The Kao Kids Archives - Page 14 of 36

Becks Kao Homelearning fun Learning fun! Milestones and growing up Reading fun

A different approach to reading for her royal miss

September 27, 2014

My little girl has turned 4 and you know what that means.

It means I’m starting to panic. I haven’t been spending much time with her and teaching her to read.

It’s like that with motherhood, isn’t it? You become exceedingly enthused with the first child, and with that enthusiasm you carry a big sack full of expectations which you pile on your firstborn, and when your firstborn meets your expectations and exceeds them, you breathe a huge sigh of relief and fall into the trap of thinking that the rest of the kids will naturally hit those learning milestones because the first one did it.

Well, at least I lived in that cloud for a while.

Ben and Becks are one academic year apart (18 months to be exact) and because I have finally gotten Ben to be reading and writing on his own, I had thought that I would be breathing a whole lot easier since Ben can now start impressing Becks with his much sought-after reading ability and maybe spurring her to start exploring books on her own.

But no, this little girl would much prefer to be writing gibberish notes and drawing and singing to her bolster – which is totally adorable still – that she’s not impressed much that Korkor has learned to read – from readers to subtitles to signs on the road and labels on food packaging. She now conveniently makes Korkor read for her and to her.

Oh, her royal highness.

What I get on a daily basis: my little girl stuffs notes in an envelope for me. Her gibberish is cute – she uses all the letters she knows to write to form words only she can decode!

And so I am going to back to the basics again, this time round with my middle child.

Becks is not a flashcard kinda girl, and if you were to approach with books and nothing else, she might only just give you five minutes of her attention. So I tried this with her, and she loved it.

First, a simple reader which would help her in decoding simple words.

Then a highlighter and a jotter book to get her to trace the words and blending the sounds out loud.

Followed by many rounds of a simple ‘find the word’ game:

Can you point to ‘sat‘? Now point to ‘mat’? Which is ‘cat’? Good finding, now let’s draw a cat and label it!

Wa la, and now she likes to be doing reading and tracing with me! She’s a pen and paper kind of girl, so a nice clean jotter book, a pink or purple pencil (preferably of the princess kind) and lots of encouragement would pretty much hook her in. I’ve to be prepared to let one jotter book go after every session though. This girl used up the remaining pages in the book to continue writing her stories and notes in gibberish after each session, but at least we’ve done some reading, tracing and drawing with it first!

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Learning fun! Reviews The Kao Kids

Saying NO to the Pigeon! – Review of I Theatre’s Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus

September 23, 2014

We’ve not read the book by Mo Willems yet, and we certainly didn’t know what to expect from a play that had such an odd title.

A Pigeon? A Bus? How will a pigeon ever get on one? And drive it?

And so says my kids.

So we went to the play Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus, created and produced by Big Wooden Horse Theatre Company (UK) and presented by I Theatre, totally clueless as to what a pigeon and a bus had to do with each other.

And boy, I tell you, what a lively, happy show it was! I brought Ben, Becks and Nat – since it was suitable for ages 2 and up – and the kids laughed almost from start to end. The show featured original music and plenty of audience participation, so you can imagine a theatre filled with young children yelling ‘NO!’ to the Pigeon whenever he appeared, because they’ve been entrusted with the responsibility of making sure that the Pigeon didn’t drive the bus when the Bus Driver was away.

So it was basically a whole 45 minutes of singing and being engaged in the play, with the Pigeon whining and pleading with the audience to let him drive the bus!

As for me, I was totally entertained – by the show AND my kids, who were so into their role of saying no to the Pigeon. Hurhurhur.

If you’re looking at exposing your especially young children to theatre, this show is just perfect. It’s full of fun, feathers, laughter and excitement, and is guaranteed to immerse your child in a world of pretend play and imagination.

Well, at least it did that for my two-year-old, four-year-old and five-year-old, and this 33-year-old!

Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus is now showing at Alliance Francaise Theatre and ends 28 September 2014. Tickets go at SGD30 for Adult/ Child. Selected cards get 15% off. More ticketing details here.

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Ben Kao Milestones and growing up Parenting 101 Re: learning and child training

Diaper-FREE, totally!

September 20, 2014

I’m celebrating a huge, huge milestone today.

Ben, my five-and-a-half-year-old firstborn, has gone without diapers at night for 2 weeks successfully now. That meant that the last time he wore one was, well, really his last time.

I know in terms of milestones, my boy’s hitting it a little late. I’ve got close friends and fellow moms I know whose sons and daughters have gone without their diapers since three or four years old. Their kids, I hear, would just magically shed their diapers and not pass a drop of wee at night. Either that or possess this amazing ability to sleepwalk to the toilet, do their business, and go back to bed without waking a single soul.

As a mom, these stories inspire me, and tempts me to pressure my son into performing to my expectations. And then I read somewhere that pressure might totally backfire on me, and I decided to take a more nurturing approach to this.

So, when it came to toilet training at night, I embraced only ONE principle. I tell my son, “Only when you’re ready, kid.”

But that doesn’t mean I didn’t try to get him ready. Since a year ago, I switched those night velcro diapers to pull-up pants and attempted to brainwash Ben to think they were underwear. Every night when I put on those pants diapers for him, I would nag him to remember and imagine that he was still wearing his underwear, and he could wake up, pull these “underwear” down and do a wee like he did in the day.

Who was I kidding? The brainwashing wasn’t successful a single bit. And every night he would still pee in those “underwear”.

Then I came up with a reward system. For every dry diaper I get in the morning, he would get a ‘good-job’ sticker. I told him if he could get 3 within a month, he would be found at the toy store to pick a reward for himself.

Epic fail again there, that one. Every morning, his diaper was so wet and full you could ball it up and use it to strike 10 bowling pins in an alley.

I’ve also tried waking him up to do a wee at midnight. That usually meant he would have had three hours of rest before being awakened. Well, let’s just say I wouldn’t wish to subject myself to such a torture, because he would get so upset he would start crying.

Which meant that the other two would have their sleep disturbed as well if Ben started crying. If Nat was disturbed, I ended up having to nurse him again to calm him. If Becks got rudely awakened in her sleep, oh, God help us all. She would be even more difficult to placate because she would scream the house down and get started with those unstoppable leg-kicking.

Goddamit. I was the one who got no sleep with this midnight-do-a-pee business.

So for a while, I forgot about the whole night toilet training business, and it was, forget it, let’s not stress it.

I still encourage him to try going without his night diaper once in a while. And whenever I got resistance from him, I’d say, “It’s ok, son. Don’t worry. Try when you want to try.”

And them suddenly, five months shy of his 6th birthday, Ben says he doesn’t want to wear those pull-ups anymore. Suddenly, his stomach had the capacity to take in more food during dinner – which meant he didn’t need to drink milk before he slept. Suddenly, he was able to exercise self-control in not drinking water after 8pm. And just so suddenly, he was mature enough to shake off those emotions that came along with discomfort and wake up at midnight to do a wee without a whine.

And he was ready.

Ready in every sense of the word. Ready to take on this challenge like a big boy. Ready to show the world that he’s a champ.

I’m so glad we didn’t pressure him or make demands. And now he gets to share this pride and sense of accomplishment which would otherwise be lost if we hurried him.

So proud of you, my son. Tis’ a big, big milestone for a big, big boy!

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Everyday fun! Homelearning fun The Kao Kids

Rotten veg comeback

September 12, 2014

It’s beginning to feel a little tight. 24 hours is clearly not enough for me. With work entering the picture these days, my vegetables can’t wait. They can’t hold out long enough for Mama to come back to make soups or a hearty dish of japchae.

They are rotting faster than I can say, “Wait for me!”

Poor veggies. Rather than subject them to the cruel fate of being trashed immediately, I got them to be useful nonetheless.

Enter veggie stamping fun:

Perfect indoor activity to relieve boredom. Zero guilt for not being able to cook them. They have served us well till the end!

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Family life as we know it The Kao Kids The real supermom

Family life as we know it

September 11, 2014

I’ve been missing this space, and missing in action on this space for a while. So much is going on at the moment, and it’s a season of change once again.

I am going back to being a full-time working mom.

After two years of staying home and incubating ideas, I’m finally going to be giving birth to what I’ve been pregnant with for the longest time (haha, not the 4th child lah!).

I’m going to return to work that’s promising to be more fun, more fulfilling and more meaningful. Best of all, it’s something which I can call my own, and it’s something that will help the family move forward.

So we’re saying goodbye to the humdrum of old routines, and welcoming change as it comes.

That also means I will be spending considerably less time with the kids. I won’t be able to hover over them as much as I would like to (like I have done for the past 2 years, hurhurhur) and while the mom duties of chauffeuring, coaching and cuddling will still remain unchanged for as long as there’s breath in me, the kids will not be having Mama around on some days and at certain parts of the day.

But boy, am I so heartened to know that even when I am not around, my all-grown-up-babies are very much able and willing to entertain themselves – and one another. I am so glad that we did 3 kids in 4 years, now on hindsight. Because in light of this new business venture I am undertaking, it is so heartwarming and assuring to be seeing this:

And this:

The Kao kids play together so well now, and three’s really a crowd. A boisterous, lively and happy crowd that’s fun, funny and so entertaining to watch. Yes, there are fights and squabbles, lots of tattling and whining still but there’s also so much laughter in the house, more than ever before, which is so, so, so reassuring for me because it means that everything we’ve been doing is worth the while.

Although I’ve been so hard-pressed in every way – to learn the ropes of running a business, to plan my time more effectively, to fill love tanks and gas tanks, to keep the household in order, to exercise and stay fit for my health’s sake – it’s amazing how everyone is adapting to this change together with me – the husband, my kids, and even the helper. We’re all learning to give and love despite ourselves. We’re all learning to celebrate every little success as we go along the way.

And I’m learning that even when you’re stretched paper thin, you have this thing called family that you can always count on to give you the support and love you need.

Family life can’t get better than this.

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Ben Kao Going Out! Invites & Tryouts Motherkao loves... Nat Kao Reviews The Kao Kids

Turtle mania descends at City Square Mall!

September 7, 2014

I’ll be the first to admit I was a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles fan when I was nine. I carried a TMNT school bag to school and I loved Leonardo most. He was the leader of the turtle pack, and so, very cool. I watched the TV series and was totally familiar with how they became mutant ninjas. You could quiz me about their sensei Splinter, ask me who’s April, Casey Jones, Shredder and Karai, and I could tell you all and more, while other girls were into Polly Pocket, My Little Pony and Care Bears. I grew up watching He-Man, TMNT and Hulk Hogan.

I must have been an odd girl, I know.

Fast forward 24 years. The turtles are back in my kids’ lives.

Sometime, somewhere, somehow, they catch snippets of the animated series on Nickelodeon, see posters of them in malls and find related merchandise at Toys R Us. I tell them sometimes about Leo, Raph, Mikey and Donnie, and their adventures with the baddie Shredder from memory but because childhood memories are a hazy thing, I decided it’s better to bring them to meet ’em.

We were invited to catch Leonardo, Raphael, Michelangelo and Donatello in action at City Square Mall’s Live Show yesterday as part of their ‘Total Turtle Takeover’ this September holidays. And boy, boy, boy, was it totally exciting.

See my boys? They came prepared.

Raphael and Leonardo Wannabes

They watched in awe…

Heroes in a half-shell!

Someone was watching intently

And learnt a couple of ninja moves from the turtles.

Each dude showed us some good action moves with their weapons – the katana, the nunchakus, the sai, and the bo staff – and got the children to train as junior ninjas by imitating their actions.

Learning to use the nunchakus

And now, some sword moves from Ninja Nat

Cowabunga.

The only thing missing was a good pizza pig-out after all the action, which I would have loved to watch.

This was one of the better live shows we’ve caught, because the boys were so, so stoked. The turtles were funny, as usual, the action moves were great, and Ben and Nat got some exercising done.

And then went on stage to meet their heroes some more.

When we got up, Mikey said out loud on stage, “Hey, Leo and Raph. You’ve each got a fan comin’!”

We are all such big fans (ok, maybe except the little girl)!

We are all such big fans (ok, maybe except for the little girl)!

Totally awesome.

More details:

Catch the turtles live in action daily from 6 to 14 September at City Square Mall’s Level 1 Atrium, Mon – Fri at 2pm & 7pm; Sat & Sun at 1pm, 4pm & 7pm.

Shake hands and get a photo with the ninja dudes at the Meet & Greet session after the show by redeeming an exclusive Meet & Greet pass with a minimum spending of $50 (with a maximum of 3 same-day combined receipts). 50 passes will be given out 1 hour prior to each show, strictly on a first-come first-served basis.

There’s also a host of TMNT activities at the mall this September, which includes some colouring fun and Turtle TV Nights! Check out details here.

Disclosure: We were invited to the Live Show and given a media pass for the Meet and Greet. The boys were also given a goodie bag packed with Turtle Power. No monetary compensation was received for this post, and all opinions here are mine.

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Ben Kao Going Out! Invites & Tryouts Reviews

The Force is here, across the Causeway: LEGO Star Wars Miniland at LEGOLAND Malaysia

September 6, 2014

Before my LEGO obsessed firstborn had the Legends of Chima open up to him, he plunged head in into the World of Star Wars first.

Thanks to his father’s influence, he grew curious about the weird inhabitants of all the different characters living in the various planets in Star Wars, and even earned his own keep to buy this book – which he ploughs through religiously – from a secondhand bookshop.

Ben sharing a moment with Nat, explaining the characters of Star Wars from his Visual Dictionary

I am not a big fan, and have only watched Episode VI on big screen, and so my knowledge of Star Wars is limited to only Darth Vader (and the ‘wa si lin lao pei’ Hokkien jokes), Anakin Skywalker and Natalie Portman. Oops, is she some Queen Padme of some strange planet called Naboo. Always can’t control myself when I say ‘Naboo’ out loud.

But this boy, he knows so much more. He hasn’t watched every single episode, but he’s sure learned a lot from the extremely hilarious LEGO Star Wars Cartoon series. Which is great because he doesn’t think the baddies are scary; they are always portrayed as losers in the cartoon, and he gets to enjoy slapstick humour as a child appreciating what could otherwise have been complicated story plots and developments in an epic film series predominantly meant for adults.

So imagine how very stoked he was when he scored an invitation to preview the Star Wars™ Miniland Model Display at LEGOLAND Malaysia.

It’s not something that happens every day; and this boy from Singapore skipped kindergarten for a day to be one of the two littlest invited guests to turn up at the media preview of this attraction, which is the first of its kind in Asia.

Just look at the beaming five-year-old when he got to LEGOLAND Malaysia. So much happiness.

Hanging out outside the Miniland Model Display before the official launch

Absolutely no qualms making friends with Darth Maul.

“At last we shall reveal ourselves!”

Or the Jedi Master of High Council, Mace ‘Uncle’ Windu.

Young Jedi Wannabe with the Master

But the boy was actually looking high and low for a picture with Count Dooku. Hurhurhur. He just thinks his name is too funny.

The LEGO Star Wars Miniland Model Display is housed in an octagon building with a floor of 900m² that have been divided into 8 areas – 6 for each Episode of Star Wars, with the 7th featuring a scene from the animated film, ‘The Clone Wars’, and the 8th featuring an amazing array of retail products, read: all LEGO Star Wars merchandise.

Outside the LEGO Star Wars Miniland where we also met some young Jedi knights and storm troopers

The place, besides being a welcoming respite from the heat (air-con!!!), is a place that’s guaranteed to make you drop your jaws. And make you drop it 8 times.

And scream “WOW!” like what Ben did walking through the Miniland.

We took a chronological walk through the Star Wars timeline and had fun pressing the interactive buttons that activated animatronics within each scene.

Episode 1: The Phantom Menace – The Battle of Naboo

Episode II: Attack of the Clones – Geonosis
Ben having an intense conversation with the Star Wars Miniland Guide

Here, the battle between Count Dooku’s droid army and the Grand Army of the Republic

Episode III: Revenge of the Sith – the planets of Kashyyyk and Mustafar

Episode IV: A New Hope - looking at the Tatooine and Han Solo's famous Starship, the Millenium Falcom, which takes 40 seconds to take off and land!

Episode IV: A New Hope – looking at the Tatooine and Han Solo’s famous Starship, the Millenium Falcon, which takes 40 seconds to take off and land!

Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back – taking refuge in icy planet, Hoth

Episode VI: Return of the Jedi – Battle of Endor

Star Wars: The Clone Wars on the planet of Christophsis

With more LEGO-modelled Star Wars characters

Add to the whole experience, retail therapy!

8,000 man hours. Over 1.5 million bricks. For this entire experience that will make any Star Wars fan hyperventilate.

More details:

The LEGO Star Wars Miniland Model Display opens its doors on 6th September 2014 (today!). Entry to the Star Wars Miniland is free and included in the admission ticket.

Throughout the month of September, various LEGO Star Wars activities have been lined up to commemorate LEGOLAND Malysia’s second anniversary. These include:

a free entry promotion for children dressed up as their favourite Star Wars characters (from 6 – 30 Sept)
special birthday fireworks on 15 Sept at the Resort starting at 8pm
characters ‘Meet & Greet’ sessions at The Beginning (Theme Park) and Hotel Lobby (LEGOLAND Hotel) from 6 Sept onwards

Check out more exciting activities here if you’re planning to head down to LEGOLAND Malaysia this September holidays!

Disclsoure: Ben and I were invited to preview the LEGO Star Wars Miniland Model Display. No monetary compensation was received for this post, and all opinions here are own. We endured tired jaws to bring you this jaw-dropping awesomeness. You’re welcome.

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Everyday fun! Happy days Invites & Tryouts Learning fun! Milestones and growing up Reviews The Kao Kids

Going on a plastic fast, and playing with traditional toys

September 2, 2014

It’s not every day you get invited to a toy store and go behind the scenes to learn how it operates.

Excited kids pretending to buy this and that

Cashier Ben at your service – how much is the white tiger in the window?

Cashier Becks tells you everything is free ! (hurhurhur)

Cashier Nat only accepts cash

It’s not every day you get invited to a toy store and get a glimpse at some of the most exquisite toys it imports and sells.

An impressive range of traditional educational toys that develop cognitive skills, 3D imagination and logical deduction

Petitcollin dolls: phthalate free, vintage handmade collectibles with handsewn clothes (I’m a doll-lover myself, so this cabinet was fascinating for the girl in me – oh the details on their faces!)

Vilac, the oldest toymaker in France: they’ve been making traditional wooden toys in a factory set in the Jura Mountains and their wide range of handmade toys include building blocks, wooden cars, planes, and automobiles, tea sets and musical instruments all handcrafted using high-quality wood and a unique lacquer formula

More charming collections displayed all around the store

It’s not every day you enter a toy store and find that practically nothing there calls for your concern – with regards to toxic materials and hazards – because you know, as a mom, you raise your eyebrows when wooden toys have labels that read ‘Made in China’. Almost every toy there is either Swiss-made, German-made, French-made and at the very least, handmade.

Pizza-making and animal farm play that’s safe for little hands

It’s not every day you get to play with the lightest modelling compound in the world, and shape things with a dough so fluffy and soft, and never dries out.

Ladies and Gents, this is Bubber, the award-winning, lightest modelling compound on earth!

And it’s not every day you get to walk home with toys from the store with compliments from the store itself. Just look at these beaming children.

Happy kids to receive presents specially handpicked for them

And for many days, these toys kept the Kao kids going on their plastic “fast”. Yep, you heard that right, these kids’ mother decided that they’ve been touching plastic way too much, and issued them a challenge of finding creative ways to play with their new wooden toys.

So besides going fishing, using the xylophone for every pretend-play royal proclamation of Princess Becks’ arrival, and assigning animals to their barns to the tune of ‘Old MacDonald’s’, the Kao kids have got the texture of wood incorporated in their play, which is a good change from their usual sensory experiences with plastic toys.

Ben’s going to fish, Nat owns a barn, and Becks get a xylophone that the boys would have to play for her when her royal highness deems it fit!

Play time!

A whole new dimension of fun to be remembered for a long time!

~~~

Zero2Six is a toy store launched in 2010 by a concerned mother with a single vision – to bring in award winning traditional toys that are unique, educational, eco-friendly and fun for children in an age where digital products are increasingly encroaching into a child’s playtime and development.

Zero2Six toys are sourced from premium toymakers in Europe and USA that have passed the highest safety standard tests worldwide and made with the finest natural materials. They are exceptional in quality and educational value, and made by some of the world’s oldest toymakers in the world who still believe that a handmade toy is a craft and not a commercialised product.

Zero2Six can be found at Katong I12, Mandarin Gallery and Jem. Connect with them via FB at their FB Page here.

~~~

Disclosure: We’ve been invited by Zero2Six for a behind-the-scene toystore experience. The toys in this post have been specially handpicked and sponsored by them. No monetary compensation was received for this post, and all opinions here are our own.

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Going Out! Happy days Holidays! Milestones and growing up Parenting 101 The Kao Kids

Our many firsts at Berakit’s Bukau Lodge, Indonesia

August 29, 2014

Over the National Day weekend, we did the most un-patriotic thing. We left the country and scooted away to a place where no wi-fi was available and only human connections were allowed, and where sunshine, sand, sea and seafood were abundant.

And no, we didn’t go for a beach holiday at the finest of resort destinations. We went back to nature, back to the basics and back to simplicity – at a kelong in this place called Berakit, about 25 km away from Bintan Island in Indonesia.

I’ve always wanted to have the kids rough it out and experience what it’s like to remove ourselves from city-living, and this trip would be the first of the many to come. Before the kids came, the husband and I did a bit of backpacking and we were often amazed to see children backpacking with their parents, on foot, by train and at the youth hostels where we stayed. Those kids were older, of course, but they were tough and resilient. These are kids who will grow up knowing that it’s a big, big world out there and that the world so doesn’t revolve around them. Fatherkao and I have always wished as a couple to do this one thing with our kids this side of heaven, and that is “to suck out all the marrow of life” as Henry David Thoreau aptly puts, and get them to go out and explore the world.

So.

I’ve always wanted Ben, Becks and Nat to have a live-in-the-middle-of-the-sea-on-a-kelong kind of experience, which Fatherkao and I have had the pleasure of experiencing on several occasions before the kids came. It was an experience, I felt, that any person living should have in his or her memory bank, like a ‘been there, done that’ kind of thing to boast about someday when you are old.

Blast from the past: this was us in 2006

With our friends, with whom we had such a great time with in this kelong in Sibu Island

And so to Bukau Lodge at Berakit we went, where we experienced many FIRSTS together as a family. Our friend and his wife built an extension-lodge to an existing fish-rearing kelong in Berakit some time back which was meant to accommodate family, friends and dive groups, so we followed them out to sea on their speedboat for a 3-day-2-night trip.

To the kelong we go!

Bukau Lodge

We had such a blast, and I know for years to come, we will continue to talk about our first kelong trip with much, much fondness.

Here goes, our ten FIRSTS being at Bukau Lodge, Berakit, Indonesia:

1. First speedboat ride

To get to our destination, we hopped onto ‘Hannah and Hazel’, our friends’ boat christened after their daughters, two of the sweetest girls I’ve ever known. It was an incredibly long ride (about 4 hours there, and 4 hours back), and I was worried the kids would get seasick travelling so long on the boat. But at the speed we were going, motion sickness was nearly impossible. It just constantly felt like the operator operating a theme park’s ultimate roller coaster ride refusing to let you out and making the roller coaster go on repeat mode. For the unpredictable thrill factor, I say the sea’s better than a roller coaster anytime. And surprise, surprise, the kids actually fell asleep the moment the boat started moving off, in spite of the crashing waves.

These are tough kids, I tell you. Complaining not even one single time being on the speedboat, which can be quite scary at times!

What an experience being so close to the sea indeed. We even saw jumping fish, which was altogether breathtaking.

2. First balancing act

We’re in a kelong, and there’s water everywhere

So it’s a kelong afterall. Which is actually a Malay word describing an offshore platform built predominantly on, yea, you guessed it, wood. The entire kelong is fashioned out of wooden planks and poles, and so at any point, walking around the place felt like you constantly have to remember to walk properly – and keep your balance – because you don’t want to have the giant tiger groupers chomp you up or be pinch material for the lobsters, depending on which pool of water you fall into. Plus, the sea is all around us, and as we’ve discovered (see #3), there’s no ground to touch if you’d ever fall in like you would in a pool.

This was the tiger grouper pool which was teeming with groupers 10 to 15 kg, I hear. They eat up all our discarded food waste, and can chomp down the hardest bones and toughest fruit. Like Becks’ apple which accidentally fell in.

My kids can’t swim by the way, so you can imagine this mad mother constantly screaming and nagging her kids not to run, push or monkey around.

But it’s a whole new experience altogether – walking deliberately and carefully, every minute we were there. How’s that for really slowing down?

Gives a whole new meaning to ‘balanced and barefoot’

3. First plunge into the deep blue sea

The kids have yet to learn to swim. They have been waddling, waddling, waddling, like little ducklings on floats in swimming pools. I have tried getting them used to being in water for close to a year now, so they are happy to be in chlorinated water or warm bath tubs if you throw them in.

But the sea. It was nothing they had expected. It was nothing I had expected.

The platform where we all took the plunge

The first day we were there we swam in front of the lodge with a group of adults and children (our couple friends’ extended family members, whom we had the pleasure of meeting – there were 14 of us adults in all, and 7 kids), and while it was an exciting thought to be jumping into the sea with so many people, we so didn’t prepare for the strong winds and currents that came, which meant that no matter how hard you swim, you would still be at the same place.

We had some drama that afternoon, with Ben’s float suddenly deflating (and thank God we found that out before he jumped in), Becks’ life jacket floating up which meant she was getting no buoyancy due to the strong currents, and Nat refusing to let go of my neck which meant he was strangling me while I treaded water furiously looking for something I could hold on to for dear life. All these happened while I was trying to swim to my daughter, forgetting completely about my drifting eldest son and being gripped in the neck by my youngest. And Fatherkao wasn’t even in the sea yet as he needed to keep his camera. Thank God we went with one bunch of fun-loving people who were seaworthy and extremely strong swimmers, and all the uncles and aunties came to help with our kids. We didn’t swim long in that strong current, and ended up making friends with everyone instead over hot milo and snacks after that ordeal.

4. First swim-with-fish experience

So you would have thought we gave up the idea of swimming in the sea. I thought I would too, until my friend said she’d replicate an ‘Adventure Cove’ experience without the strong currents for us.

Here in this “pool”:

Fish “pond” protected from waves and currents

So we thought, Well, it’s netted, it’s going to protect us from strong currents, why not? and we jumped in. We didn’t manage to snorkel but we did put our head in with goggles and saw some fish swimming around and all.

Totally awesome, still.

Nat and Becks were too frightened after the open water experience, so we swam with other children and Ben instead!

It was only when we got up and looked down into this pool of seawater had we realised – holy smoke’ – we were swimming with friggin’ huge-ass mamas and a sea turtle. I so should have brought or borrowed a snorkel!

No ordinary fish pond

5. First poo-watch

Clean water for bathing from the tap, and a toilet bowl for small and big businesses!

There was no flush in the toilets. Why would you need one in a kelong?

Clearly, the showtimes for fish feeding was whenever anyone was done pooping. We didn’t manage to catch every show, but we did catch the one with Ben’s poop one morning because he had made a loud announcement that he needed to move his bowels.

I bet he now knows that the way to avoid a crowd waiting near the toilet is not to say anything. Hurhurhur.

6. First bat watch

I have never seen bats fly, and even more so seen so many bats fly from their roosting place and disperse. Apparently, the desolate, uninhabited island near the kelong was a roosting place for bat colonies, and we were told that at 7pm sharp, there would be bats in the sky. I was half expecting some cute little creatures flapping their wings but to my horror they were as huge-ass as the fish we swam with in the day and it was a full-moon night. Gives freaking out a whole new meaning (and bringing back memories of all the Gothic Literature I did in JC), but fortunately for us, we were assured that they never congregated at the kelong.

Would drive me batshitcrazy for sure, if they did.

We didn’t manage to capture the bats at dusk but my husband took this awesome picture of the night view from the kelong. This is unfiltered and unedited.
Gorgeousness.

7. First fish from the sea

I’m not a fan of fishing. Before this trip I had thought fishing was all sitting by the lake for hours feeding mosquitoes. Until our friend’s uncles showed us how much fish that can be caught just by throwing a line from the kelong. These men were reeling in pail after pail of fish whenever they cast their lines, and that thrilled the kids much.

And this was how much that could be fished on a morning the boat took the fishing enthusiasts out deep sea

It poured heavily on the second day we were there, and there was this peaceful, tranquil calm after the storm. Which meant only one thing for the fishermen in our midst: deep-sea fishing. We tagged along in the drizzle and watched as the fishing enthusiasts reeled in barracudas, sail fish, mackerels and groupers. Ben and Fatherkao tried their hand at fishing while I minded the other two, and they managed to reel in one I-dunno-what-fish which we ate for lunch the next day.

8. First rainbow of our lives

The kids have never seen a rainbow. They’ve heard me sing ‘The Rainbow Connection’ many times and are familiar with the story of God’s promise of a rainbow after the Great Flood, but that’s pretty much it.

And how He must have loved us all so, because while we were out deep sea fishing, this – this was what we witnessed right before our eyes.

This picture, taken with our friend's phone, will never ever do the view we had justice. The rainbow was beautifully arched, clear in all its colour, and set against the backdrop of a beautiful horizon

This picture, taken with a phone camera, will never ever do the view we had justice.
The rainbow was beautifully arched, clear in all its colours, and set against the backdrop of a beautiful horizon

We witnessed this for the first time as a family. How magnificently awesome is our God.

9. First FRESHEST seafood dining experience

How fresh can seafood get when all you have to do is goreng and steam what has just been caught! We’ve had the freshest of fish for those three days, and even had the tiger grouper the kelong was rearing for steamboat dinner. The kelong sells this special breed of groupers to restaurants and a wide Chinese clientele, but offered us a special rate – so we even carted two 5-kg fresh groupers home on our last day!

Catching our dinner

Waiting for the fish to put in the steamboat!

So the kids had chicken wings and bbq-ed marshmellows while waiting

So the kids feasted on chicken wings and grilled marshmellows after the steamboat

The tides were low the following morning and our friend went picking crabs – which meant we had steamed crabs for breakfast!

10. First time on a private beach

Just 5 minutes away on a sampan lies this pristine private beach, which was the highlight of our kelong trip. The sand was soft and moist, totally perfect for some thorough exfoliating (free spa!), and the waters were oh-so crystal clear. We spent hours lazing there, sitting by the beach, watching the waves and soaking in the sun, sand, sea. The kids built sandcastles, picked corals and seashells, skipped pebbles and chased little fish.

We were there on Day 2 and Day 3, and we always wished we didn’t have to leave. And when we finally did, we were totally sunkissed.

Picture-perfect on a perfect beach

How much fun took place while we were there? Enough for the kids to ask when we are going back again!

So much to do with sand!

~~~

Those three days we lived deep. No phones. No TV. No iPads.

We were at sea. We looked out to sea.

Where the horizon was, there was the sky. We looked out to sky.

The view from the lodge was always changing – when it rained, when night fell, when the winds blew, when the clouds moved – and it was always, always gorgeously awe-inspiring.

What a view in the morning

Those three days we relaxed and rested. No fuss. No anxiety. No heaviness. We returned home refreshed, and with so much gratitude in our hearts for being with wonderful people and having a wonderful God who created wonderful things.

I can't put a word to this, but we felt a huge sense of happiness being there.

Refreshed and ready for home: I can’t put a word to this, but we felt a comforting sense of happiness being there those 3 days

Bukau Lodge, we’ll be back.

~~~

P/S: If you’re curious how we bunked as a family, we stayed in a private room like this. But in the kelong, everything is pretty much communal and we left our door and windows wide open while we slept, with the wind in our face, literally. Shiok.

The rooms in Bukau Lodge

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Going Out! The Kao Kids

Fun for free, at Terminal 3

August 24, 2014

I get asked a lot why my family is always found at the airport. We hang out a lot at Terminal 3. At least once every two weeks.

It’s weird that we might be the only people and country in the world that shop, eat, play, colour, draw and run around in our airport terminals. I don’t think I’ve seen or heard of anyone from anywhere boasting of having so much to do at an airport. Isn’t it just a place – that’s usually located at a godforsaken distance, far away from civilisation – for taking off on a plane or welcoming someone home?

But because our little island called Singapore is only 716.1 km² in size, and because our home at Sengkang is only a 15-minute drive to the airport, this place is as accessible as the nearest 7-11 is to us, and I dare say, everyone in Singapore.

Behold, the FUN FOR FREE my kids get at Terminal 3, while I indulge in GST-free shopping. (Oh, didn’t you already know that? You can get jewellery, perfume, cosmetics, clothes, toys, shoes, personal toiletries, cakes and bread, chocolates and candies and even books at T3 without the 7% GST.)

Five fun things to do for free at Terminal 3:

1. Woodblock rubbing

Make your own woodblock prints with the paper and crayons provided at the woodblock rubbing station located just in front of the fountain at B2. Each print carries a design that is inspired by icons and symbols of Singapore.

My kids have done this countless times and they never get tired of rubbing the crayon on the wood blocks! If the station isn’t crowded, and they can get a space of their own, they can sit there for a long time – and I can slowly eat my dinner at Pasta Mania (next to it) for a long time, which is such a luxury on crazy week days.

2. Playground Fun

It’s not the most wow of playgrounds, but it is a good way to keep children occupied while you shop or have a cuppa at Starbucks which is just in front of it. On weekends it can get really crowded, but that’s also when the kids get to play tag around the playground with random kids and make some new friends. What I like about the playground is that it hardly attracts the big kids, and so unlike the neighbourhood playgrounds that the kids go to which sometimes requires them to handle the playground bullies, here you get to baby-watch and coo at toddling toddlers instead.

3. Singapore’s Tallest Slide

Photo Credit: Changi Airport

You don’t have to spend anymore to experience The Slide @ T3. You can get a preview of the speed at one-and-a-half storey tall at B2 with no minumum spending required. But if you wish to experience the full 12-metres, you can redeem one ride for every SGD10 spent on a single receipt.

How’s that for thrill for free?

4. Trolley Rides and Races

My kids never get tired of trolley rides and they get their trolley fix at two places: the supermarket and here, at the airport. We don’t have baggage, obviously, since we’re there to shop, eat and play – and so we indulge them by letting them hop on and pushing them around. Sometimes, when the aisles are empty, we race!

Look who’s pushin‘!

5. Look up, look out, enjoy the space!

We almost never head to town. In fact, I dislike being in town. It’s crowded and noisy and there are just too many people around. Because of the space you get in the airport, and particularly on Level 3 where its roof is designed to let in natural light, being there often leaves you refreshed and wanting to plan for the next holiday. I like to take my kids to Level 3 to get them to run around and look up at the sky from the roof. It’s kinda therapeutic.

~~~

This post is written as part of The Gingerbread Mum’s ‘Fun for Free SG’ Series. For the month of August, 31 mom bloggers will take you to places you can check out with your kids for free!

1 Aug: Tiong Bahru Park by Gingerbreadmum
2 Aug: Queenstown Heritage Trail by Princess Dana Diaries
3 Aug: Jurong Regional Library by Finally Mama
4 Aug: Singapore Maritime Gallery by Peipei Haohao
5 Aug: Singapore Philatelic Museum by Kids R Simple
6 Aug: Sculptures of Singapore by Gingerbreadmum
7 Aug: Fire Station by The Js Arena
8 Aug: Esplanade + Merlion by Prayerfull Mum
9 Aug: Bukit Batok Nature Park by Meeningfully
10 Aug: Lower Pierce Reservoir Park by The Kam Family
11 Aug: I12 Katong – water playground by Universal Scribbles
12 Aug: IMM by Mad Psych Mum
13 Aug: Tampines 1 Water Playground by Amazingly Still
14 Aug: Sengkang Riverside Park by Itchy Finger Snap
15 Aug: East Coast Park by Toddly Mummy
16 Aug: Sembawang Shopping Centre Playground by Joey Craftworkz
17 Aug: Animal resort by Raising Faith
18 Aug: Botanic Gardens by Mum’s The Word
19 Aug: Police Heritage Centre by Mummy Ed
20 Aug: MacRitchie trail by Scrap Mum Loft
21 Aug: Road Safety Park by Miracule
22 Aug: Marina Barrage by J Babies
23 Aug: Gardens By The Bay, Children’s Garden by Finally Mama
24 Aug: Changi Airport T3 by Mother Kao
25 Aug: Pockets of Nature by Mum in the Making
26 Aug: Changi Airport T1 Growing with the Tans
27 Aug: Pasir Ris Park Ingspirations
28 Aug: Gardens by the Bay Supertree Grove by My Lil Bookworm
29 Aug: Vivocity Play Area by Amazingly Still
30 Aug: Punggol Promenade + Punggol Waterway by Chubby Anecdotes
31 Aug: Westgate Wonderland by Xavvylicious

Click this link here: The Gingerbread Mum’s ‘Fun for Free SG’ Series to stay updated!

~~~

Next on the blog train is Justina who writes at Mum in the Making. Jus is a stay-home mum to three littles. She feels that you can never get enough of the great outdoors, and would be sharing some favourite pockets of nature that her family enjoys! Join her tomorrow over at Mum in the Making for some Fun for Free!

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