Life Is In The Small Things

Trekking Through Nature with the National Geographic Channel Young Explorer’s Programme

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Both Noey and I bounced out of bed bright and early on Saturday morning for an adventure which was a contrast to our sometimes slow Saturday mornings: a trek through Bukit Timah Nature Reserve with the National Geographic Channel.Ready to hike the nature reserve!Living in highly urban Singapore, I've often lamented the lack of opportunities for children to get out and get into nature. This is the gap that the National Geographic Channel Singapore hopes to bridge with its Young Explorer ... read more

Soaking In The Festivities at Chinatown

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Just last year, I started what I hope to be a tradition of bringing the kids to go soak up the atmosphere at Chinatown in the run-up to Chinese New Year.It's not actually somewhere which I'm familiar with, Chinatown. My parents were not the sort of frequent the place. Or at least, if they did go, they rarely did bring me along. But I think as I've grown older, I've certainly become more nostalgic about my roots. I find myself more interested in customs and traditions and more keen to participate ... read more

A Straddle Injury

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We had another first recently, but not one that I was looking forward to: our first trip to the Emergency Room for the year.It's bad enough when your child gets injured but it's extra terrible when you're not around when it happens. I was actually out that night having quite a delightful dinner (steamboat! with my first yu sheng of the year!) with a dear friend and was driving home when I got a terse phone call. It was my husband telling me that Meips had cut herself and we needed to go to KKH ... read more

Far East Organisation Children’s Garden at Gardens by the Bay

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We're always on the look out for playgrounds when we are out and about. Not being mall-going people, you'll more often than not find us roaming outdoor parks and spaces, with playgrounds being a welcome sight for both parent and child. Fun for the young ones and a bit of respite for the adults!Well, we've found the mother of all playgrounds. It's got wet water play areas and dry forest adventure areas. It's got a toddler play area for 1-to-5s and tree houses and an adventure trail for 6-to-12s. ... read more

The End of Co-Sleeping

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2014 is turning out to be a milestone year. And this is probably the biggest thing to happen this year, thus far:Ladies and gentlemen, my kids are FINALLY SLEEPING IN THEIR OWN BEDS!!So yes, now you know our rather embarrassing little secret, which is that right up to the start of this year, we were still co-sleeping with our kids. Actually, scratch that. I was co-sleeping with the kids while my husband gratefully escaped onto the mattress on the floor that was meant for Noey. Unsurprisingly, he ... read more

Reads :: Back To School Books

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In the lead-up to Meips' big first day, we, like all parents, tried to ease the transition for her by doing various things. She was already somewhat familiar with the environment, having gone with me on numerous occasions to pick Noey up, so that was certainly a plus. We also spoke to her about her teachers and what she would be doing in school, and of course, read a number of books about starting school. I'm a firm believer of using books to help the kids articulate their thoughts and fears so ... read more

Ice Skating at The Rink

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We have had a really FULL December holiday. I don't know how it happened -- and sometimes I don't know why I do it to myself -- but it did. So full that I never got round to writing about it.Well, on Friday, Noey came home from school and told me that they were all asked to share what they did during the school holidays with the class, and that he told everyone about going ice-skating with his friend D. Since it made such an impact, I think it's a bit of a pity if I didn't record it for ... read more

Elly’s The Horse Parade CNY Collection {Giveaway}

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Christmas and New Year's Day are behind us, but there's still no time to rest because we are speeding on to Chinese New Year!As the shops did their quick change over to take all the Christmas music off their playlist and replace it with the dreaded dong-dong-chiang music, we are immediately faced with the two most important questions for the season: What are we going to EAT? And what are we going to WEAR? (Also, how am I going to manage our usually manic CNY schedule, though that's a totally ... read more

Off To Pre-Nursery!

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The start of a new year heralds the start of a new school term. This one was extra special for us because we had another little one taking her first steps into a formal schooling education. Little Meips joins big brother Noey in school this year in pre-nursery. (In case you're wondering, no, that isn't her uniform. She doesn't have to wear one this year so I put her in one of her own dresses which I thought suited the occasion -- and matched Noey's uniform!)We'd spent the week leading up to the ... read more