This week, thanks to OMY and Casio, I had the opportunity to pick up the latest Casio EX- ZR20!

Every Blogger should own a point and shoot camera, as it is just a bit too heavy to lag a heavy DSLR where ever you go. Hence, a handy pocket size camera like Casio’s EX-ZR 20 is very useful!  

Picking up the camera, I was impressed with the capabilities of the camera!

1) An important feature of this camera is its Response Time. Don’t you hate it when cameras are slow to respond to your actions! This lag time is a real headache especially when you need to take pictures of your kids or your pets.

With a response time of 0.024 second shutter release time lag and 0.27 second shooting interval – the camera promises stress free photography as you chase after the kids around the house.

2) My Nikon D90 (DSLR) which weights a ton, allows me to take up to ISO 3200, but with some loss of detail. This little Camera allows me to  take images up to ISO 12800.

This means that you will be able to capture pictures even in a disco! Taking pictures in dimly lit areas is really important, as many restaurants and night spots, are too dimly lit, to enable good pictures!

3) And the Best thing about this camera which my Nikon definitely cannot do is HDR!

In case you are wondering, High Dynamic Range is the ability to take photos with different exposures of the same scenes and combing them, so that the photo is properly exposed.

For example, the photo on the right offers richer light details as compared to the one on the left. HDR offers the normal consumer, better ability to take good pictures, even with poor technique! This is especially important for camera novices like ourselves!  

I can’t wait to start using the camera, and show you the pictures I have taken with my new camera!

In fact, this camera is a real fool-proof Camera! With its special Premium Auto Pro Functions, you don’t need to have to be an  expert to take good pictures, and this camera proves it!

Check out my next post about the Casio EX-ZR20, as I bring the camera and the kids to the zoo!  

And by the way…the Good News is that, Casio is giving away one of these Cameras in a competition. All you need to do is to:

Upload a picture with a caption in 25 words or less and the one with the most votes can walk away with your own EX-ZR20.

Find out more at their Facebook Page by clicking here

Contest starts from7 – 20 May.

As our friend was getting married at G.H Universal Hotel, we had the chance to stay in this uniquely beautiful hotel.

The place is modelled with a Italian Renaissance theme, and I can really understand why my friend was getting married here.

Hotel Rooms are a bit small, so we opted for a room that was bigger than the regular Superior Rooms. The Governor suite was definitely just the right size for my family (2 Adults and 2 kids). However,  basic toilet amenities like the Toilet Sink was a bit small for the 4 of us though…

However, the best thing about this hotel is the decoration!

The decoration was even more stunning on the night of the wedding. It was like a castle set in the midst of the Indonesian mountains.

But if you are wondering what is there to do in Bandung…well…the rumours are true. Bandung is full of factory outlets!

Here, you can find fashion from Calvin Klein,Boss, Abercombie, Armani Jeans, Fred Perry and many other fashion brands. Yes…and it is true as well…I believe some are genuine rejects, but some of them are fakes as well.

However, prices are very affordable, and I am sure that you can find a good bargain when you are over there! My wife was especially excited over the kids clothes! After all, kids don’t mind if it’s a fake Gap, as long as it is comfortable! She bought lots of stuff for the kids, especially for Nicole who was back in Spore!

Looking for a new place to bring your kids? Head on down to Sentosa, and be surprised by a brand new water-play attraction  at  Palawan Beach.

With operating hours from 10am to 630pm daily, this kid’s club at Sentosa promises hours of fun for the whole family.

The main water play area, has a pirate ship attraction which all kids will love. It has 2 slides for the kids to go down, and the good thing about the slides, is that they are well watered, and therefore I went down quite fast, even with the kids sitting on my lap. This definitely added to the fun factor for myself and the kids!  

Besides the slides, you can also experience a foam party at POLW. Unfortunately, when we were there it was closed for a private party, but the birthday boy looks like he was having loads of fun! It looks like he is having his Zouk-out experience early in life! 

POLW is not just a water play park, but it offers other fun activities as well. There is a garden where you can learn how to plant and stations for other activities as well.  We did not get to try out the other activities, as we entered the park at about 4pm, so do go early, if you want to make the most of your day!

Weekday Walk-in rates are at $8 and $15 on weekends. You can also join the Port for an annual membership of $90. (Good news is that Adults are FREE) Opening hours are from 10am to 630pm daily.

You can find out more at their website over here

Last few weeks have truly been fun and exciting for us as a family. Recently, we were invited to Essence Studios for a studio shoot. As a family, we have never been for a professional studio shoot before, and we were terribly excited at the chance to experience the studio for ourselves.

Located near Somerset MRT, the studio made my wife and I go “WOW! We have been to some studios before, and they are usually cluttered and dark, but Essence Studios made us feel like we were entering into an Art Gallery. In fact, while I was looking for the shop, I missed the entrance a few times, as I thought that it was a spa  

What’s really cool about Essence Studios is that they aim  to capture something special in every image – that brings out an individual’s or relationship with a loved one!  It’s no wonder that they have offices in Singapore and in Hong Kong!

With that in mind, the kids were allowed to bring their toys for the shots! As a family, we were also asked to bring things that reminded us of stuff that we always do together.  For example, our favourite food, our favourite clothes, and basically things that we just love!  

Naturally, we brought Paper Bags to remind ourselves of one of our favourite pastimes – and that is shopping! Here are some photos of the behind the scene experiences that we captured!

We thoroughly enjoyed our experience and we are looking forward to see our photos. Many Thanks to our photographer Esther for helping us feel so comfortable at the shoot. Looking forward to show everyone the photos really soon!  

Mother’s Day is approaching, and if you  are wondering where to bring your mum for a good meal, you have got to check out PUTIEN.

With outlets at  Marina Square, Vivo City, Nex, Tampines Mall and Jurong Point,  Putien had its humble beginnings as a coffee Shop in Singapore’s Kitchener Road in 2000. Today, it has grown into a popular chain with 9 outlets and 1 in Jakarta, Indonesia and Petaling Jaya, Malaysia.

Recently, My family were invited to sample Putien’s special Mother’s Day / Father’s Day menu, and we were pleasantly surprised by their menu. The food was authentic and with its emphasis on fresh ingredients, the meal was tasty and not heavy on the palette. In other words, it was DELICIOUS!  

If you are wondering the origins of the food, Putien specializes in Heng Hwa dishes from the Fujien Province. It prides itself as a restaurant which serves authentically traditional dishes with an emphasis on fresh ingredients. This is something that the restaurant lives up to!  

So which of the dishes that I really like?

A real favourite with the kids and my Cantonese mum and wife is the “Double-boiled duck soup with Abalone and Cordyceps”. The soup was clear and tasty, and even sat well with a non-soup foodie like myself.  You will be glad to know that the menu includes other dishes like stir-fired scallops and steamed fried Soon Hock with Chilli.  The fish is definitely worth a mention, as Nathan gulped the fish down, despite it being a little spicy  

One of the dishes that really caught my eye was the stir-fried yam! I am actually a bit westernized in my choice of food, but this dish is really unique. Pop a yam into your mouth, and you get a slow explosion of salty and sweet flavours that attack your taste buds. Frankly, it is something that you rarely experience and a definite MUST TRY.

The significance of the last dish will also not be lost with the older generation. All sets for the Mother’s/ Father’s day includes a “Mazu Ping An Noodles”. This is a version of Longevity Noodles unique to Fujien. It is of special significance for the Heng Hwa as, they believe that the Sea Goddess Mazu would offer a bowl of these noodles to every seafarer she saved. They therefore symbolize safety and wellness. Most importantly, to a discerning noodle eater like myself – they are delicious!  

And for dessert – they serve “Orh Nee”. The normal “Orh Nee’ is always extremely sweet and oily. As a result,  it is a dessert that I rarely touch. However, the “Orh Nee” at Putien is a pleasant surprise even for the fussy eater like myself. It was light and not too sweet, and easy to eat!  I also had the opportunity to sample their cooling glass jelly and it was really something that was worth the extra order  

A set like the one above for 6 persons would cost $318++ for Mother’s Day and they have sets from $128++ for 4 and up to $578 for 10 people.

The menu will be served from May 1 to 14 for Mother’s Day (Sunday, May 13) and from June 4 to 18 for Father’s Day (Sunday, June 17).

Make your reservations early to avoid disappointment:

Pu Tien Restaurant

127 Kitchener Road

Tel: 749 6338

However, we are always thinking of creative ways to throw a really fun party, and our latest idea is having involving food. If you have not caught on…do keep on reading…

Yes! As all kids love OREOs, we had our very first theme party of 2012, built around OREOs.

Needless to say, we did not have to do much to get some really enthusiastic fans!

Well, if you have not been to an OREO party, to tell you the truth…neither have I! But I guess that’s the fun part of party planning…Brainstorming and coming up with our own Games!  

Initially, we wanted to build a bath-tub full of OREOs and get Daddy to come dressed in an OREO Mascot costume…create our own OREO MAN (instead of Superman)

However due to budget constraints…we just had an OREO Tele-match and other  Simple Party games.  Frankly, after doing so many parties, kids are the easiest people ever, and as long as the games are fun, they don’t really need the fanfare! (We instructed the kids to come in OREO colours too! Blue, Black or White!)

In fact, the games were not very complicated. When the music plays, run around the room and shout “Oreo…Oreo…Oreo” (You get the hint right), and once when the music stops,  stand on the alphabet indicated by the game-master. There were only 4 letters to stand on, and they were of course the letters needed to form our favourite snack O-R-E-O .

And guess what? After running around for 5 times or more, I was out of breath! Haha… age catches up!  

I have not led Party Games for kids for a very long time, but their energy was contagious. Next, we had an OREO tele-match where the kids had to go from Point A to B balancing an Oreo pack on each palm. Thereafter, we did “Passing the Parcel. The kids loved it!  

And to end off the party, we proceeded to the classroom for our cake cutting session.

This lovely Barbie Agar-Agar definitely added to the Party Effect, and at $45, was definitely a great alternative to a normal Party Cake. Nadine is into Barbie at the moment, and that’s why we got her this blonde sweetheart for her Birthday.

The rest of the kids were also wondering, how were they going to eat their blonde friend later!  

Here’s a family photo with Nadine before we go! Happy Birthday Nadine! Daddy and Mummy had great fun making your day Super Special! We are believing for you to grow into a beautiful confident women when you grow – And one day when you are old enough to read this post! We want you to know that WE LOVE YOU!

However, during Easter, we were invited to the Crown Hotel at Changi Airport Terminal 3, to sample the spread at their restaurant Azur.

At most buffets, you are kind of won over by the spread which they offer, and most of the time, we comment about the spread, and nothing much about food quality. Most of the time, people just say that the food is “Average” but its VALUE FOR MONEY due to the spread which they offer. 

At the “Azur”, the spread is passable,  but the winning factor is the FOOD QUALITY! I would have to say that the Asian Spread was really yummy, and considering that this is a buffet – it was a real PLUS point. Its 5 Star rating by Simply Dining is therefore no coincidence.

We really enjoyed the Asian Cuisine on offer at the Azur. The “Devil Curry”, “Pigs Trotters” and “Ngoh Hiang” are worth a mention!

It was no wonder, that the restaurant was near FULL HOUSE, when we went there for lunch.

If you are looking for a good place to bring your family, and planning to spend on a buffet, the Azur is a good bet!  

The Azur offers Daily Buffet Breakfast, Lunch  and Dinner with Weekend Brunch

Call Azur at 6823 5354 to make your reservations today!

This experience was definitely enriched by our stay at Wildman Wilderness Lodge.  Opened in April 2011, Wildman is a small scale high quality safari lodge featuring a variety of boutique tours of the surrounding Kakadu National Park.

As we have spent most of our life in the city, the wilderness in Darwin, was definitely not something that we were used to. However, Wildman Wilderness Lodge is able to bring the comforts of modern comfort (such as Air-Conditioning) to the wild Outback of Darwin.

The Wildman Wilderness Lodge is neatly balanced with Air-conditioned units called Habitats and the conventional Safari Tent. In this way,  the Lodge is able to offer a different experience, to every type of traveller.

The cool thing about the habitats is that you are placed in this little “greenhouse” facing the wild. As we sat there and relaxed in our rooms,  we could see wallabies jumping around, and even other parts of nature that was a bit foreign to City Folk like us!  

Check out this termite mound, just outside our unit.

To add to the experience, there is a heated pool, where you can just relax and swim in, and enjoy the outback around you. Here are some other photos of the compound:

In case you are wondering what the other accommodations are like, here is a picture of the tents. They are definitely not shabby at all, and really classy. Its definitely good enough for us city folks, but the time of the year is really important. 

As it was the wet season in Darwin, it is a bit tough for us, as there were lots of flies and bugs that come out at night. The tents offer very little protection to these critters, and the air-con units are definitely much comfortable in that respect. In case you are wondering,  these critters are commando trained, and they can still sneak into any air-conditioned unit…so closing the windows and doors is not a fool-proof measure of keeping them out! 

If you are thinking of going, they say that the best time to  go to Darwin is in June-July, where its winter time and that’s when the bugs are not around as well.

And if you are wondering what else is there to see in Darwin…

You have got to check out the waterfalls!

The waterfalls are really beautiful, and we had great fun trying to swim in them. If you are an adventure buff, and looking for a road less travelled, Darwin is definitely the place for you!

Everyone needs to learn their ABC’s, and as the kids are in school, they have been getting these ABC assignments.

Nicole is in Primary 1 and she just got an ABC assignment. She has to find words to describe A to Z.

For example, A is Apple, B is for Ball.

My little Princess decided to be creative, and not do the simple Apple and Ball thing. So she is trying to think out of the box and find words that match the alphabet.

This is what she has so far.

E is for Email

G is for Google

I is for iPhone

W is for Window

Y is for YouTube

M is  for Mouse (Not Mummy )

and of course…she wrote this by herself..without any prompting (I must add)

D is for DADDY

and that is why…she is Daddy’s Princess!

Well, looks like history is in the making! She has ONE shaky tooth, finally! But what an amazing tooth it is! Let me show you a pictorial. Do focus your eyes on those centre pearlies.

Nicole – March 2010

Nicole – December 2011

Nicole – 17 March 2012 (Can you see the gap…?)

Nicole – 31 March 2012 (That one tooth is overlapping the other, while the gap widens)

And this is today—5 April 2012:

My baby’s teeth moved! Or her jaw grew larger! And in God’s miraculous ways, the teeth just moved with it!

We can’t wait to lay our hands on that one tooth and yank it off. But of course, that would mean holding down a very violent and aggressive 7yr old girl. We checked with the dentist too, and he says it’s her jaw growing, and since no adult teeth is out yet, the gap in between teeth naturally increases! *phew!*

So the tooth fairy continues her wait… … ……  Anyone else had teeth move or jaws growing so obviously?

UPDATE – 10 April

The tooth came off! “When I was blowing my nose” . . .

So she wrote her first note to the Tooth Fairy. My oh my… check out her note!

She wants $50 for her tooth, and then she changed her mind and she wanted more. She even wrote down her address so that the Tooth Fairy would not lose her way.

I quickly said, the tooth fairy only comes for your FIRST tooth and never again! As this magical fairy is a bit expensive to keep ALIVE!…Fairy Tales are a bit expensive to upkeep in pragmatic Singapore… hahaha….