Backyard Campout

We have been talking about going camping during the school holidays...but it never happened.

Camping can be very fun and interesting. It brings back the simplicity of nature, and it is one of the things we would like little J to experience such as teaching him how to set up a tent, outdoor cooking, sleeping outdoor with a sleeping bag, planning for tv-free & computer-free activities, teach him how to respect the nature and the list goes on and on and on...

For weeks.....little J have been asking papa L to make a bond fire because he wants to grill some marshmallows just like Spongebob Square Pants & Patrick in the cartoon.

We thought it's good timing to introduce outdoor cooking to him before we head off to the real camp site...so, over the weekend, L and J went to the park nearby to collect some woods for the fire. They came back, very excited and began their big mission!

They dug hole in the bare (no flower) garden and planned how it should be done. There's discussions, planning and feedback just like adults' talk. It was just so cute to watch! LOL...

Dad bought a three person tent to add to the camping atmosphere!

Careful planning & discussions

Digging done, now..lighting up the fire..

Fire up! Grill that marshmallow...

It was such a success... we ended up grilling our dinner on the pit as well!

J was happy he grilled some marshmallows and mom and dad was happy that J was happy....

Can't wait till our next real camping trip!

Fun Fair!

Who doesn't like going to the fair on a cool sunny day? Well...I do and so does J. ALL the kids do!
This is one of the fun fair we went to, over the long Labour Weekend. It was held in a school's field and entrance was FREE.

 
We ate fruits, rice crackers, chickpeas, and drank hot tea under a huge tree.

J had a go at all of the bouncy castles and all of them had loooonngg Qs. Luckily we had sun cream and hats on.

He was also brave enough to go on his FIRST pony ride! AND he liked it!

He wasn't interested in Ronald McD.

Long Q for sweet ice-cream, J had one - $3.50!!

Long Q for sugary mini donuts, J had none.

Long Q for sugary candy floss, J had none.

He also met one of his classmates, had a vanilla ice-cream and wanted so badly a candy floss which he didn't get because its just pure sugar and colouring (we're cutting off white sugar, white flour, white rice in our daily diet) so, instead we got him 'ice lollies' (not healthy too, but it gets diluted by the ice...LOL!)

No Q for sugary syrup. Check out his cute fingers!

Ice Lollies/Ice Balls/Kantong - $3.50!!!

In the end, everyone had a fun day at the fun fair...

Sushi Time

When we don't have much time to prepare lunch for little J (mostly happens on a Saturday), we usually get him sushi and he loves them. It's better than getting him chicken nuggets from McD or deep fried chicken and chips from KFC or some Chinese takeaways.

Take-away version

From my point of view, sushis are better because they have the right carbo (from rice & veggies), protein (from tuna,salmon & eggs) and fats (from avocado) all in one tiny piece.

When we have the time in the morning, J also brings sushi to school for lunch.
This is our home-made version of sushi with brown rice, chicken, avocado and carrots.

Home-made version with brown rice

Walkie-Talkie for the Family

I've always wanted a walkie-talkie, especially when we're out and little J and the husband wants to go to 'their' department and we ended up looking for each other and there was once I lost J in the mall and asked that they announced his name on the speaker! Definitely don't want that to happen again.

So, we bought this pair of walkie-talkie online. I've used them with J the other day when we were out at the mall and it was good. I was able to go to 'my' department and he was able to go to his without worrying about getting lost or where to find him. I feel much more comfortable being able to communicate with him.

Once a while we would checked on each other (he would say "radio check", so cute) and when it's time to go, it was easy to find him!

It is also handy at home. I can tell him "dinner's ready" or "time for homework" or "time for bath" and instead of me chasing him, he came out to me! It's also fun for him too because he feels like a policeman with the walkie-talkie.

Benefits of using Walkie-Talkie:

• Instant communication (texting takes too much time when you're not fast enough, like me..)
• No call/texting charges
• License free
• Useful for talking to more than one person at a time (planing on getting another one so L can go to 'his' department too LOL)

Every family with children should invest in a pair or two of Walkie-Talkie.
(they're good for outdoor activities too!!)

It Runs in the Family...

J started wearing glasses on the 18th August 2010 (age 5).
He's doing fine so far. No complains, no battle and haven't misplace it yet! LOL...

I advised his form teacher few days before hand and ask that she makes sure the other kids don't laugh at him or say silly things that will discourage him from wearing.

Other ways to help:

• I talked to J about wearing glasses. I let him know that its okay to wear glasses and that he looks cool (it helps that both L and I are wearing glasses too)
• Showed him how to wipe the lenses, how to put on and remove his glasses  
• It helps that his favourite cartoon like Scooby-Doo character Velma wears glasses, Chicken Little and Harry Potter.
• I also tell him to keep them in his case when he's out playing with friends, but put them back on when he's back in class.

My Little Buzz Lightyear

Lately, J is obsessed with Buzz Lightyear. He went to watch Toy Story 3 with his poh-poh (grandma) in the cinema over the school holidays. He wanted to wear his new Buzz's wing to the cinema but we told him he might not fit in the seat, so he left it in the car.

He'll climb on the sofa and pretend he's about to fly off to space, he'll pretend to press buttons and say "no time to lose" or "come in star command, come in" and zoom off again.
It's really cute to watch.

He have a routine, that before he climbs up to his bed, he'll pretend to press some buttons, his wings popping up and he'll say "to infinity and beyond" and I'll have to carry him and 'throw' him into his bed. It's just too cute.

Let Kids Play Like Kids

Almost everyday is Halloween at our home. J likes dressing up! He was an Egyptian Mummy yesterday.

Today he was a Pirate. Maybe tomorrow he'll be a SpiderMan or Batman!







J is capable in entertaining himself for a couple of hours.  He's full of imagination and he'll say the cutest thing to his miniature toy soldiers.
After that, he'll move on to another play idea. His recent favourite play was getting one of us to pull him around the house. He'll be sitting in a box attached with dad's belt.

I believe children who are force fed their entertainment with TV and video games will eventually loose the ability to entertain themselves. But when viewed or played in moderation, they're great entertainment.

 Ways to boost your child's creativity:

• Limit TV, computer time,
• Visit the museum, library, see musicals, plays or attend concerts,
• Get activities that have no right or wrong rules - lego, playdoh, creating shape puzzle
• Play 'what if'. Ask them questions like - what if you're stuck on the moon? What if you're a horse? What if you are invisible?
• Let them have free play - with no learning goals or educational purpose. You'll be surprise how imaginative and happy they'll be.

School Holiday Plan

In two weeks time, it will be J's first school holiday! It's 3 weeks of holiday and I'm already thinking: will he get bored staying indoor with this cold/rainy season, will he be watching too much tv or playing video games, where should we bring him, will I be running out of activities for him to do at home??
So, this school holiday, I've planned for J to:

• Join school holiday swimming programne (Mon-Fri, 30mins)
• Go to the library once a week
• Go indoor rock climbing
• Invite some of his friends over
• Dad to build a bird house with J
• Look through my 365 TV-free Activities book for some cool stuff to do

Hhmm...what else can I do? Do you have any favorite activities you do with your kids? Hope I don't run out of ideas...

How to Encourage a Boy to Read

We as parents, constantly worried about our children. Are they eating well, how are they coping in school, are they mixing well in class, on and on and on...
I am worried that my five year old boy is not reading well as he's not showing much interest in reading. So, I bought these Scooby-Doo Picture Clue Book (level 1) for him (he likes anything monster, ghost, vampire & mystery)

I think it's fun, easy and entertaining. J recognizes some key words and with the help of the pictures, he's keen to read (at least he's trying-that's the whole idea, to get him interested in books)
I got a really good bargain from the Scholastic flyer he brought back from school. I just fill out the order form together with credit card details and return it to his school. 10 books for $128.89 $39.-
I'm planing to get more books from Scholastic-hopefully a Spiderman, Ben10 or Buzz Lightyear to keep my busy little man reading.