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De-Auntify Me: From flat to wavy chic at Mosche [Review]

January 12, 2015

The hair’s flat out and the highlights are getting lighter by the day. Almost three inches of my hair from the roots is black while the rest languish in a pallid ghastly blonde-ness which makes me look, erm…

Terrible.

As part of de-auntifying myself, I headed down to Royal Plaza on Scotts to review the hair services at Mosche Hair Salon. I was really blessed to have scored an invitation to try out the services at one of the oldest and more established hair salons in Singapore. Mosche Hair Salon has been around since 1979 and has had generations of loyal customers who would faithfully travel whenever they moved to locate them. The salon’s made yet another move to Royal Plaza on Scotts just a year ago, and is boasting of a bigger space and better façade.

The posh entrance of Mosche Hair Salon at Royal Plaza on Scotts

At Mosche, I was introduced to the most dynamic duo I’ve ever met all my years visiting hair salons – paid or sponsored. There was so much synergy between my hairstylist, Leslie, and his partner, Annie. I actually had my hair checked and my appointment with Leslie booked a week before my first appointment (Leslie is a busy man!), to see if it was suitable to be permed. I told them I badly needed to get out of this flat hair and Leslie said he must have Annie to do a hair check-up for me before he would go ahead. The hair assessment was quick and after some tugging and routine questions, Annie said I could return another day to get it all done.

My first appointment

Upon my arrival, Leslie, together with Annie, conceptualised the look they wanted for me. They agreed the flatness of the hair needed to go, and a sassy digital perm was in order. Leslie was in charge of the cut and Annie was in charge of the perm. And I could see how important their individual roles were because Leslie’s experienced scissorhands were extremely crucial to give the hair its correct shape. He had to visualise how it would look permed while cutting. For the first time, my front was kept longer than my back – and it was most interesting to hear that this was to facilitate a soft look and not have the perm turn me into an auntie with a typical one-length cut.

This, I didn’t know. This kind of attentiveness, I never had. Ever.

Before: the ghastly pallid blonde-ness

One more ‘Before’ shot before the transformation

Leslie Scissorhands

And after the cut, Leslie had to pass me to Annie, because we’re talking about the most experienced woman to handle hair perms, ever. Her experience and professionalism was seen with her checking meticulously every segment of hair for porosity and density, things that many a salon have skipped just to get business from me and to get things done quick. At one point, I felt Annie was almost looking at my hair strand by strand! She was that thorough in making sure that my perm would turn out all right. She would fit the curlers in, take them out, try different sizes of curlers until she was satisfied. She was giving me a digital perm which she promised would make me look like Korean chic and not Singaporean auntie.

Annie applies a serum to protect my hair and scalp before the perm

And then, curling in progress!

Very meticulously and properly…

Hooked up, and “digitised”!

A thorough check before leaving everything in to settle

And she made good her word.

Because after almost 3 hours of sitting and waiting, this was the result:

Leslie checking…

…and styling…

Ta da!

Side profile

Now I know why the front hair needs to be longer than the back – it’s to get this soft effect of flow!

This is an example of synergistic teamwork, by this dynamic duo, I tell you. I’ve never been to any salon (and this, I am being honest) where the communication happens so seamlessly. Usually the stylist tells their subordinates and the latter gets going, just following instructions. But here were two stylists, both in their professional capacity conceptualising from start to finish, and I hear that’s the norm here at Mosche.

So the final product was this but Leslie and Annie didn’t look like they were ready to let me go. They told me I needed to come back after a week (we need to wait for the perm to settle), because to leave my hair in this colour was not what they wanted this look to be.

Not completed yet, but a photo with the people who made this first happened!

Not completed yet, but a photo with the people who made this happen first!

My second appointment

Five days later, I returned to Mosche all ready for my colour. I was half expecting Leslie to do up some dark maroon which I liked, but he didn’t. He told me he was going to mix a dark mocha brown for me. Reasons being, one, he was going for a mature, sophisticated look, not K-pop idol look; and two, given my busy schedule for the months to come, I probably wouldn’t have the time to upkeep a brighter colour and it is best I stuck with something as close to my natural hair colour.

I don’t know about you but this is the first time I’ve met a hair stylist so considerate. It’s like a friend saying, yes, you can be adventurous, but can I help you be a little practical so you can still look sassy chic everyday?

I like.

So I had my hair colour done. First near the roots which sat in for a little longer than the ends due to the already uneven colouring.

Leslie checking and showing his assistant, Bell, what he wants for my hair colour

Before the colouring I told Bell my scalp gets really irritated and itchy whenever I colour it, and she applies a protective cream on my scalp. Am pleased to announce this was the best hair colouring session ever, because I didn't feel itch and irritation at all. No other salons have applied this pre-colour on me except Mosche.

Before the colouring I told Bell my scalp gets really irritated and itchy whenever the colour gets on, and she applied a protective cream on my scalp. Am pleased to announce this was the best hair colouring session ever, because I didn’t feel itch and irritation at all. No other salons have applied this pre-colour protection on me before, except Mosche.

Meanwhile, there was free flow coffee and tea.

The final result? This.

The final mocha dark brown

Looking a little more sophisticated, I would say

Gorgeousness.

I really like this look and although it may not have been brightly coloured as I wanted, I think this muted stylish-ness is going to be serving me in good stead for the new year and in my new job.

So considerately thought out and thought through by this dynamic pair. So easy to tousle and go in the morning. So ready to start a brand new year with a brand new look! Thank you, Leslie and Annie, and Mosche Hair Salon, for making this happen and for this wonderful opportunity to be acquainted with you!

With Annie, the woman who transformed me from flat to wavy

With Leslie, the one who conceptualised the style from start to end, and gave me the haircut to the colour

Good things must share, and thanks to Leslie and Mosche Hair Salon, here’s a promotion you can enjoy at Mosche ALL YEAR LONG (yes, the whole of 2015) just for Motherkao readers:

1. Cut & Colour – SGD 280 nett

2. Cut & Perm – SGD 450 nett

3. Cut, Perm & Colour – SGD 580 nett

4. All other a la carte hair services – 25% discount

Simply quote [Elizabeth from Motherkao Blog] to enjoy these offers for the whole year long!

Mosche Hair Salon is located at Royal Plaza on Scotts Level 2, 25 Scotts Rd, Singapore 228220. The number to call is 6734 0923 or 9628 8312. (Remember to ask for Leslie or Annie!)

Post-Script

You know I’m going to make this disclosure, as I always do: Motherkao was invited by Mosche Hair Salon for the purpose of this review. No monetary compensation was received and all opinions here are her own.

I’ve said that BUT I’m also going to add this, not just because it was a complimentary hair service:

I’ve really had one of the best customer service of all the hair salons I’ve been to – whether paid or sponsored – at Mosche, simply because of the un-pretentiousness that I experienced from meeting Leslie and Annie. They are not people who would pull a fast one on you; they come across as professional yet sincere and they get a damn good job done.

The prices at this place reflect their impeccable service here, and I’d be forthright here and now to say they are on the steeper end compared to most of the others their league.

But here, satisfaction is guaranteed and if you’re really game to try a new look here, they hardly disappoint, as seen by the happy transformations on their Facebook page and heard by their loyal customers’ reviews. I’ve a friend who’s been with Leslie for 23 years and still counting, and will never ask for anyone else other than Leslie. Her mother, her friends and relatives count among his scores of loyal followers. That, to me, is the true test of a really solid hair stylist.

That he’s got followers for more than TWO decades.

~~~

Heck, after this, I’m going to have to start saving money, because it sure looks like I’m going to be a follower too.

Read the other posts in this series of De-Auntify Me here and here too.

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Happy days Invites & Tryouts Reviews

De-Auntify Me: Eyebrow Embroidery at Browtisan [Review]

January 5, 2015

The past two years of staying home have been disastrous to my eyebrows. They’ve been an unkempt mess for the longest time because I don’t even have the time to shape them with my tweezers. It’s always difficult for me to figure out the arch they are supposed to have and if I don’t find the time to regularly shape them, I lose touch with how I am supposed to look with properly defined brows.

I’ve heard a little about eyebrow embroidery and read many good reviews from fellow mom bloggers about their eyebrow embroidery experience at Browtisan here, here, here and here, so when I received an invitation to experience eyebrow embroidery for myself, I was pretty stoked. Ok, truth be told, I was half stoked and half hesitant. I needed to know what exactly is “embroidery” for the eyebrows in beautyspeak, what I would be in for, and what it could do for me to help de-auntify myself (read about my quest to do that this year here).

Eyebrow embroidery is an aesthetic cosmetic procedure of adding coloured pigment to the skin by filling in empty spots on your brows to give them a fuller and more flawless look. Using pigment matched to the actual brow colour, eyebrow embroidery produces a semi-permanent, natural look as the eyebrow hairline stroke is done by a professional stroke by stroke with precision and care. It is NOT a tattoo procedure (which is permanent, by the way) in which ink pentrates deep into the dermis. Eyebrow embroidery introduces pigment to the epidermis – the superficial layer of the skin – with minimal intrusion.

I was also told that at Browtisan, I would be in the good hands of Coco, Browtisan’s Chief Creative Officer, who has over two decades of experience in the brow and grooming industry. She also recently sat on the Annual Asia Panel of Experts for Asia Art of Eyebrow Embroidery Competition, and appointed Chairman of the Singapore (Regional Asia) 2014 Annual Asia Panel of Experts for Asia Art of Eyebrow Embroidery.

I was impressed, but nonetheless still hesitant. Afterall, it was a semi-permanent procedure which would last 2-3 years. I decided to bring my questions personally to Coco. I needed her to allay my fears and clarify my doubts, which include:

1) Will I end up looking perpetually shocked, fierce or like Crayon Shinchan?

2) Will this help make my grooming routine of tweezing my brows easier or more difficult?

3) Will I feel pain?

4) Will I regret? Can she reverse everything if I did? (Someone did tell me it is reversible, but I needed to check!)

When I arrived at Browtisan, I was immediately introduced to Coco who wasted no time in scrutinising my face and my brows. I probably would never know this if I didn’t step foot into Browtisan – but I found out I had a perpetually arched right brow because of a slightly bigger brow ridge, and that I had always had a little “hole” on my left and brows will likely not grow there anymore.

Browtisan is located at Delphi Orchard #03-17. Browtisan stems from the word Brow and Artisan. It is a name coined to reflect the skills and artistry of their ultra-specialised subset of aestheticians.

Can you spot the seemingly insignificant: the right arch on the right brow and a little “hole” where there’s no hair on the left?

After applying some numbing cream and letting it numb the area around the eyebrows, Coco started working on tweezing away the strays and finding a natural shape of brows for my face. She also took the time to take the questions I was ceaselessly fielding and kept assuring me that it would look very natural.

While the numbing cream took effect, I fielded questions!

Basically, she answered Questions 1 -3 (more on whether I would regret later!) by doing just ONE thing: tirelessly assuring me that the shape she was designing for me was going to follow the most natural arch for my face as much as possible.

In other words, this was what she was going to do: define my brows to make it full (there were too many gaps) and lower the right arch created by the bigger brow ridge to create balance for both sides. And she says that when the entire process is done, all I have to do is to tweeze away the strays by following the shape she’s created. It’s going to make life soooo easy!

All that she subsequently explained could be summed up in three words: painless, effortless, natural. Once again, she assured me that the whole process was going to be painless; it’s not going to take any effort on my part (so I just need to relax); and I that I needed to trust that she will give me a look that is as natural as possible.

Coco first painstakingly shapes and reshapes with an eyebrow pencil

And will only proceed with the embroidery process when the customer is completely satisfied with the shape

Convinced at last, I let her get to work after I ok-ed the eyebrow design…

First, Coco puts on her microscopic amplification glasses to magnify whatever she’s looking at

And then she “embroiders” every single eyebrow, stroke by stroke. This is also when the epidermis feels some tugging, and if you have a lower threshold of pain, you can ask for more numbing cream NOW.

It’s only professional to check you while you sit up because the world doesn’t look at you lying down. Here Coco adds finishing touches because the face is different when I lie down and when I sit up!

The whole process took a while (about an hour or so) because the professional in her checks, and checks and checks till she is satisfied!

At last, eyebrow embroidery COMPLETED!

Embroided brows, stroke by stroke. Done by Coco!

The full face

A picture with the woman who made it all happen

So I started asking, why is it so thick? so brown? so full? so erm… unnatural? And I was told that it will all be OK after 5 days. I did like this “new” look actually, but I figured I needed to be putting on makeup when I headed out those 5 days. If not, I might actually look very fierce.

Before I left I was given a serum to apply daily for 5 days, and some 3M Tegaderm Film to protect my eyebrows from water.

~~~

My brows DID really start looking more and more natural as days passed but I have to say the 5 days that they were not allowed any contact with water was a bit of a hassle. I take at least two baths a day, and had to go to a pharmacy to hunt for more 3M Tegaderm films to cover those brows for those 5 days. But this senseless grumble aside, the incovenience was totally worth it. The entire experience at Browtisan and the result after 5 days was, well, let’s just say I am not regretting anything at all (Question 4 answered).

After embroidery, Day 1

After embroidery, Day 2

After embroidery, Day 3

After embroidery, Day 4 – you can see it’s lightening a lot

After embroidery, Day 5

The above pictures were taken with as natural a lighting as possible, and not edited.

And this was the 6th day. And I was feeling all too happy to finally not have to tape my brows up when I shower!

After embroidery, Day 6

And here are the brows again, at Week 3, taken just yesterday!

This is how natural looking it is, and I am really loving these brows.

I’m really liking the fact that the brows are now fuller and cleanly defined. I like it too that my eyebrows now frame my face instead of just being a shabby patch of mess before they were embroidered. It’s like, before Browtisan, they just existed. Now, after Browtisan, they’ve come alive and are making me look a lot more well-groomed than I used to look.

First step in de-auntifying self: SUCCESS!

Thank you, Coco and Browtisan, for demonstrating your artistry on my face!

~~~

More details:

Browtisan is the latest Clinical Standard Brow Salon located at Delphi Orchard (402 Orchard Road #03-17, Singapore 238876). It specialises in painless, non-invasive, highly-customised Creative Eyebrow Embroidery. Other services include eyebrow shaping and design, eyeliner definition, lips embroidery, eyelash enhancement, eyelash perming and facial treatments.

The price for Eyebrow Embroidery starts from SGD1380.

And here’s a discount code just for Motherkao readers:

Quote [Motherkao blog] or [Elizabeth from Motherkao] to enjoy a 10% discount off Creative Eyebrow Embroidery at Browtisan. Valid till June 2015.

~~~

P/S: I had my eyelashes extended too, but more on it in another post!

Disclosure: Motherkao received a sponsored Eyebrow Embroidery Session at Browtisan for the purpose of this review, thanks to an invitation of AT Marketing Consultancy. The opinions here are in no way representative of Browtisan, and are solely mine.

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Christmas happiness Going Out! Happy days Holidays! Invites & Tryouts Milestones and growing up Reviews The Kao Kids

Awesomeness at LEGOLAND – Part 2, LEGOLAND Theme Park & Water Park

December 30, 2014

After we did the slowly slowly thing on Day One of our getaway to LEGOLAND Malaysia Resort, and thoroughly just relaxed and enjoyed the hotel facilities and activities, you would think that we would start on our chiong-like-crazy (or dash like mad, for our non-Singlish folks) thing on Day Two since we were very kindly sponsored a Theme Park and Water Park One-Day Combo Pass.

It was really generous of LEGOLAND to give us a One-Day Combo Pass, but it did inevitably translate to some kind of rushing stress to make full use of every single hour of the parks’ opening, and cover everything we can to make the ticket worth it.

So again we had to consciously decide NOT to rush; to do the slowly slowly, and to even be prepared to buy tickets on the third day if we wanted to spend more leisurely time at the park.

We were sure hell-bent on doing the Slowly Slowly Movement for this trip.

So did we manage to enjoy two parks in one day? Yes, we did. And we didn’t rush like crazy and only because we did what we felt we want to do. This included returning to the hotel for a one-hour nap.

Here’s what we did, and how we did it:

1. We did make some effort to wake up earlier, instead of at anytime we wanted.

We woke up at 8.30 am, got dressed and prepped our day-pack with caps, raincoats and water. We slapped on sunblock and mozzie repellent, headed to the Bricks Family Restaurant (remember to factor in the wait to be seated!), ate our usual portion for breakfast (as opposed to going for many rounds even if it was a buffet!), did one toileting round at the hotel and headed to join the queue by 9.55 am.

2. We entered the Theme Park at 10 am sharp and turned right.

There was a human swell at about 9.50 am but the queues moved pretty fast the moment the gates opened. The moment we were inside, I rented a double stroller for RM22.50 (hotel guests get a discount, compared to the usual rental rate of RM45) and we turned right from The Beginning to head straight to Lego City. I’ve read on many blog reviews that the right side of the park was catered more for younger children, and since I have a 5, 4 and 2 year-old, it only made the most sense that we got them to enjoy what the park had to offer them. I’ve also briefly walked around the Theme Park when Ben and I were invited to preview the Star Wars Miniland Model Display earlier in September this year, so I was sort of familiar with the layout and map.

Picture Credit: LEGOLAND Malaysia Resort

3. We only did things that we would all be happy doing together, including waiting for one another.

This meant queuing only if everyone agreed to join the queue (or wait for whoever who wanted to ride to queue and finish) and promising to wait patiently.

There was no queue for Junior Driving School (the first thing that greeted us at Lego City) and even then only Ben was game enough for it. The circuit was uncomplicated and the experience was completed in no time.

Ben at Junior Driving School

I say 5 is the golden age where a kid is game to try anything!

You can get a proper card license with your photo at RM20

Say! Driver’s license!

We waited for his “driver licence” (which we paid a fee of RM20 for) longer than the drive and queue put together (had to fill in form for name, make payment, wait for print, etc), but it was a good warm-up for the kids to understand what it was like being in a theme park. Until now, the only theme park they have been to was Hongkong Disneyland, which I’m not sure whether they remember.

We queued at the Boating School for a bit, and steering the battery powered boat was one memorable experience.

Steering a powered boat for the first time

It’s nice to go boating

It was around then it started to get really scorching hot. The heat was beginning to get to us. And we were not even there for two hours yet. Although I’d rather the sun than rain, my family and I don’t really function very well under heat. If you follow this blog, you would recall how happy Ben and Becks were when it poured all through our 5-km walk for the Hello Kitty Run earlier in November.

So. Some people were gradually turning into grumpy pots by about 11 am actually.

Not so smiley anymore sitting on Santa’s sleigh, as you can see

We then ventured into Rescue Academy to put out the fire and stop the robbers, and despite the fact that our family of 5 had to be broken up into two to take two fire engines, it was a really exciting activity for all of us. This, no queue at all.

There’s a fire, and we headed for the rescue mission; pity we didn’t manage to snap anything of ourselves moving the fire engine manually!

We then retreated into Lego City Stage for the show, When Santa Got Stuck in the Chimney, at 11.30 am; and I would be the first to admit that it didn’t really matter what I was watching. I was just so glad to have air-con.

So we learnt, that Santa got stuck in the chimney, and he’s a real dude that comes every Christmas if you believe!

With the cast of the show

So we didn’t take the LEGOLAND Express (queue was too long), didn’t go for any other rides except Lost Kingdom and Beetle Bounce at the Land of Adventure, didn’t ride the roller coasters at Lego Kingdom and didn’t take the water plunge at Dino Island after the show. Many rides appeared too daunting for Nat and Becks, and it was always “No, don’t want”, when we asked if we should go for this and that. My little girl just sat on the stroller people-watching half the time, and Nat was pretty shaken after going on the Beetle Bounce. Ben was the only one game to try everything, but the heat by 12 noon got to us quite a bit, and we decided to play carnival games instead (which were all around in booths and very expensive!) and stop at Burger Junction for lunch.

Nat looking ghastly going for the Beetle Bounce drop

After a nice lunch at Burger Junction, the kids were more game to take some pictures and were happy just to watch bigger kids play at the Build & Test site (it’s also air-conditioned), where they built cars and tested them in circuits and ramps. Ben and Fatherkao braved the heat to try out the Kids Power Tower which was really fun for all of us watching. We then played a few more carnival games and walked away with two stuffed tigers and a unicorn, and were happy to head back to the hotel for a nap.

Bigger boys playing at Build & Test

Ben with Laval from Legends of Chima

Brontosaurus!

And Nat’s favourite – triceratops!

Video: Kids Power Tower

Ah, LEGOLAND. If only the trees around us were a little taller, wider and stronger. The heat made all of us more tired than we normally would be, and we had to go back to sleep a bit.

We were really glad to have the hotel room to escape from the heat.

4. We spent two hours at the Water Park.

When we woke up from our nap, it was about 4 pm. The next two hours spent at the Water Park was spent in a light drizzle (unpredictable weather, what’s new?).

But it meant the mood was cheerier because the air was lighter and the heat was gone. And I’d buy tickets to just enter this park instead in a heartbeat anytime.

Because?

Because even though these two couldn’t go on most of the slides, they were contented to sit for a long, long time by the wave pool. Chatting and laughing.

And it was such a joy to watch.

Just cautiously sitting together by the Wave Pool, Nat and Becks

Talking and laughing…

…And people-watching in silence

Although there were over 20 thrilling slides here at the Water Park, Becks and Nat were totally at home at the Duplo Splash Safari and the Wave Pool, while Fatherkao and Ben were happy to go again and again for Red Rush, Build-a-Raft River and Splash n Swirl.

Me? I was as pathetic as pathetic can be sitting around in the drizzle just watching everyone in action as I had to entertain a “visitor”. It was that time of the month. And alas, I looked around for tampons at the Medini Mall and found none.

LEGOLAND Water Park, I’ll come back for you.

On hindsight, we might have done better visiting the Water Park first with the combo pass, and head to the Theme Park later in the evening at 5 pm. But I’m not sure if that would have satisfied the Lego fans under my charge, because the Theme Park had a lot more Lego awesomeness than the Water Park. But, oh well.

5. Bathe at breakneck speed and go back to LEGOLAND Theme Park before it closes at 8 pm

Ok, this was the only thing we rushed our kids after the Water Park closed at 6 pm. We hurried them in the shower at the hotel, and almost ran back to the Theme Park (which extended opening hours to 8 pm in December). We managed to go on Project X, the 18-metre high roller coaster – me, Ben and Fatherkao – twice in the cool of the evening, but that was it.

By the time we finished touring Star Wars Miniland, the rides at Lego Kingdom were closed (they shut down at 7 pm). We had hoped to go on the Dragon’s Apprentice and the Royal Joust when it was cooler in the evening, but didn’t know the rides shut at 7 pm. I don’t know why we thought it was 8 pm.

It’s closed, the Dragon Apprentice, and we’re really sad!

Nonetheless, we soaked in the sights of Christmas lights and the voices of Christmas carolling the last hour we were there at the Theme Park. After the drizzle that day, it was finally cool and the awesomeness of LEGO happened for us all once again.

Chrismas carolling

The 9-metre high Christmas Lego Tree made of 427, 695 Lego Duplo bricks, decorated with hand-built ornaments: what a sight!

***

Might I make a few suggestions, LEGOLAND?

If you had night tickets like that of Universal Studios Singapore during the Christmas season (where you can choose to buy tickets only for entry from 5-9pm), I would gladly buy them. The heat may be a little unbearable for younger children.

To solve the problem of unpredictable weather, perhaps more tents and canopies? We were ready with caps and sunscreen and brollies, but still. It would be great if the park was more covered so we can have temporary relief from heat, or rain, for that matter.

Could we please have water points? Most theme parks do! I brought my helper along, and I was glad to have lugged her for this trip because the sole purpose of her being there was to help us with the water for the three kids and to make sure all of us were hydrated. I read from reviews there were no water coolers available, so I came prepared. I can’t imagine those who didn’t, and like me, have 3 young kids in tow. Can’t possibly be going around hunting for stores and snack bars to buy water, right?

Would you consider offering an Express Queue system? In the heat, I might gladly pay. So I might be able to ride more rides with less stress. And the adrenaline, instead of the heat and queuing, might get all of us going.

Apologies if I sound like such a wuss. Just some suggestions.

***

Having said all these, I am extremely, extremely thankful for this wonderful opportunity to be found in LEGOLAND Resort. Like the hotel, we love the details. We were wowed, especially at Miniland, by every single Lego-constructed mini monument and landscape. We were impressed at the awesomeness of seeing almost life-sized dinos, animals, people and things, constructed all by Lego. The fans in the house were very gratified, because that – that is the awesomeness of falling in love with Lego over and over again.

Beyond the rides and queues and carnival games.

Beyond the thrill of splashing down a slide for the third time or going up a roller coaster.

To us, the beauty of Lego is the ability to imagine and build, and has always been the reason why we love Lego.

Thank you, LEGOLAND Malaysia, for being such a generous host!

This was us, doing the L-E-G-O!

Disclosure: This review is in no way representative of the views of LEGOLAND Malaysia Resort. We were kindly sponsored a family one-day combo pass and meal vouchers for the purpose of this post. All opinions here, including experiencing heat and waves of awesomeness, are our own.

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Christmas happiness Going Out! Happy days Holidays! Invites & Tryouts Reviews The Kao Kids

Awesomeness at LEGOLAND – Part 1, the Hotel

December 27, 2014

LEGOLAND Hotel Welcome

If Disneyland is the place where magic happens, then LEGOLAND is the place of awesomeness.

I must be one of the last few people from the island of Singapore to go to LEGOLAND at Iskandar Malaysia. Almost everyone I know can boast of a ‘been there, done that‘.

I’ve been biding my time, waiting for Nat to finally hit a height of at least 90 cm so he can be allowed to take some rides at the theme park and the time has finally come.

So to LEGOLAND we go! How can we not be found in a place of endless awesomeness of Lego, Lego and more Lego this holidays when I have ardent Lego fans in the house?

We checked out the LEGOLAND Malaysia Resort’s hotel, theme park and water park earlier this December, and here are the highlights (as well as the not-so-high ones, as you will read) of our short getaway by car, with three children aged 5, 4 and 2 in tow.

Presenting, Motherkao’s very own review on LEGOLAND Hotel, using the acrostics (what else?) L-E-G-O-L-A-N-D…

*drumroll, please*

Leaving Singapore for the LEGOLAND Malaysia Resort

The LEGOLAND Malaysia Resort is definitely nearer than we thought it was. It was a relatively smooth ten-minute drive the moment we set off after custom clearance at Tuas Second Link. It was easy to drive there (Tuas Checkpoint SGD3.20 using the cashcard and only one toll to pass in Malaysia at RM15, so prep your Touch ‘n’ Go card), and much more direct than we had expected. Basically, just drive till you see Nusajaya Exit 312 and follow the huge brown ‘LEGOLAND’ signs that point you to the direction of LEGOLAND.

It was that easy – drive straight all the way, exit at 312 Nusajaya, look for the brown. Totally idiot-proof.

Map from LEGOLAND Malaysia Resort Website. More directions here.

We were going to be checking in to the hotel, so we parked at the hotel carpark. It’s free-of-charge for guests and RM30 if you’re not an inhouse guest. Parking is sheltered and the carpark has ample spaces for parking (two basements), with many cars parked backside in (so I assumed it’s pretty safe, considering we were advised to park head in in Malaysia).

Exchange and Fair Trade

The Wall of Minifigs at the LEGOLAND Hotel Malaysia

Prior to making this trip, I learned about the practise of swapping LEGO minifigures (also affectionately known as minifigs, in Lego-speak) from Wacky Duo’s post. Apparently, it’s a tradition which began in LEGOLAND Florida in which a complete minifig can be exchanged or traded with any staff in the resort who has a nametag that reads’ TRADE WITH ME’ as frequent and as often as possible.

If you’ve read Wacky Duo’s experience trying to do the minifig exchange (that was in October this year), you’d have learned that it wasn’t as pleasant as they had hoped it would be. Nonetheless, I placed my confidence, albeit a little too early, on this piece of press release by LEGOLAND and told Ben (the biggest Lego fan in the house and the owner of I-don’t-know-how-many minifigs) to prepare some for making exchanges. You know how those Lego blind packs work, right? How you can end up with the same figure five times after opening five packs.

So yea, I told him to fix up all his extras, pack them in his luggage and do his swaps should he find someone he wants to trade with.

At the hotel, we waited and looked around while playing at the lobby for exchanges to take place which we could witness. Nothing. No one did any. No trading was taking place. Curious, I asked the staff at the reception if the practice of swapping minifigs was scrapped. He smiled and said it still very much was ongoing, and asked if we wanted to exchange with him.

And then the LEGO-AWESOMENESS happened. My son, at 5 years of age, mustered his courage to exchange his first minifig, and there was no turning back.

Ben exchanged his minifig for a race car dude

Unlike what Wacky Duo experienced (the staff rejecting exchanges because minfigs were glued to their tags), everyone whom we subsequently asked, spoke with or even leaned close to just to examine their minifigs shared in the excitement of the minifigs trade. A very huge improvement since October 2014.

Ben then went on to exchange his second and third, and even gave his sister the courage to exchange hers.

She likes the funky girl on this lady’s nametag – and mustered courage to ask her to trade

Sure, the lady said, and the exchange happened!

Happy to have completed the trade successfully!

And I had to join in the fun to exchange one, too. I was in LEGOLAND, for crying out loud, and I must do my part to keep this tradition alive, yes?

I liked his disco ball dude, so I exchanged my grunge guitarist; we kept the accessories cos’ the ‘Model Citizens’ (the staff at LEGOLAND Hotel) do not have accessories for their minifigs

Now, that’s some awesomeness there. We were happy owners of new minifigs, completely mixed and matched in randomness, and totally loving them.

Remember to keep the tradition alive and bring some minifigs for swapping the next time you come!

Goosebumped by some unpleasant birds at Bricks Family Restaurant

Bricks Family Restaurant

The Bricks Family Restaurant is the place where buffet breakfast, lunch and dinner are served. The LEGOLAND hotel has 249 rooms in total, so you can imagine what a feat it would be feeding all the hotel guests at breakfast.

Because breakfast time for most normal, functioning human families starts from 9am to 10am, the human traffic swells to an all-time high at this place at this peak hour. A wait of 10 minutes or more is usually expected before you get a table, which was fine by us, since the feeling of hunger can be easily forgotten by the distractions all around the entrance of the Bricks Family Restaurant, namely the soft Lego play pits and Xbox corner.

Clowning around the huge Lego sundae

Stepping on soft Lego blocks

I’m ok with waiting (but not for too long) during my holidays, really. We didn’t really wait very long anyway. 15 minutes thereabouts to me is acceptable.

But I am not ok fending off crows.

The first time we had breakfast there at this restaurant, we were seated outside.

I know crows are nobody’s fault, but it was harrowing to be eating with crows watching us, ready to attack our food the moment we were gone. And since it’s a buffet, how many times would we be gone? And the thing with crows is that they are oblivious to young children. Smaller children are hardly humans they should be fearful of, and I constantly feared for our lives having that meal. I know I’m exaggerating a bit here but you get the drift.

I get goosebumps having a crow or two watch me eat. I am terrified of crows. And my children too.

I don’t have any pictures of crows to show you, but please tell the Bricks Family Restaurant folks you want to sit inside rather than out if you don’t like crows too. This is where we dined when we were watched by hawk-like crows.

On our second day we were assigned indoor seats, thankfully. And that was when I could taste my food a whole lot better, even though I was also constantly worrying for the children who were outside. Anyway, since I could taste my food a little better than the day before, I am so not glad to be saying that the food didn’t taste fantastic. It was mass cooked, for sure; and I wouldn’t blame the folks either because serving up breakfast to so many people everyday during crowded school holidays season sure isn’t an easy thing (the restaurant can seat up to 465 guests). Nonetheless, it was disappointing to not get good food in Malaysia.

Because Malaysia to me has always been about good food.

**Other Hotel Facilities and the Slowly Slowly Movement**

LEGOLAND Hotel itself deserves one full day of your time to explore and to immerse yourself in.

Legoland Hotel entrance, with a fiery dragon to welcome us!

I will state from the onset that their check-in and check-out times will make a fool out of you if you’re a true LEGO fan – who would love any moment of admiring the details in Lego construction and pieces – and if you intend for your stay at the hotel to be only one night and not more.

Check-in is at 4pm and check-out is at 11am. Tell me, how to stay only for one night?

Most people that have done the hotel stay and park visits will tell you that the best way to experience the entire resort is to stay for at least two nights. I’m glad we did. We were very kindly hosted by LEGOLAND for our first night, and offered corporate rates for our second, complete with a complimentary one-day Theme Park and Water Park combo pass for the entire family.

The kiasu mother in me had grand plans to make the best of our stay. The grand plan, like what most people’s itinerary (or so I heard and read), was to hit the road by 8am, reach the hotel to leave our luggage by 9.30am and then start our theme park fun the moment the park opens its doors at 10am. When it gets too hot and we need to cool down from the heat, we’ll adjourn to the Water Park just next to the Theme Park after lunch and spend the later part of the afternoon there. When the Water Park closes at 6pm, we’ll head back to the Theme Park for the Christmas programme and lights since it closes at 8pm.

Sounds perfect? Apparently NOT.

The husband learned of this plan and gave me two very specific instructions on what NOT to do for this getaway: rush everyone around like a mad mother hen; spoil the holiday by yelling at the kids.

And then he said, judging from the flow of my very packed itinerary, I was definitely going to do both. He requested for this holiday to be as relaxing and as fun as possible, and that there be no to-do-list to check.

So out of respect for the man who’s worked so hard the whole year long, we did the “slowly slowly”. Slowly slowly get ready and wake up anytime we wanted, slowly slowly drive to Malaysia (we avoided the AYE traffic by setting off at 10am), slowly slowly leave the luggage in the concierge, and then slowly slowly head to Medini Mall (next to Theme Park) for lunch. After lunch, slowly slowly explore the shops for old school snacks and take kiddy rides for RM1.

Then slowly slowly walk back to the hotel and explore the play pits at the lobby, building, stacking, building, stacking. Slowly slowly walk around to look for minifigs to exchange, and then try our luck for an earlier than 4pm check in, which we got, at 2.30pm.

Steering the pirate ship

Pretending to be imprisoned in the dungeon

Squatting next to a Lego constructed skeleton!

Busy at the playpit

Becks at play

Big Boy at play

Weapon complete!

Super weapon complete!

And then slowly slowly walk to the themed hotel room, admiring the details on walls, carpets, furnishing, decor and elevators along our way. This slowly slowly gig turned out to be extremely relaxing, and FUN!

Slowly slowly exploring the lobby and the intricate details in every Lego piece

Cannot miss the chance to do the elevator dance in all the themed elevators with disco music and disco lights! Awesome!

Cannot miss the chance to do the elevator dance in all the themed elevators with disco music and disco lights! This one can’t be slowly slowly, cos’ the music playing was YMCA! Awesome!

After we thoroughly checked out our hotel room (next point), we headed to the hotel pool for a leisurely swim.

Photo Credit: LEGOLAND Malaysia

The pool occupies a decent, peaceful space comprising an infinity pool (1.2m) overlooking the two parks and a children’s wading pool (0.6m). The kids had a good time slowly slowly splashing water and doing their dipping rounds, and it was all together completely relaxing once again.

It’s nice to be on top of the world! Well, sort of.

Before dinner, we walked around the hotel lobby again and realised that there were many daily activities taking place. There was a Build-a-Lego themed challenge daily, and for the month of December everyday, the best construction of something Christmassy wins a prize. All you needed to do was to use the bricks in the playpits and make something to the theme of Christmas and leave it at the reception counter. At the end of the day, all entries would be judged and a winner chosen.

That night we were there, there was also a ‘Guess the Number of Bricks’ contest in which we were invited to estimate the number of Lego bricks in a jar. Ben won that, that night, and earned himself a certificate and Lego brick keychain.

137 bricks was his guess, and of course, his father helped him estimate a bit

In addition to these things happening, we also slowly slowly checked out other play areas…

Kids spacing out

The lounging corner (where we watched a cartoon of the history of LEGO)…

TV Time!

And were treated to a good time of carolling by the LEGOLAND folks…

Christmas carolling at the lobby

So much to slowly slowly do in one day!

LEGOLAND Hotel Room – We’re in a Kingdom!

Our hotel room. Ah, our hotel room! The highlight of our trip. Such details. Such awesomeness. How impressive!

Guess which theme we chose?

We stayed in a Kingdom Premium Themed Room!

The LEGOLAND Hotel has 249 themed guestrooms, following the three popular Lego lines – Pirate (think skulls and bones), Adventure (think Revenge of the Mummy) and Kingdom (think knights and armours). Each room can sleep up to 5 guests, with a king-size bed for adults, and a separate sleeping area for up to 3 kids, complete with a bunk bed, a pull-out trundle, their very own TV and a box of Duplo bricks for the young ones. The bathroom also comes equipped with a washbasin for children. What awesomeness!

Amused by Lego-inspired soap

But the best part – the best thing for me was the details in the room and that we had a room with a view. Everything was made to fit the theme, from the beds and the carpet to the wallpaper and even the Lego decor in the room!

Check this out, Ladies and Gents. This.
This was the view from Room 323.

Nat Kao and the Frog

The details in the children’s sleeping area

The entrance to the room

A Treasure Hunt and 4 Mystery Numbers

The highlight of our hotel stay, for my eldest son, the hugest Lego fan in the house, was the thrill that there’s a mystery box to unlock in the hotel room.

So we were told that there was a special sheet of paper to search for to get the questions for clues to unlock the mystery treasure chest. Ben jumped to work immediately, and wasted no time locating and counting the items that’s requested of him for his task.

I cheated by calling the reception for the code while he was busy at work so that I knew the code to unlock the chest before he did. Hurhurhur.

Understanding the task first

Solving the mystery of the hidden number and finding the clues

Nonetheless, the boy solved the mystery on his own, and was extremely elated to have found treasure inside the treasure chest!

Unlocking the chest

Treasure!

It was his reward indeed, but one he gladly shared with his siblings because he is such a sweetheart – a Lego Spiderman magnet, a Lego Ninjago keychain and a Lego brick keychain!

Sharing is loving!

Night time at LEGOLAND Hotel – A Beautiful Sight

I don’t know if you’ve done it. But we did. Take a slowly slowly walk in the still of the night and just soaking in the Christmas atmosphere and the idea that we’re in LEGOLAND.

The Theme Park at night

The other entrance

Giant LEGO figs!

The hotel lobby at night

The Castle at night

Awesomeness.

Di Mattoni Restaurant

We were very glad to have found decent Italian fare at this restaurant in LEGOLAND Hotel, and that very much made up for the harrowing breakfast experience with the crows. The food here at Di Mattoni was extremely delightful, and we were really happy dining here. This restaurant deserves a mention especially, because despite being a place for fine dining and all, they catered completely for the kids – word search puzzles, colouring and Lego bricks to keep them occupied, you name it – while we waited for our food. Service was excellent as were the cocktails and dishes.

The entrance of Di Mattoni Restaurant

Glorious Italian fare and deliciousness

***

There you have it, a L-E-G-O-L-A-N-D review of the LEGOLAND Hotel, with more awesomeness than we imagined. So glad we initiated our Slowly Slowly Movement the first day we were there to thoroughly enjoy food, company, and LEGO!

LEGOLAND Hotel, we’ll be back!

***

Coming up: A review of the LEGOLAND Theme Park and Water Park

Disclosure: We were hosted by the good folks at LEGOLAND Malaysia for the purpose of this review for one night at their Kingdom Premium Themed Room, and offered a corporate rate for our second night. No monetary compensation was received for this post, and all opinions here, including being deluged by waves of awesomeness, are our own.

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Family life as we know it Milestones and growing up Reviews The Kao Kids

This Thing About Essential Oils, Part 1: Loving every minute of being oily

November 20, 2014

So this thing about essential oils is quite something. I’ve always had problems inhaling and using store-bought essential oils and aromatherapy products. I’d feel nauseous and get headaches, so you can imagine what a wreck I would be standing in front of those aromatherapy push carts that have multiple diffusers emitting all sorts of vapours. Same goes for entering the fragrance level of departmental stores.

Until I used therapeutic grade essential oils, and the ones from Young Living.

I’m not going to enter into any discussion with anyone regarding the various criticisms and schools of thought with regard to the various companies in the States producing essential oils and their business practices and structures (they are usually MLM). I always think the person with the testimony triumphs over the one with the opinion.

Suffice to say, I trust Young Living because of the company’s ‘seed to seal’ promise and support the founder’s vision of harnessing the potential of essential oils for healing and wellness in unadulterated ways. Until that proves otherwise, of course. As a Christian, I do believe there’s a time and place for oils and medicine and treatment, but Jesus is still our Healer.

The oils are featuring quite a bit in the family and something we’ve all grown to like very much. The kids love a good sole massage with the essential oils before bed and I use Thieves rather regularly to support their immune system. I find Peace & Calming a wonderful blend too to settle overstimulated kids, especially if they are tossing and turning or waking suddenly after a bad dream.

I’ve also shared before here that I absolutely need to rub some Peace & Calming behind my earlobes when I need to calm down.

I caught a chill recently and it happened the day before my 5-km GE Run. Knowing that I should never medicate before going for a run, I oiled my soles regularly with Thieves throughout the day and applied R.C on my chest and throat.

I felt better the next day, completed my run, and never felt better.

I thought since I’ve been using Young Living Essential Oils for quite a while now, I’d share a list here of some of the oils I absolutely need to have in my household.

These are my must-haves in the house:

Photo Credit: Fellow Mom Blogger and “Oily” Friend – Serene Seah, who writes at Xavy-licious

Purification – for insect bites and itch; to diffuse when the haze is bad. Nat was once bitten by some unknown insect after the kelong trip which formed a huge nodule and this oil applied neat for 3 days cleared the pus and swelling away.
Lavender – for burns and cuts, for my scalp to prevent excessive hair loss
Peace & Calming – need I say more?
Valor – I used this to rub over sore muscles after the GE Run and I stopped aching after 2 days
Orange – I apply it over the liver area over the kids (3 drops directly below their right ribcage) after they eat processed food at parties
Citrus Fresh – for fresh-smelling rooms and children
Thieves – to support the immune system
Lemon – to add to our water, for detoxification
Lemongrass – love, love, love the smell when applied on my wrists (apparently that helps lower cholesterol levels) and when it’s diffused
Di-Gize – for stomach and digestion woes. It works amazing for the kids whenever they have unexplained stomachaches (those they say are painful and they can’t poop it out) and I use it to replace the Ru Yi Oil we used to use
R.C – to replace the way we apply Vicks VaporRub when we have a cold; to rub on the children’s chest and throat when they are sneezing and down with a chill
Oregano – for the husband to combine with Thieves to support his immune system
Frankincense – we pour a few drops on our palms, rub our palms together and cover them over our eyes; it does help relieve tired eyes and solve ‘floater’ problems
Peppermint – to get rid of terrible smells

The oils have been speeding up recovery and maintaining the well-being of the children, and we’ve been going medicine-free for a long time now. We’ve had many, many happy stories of the essential oils working well for us on occasions where the only known thing was to medicate or rush to the doctor. The kids now know that when they have a bruise, a cut, a rash, some sores, ulcers or pain in their body to say a prayer, and look for Mama to apply some oils.

I am really glad to have invested money in these oils because it’s way better than having to deal with the side-effects and after-effects of medication. We’re all now very oily, happy people!

Disclaimer: I’m not doing this MLM thing nor am I into this MLM thing, and I am not sharing this to get downlines. I get questions sometimes from readers and friends who ask me about the oils I use and what I use to to oil my kids for their wellness, and I’d thought this sharing might help.

Coming up in the next post: This Thing About Essential Oils, Part 2: All about the Zyto Scan

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Everyday fun! Invites & Tryouts Product Reviews Reviews The Kao Kids

Ready, Doh, Shoot! [Review of DohVinci]

November 15, 2014

I think I say it out quite loud that anyone who gives my kids Play-Doh becomes my enemy.

I’ve nothing against dough play for kids; in fact I firmly believe that they need to knead, model and shape dough to strengthen those fingers to prepare for writing. Monkey bars do the trick too, but if that isn’t accessible, it’s always easy to prepare homemade dough and get the kids to knead away. With my kids a little older now, these days we knead dough for pizza more than we do it for play.

I digress anyway. It’s packaged, commercial Play-Doh I’m talking about that annoys me greatly – they have a funky smell and stick to your clothes and shoes and furniture. They give my children that illusion that whatever they make can be eaten with the play that’s associated with it, like ice-cream and candy making. And they also leave a sticky, gunky feeling on your hands. I tell you if you’ve tried making DIY dough at home it really wouldn’t feel the same.

So boy am I glad that Hasbro has finally heard the criticisms from this fussy mother and thought of something ingenious, and on top of that, divorce it with pretend-food-play and associate it with craft.

Enter DohVinci.

Bright colours to inspire the inner artist

This is a clever product that amalgamates Play-Doh, 3D creative design and the concept of crafting which comes in deco pop tubes that fit into a styling tool similar to a squirt gun.

Ready, aim, shoot

So technically, you don’t need to handle dough with your hands and fingers (read: no funky smell, stains, feel and stickiness) and you can doodle with something safe unlike the professionals who do it with plastic.

The Kao kids were invited for a crafting session at Food for Thought at the Botanic Gardens last weekend to experience what it was like crafting with DohVinci. If you know my kids well, the word “dough” stirs up extreme emotions of excitement and exhilaration, simply because they know that it’s something that sometimes annoys me which I keep away from them. And the thought of being able to touch it, feel it and smell it at someplace else not our home makes them really eager and happy.

It’s the same feeling on my end too, if the mess is not mine to clean.

So last Saturday, they were found at a huge table squirting, squirting, squirting away. They were invited to be DohVinci Designers, and although we all know it’s all tongue-in-cheek with Da Vinci, it was quite regrettable that no one acknowledged that.

Hey, it would have been great if the kids were given some information of how diversely talented this Italian man was (painter, sculptor, architect, writer, engineer, mathematician, geologist…), and why his name was even borrowed for this product. Afterall, this great person that ever lived was described as having a “feverishly inventive imagination”. Just saying.

The organisers even gave the kids a red beret to get them into the artist mood

My DohVinci Designers

Anyway. The designers got to work, and were rather engaged.

Artists at work. Do not disturb. Squirt, squirt, squirt.

I have to say that stylus was made for an older child with muscle strength in his arms and fingers. It was almost impossible for Nat and Becks to be using it.

Nonetheless, the kids had fun changing colours and going creative designing their own Christmas trees, embellishing them with sequins, buttons and glitter. Guess who ended up being the extended hands of Little Miss, since she couldn’t be squirting the DohVinci herself.

Becks getting busy

It felt like I was frosting cupcakes, and well, it was good practice for me.

Practising swirls

The little designers were presented with certificates after the session, and were left to savour that moment of pride of having designed something unique – their very own masterpiece.

Ben and his masterpiece

“I’m a DohVinci Designer!”

DohVinci is now available at Toys ‘R’ Us and all major departmental stores. Check out the DohVinci website for more details of their various products, like the vanity kit and easel set.

***

So what happens after the craft session is over? Want to know?

My kids squirt Play-Doh from the DohVinci stylus gun and play with Play-Doh using their hands.

How can Play-Doh not be touched with hands, these kids ask

And so they got busy again squirting worms and rolling eggs

There’s just no stopping them. It was too inviting.

And although we did return home with dough stuck on our clothes and shoes (sigh), I was glad the mess was not created in our home.

Disclosure: We were invited to the Designer Workshop organised by DohVinci Hasbro. No monetary compensation was received for this post. All opinions here about Play-Doh are mine, including all the remnants and bits we’ve amassed over the years from people who gave them to us. For the record, no one is my enemy yet. Friend-friend, still, k, friends?

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Going Out! Happy days Reviews The Kao Kids

Superheroes unite! – A different kind of Halloween partying

October 29, 2014

Halloween isn’t something that’s celebrated in the Kao household but it’s certainly something we cannot escape from knowing that it is celebrated everywhere else. I had hoped I wouldn’t need to explain much about Halloween to the kids but the commercialisation of this celebration seems to be getting stronger, keener and fiercer year after year.

Case in point: the FairPrice supermarket we go to week after week tells us what we should be buying and celebrating. When we see the pumpkins, ghoulish masks and pitchforks, we know for sure, that Halloween is here. Everywhere we go, we see black and orange themed decor – in the malls and in shops. The devil’s horns go for sale as headbands to be worn vaingloriously this time of the month, and these days they come illuminated and flashing too at crazy prices and worn on many a kiddo’s head.

Another case in point: I also received an invitation to attend a Halloween spa party recently which I had to politely decline because like I said, I’m not going to be partying to Halloween; I am certainly not the type who would dress up with ketchup on my lips and chalk dust on my face to make spooky on horror night. Hurhurhur.

But when one of my favourite places in Singapore invited the kids and me to a Halloween party, I couldn’t say no. Before you judge me as a cheapo mother who would grab any free invite, let me explain.

The Halloween party that was organised by Port of Lost Wonder in Sentosa was not the typical spooky night out that we adults associate Halloween partying to be. It was really just a massively fun costume party. And because we’re talking about Port of Lost Wonder (which my kids love!), we were happy to just turn up, wander around and get ourselves wet.

But the best part for us all was that the premise of having our presence was that a scientist’s experiment had gone really wrong and monsters have invaded it, and we’re all supposed to come as superheroes to save the day.

And because my boys are into superheroes anyway – I’m sure you’ve met Spiderman on this blog lately – and because my girl has been Queen Elsa for the longest time, the Kao kids couldn’t wait to get into some superhero action.

Practising hero moves!

Ready to defend the Port!

And so to Spooky Jr. Heroes Unite we went last Saturday evening, and it was our first (and best!) Halloween party we’ve ever attended.

The Kao Superheroes met their clones…

Batman also had to work hard to fly over a city and rescue a princess from a dragon

We also caught up with more teammates

And gathered with more Superheroes who would be working hard to save the Port!

Then we caught up with Spiderman friend and Robot Boy friend – check out Leroy‘s DIY Robot Gear!

So wholesome. So fun. So different. With so much memories to remember for a long time.

The kids are still talking about the party until now, I tell you. That’s how much they enjoyed being superheroes that night, and being with others like them.

And what did they have to do to save the port? Three simple things, really.

First, navigate a tricky maze…

Next, shoot monsters with slime…

Slime fight!

And then exterminate the remaining ones with our golden arrows!

The rest of the time was spent going around getting pictures with everyone else in costume, eating and pigging out, licking cotton candy and getting glitter-tattooed.

Getting glitter tattooed

Plus lots of bubble fun too!

And then change out of superhero costumes – no overtime for these kids – when their job was done to enjoy the pirate ship all on their own.

Halloween is now known as just another occasion for more wholesome fun, and we are so going to be ok with that!

More details:

Spooky Jr. – Heroes Unite! is happening again this Saturday at Port of Lost Wonder from 6.30 to 10pm. Creative costumes stand to win prizes up to $3,000 including Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 Kids, Wii, hotel stays on Sentosa at Siloso Beach Resort and Amara Sanctuary, and many more.

Save the port and win great prizes – the perfect family Halloween fun! Tickets go for SGD39.90 per kid and SGD10 for the adult.

Disclosure: We were invited to save the port. All opinions, hard work and rewards are our own.

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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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Invites & Tryouts Motherkao loves... Reviews

A cut (and colour) to stay cool – Review of SOHO by X’pect

September 15, 2014

Is it me, or is it the time of the year where the heat and humidity is getting way too unbearable?

I don’t know about your household, but we’re chalking up quite a hefty utility bill every month switching on the air-conditioning every night. And using up a whole lot of water showering at least three times a day.

So I thought I’d do my bit to cut down on the water bills by getting my locks chopped.

Long hair = more water. Short hair = less water. Right?

I was recently invited to review the hair services and treatment offered by X’pect Group. X’pect Group is a leading group of hair salons with 16 years of experience in the industry, and 5 outlets in Singapore, with its 6th salon opening in a few months. I’ve been told they’ve won over 70 local and international awards combined, and styles MediaCorp artistes, and most recently, the Radio DJs at the Radio Awards.

Awards and accolades aside, let’s get me some haircut, I say. It’s way too hot to keep hair long in this mad weather. So I made arrangements to be away from the children one afternoon, and headed down to Square 2 for a makeover at X’pect Group’s SOHO. Mama needs a haircut, I told the Kao kids, much to Becks’ dismay. She wanted me to be in the Frozen hair braiding craze with her but I told her I was more fried than frozen in this heat.

I arrived, sat down and told Damien, my very experienced stylist that (a) the weather’s too hot, (b) I’m dropping way too much hair, (c) I’d love a look that doesn’t make my hair too flat (I have got very, very fine hair), and (d) he could do whatever he wanted.

So these were his recommendations: (a) if it’s too hot, I should get a hair cut, (b) the reason why my hair is falling off is because my scalp is too oily and I should stop using moisturising shampoo, (c) in order not to have too flat a look, I shouldn’t have my hair cut too short, and (d) if he could do whatever he wanted, he’d give me a highlight of ash green with an ash brown base to brighten my face.

Yes, to all, I say.

And so I got a cut…

Goodbye long hair, it’s too hot to keep you

It’s being chopped…

…OFF!

Not too short though, which I am happy with

This is just fine!

A colour…

All the previous colouring has faded, and so now, for a new coat!

And because I complained that my scalp felt a little too itchy from the colouring, I got treated to a really wonderful pampering session – a scalp massage!

No pictures here, cos I had wanted to enjoy the massage and catch my 40 winks.

And the end product was…

Chic and cool, methinks

WALA!

Side profile

Back profile

I felt light, refreshed, and cool, and walked out of SOHO with a spring in my step.

The proof of a good haircut, to me, is not the new look you have on the day itself. It’s the day after. If you woke up and saw yourself in the mirror the next day after your haircut and still like it, you’ve got a stylist for keeps.

Me and the new hair cut, the morning after

There, I am one happy person.

Thank you, SOHO by X’pect for making this happen. Now I feel cool, in every sense of the word!

With Evon who gave me the best scalp massage ever, and Damien, who envisoned and executed this style specially for me

I’m still able to join my little girl in her Frozen craze, alright, with this short hair. I’m singing ‘Let It Go’ with a new perspective. I’m glad I had my hair cut and am totally loving this length. Anything to stay cool this hot and humid season!

More details:

You can get a haircut at X’pect Group salons (the one I went to was SOHO at Square 2 at Novena) starting from SGD40 and highlights starting from SGD75. More information on their rates here. X’pect Group’s studios and salons are located at Orchard International Building, Sunset Way, Liang Court, Square 2 and East Coast. There’s going to be one for Westenders at Hillview opening soon too!

For more details on X’pect Group, connect with them on Facebook or check out their website here.

Disclosure: I was invited to review the service at X’pect Group and given a cut, colour and scalp treatment. No monetary compensation was received, and all opinions here are my own.

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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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