainly our “appetisers” which we cleverly shared. Thank God we did, if not no space to eat desserts!

Clockwise: Proscuitto & rocket pizza, mac&cheese, carbonara, pan-seared seabass, seafood aglio olio and squid ink risotto

Brunetti brings together all the good stuff in Italian cooking – a Gelateria, Cioccolateria, Pasticceria and more. If you’re looking for a place to bring the family or go on a dessert date with friends, it’s got ample seating and lots of choices for food and all kinds of desserts.

Writing this is making me want to take the family back for cakes and gelato already, and I am guessing I might want to spoil them bad this coming holiday season.

But hey, with the vegan, eggless, flourless cake options and the sugar-free gelato options, it may look like we can minimise the sugar and carb overload this festive season!

The kids took home gingerbread cookie in their fave animals! They were yummy and not cloyingly sweet, by the way.

More details:

Brunetti is located at #01-35 Tanglin Mall. Browse their menu for food and cakes in the links. Contact them here to order or make reservations. They’ve also just open the doors to ONE MORE new outlet at 13 North Canal, #01-01!

Disclosure: We were invited to dine at Brunetti. All opinions here are my own. I’ve sampled my fill of desserts that night and didn’t see the waistline expand so you can go for the diet-friendly options with confidence. You’re welcome.

Becks Kao Happy days Invites & Tryouts Milestones and growing up Reviews The Kao Kids

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.

Food, glorious food! Invites & Tryouts Reviews The Kao Kids

The kind of steamboating this family likes [Review: Beauty in the Pot at OneKM]

August 4, 2018

I love hotpots and steamboating so much that my husband has started making his own collagen broth for my cravings and beauty needs (a woman needs her collagen!) but that’s another story for another time.

My kids love a hearty hotpot meal too, if and only IF they didn’t need to sit around the table, listen to adult chatter, wait for food to cook and then have this on repeat mode over the entire course of the meal.

Imagine how excited I was when Beauty in the Pot invited us to check out their new Children’s Playground at the OneKM outlet – THIS is the kind of steamboating that will satisfy everyone in the family.

Because playground.

We hear it’s called ‘Angela’s Playground’ cos it’s named after the owner’s daughter. How sweet!

We came for lunch so it was hot. That didn’t stop the kids though.

And I kinda wished I came for dinner instead because with a playground like this, my kids can definitely play for a long time in the cool of the evening and I can eat for rounds on end.

This place is now officially on my list of must-go family-friendly dining venues.

A 4-seater see-saw that entertained the Kao kids while food was being prepared!

And a trampoline too!

Think of how long the adults can eat and talk while the kids play. The playground adjoined to the restaurant is for Beauty in the Pot’s guests only and that definitely gives any parent a peace of mind knowing that the entrance and exit is via the restaurant and there is only one door by which the kids can enter and leave by.

But to make it to that list also means that one important criteria needs to be fulfilled: the food needs to be good.

And I don’t think there is any doubt about that; everything here from the broths and fresh ingredients to the interiors for dining comfort and service is excellent. And I am not just saying it just because I was invited. Try dining there and watch how every single wait staff attentively tends to your broths (topping up and removing the scum), your drinks, your well-being PLUS do a more-than-ninety bow just about every time they have completed serving your every need.

You’ll be blown away by how much attention they will give you.

If that’s not enough, try having four pots at a go in a place so pretty in pink and you will be blown away.

We were, for sure.

Check out the pink couch, the frosted pink backdrop and I am glad I also came (pretty) in pink 🙂

Four broths to savour (clockwise): Vitaminc C Tomato Sweet Corn Broth, Cooling Coconut Broth, Herbal Drunken Chicken Broth & Signature Beauty Collagen Broth

My favouritest thing ever in steamboat: fried beancurd skin

This was the most unique ever: fishies swimming in broth! These homemade fish tofu follow a secret recipe of yellowtail fish, soya bean and egg white and they melted in our mouths. The Kao kids love this most.

I don’t know about you but my kids and I get very excited about our sauces & dips. And what a spread it is here.

I have to say their Ebiko Prawn Paste (bottom right) is the most delicious paste I have tasted because it has such natural sweetness. And their handmade meatballs.. are just too good!

Besides the freshness of the ingredients, the huge variety of food items you can match seamlessly with soups of four kinds and the promptness of the service, I particularly enjoyed the little touches in this place that makes it unrivalled as the restaurant to dine with the family.

Things like these are very important for a mother dining out with her kids:

Tissues within reach, supplied unlimitlessly – a very important thing you need when having steamboat if you’re OCD like me. I like to keep the table, and my children’s mouths, clean.

Getting disposable aprons like this that are splash-resistant so that clothes get protected. And I am not just referring to mine but all three of my kids who sometimes eat like they cannot put food properly in their mouths.

Having someone constantly look at the soup to top it up or remove the scum that’s floating – I am particular about this and I am glad that the wait staff is too 🙂

Giving us a refreshing yuzu drink to cleanse our palates

So, I am not a food blogger and I write from a mother’s perspective always. I’ve read reviews about the food being compared to this place and that, in addition to the service being a little over the top with all the bowing. From a mom’s lens, I have completely no issues with that because it’s a great teachable moment to show the kids that in some places, people are trained to serve with a smile and to bow, and it’s equally important to reciprocate in kind and thank them in return. In fact, after some time, because the wait staff was soooooo friendly, the kids could boldly ask them for balloons to play with!

I love it that with the Kao kids, everything can be a learning opportunity.

I’d definitely recommend this place for that occasional splurging on the family for a lavish treat and celebration of any kind.

Because collagen steamboat + playground + excellent service = what’s not to like?

Disclosure: We were very kindly invited to have lunch on a lovely Sunday (Becks’ actual birthday!) at Beauty in the Pot at OneKM #03-38. We loved what we were served and all opinions are our own. We hear that they are open till 3am and things go at 20% off after 10.30pm, so here’s to possibly more suppers with the kids since it will be so cool to play at the playground!

 

Invites & Tryouts Reviews The Kao Kids

Raising spider-people [Review of The Little Climbing Room]

July 21, 2018

So a long while ago, we checked out The Little Climbing Room, an indoor climbing playground tucked deep in the Serangoon Charlton Estate area. It was started out of pure desperation by a parent who found indoor climbing playgrounds severely lacking for young children (most of them cater to older kids) and wanted to invite kids even younger than 3 years old to experience wall climbing.

I suspect the founder also knew that many of us were raising spiders back in our homes and needed this place, too. Spidergirls and spiderboys, that is.

Well, with kids aged 9, 8 and 6 it’s not difficult to understand The Climbing Room‘s appeal – for both me as a parent, and for my aspiring spider-people. I’m not sure if you’ve met my Nat but he aspires to be Spiderman since he was three. Did you read about his fracture?

Ok, the time is now and the place is here. Please fulfill all your deepest and darkest dreams of having that super-power to stick on walls, guys!

This nondescript place is tucked at Promenade @ Pelikat 183 Jalan Pelikat #B1-101 S(537643)

The Number Wall, Obstacle Wall and Augmented Reality Wall were the Kao kids’ favourites in the small climbing playground. They love to do the challenges posed to them as a trio and I am not complaining about my spiderpeople doing teamwork.

Especially great for confidence builing are the 4-metre high walls with varying degrees of inclination and difficulty. Every kid challenging this would need to be harnessed and supervised by an adult to conquer this.

Although a relatively small space, it offers huge opportunities for kids to expend their energy. It’s safe and every wall climb attempt is supervised, and I like that dreams of being Spiderman are being realised here.

A place where superheroes’ fantasies come true, maybe, with more and more practice. We signed up for a package, and would be back every time I have kids bouncing off the walls at home.

More details:

Climbing hours from Tuesdays to Fridays are from 2-7.30pm and weekends and Public Hols from 10am to 7.30pm.

Book your climbing session here: https://mylittleclimbingroom.com/booking/

Becks Kao Ben Kao Enrichment Invites & Tryouts Learning fun! Reviews

When a little MORE Chinese is great for them with the help of technology – ft. Connected Learning

May 15, 2018

ALL HAIL THE FUTURE OF EDUCATION! Ed-tech is here to help my kids in their Chinese!

They are not hopeless! And I am hopeful! 

I am always doing the happy dance when they have Chinese lessons these days in the comfort of home, in front of a computer.

For a while now since last year, Ben and Becks have been communicating with tutors based in China weekly, thanks to Connected Learning’s offering of online Chinese tuition. This is on top of their usual weekly face to face session with our local Chinese tutor who has been with them since they were in kindergarten.

I know, kiasu, right?

BUT they need it. Their Chinese proficiency is what we figuratively say, half a pail of water, in Mandarin.

-_-

I love it that a solution using technology comes along to make things easier for busy kids and busy parents and make our lives easier and learning a little more convenient. I hear that the good local folks that started this were looking for an online alternative to make Chinese more fun and refreshing to learn. Their families spoke English primarily at home, and they felt that once a week lessons weren’t enough for their children to become fluent in Chinese (hey, that’s me too!). They wanted to expose their children to Chinese more frequently, yet this was difficult to accomplish when both parents are working full-time and are unable to send their kids to tuition so often (story of my life!).

For their creds, they have a team of 15 full-time tutors who are from China, are University graduates and/or equivalent in either Chinese Language or education-related fields. Their teachers are well-trained in online teaching to keep classes engaging and to develop a love for the language that will stand them in good stead for the rest of their lives. They adhere to the latest syllabus and exam formats as advised by MOE with the guidance of local MOE consultant teachers and have access to the Chinese textbooks and assessment books available in Singapore.

And so with Connected Learning at the convenience of our home, Ben and Becks log in weekly to to a web-based conference tool and literally take in the comfort of home to a whole new level while in “class”:

Make oneself comfortable with neck pillow and headphones

Anyhow sit don’t care

Study with chou-chou bolster

Lesson time on ipad on Mama’s work desk at her work place

What goes on in each 60-minute lesson? Lots of conversations, questions, recapping of learned vocabulary, writing practices, new vocabulary and short video clips. They also look at papers and work on the various components assessed in Chinese from listening comprehension to sentence construction and oral. In every class, all elements of language learning 听(listening), 说(speaking), 读(reading), and 写(writing) are incorporated.

Learning vocabulary

Doing practice papers and going through answers

Writing new phrases

Constructing sentences

Reading aloud

Making sentences

My kids started out really being extremely embarrassing whenever it was their turn to construct sentences, but they have since gotten better because they also learn in a “class” of sometimes 2 to 4 other students. The parents also get a monthly progress report from the teacher and it’s super thorough – from the mistakes they make to what they can continue to work on, the tutors are very, very detailed when it comes to that!

Also, the pricing is really affordable as well. The website features pricing for 3 times a week class (that’s intense!) but if you want a twice a week or once a week lesson package, it is definitely not exorbitant. I remember it being less than $100 for once a week for one child (P1-3), but please go ahead and enquire with them here.

I am also pleased to report that while my kids still have a long (and I mean, loooooooooooooooooong) way to go for their Chinese, their Chinese teacher at school recently complimented them for their willingness to speak up and commented that they are both speaking more as compared to the beginning of the year and their peers.

That’s good enough for me. 加油吧, 孩子!

Disclosure: We were invited to try Connected Learning for two months. All opinions here are my own, as well as our standards of Chinese proficiency.

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 ºC 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 “筷子 (kuàizi)” represent “快乐 (kuàilè)” which means happiness in Chinese culture.

Always glad to bring more kuàizi 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.

Family life as we know it Invites & Tryouts The Kao Kids

Getting ’em organised and all ready for a new school year (ft. #ikeahacks)

December 25, 2017

[Sponsored – this post is IKEA-inspired]

When you have three kids and a really small living space, you got to make the space work very hard for you.

So when we moved into our new flat a few years ago, the bulk of the renovation cost went to carpentry. We fixed up a platform and bunker bed with six huge compartments under for the Kao kids’ toys, and then custom made their wardrobes and study desks.

The kids share one room in our current living space. At least from now till our next move.

With all custom-made things, it has been very difficult to get proper storage solutions to get organised. We can only admire but not buy organisers or beautiful trays like these:

From IKEA: SKUBB Box with compartments

RAGGISAR stackable tray from IKEA

So we very much end up with internal chaos like this…

Ben’s personal drawer – obviously he keeps photos he treasures safe in here, and Kidzos, pouches and knick knacks

this…

Becks’ drawer: of mozzie patches, card collections, hairbands and wigs and all sorts of bags and hair-ties

and this…

Nat’s drawer: the most chaotic of all. Clearly he loves his masks (Spidey & Bumblebee), inflatable globe,s tickers, sketch book, pencil case and toy spider too much as to keep them away from his siblings

 

My kids have an amazing to hoard, stuff and shove. I don’t know what’s in all their personal drawers but I don’t think the things stuffed all the way in there get any attention at all.

Drawers transformation

I can’t readily find a quick fix to get these drawers organised neatly because they are custom made to fit an existing wall space, but I am so glad I found these from IKEA such that I can put them in good use:

VARIERA Box: 24x17cm

VARIERA Box: 10x12cm

GESSAN Box: 10x10x10cm

GODMORGON Box with led: Set of 5

GLIS Box with lid: 34x21cm

I got a couple of these VARIERA boxes in the above two sizes in colours red, black and green, as well as a couple of GESSAN boxes plus 1 set of GODMORGON.

I also got one GLIS box to see if anyone would opt to use this to try to work their drawer space around.

The instructions for the kids were simple: empty your drawers, take as many of these boxes as they can fit into your drawers and fit them all in as neatly as you can. Then fill the boxes by deciding what you can fit in and what you wish to keep or throw.

This drawer-organisation project took half a day. And this was what the kids came up with:

I like it that these boxes from IKEA lets the kids still keep their drawer personalised but gives them a clear idea about how much space they have to keep their things organised.

Ben’s drawer transformed

Becks’ drawer transformed (love it that now her photoframe that has a picture of me & her plus Cinderella is now in sight!)

Nat’s drawer transformed

~~~

Study desk area transformation

On our last shopping trip at IKEA, Fatherkao was fascinated by this metallic knife rack:

GRUNDTAL Magnetic Knife Rack

I love my husband for the fact that he sees what I cannot see, does what I cannot do, and makes magic happen. This man singlehandedly removed all the random hooks and decals the kids pasted on their study area wall, wall-puttied and painted it to a smooth finish, then installed two of these magnetic racks (who says you can only use it for knives, LOL) – and at eye level somemore! – for the kids so that they could magnetically stick their notes and notices (every so often the school gives us notices which our fridge has no more space for) more systematically and neatly.

He even got the RIMFORSA tablet stands so the kids can use them for their iPads, spelling lists and reference books whenever they sit down at the desk.

I can’t believe this was all conceptualised and done within half a day by their very competent father. I love that their study space has gotten neater as compared to using blutack to stick on notes in the past.

Love it even more that the first reminder that Ben stuck on this new metallic rack was a reality check: school starts soon and it’s time to pack his bag. LOL.

Speaking of bags, they have also been organised neatly, thanks to these which we found at IKEA:

These FIRRA Boxes (we used them without the lids) are great for keeping the kids’ school bags and can be rolled out with their wheels. The plan is to have the kids put the bags in these boxes after school, and roll them out when it’s homework time, tuition time or pack-your-bag-for-the-next-day time.

 

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In the spirit of getting organised, the kids also helped to think of ways for room improvement, and this was what they came up with, with their LEGO DUPLO blocks:

Love it that they have been inspired to look for solutions all around!

Truly, small things can make a big difference when it comes to getting organised, and I think the Kao kids are ready to start the year right, now that the mess they had once lived with is now put completely away.

~~~

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

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

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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

Invites & Tryouts Product Reviews The Kao Kids

Gentleness and goodness in a bottle [Review of Alobaby]

August 10, 2017

We’ve been taking something along with us for a while now, every time we head outdoors.

It’s easy to use (just spray!), comes completely DEET-free, and protects our skin from the sun (at SPF 15). It repels insects, is made from natural ingredients and is additive-, synthetic perfume- and colouring-FREE. It is also specifically created for delicate skin (that of a baby’s).

It’s a new brand on the block called ALOBABY.

And for sensitive skin like mine, and my kids’, we are so glad that a product so, so pure like this has finally been created. I was spraying it like crazy that weekend sitting around watching my kids swim. It was also subsequently on hiss mode covering my kids during their tennis practices and weekend pool fun times. My pet peeve has always been that most insect repellents and sunscreens give us an icki-ness I can’t stand, and usually if we want many things like hydration, protection from mozzie bites and prevention from sunburns, we have to slather a slew of separate products like how we marinate meat before we bbq them.

And because the Alobaby Outdoor Spray is so pure and natural, it really doesn’t matter how often we use it and for what we use it, we just ANYHOW spray also can  – it feels refreshing and is extremely effective.

They also have an extensive range of products from moisturising care and baby bottom cream to massaging oil and UV lotions.

There’s comfort and safety in natural ingredients, and it really doesn’t matter if my babies aren’t so anymore – products like these give me a peace of mind even then, for sure!

Good things must share, and we’re doing a GIVEAWAY, yay!

Alobaby is giving away 2 sets of the products of their UV & Outdoor Mist (retailing at SGD35) and Outdoor Spray (retailing at SGD25) to 2 Motherkao readers.

Just launch the Rafflecopter app here for a chance to win!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Giveaway ends 16 August 2017!

Disclosure: We share only what we love, and we’re loving our complimentary Outdoor Spray from Alobaby. All opinions here are our own and no monetary compensation was received for this post.