Jurong Bird Park is another fun place for the kids to explore this June Holidays.

As usual, the moment I mentioned that we were invited to the Bird Park, the kids were excited!

To keep the kids stimulated, the park has a kids program to teach the kids about saving the birds. Through mediums like Origami, children will find out how they can help create a safe place for our precious birds.

There are the familiar crowd pleasers like Face Painting and Tattoos, which the kids just loved!

 

Check out the colorful flamingo which Nadine requested for. Even though it was a weekend, the kids did not have to wait long for their tattoos to be done!  The kids also had Penguins drawn on their hands

At the Artwork station, Kids get to make Butterflies to release back into the Rainforest. Here are some of the photos: 

Nadine was really fast with her coloring, and she spent her time waiting for her siblings…Check out her “Why am I waiting” pose

Origami cranes were next, and the kids learned how to make cranes. This was a bit of a challenge for the young ones and for Daddy and Mummy…Good thing was that there was a guide to sit us through the process.

There was also a Post Office where you can post letters to your friends, to let them know about the event and also to spread the word about how we can “Save the Birds!”

Nicole had fun writing and sending a postcard to her Best Friend – Daddy!

Date: 4 – 26 June (Weekends only)
Venue: Penguin Coast (Near the Entrance)
Time: 10am to 4pm

Bird Park Admission Prices:

Adults – $18

Child – $12

Click on this link to get more details!

The kids were really excited when they got home from school this week. The delivery guy has just dropped off a package from our friends at Reebonz.

Reebonz is this really cool online fashion store which sells really branded stuff, at budget prices! They recently launched their kids range, and they asked me to try out one of their toys!

We were naturally delighted, and the kids were too!  

We chose “Happy Farm!”. This board game won the Learning German Game Award in 2009 and is created by A German toy brand called Beleduc,

The objective of the game is to collect a tractor. Made up of wooden pieces, the players use a dice to move around the farm to collect the illustrated animals. After collecting pigs and chickens, kids learn how to trade their 2 farm animals for a cow. The first player to collect 2 cows, gets to exchange the cows for the prized tractor.

Sounds Simple? Yes! It is really that simple, and great for kids from 3yo – 6yo. The kids loved it and everyone wanted to win!

The game is approx 15 minutes, as we made them play the game with animals sounds as well:)

The great thing about the game is that it promotes the powers of observation and early counting. 

Parenting TIps

I think the kids really enjoyed the concept of the game and game-time was short enough to hold their attention.

 

The kids also loved the concept of winning (very Singaporean hor). Only thing was that they enjoyed winning so much, nobody wanted to lose. By the end of 3 rounds, we had near teary-eyed children, who all had to win at least once. We therefore had to “bend the rules” a bit, do a little “match-fixing”, to ensure that there was harmony in the house. 

The things Parents do for their kids…:)

The game will soon be available on the Reebonz website. Sign up via this link, so that the staff at Reebonz will keep you updated  

After visiting the iconic Singapore Street Food Hawker at the Singapore flyer, the family decided to experience a similar food centre at St. James Power Station.

Renowned for its clubs and night life, the club decided to offer a food court for its patrons, so that they can get some local fare, as the partygoers partied the night away. Called the Food Republic “Beer Garden”, this food court is certainly an interesting place to visit.

Stores are built on top of trucks, so as to bring one back to the Street scenes found in the 1970s.

Coming to this Food Republic, you will find all the usual local fare here such as Satay, Rojak, Chicken Wing, Fried Oysters…etc

As this food court is in the same genre as the one at the Singapore Flyer – How does the food here compare?

To tell you the truth, I was a bit disappointed, as the chicken wings were literally overcooked and tough, the fried oyster was nothing to shout about and the Hokkien Mee was comparable to any other normal food court. One of my readers likes the rojak here a lot, but I still prefer the one at the Singapore Flyer.

I found the decorations also a bit “cheap” and they don’t really add to the ambience. The place only made me think of it as a “poor cousin” of the other food court at the Singapore Flyer.

The only Saving Grace about this Beer Garden, was that they served alcohol and that they had a live band to entertain it’s patrons. This is a real plus as it is considered FREE Entertainment.

Address: St James Power Station (3 Sentosa Gateway)

Opening hours: Sunday-Thursday 6pm-5am, Friday-Saturday 6pm-6am

Here’s a interesting attraction to bring the kids to this weekend. And best of all, the attraction is FREE!

Check out the Crane Dance at Resort World Sentosa.

The fountain dances to a love story between a pair of mechanical cranes and how their love for each other transforms them into real birds.

Combining groundbreaking audio and visual technologies, astounding light and water effects, this fountain is certainly much better than the musical fountain which we used to watch at Sentosa when we were young kids!

Catch the cranes before they fly away, every evening at the WaterFront.

Time: 9:00 pm (Unavailabe 1st – 7th April 2011)

Duration: 10 minutes

Location: WaterFront (Old Quay facing WTC / Vivo City)

Fee: Free Admission

Parenting Tip:

If your stay in Singapore is just too short, and you can only watch one fountain performance…Watch the one at Marina Bay Sands, the whole performance is much more enjoyable. The RWS Cranes pale in comparison.

The kids have recently been introduced to board games, and the hottest game around the house right now is Monopoly Junior!

 

This evergreen board game by Parker Brothers seems to have captivated the imagination of the kids, and with a short game-time,  the kids seem to be hooked! The game is is also educational, as it teaches the basic concepts of handling money and patience…this is one of the hardest commodities to teach the children  

Our 6yo seems to be loving the game the most – as she loves to give and receive money. No2 loves to play, as long as he “thinks” that he  is winning! . And No.3 is just happy to be in the same room with everybody. As you can see, we have many parenting paradigms in the same room…

The game is currently still a HIT with the kids, as we try to add variations to the game as much as possible. I think  that this is one of the most important unwritten rules in any board game – improvise to keep the kids interested.

I think that why they call it, “Monopoly – the Singapore Edition”!