Dec15 School Holiday - Show time! (Part 3)

It was a belated post as was very tied up with events. We watched a few more shows at shopping malls. Check out my part 1 and 2 post about the previous show we watched. 

1) Elmo show & activities @ Plaza Singapura

When we reached Plaza Sing, there was no space left so we were way behind catching a glimpse of the show. 

The show was okay. Just some music and dance. It was a short duration of about 20mins. 

There was some bouncing castle outside Plaza Sing and my gal was enjoying it so much! 

2) Christmas @ Ion

We went over to Ion at night. Their Christmas deco was the best among the rest of the shopping malls. 

My gal was enjoying the tradional merry go round. Brought back lots of my childhood memory too! 

Listening to xmas orchestra @ Ion! 

3) Barney and Friends show @ United Sq

As the first Barney show was good so we thought we would catch the show again at a different shopping mall. 

By the time we reached, the mall was again bustling with people and we only managed to squeeze in some space behind. But most of the time our views were blocked. We did not enjoyed the show as much as we did at One Km Mall. So location is important when watching shows. 

4) Magic bubble show @ Changi City Point

My gal totally enjoyed the show and so did I! After watching lots of cartoon characters show, we started to get bored too. So this bubble show was refreshing.

My gal loved it so much that the next few days after that she kept asking to watch the show again. 

So this magic bubble show was the winner of the Dec school holiday fiesta! 

4) National Play Day @ Sports Hub

We went to the event in the morning and gosh, it was a full day of action! 

My gal loved the bouncing castle. 

She was having great fun at the jumping jack! 

She was making her reindeer pencil holder.

She was making her hippo mask. 

Yeah my hippo mask! 

In the evening we went to the splash and play zone to enjoy some water fun. It was located at the roof top of the sports hub. The view was gorgeous! 

My gal was carefully treading down the pool. 

She slowly wading her way through the pool.

The view on top. 

Nice fun place! 

That rounds up our Dec15 program. It was a great fun! As mummy I also got to enjoy and felt like a young little girl again haha. 

Dec15 School Holiday - Show time! (Part 2)

After the past few days of show hopping (check out my Part 1 post), we watched 3 more shows this week. Here's the sharing.

1) Alvin and Chipmunks show @ Eastpoint Mall

It was a 4pm show on a weekday so the crowd was managable. 

It was like a concert show of the cheekmunks singing pop and christmas songs. There was some 'snow' and bubbles displayed and the kids were ecstatic. The show lasted for about 25mins.

However my gal looked bored and was not as engaged. She actually covered her ears at one point as the music was quite loud. Perhaps she was not too familar with the chipmunks and the pop songs they sang did not relate well to her. 

Ting Ting : 3.5/5

2) Mr Men Little Miss show @ Bedok Mall

We hopped over to Bedok Mall for the Mr Men Little Miss show at 7pm. The crowd was managable as well. 

There were 4 characters performing and they were Mr Strong, Mr Bump, Ms Sunshine and Ms Hug. There was a short skit about sharing a hug which I think is quite meaningful. The show lasted for about 20-25mins. 

My gal was quite engaged with the show and she managed to tell me that she liked Ms Hug the best among the rest of characters. 

Ting Ting : 4/5 

3) Dora the Explorer show @ Suntec City

Dora is her first favorite character and she's been crazy over Dora ever since. So this is another 'must see' show. Last year we watched Dora show at United Square which was quite a good one. So this year when Dora show coming again I quickly marked it down on my calendar to watch on the first show on the first day it started. 

When we went there 30mins before the show started, the place was already very crowded and we were sitting way behind. What I liked about the Dora show was 30mins before the show started, they actually played Dora and Paw Patrol cartoons on the big LCD screen to keep the children occupied. This is the first show which did this so far and I think is a nice touch. 

They performed a short skit and some singing and dancing. Some popular characters were there too like Dora, Boots, Diego and Chase and Marshall from Paw Patrol. It is one the best show which we watched so far. The show lasted for about 30mins. 

My gal was fully engaged throughout the show and her eyes were like glue on to the stage. After the show ended, she refused to leave and hang around the stage to watch the Dora cartoon which they played on the LCD after the show. She is such a die-hard fan of Dora! 

Personally, I also like Dora the Explorer the best among so many characters. The character is positive, likes exploring and helping others. The cartoon series are educational too which teaches children about how to be resourceful to help others or achieve the goal.  

Ting Ting : 5/5

Verdict 

If you have time for only one show, go for the Dora or Barney show as these are the best 2 shows we had watched so far. But you got to go quickly as the shows only performed for a limited time. 

So this marks the end of our first week of show hopping. We are going to take a rest on the weekend as usually the shopping malls will be extremely crowded! 

Next week we will continue our show hopping and other kids activities. Stay tune! 

Dec15 School Holiday - Show time! (Part 1)

It's Dec school holiday again! It is a 'must do' thing to go show hopping at shopping malls as there are so many shows line up! 

What I did this time is to compile the list of shows and planned my schedule. Almost every day is packed and filled with action! 

1) Strawberry Shortcake show @ Bishan Junction 8

It was the first show we watched. We attended the 1pm session during weekday so it was not too crowded. My gal enjoyed the show especially when Strawberry and friends changed into their evening gown. The show lasted about 20-25mins.

Ting Ting : 4/5

2) Peppa Pig show @ United Square

We quickly hopped over to United Square for the Peppa Pig show at 2.30pm. My gal was so crazy about Peppa Pig and bugged us to watch the show almost everyday. So it was a 'must go' event. 

When we reached there at 2pm, it was already so crowded! We only managed to get a glimpse way behind. But most of the time the views were blocked by other kids in front. 

Maybe because we couldn't see much so it was not really interesting. It was quite a let down I felt. The show lasted about 20-25mins too.

After the show, I asked my gal which show she prefered. She replied 'Strawberry!' Even though she is a die hard fan of Peppa Pig. 

Ting Ting : 3/5 

3) Barney, Thomas & Friends show @ One KM Mall

It was a show full of actions and showcasted popular characters like Thomas and Barney & Friends. 

My gal was squealing with delight when she saw Thomas the train budged out from the door with steam. She was so excited that she jumped up and down. 

She was equally excited when Barney & Friends came out. They sang a lot of popular kids songs which my gal could relate to. She was dancing and jumping with the music and truly enjoyed herself. 

I felt this Barney show was the best so far among the shows we watched. Not only it was entertaining but we could see all the popular characters with nice kids songs. It was worth the travelling to One KM Mall although it is quite far from our house. The show lasted for about 30mins.  

Ting Ting : 5/5

4) Spongebob Sparepants show @ City Square Mall

Although my gal is not as crazy over Spongebob as compared to other popular characters like Peppa Pig, she nonetheless enjoyed the show and stayed engaged throughout. The show lasted for 30mins. 

When I asked her which character she liked best in the show, she strangely replied Squidward. That was strange consideringSquidward  is not as popular as Spongebob or Patrick and it is a grumpy character. 

By spending minimun $30 in the mall, we got to redeem a Spongebob activity play pass. The pass allows each child to play 4 different games only once each. The most interesting one is the bouncy castle but each kid can only play 10mins. My gal was jumping with joy and refusing to leave when her time was up. The rest of the games are neligible. 

Ting Ting : 4.5/5

5) Snoopy show @ Nex Mall

We attended the show at 1pm on a weekday again. There were only 3 characters featured during the show; Snoopy, Charlie Brown and Nancy. The show was pretty simple with the characters dancing, singing and a short skit. The show lasted about 15mins only which was the shortest duration among the shows we watched so far. 

The show was easy to understand and entertaining too but not as interesting compared to the other shows. 

Ting Ting : 3.5/5

6) Precious Moment show @ Seletar Mall

We went to the Seletar Mall after the Snoopy show due to the proximity of the mall to our house and the suitable timing which was 3pm.

The set up is not as impressive as compared to the rest of the shows. There were a few precious moment characters dancing on the stage but no skit only pure dancing to some popular kids and christmas songs. 

The highlight of the show was the free photo taking with the characters. All the other shows required people to spend a minimum of $30-$50 before taking photos with the characters. But this one was free meaning no minimum spending is required. 

My gal looked bored and not as enthusiastic to dance and sing along. I think it was because precious moment characters were not as cute and easy to relate to as compared to the rest. 

Ting Ting  : 3/5

Verdict

If you have limited time to bring your kids to watch the shows, then my pick will be Barney and Spongebob show. If you have time for only one show, then go for the Barney show. 

There are more shows upcoming and almost everyday is packed. Stay tune to more reviews! 

Home DIY gravity drip irrigation system

Set up a cheap precision drip gravity irrigation system for indoors / hi-rise home~

We set up a self watering solution for our herbs for the following reasons:

- Low maintenance self-watering for vacations
- Precise customized delivery of water to plants
- Vehicle for precise, uniform fertilizer delivery
- Cheap readily available / recycled parts
- Eco-friendly. Zero energy use, zero carbon emissions
- Scalable and easily customizable
- Better, cheaper and more precise than commercially sold drip systems

Instructions at:

http://www.instructables.com/id/Home-DIY-gravity-drip-irrigation-for-herbs-and-pla/

Children Book Review - 如果地球被我们吃掉了

I came across this children book at the library yesterday and borrowed it for my daily book reading routine with my gal. 

It is a simple book telling the children what will happen if we consume the last bit of ice at the poles, capture the last fish in the ocean, drink the last drop of clean water in the river, pluck the last fruit on the fruit tree, chop off the last tree, skin the last animal for their furs and sell away the last clean air we have. 

What we left is money and gold. But money cannot be eaten and we cannot exchange gold for clean air. There is one last ray of hope - a child on this Earth who keeps the birds in her arms and seeds of life in her pocket.

It was a very meaningful book. It brings out an important message with simple and easy to understand wording and graphics. 

To change the Earth's fate from destruction, I believe it starts with educating our children the value and importance of cherishing our Earth's resources as it is not infinite. Some day all the resources will be used up if we continue our plundering acts. What we left is only money and gold metals just like what the book pointed out: 

最后只剩下钱，可是钱又不能吃。

只剩下金子，可是金子又不能用来呼吸。

When I read this book with my gal, she was pretty quiet and managed to stay focus reading the whole book. I hope this will instill the seed of cherish in her mind. 

The future of Earth, our home planet depends on us and our children. Our children is our last ray of hope. 

Recommendation 值得推荐: 5/5 

My DIY Project 4 - Screw free PC LCD stand

After a series of DIY projects, I started to look around my house to think of ideas how to reduce clutter and improve the process design. 

My work desk was always cluttered with my laptop, electronic stuff and all the wires. Gosh, how I dreaded the wires! I had no extra space on my work desk to do my stuff. Sometimes it affected my motivation to do my work too. 

I kept thinking of ways to create more space on my work desk. I first thought of making a mini flat drawer which I could place my LCD on top and put my laptop into the drawer whenever I need more space. I started to surf the net for ideas how to create the drawer but gosh, that required a lot of work and professional equipments like electric saw and many others. Basically I need a garage which I don't have! I also see no point of buying new equipments or wooden planks just to do up the drawer as it would defeat my DIY purpose of using recycle items. 

A second idea came to me to simply use a plank and install 2 stands by nailing it to the plank. However I would still need to saw the plank and stands to the required measurements as there were no ready made planks which fits the size. Therefore I thought hard and had a discussion with my husband. He suggested that I need to get something sturdy to hold the planks. Instead of sawing the plank into shorter pieces, a longer plank would be better as it would be able to hold more things. 

I searched my storeroom and found a piece of long laminate plank lying on the floor and piled with dust. It was an extra piece of plank which we had previously when we installed our laminate flooring. There was no use for it but it would be wasteful to throw it away as it was still so sturdy. So it was kept as a backup in case one of our laminate plank needs replacement. 

After wiping it, it looked as good as new and very sturdy and thick too. I measured the length and size, it was just perfect for my desk. 

Next, I needed something to hold the plank firmly. I don't want to go through the hassle of drilling holes, sawing and hammering nails. I needed something which I had many in quantity and could stacked them together to form a sturdy stand for the plank. 

Then an idea struck me. I could use CDs! I had so many of them which I had no use at all. Nowadays we watched our movies and shows in mp3 format. There are no need for CDs anymore. I had hundreds or maybe thousands of them in my cupboard collecting dust all these years and I don't know what to do with them.  

So I picked them up and stack all the CDs together to form a stand till they reached the required height. Each stand needed about 40+ CDs. Then I used clear masking tape to stick them together firmly. After making two CD stands, I placed the laminate plank on top of the CD stands. It forms a sturdy hold. I placed my LCD, speakers, phone and multi plugs on the plank. I re-arranged the wires neatly below the plank. I just need to push my laptop into the space gap between the 2 CD stands to make more space for my desk. 

Tada! My screw free LCD stand was made within a short frame of time with minimal effort! Seriously I am very proud of this creation! My husband was so surprised with this idea that he also got his desk installed with the same setting. We managed to find another extra piece of laminate plank in our storeroom and did up similarly for the CD stands. His desk now looks so neat and cluttered free too! 

Do try it to declutter your desk ;)

Effort Required: 1/5 

The CD stands are able to hold up the planks firmly. It looked so much neater with all the wires organised below the plank. 

I just slotted in my laptop beneath the plank and between the CD stands to free up more space on my desk!