Mutilation

On Sunday, at a carnival at Marina Barage, two parents waited patiently in line for about half an hour at a balloonist's stall to get the artist create a Mickey Mouse for their little toddler.

People around the stall watched with fascination - the balloonist took a few balloons, twisted and turned them about and five minutes later, the well-loved cartoon character was created.

Every 'Pro-Family' Supermarket Should Have This

Recently, I met up with a good friend for lunch at Nex shopping mall. Since it's been a long time since my friend last saw Kenan, I decided to bring him along. But it was with some degree of anxiety that I did that. The last time I took him out for lunch with another friend, he was so restless that we had to rushed through the meal, leaving me feeling really apologetic and telling the little one, who looked at me with innocent eyes, that mommy's gonna ground him. But of course I won't be so mean to him. And perhaps he understood my message; he was really well behaved throughout the meal that day.

After a nice lunch and some great conversations, we decided to head to the NTUC supermarket to do some quick grocery shopping. To Kenan's delight, we discovered this:

Meals for Littles Ones - Easy Peasy with Petit Bowl (join the giveaway!)

If you have been following my blog for a while, you would know that I'm a fan of Petit Bowl (read past posts here and here). So when I was invited to a food tasting by them, and especially when I learnt that the founder Ms Josephine Koh will be giving a presentation at the session, I was thrilled.

If you have not heard of Petit Bowl or have not tried them before, and you're a busy parent looking for wholesome meals that can be easily prepared for your child, read on and find out why you should give Petit Bowl a try.

A Charming Little Cafe

Been a litte quiet on this blog as I'm busy decluttering my home. It's something I was supposed to do even before Kenan was born. But he came three weeks early and then there was no time at all, except until now.

But however busy I am, there's one place we've discovered that I would love to share with you - the Riders Cafe. I first read about it from mommy Corsage's blog and decided it's a place we have to visit.

So there we were last weekend.

At Corsage's advice, I called up (about two weeks in advance) to make a reservation. It was a good thing I did that. The place was full when we arrived and it appeared that walk-in customers would have to wait quite a while for a table.

Since we were early, instead of waiting inside the cafe, we decided to walk around. To our delight, soon discovered what a gem of a place it was!

The Saddle Club is tucked away in a quiet spot of Singapore, making it a great place to escape to from the hustle and bustle of a hectic city life. With lush greenery, rolling hilltops, and horses trotting about, it felt as if we were in another land - Australia perhaps.

A barren tree that stands atop the hill - looking both lonesome and poetic.

Kenan and mommy enjoying a stroll.

 

Kenan playing with twigs he found on the ground.

Daddy carrying Kenan down the hill - heading back to the cafe for lunch

The Riders Cafe is housed in a quaint little standalone building - with no air-conditioning, so you'll enjoy the air au naturel.

The cafe looks chic with its black and white interiors, while numerous ceiling fans twirling around lazily lends a laidback vibe to the place.

Menu is a simple piece of paper; coaster has a drawing of a horseshoe which I found really cute.

We were shown to a table by the window that overlooked the open air car park (by the way, it's free parking). After placing our order, the hubby kept himself occupied with the newspapers while I joined Kenan in some drawing activity (I brought along some crayons, papers and magic board). We waited for quite a while before our food arrived.

Seared scallop and saffron risotto - the hubby's lunch. The scallop a tad too salty but the risotto was really nice.

My order: prune glazed porkloin with petit vegetables and pumpkin puree. This was not from the regular menu but from their 'blackboard specials' (see the blackboard in the interior pic above). While the porkloin was soft, the texture was chalky and I didn't like it.

Chocolate cake served with a scope of ice cream - the cake was drenched in a thick velvety coat of fudge. Rich and decadent, it was sinfully good.

Overall, we enjoyed the place for its rustic setting. But food wise, we found it pretty forgettable and a bit pricey (our meal came up to about $70). But we will probably come again for breakfast. Then Kenan can spend more time roaming the hills and enjoying the great outdoors.

By the way, pony rides are available for kids. We hope to let Kenan try that when he's older.

Riders Cafe
51 Fairways Drive, Bukit Timah Saddle Club
Tel: 6466 9819

A Slice of History (Part 2): Walking the Railway Track

Following the closure of the Tanjong Pagar Railway Station, many people have since moved on to walking the 26km railway track, with yesterday being the last day where the public could walk the stretch between Tanjong Pagar and Woodlands.

But before you go hanging your head in disappointment, there's still a chance to enjoy a bit of the history. The track from Rifle Range Road to Rail Mall will stay open till the end of the month. You only have about two weeks more, so hurry.

And that's what the hubby and I did two weekends ago. We drove to Bukit Timah, parked our car at King Albert Park and began our journey. We wanted to bring Kenan along but he was slightly feverish from his vaccination, so left him at home to rest.


We were planning to visit the Bukit Timah Railway Station (which is along the track now closed to public) but once we started taking photos of the bridge, we ended up walking along that part of the track and forgot all about the Bukit Timah Railway Station! It was only when we returned to the starting point that we remembered. By then, it was past 7pm; the sky was getting dark and we were both hungry. So we decided to call it a day.

Here's sharing some photos from our short walkabout...

I've also trawl the internet for some posts with gorgeous (as well as 'gruesome') photos of the railway tracks, hope you enjoy them!

A Walk on the Tracks – Pt. 1 (Bukit Timah Railway Station to Ghim Moh)

Shooting the Last Days of the KTM Railway

Another Visit to the Bukit Timah Railway Station

A Walk from Bukit Timah Railway Station to Bukit Panjang Level Crossing

A walk on the wild side 

(Abandoned) Railway Track Photo Walkabout

(Abandoned) Railway Track (Part 2) Photo Walkabout

Jurong Line: Wildlife and Old Times in the Forest

The Green Corridor: Wildlife, Alive and Dead, along the Tracks (be warned: this one contains 'gruesome' photos of dead animals... but that also made it one of the most interesting posts I've seen!)

Best Friends (Benefits of Soft Toys)

Kenan is now at the stage where he loves soft toys. His favourite is this huge teddy bear that is more than half his size. He would feed his friend, teach him how to read, play with him, and when tired, simply cuddle up and enjoy a cozy moment with his good friend. It's been fun watching him!

Disney Junior Debuts Today!

Disney Junior debuts on Starhub Channel 311 today!

To celebrate this event, Disney organised a launch party 'Ahoy to Never Land' at the Sapphire Pavilion on Siloso Beach yesterday.... and we were invited to the event!

Since receiving the invite a few weeks ago, I've been counting down to the event. You might not believe this but I was really excited about meeting Mickey and Minnie!

The invite states that the party would start at 9am and I was worried if Kenan might have problem getting up so early. But surprisingly, he was up before I even tried waking him. He must have understood when mommy showed him the invite and told him we were going to see Mickey and Minnie!

After breakfast at Harbourfront's Mac Donald's, we crossed the road to take the shuttle bus specially chartered by Disney (so thoughtful!) that brought us right up to the door step of Sapphire Pavilion.

Kenan enjoying the bus ride, this was his second time on a bus 

Can't wait to experience the magic of the pirate-themed party

This greeted us at the entrance - clear blue skies, splashes of bright, cheerful colors and swaying coconuts trees - what a perfect setting

We couldn't miss the chance of taking a photo here. And there were lots of opportunities for family photos throughout the event, hooray!

This was the first time Kenan stepped on sand - barefooted! Yes, I've deprived him of much fun (guilty)

As Kenan was running a temperature the last two days (due to his vaccination), we decided to minimise the physical activities. We saw some activities going on indoors and decided joined in. First up was hand printing (see what the little girl is doing) - but Kenan resisted as he didn't want his hand 'dirtied' by the paint. So it ended up looking like what I thought was a bear's paw.. haha!

Next was family photo time. We had two, and one was made into a cert for Kenan 

 

The organisers also thoughtfully prepared colouring activity but our boy was more interested in something else. He grabbed daddy's water and happily sipped away ("I'm drinking water for adults!") while taking in the sight and sounds around him.



Finally - the moment we've been waiting for. Kenan was all smiles when his beloved characters appeared on stage!

Thank you, Disney for the wonderful party! Congratulations on the launch of Disney Junior!

Bubble Fun @ Upper Pierce Reservoir

It was a weekday afternoon, the spouse had taken leave earlier that day to bring me to the doctor because I've hurt my back. We initially thought it might be a slipped disc, as I felt sharp pains in the back when I moved. But the GP's diagnosis turned out to be muscle strain.

By late afternoon, I felt a bit better, after taking the painkillers the doc prescribed. I decided we should not waste the precious leave my hubby took, and suggested we head out somewhere, for a short walk perhaps. We ended up at Upper Pierce Reservoir, playing bubbles with Kenan.

I stood and watched, happy seeing the father and son playing together and contented with just snapping photos of precious moments such as these.

I also loved the peace and quiet of the place. There was not the usual jogging crowd often seen at other reservoirs, just a large family having a picnic near the bank of the reservoir, an expat family taking a stroll in the park and a family of three playing ball.

On the way out, we stopped our car twice, so Kenan could see the monkeys. Our little tot who loves animals was thrilled.

I thank God for that lovely day. I thank God for a caring husband and for my beautiful family.

Kenan's New Playground

As an adventurous tot, Kenan loves exploring every nook and corner of the house, opening up cabinets and drawers and taking every single item out. His latest playground? The kitchen! See the little one in action here (sorry for the super blur photos, I was using my mobile and it's almost impossible to capture a clear photo of a constantly moving tot).

Sometimes, it can get a bit frustrating running after him and trying to stop him while he's on his 'rampage' but seeing his happy face, I can't help but to laugh along!

Kanten Clay Giveaway - The Winner Is Out!

Good morning! Thank you everyone who participated in the Kanten Clay giveaway. We now have a winner! 

TYL

Congratulations! 

Please email me soon about you gift :)

The results of the giveaway was generated by Random.org; duplicate entries were removed so that everyone stands an equal chance.

If you like to let your little ones enjoy some Kanten Clay fun, you can now do so at a special  15% discount! 

Just hop over to Sophie & Friends webstore, select your purchase and use the discount code: 

ruthwongwrites

Kanten Clay Giveaway and Discount!

Dear readers, have you taken part in the Kanten Clay giveaway yet? If not, you are still in time to do so! Hurry, the closing date for the giveaway is tomorrow, Saturday, 2 July @ 12 noon. A random winner shall be picked.

Meanwhile, here's one more piece of good news:

Sophie & Friends is giving a 15% DISCOUNT for Kanten Clay products for Mommy Cafe blog readers!

Just type in the discount code "ruthwongwrites" when you made the purchase from Sophie&Friends online store.

 Do share the good news with your friends too!

HAVE A HAPPY WEEKEND!

Interesting Finds at Daiso - Part 3

As some readers would know, I'm on a major home decluttering and organising project. For that reason, I popped into Daiso today (Rivervale Mall branch) and guess what I saw?

A Slice of History (Part 1): Trip to Tanjong Pagar Railway Station

I wasn't planning on going to the railway station, after all, I've never been there my whole life and it doesn't hold any special memories for me. But after chancing upon a post on mommy Ing's blog and seeing the unique architecture, I was suddenly all excited about playing witness to this historical moment. Well at least in future, Kenan can boast during history class that he's been to the railway station before the last train rumbled out of the station ya?