Saturday, December 29, 2012

Merry Gym Total Gymnastique


Marissa has been attending Merry Gym for the past month. So far, she's been enjoying the classes. It's a big group of over a dozen kids mainly boys, aged between 3 to 6 years. Merry Gym starts with a warm up session usually done with an obstacle course. Then the kids split up into smaller groups. Class duration is one hour held weekly every Sunday afternoon from 2-3pm at Sri KL, Subang. From next year onwards, there will be a new class on Wednesday night 7-8pm for those are interested in classes twice a week. Fees are RM100 per month, collected once every quarter. For the double classes, fees are RM180. Upon registration (RM60) kids will receive a sticker book, tee and shorts. Trial classes are available for free.

The coaches are all male but there are assistant female coaches as well. Coach Mike Ng is photographed above. There's also Coach Sam Thong, Coach Jhony and Coach Jozef Safko. Coach Jozef is in charge of the girls group. The girls do artistic gymnastics e.g balance beam, trampoline, uneven bars etc. I find that the coaches are all very professional. The children are also all very eager to learn and most importantly have fun while doing it!


Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Jingle Bells

Evan learned how to play Jingle Bells during his piano lessons. Here's a version of Jingle Bells  modified by Evan - sounds kinda spooky.





To all : Have a blessed Christmas! Jesus is the reason for the season!






Monday, December 10, 2012

Updates


The Christmas season is upon us! Brought the kids to Bangsar Village for dinner at Three Little Pigs & The Big Bad Wolf. Then went window shopping around the mall. Took the opportunity to snap some pics. 



Marissa has just joined a gymnastics club - Total Gymnastique at Sri KL Subang. Evan has yet to join the club because the timing is not suitable. So we are waiting for the new branch to be opened before enrolling him.  Total Gymnastique offers both artistic and rhythmic gymnastics. For boys, only artistic gymnastics is available. I've compiled some information here for those who are interested in gymnastics:
Carolyn's School of Gymnastics specialises in Rhythmic Gymnastics hence they only accept girls, and is helmed by former national gymnast : Carolyn Au Yong. Other coaches include El-Regina Tajuddin & Lily Lai. Another former national gymnast, Thye Chee Kiat has her own club called Pink Clubs Rhythmic Gymnastics. Sarina's Rhythmic Gymnastics Club is currently recruiting for next year. Serdang Rhythmic Angels Club is another club offering rhythmic gymnastics.

Evan attended a few fencing lessons in September but did not enrol him as the fees are very expensive. Anyway, hubby says better go learn martial arts. *slaps forehead*
For those are interested in fencing, best age to start is 7.
1) Swashbucklers Fencing Club (PJ)
2) Z-fencing (Bangsar Shopping Center)
3) International Fencing Club Malaysia (Solaris Mont Kiara)

As speech & drama classes have come to an end, both Evan & Marissa will be taking English lessons at Lorna Whiston TTDI cos I'm kinda at a loss on how to teach them English except completing some workbooks and I find that sorta boring. Well, will see how it goes......

As for myself, my last day of work is looming nearer and nearer.... now in the midst of planning and setting up my own biz cos I am now no longer designing cakes for Crumbs. Will announce here once it's up and running. 




Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Graduation from KLPAC's Speech & Drama Preschool Program

Last week, both Evan & Marissa completed Term 2 of the Speech & Drama program at KLPAC. The kids presented a short skit based on the popular picture book "We're Going on a Bear Hunt" and also a simple song at the end.



Ms Kimmy Kiew presented the certificates to the kids.




Saturday, November 10, 2012

Legoland Malaysia Trip


Finally we made our way down south to Legoland Malaysia for a short stay. Based on a friend's recommendation, I booked a family room at Oak Valley Hotel, JB. The room is clean, basic and large enough for the 4 of us. Furnished with a King-size bed, super single bed, huge wardrobe, TV, desk and chair. An electrical jug is provided and complimentary mineral water (3 bottles). 

Rates for the family room is RM115nett for members. Otherwise it's RM135nett. No surcharge for public holidays or peak periods. So I signed up as a member on the spot and paid RM50 cash annual membership fees. During check out, I paid RM440 for our 5D/4N stay there using my credit card. There's a launderette just beside the hotel. Within the vicinity, there is a vegetarian restaurant which opens for brekkie.

Simple, clean and basic bathroom with water heater and shower gel dispenser mounted on the wall. Will be staying here again the next time we visit Legoland i.e. when the water park opens in 2013.


In this blog post, I will share some tips which I've learnt from this trip:
Ample parking available at Legoland but it's unshaded. For early birds, try parking at the Mall of Medini carpark it's nearer to Legoland, plus there are a number of shady spots.


If you intend to redeem or to purchase your annual pass or to purchase day tickets, the ticketing counters open earlier so do arrive about 9am and start lining up. Once done, do take some photos at the Legoland arch or eat breakfast at Old Town White Coffee or KFC which are located within Mall of Medini.   



Wear light clothing. Sunblock, caps and umbrellas are a must because it's super hot in Legoland! Strollers are available for rental - RM20 for a single one and RM30 for a double one which seats 2 persons.

Mascots will be around to meet and greet visitors just before the park gates open - you can get your photos taken with them once you enter but the mascots do make regular appearances in the park throughout the day so no worries if you didn't manage to snap a pic with them.





You can download the map of Legoland at their website so that you can plan your trip. Lego Technics Land is on the left side of the park. At the Lego Academy, Lego Mindstorms (Robotics) workshops start from 11am onwards for children aged 8 and above. Evan is not yet 8 but we managed to register him for both the workshops cos we were the first there and they didn't enquire his age. He really enjoyed the 45-minute workshops and has already decided that once he owns a robot, he's gonna program it do clean up his toys in his room.


So, if keen on the robotics workshops, get someone to head there first and register/book the slots. While waiting for the workshop to start, go for the roller coaster ride and power wave ride, also in Lego Technics or head straight to Adventure Land to beat the queues.

Scary looking ride at Dinosaur Land! But looks very fun! Popular rides like these are the ones that will have long queues.

Forgot to mention...at the Lego Academy, kids can play with Lego Duplo Education sets like these. Nice cooling air-cond environment inside. However, limited sets are available.

The Forbidden City in Beijing, China! Made entirely out of Lego bricks! Lots of monuments and architecture to photograph here in Miniland including our very own KL tower. Spend your evening here photographing all the details when the sun is not so blazing hot. 


If you have younger kids and do not want to explore Lego Technics land first, then best to head off to Lego City..... lots of interesting stuff to do here.

Evan at senior driving school


Steer your own motorboat

Remote control boats - RM5 per token for about 2 minutes of play


Take a train ride around Legoland
Fire & Rescue department

Fly at the airport

 There's a stall selling popcorn and ice cream 


Lego City stage shows inside - but kinda boring. 
So unless you have time, don't watch.

At Imagination Land, do not miss watching the 4D movies. Screening starts at 11am. Each show is about 20-25minutes. 3 different movies available. Expect long queues for this so to save time, take away food from cafes and eat while lining up. Talking about food, expect lots of french fries and fast food here in Legoland...... if theme park food is not your cup of tea, then head out of Legoland to the Mall of Medini for food e.g. KFC, Old Town White Coffee, Manhattan Fish Markets etc.

Otherwise, if no choice and hunger pangs strike in Legoland, do visit Knight's Feast for grilled food. The grilled chicken and sausages are worth the queue. The Cafe at The Beginning also serves healthy sandwiches made on the spot. Choose from a variety of breads e.g. foccacia, ciabatta etc and fillings e.g. cheese, turkey ham, tuna etc. 

In Legoland, there's lots of free play area for kids. In Imagination land, there's a Duplo Play Town for the younger kids with slides, play houses and a train ride! For the older kids, there's the Shipyard (Lego City), Forestman's Hideout (Lego Kingdoms) and Pharoah's Revenge (Lego Adventureland).



Another great place for free play and Lego building is inside Build & Play where kids can build Duplo structures and test their stability with an earthquake simulator or build vehicles and have a race with other kids.

Legoland souveniers are super pricey but they do have really cool knights' costumes for both boys and girls. But don't buy Lego sets there cos all are at normal price. Buy online at BrickBastion.com where members (free membership) get 10% discount plus loyalty points plus free shipping for orders above RM250.

Next year, Legoland will be opening its water park and in 2014, the Legoland Hotel will open its doors. Will wait for the water park to open before making out 2nd visit there and drop by Hello Kitty town nearby at Puteri Harbour as well.







Sunday, November 4, 2012

IBU Christmas Charity Bazaar 2012


I will be participating in IBU's bazaar again this time it's in conjunction with Christmas! Booked an entire table for Blessed Kids - come and grab some bargains! I will be clearing out my stock : children's books, Gymboree clothing, Bento style lunchboxes, Mother Garden wooden toys, LEGO and probably will bake some cupcakes and decorate them with Christmas theme!

IBU's Christmas Charity Bazaar is happening at Publika's Art Row and White Box on 18th Nov (Sunday) from 10am-6pm. Lots of activities for the kids! 

Friday, November 2, 2012

Trick or Treat

Just for fun, the kids dressed up in costumes to Mid Valley Megamall to claim a free Boost juice on Halloween. Evan wanted to be a pirate - so I made him a simple vest out of leftover red felt. Pirate hat and cutlass were purchased from Balloons Buzz some time ago. 

Marissa dressed up as a 'good witch' who makes 'good potions'. Hat was purchased from Balloons Buzz, cauldron was from Party World and tee, from F.O.S.  I made her a red tutu! 

And here they are with their favourite low-fat smoothies courtesy of Boost Juice Bars Malaysia.

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Evan's 2nd In-House Concert at Anne Perreau's




Evan participated in his 2nd concert for the year on 13th October 2012 - playing a melody he composed himself entitled "Captain John Hopping up the Hill". FYI, Captain John is a rabbit! His teacher: Ms. Phylicia accompanied him on the other piano.
He played very well and confidently without any mistakes and without the music score..... as he is in the habit of doing. Am happy that he loves his music and piano classes the most (out of all the various classes he attends) and he practices his piano everyday - more often than not without me reminding him.

Monday, October 8, 2012

Trip to the National Blood Bank


We visited the National Blood Bank together with kids from the homeschooling network. One of the mummies did the paperwork and organizing. There are special parking bays within the building compound for blood donors.

All of us attended a mini lecture on blood donation and then we were brought on a tour of the facilities. We saw the equipments and machinery used to process the blood.

If you are between 18-60yrs old, in good health and weigh at least 45kg, then you are eligible to donate blood. Younger children can also donate blood but parental consent is necessary.

The National Blood Bank is opened everyday except on Sundays.
Mon-Wed: 7:30am-5:30pm
Thurs-Fri: 7:30am- 8pm
Sat: 7:30am-4pm

Saturday, October 6, 2012

Sole to Soul Annual Concert 2012

Sole to Soul Dance Studio's Annual Concert 2012 was held at MATIC, KL on 2 consecutive days. First day was on 15th September - a Saturday nite and then a matinee on Sunday. Evan participated in the concert as his class had a joint performance with the Grade 1 ballet students. He is currently at PID level. The title of their performance - Music Box Dancers with choreography by STSDS principal and ballet teacher : Ms Alice Yap.  Evan and Jayson were the 2 boys performing in the ballet.

Turning the music box key


 The ballerinas twirling in their music boxes


The ballerinas in pink are from PID and the blue ones are from Grade 1.

Evan had make up on!

Striking a pose

The 2 boys!

Suddenly the ballerinas turned into scary dolls
 
 
 The ballerinas stopped moving

 
Are the boys in trouble?


The ballerinas attacking the boys

The boys have the keys and they wind up the ballerinas

All back to normal

The ballerinas dance around the boys

 Final jumps

 
Finale

There were 3 other ballet performances as well - one by the PPID class - very cute! There was a classical ballet performed by the Grade 4 & 6 classes combined. And another classical offering by the adult ballet with 2 men dancing. Other performances include Hip Hop, New School Hip Hop, K-pop, Belly Dancing, Breakdance, Solo singing and wonderful performances by the Senior & Junior Dance Company. The last performance was a Gangnam Style one by the dance companies and the instructors.