Royal Caribbean – Mariner of the Seas – JahBella Part 1

Posted in Cruise, Holidays by jahbella

This year we spent our Christmas break on the Royal Caribbean’s Mariner of the Sea Cruise. You might recall that we had been on a similar Boxing Day cruise 2 years ago when I was pregnant with Bella so I can guess you can consider this our 2^nd cruise as a family? See Post Here

We were especially excited or at least Jah was especially excited because his favourite Madagasar characters were going to be on the cruise. 🙂 There is truly a huge difference cruising with a 1 year old as opposed to a 3 year old.

We arrived at the Marina Bay Cruise Centre at about 11am (check-in process and boarding would start from 1130am). We dropped off our check-in bags at the kerbside, settled our long term parking package at the Info Counter and proceeded through the security check-point. Our check-in process at the counter was fairly seamless and fast as we were allowed to use the Priority Check-in line for Crown and Anchor Members. Note that you are eligible to join the Royal Caribbean loyalty programme as long as you have been on at least 1 cruise. Joel was given a little coloured card and we were told to proceed to the boarding gate once our colour was called which happened less than 5 minutes later. Yay!!!

The cabins were not ready for us yet as most of the pax from the previous cruise would have just disembark between 8am to 11am. We were ushered to the Windjammer café where a buffet spread awaited us. To be honest, I was dreading the Windjammer café after our experience on Legends of the Seas, 2 years ago. However the Windjammer Café on the Mariner of the Seas was a very different experience. I found the café very organized, well air-conditioned and there seemed to be a lot of seating and space available. We found ourselves a window seat and the kids were more than happy to enjoy the view and the food. Joel and I took this time to purchase our drinks package. We chose the middle range package which gave us unlimited soft drinks as well as wine and beer (below US$9) from the menu during meal times and at all the bars. It cost us about US89 per person for the entire 4D3N cruise. Another tip for families would be to pre-purchased their Evian Water package so that you will have bottles of Evian water waiting for you at your cabin. We needed the water to make milk for our kids and to fill their water bottles. (12 bottles of 1L Evian Water for about US$45?) Definitely cheaper than buying ad-hoc but make sure that you really need that many bottles.

Enjoying the view

Very good mood

I’m going to pretend to sleep but I think the cookie is giving me away

We entered our cabin at 1pm and I honestly don’t know how the housekeeping staff do it but they are able to turn around all the cabins in just a few hours. For this trip, we got ourselves two balcony class inter-connecting cabins. The cabins were a lot more spacious than what I remembered from our previous trips. Its almost like everything is upsized in this trip.

Queen sized bed

2/3 of the room – the cupboards, doorway and bathroom was behind me

Our personal view of the ocean

We quickly got the kids to take their naps because we were expecting a compulsory Fire Drill at 430pm. Yes I know, seems like a waste to head onboard and then head straight for bed but as the Chinese sayings goes rest is needed if you want to go the distance. :p

The kids woke up happy and refreshed in fact Jah was so happy that he was extra sweet to his cranky sister and kept wanting to hug her!

I love you meimei, I want to hug you!

We headed to our assigned fire drill station and I don’t know if it was because of the rain or if the protocol has changed but we were ushered to a lounge area for our fire drill. Definitely a lot more pleasant than our last experience on the deck and one of the reasons I was very apprehensive about attending a fire drill with two young ones.

We still had some time before our 545pm dinner reservation so we decided to take the kids on a short tour of the ship which was essentially a quick photo on the rainy deck and then a quick introduction to the world of old school arcades. We would be spending a lot of time here in the coming days, thanks to Jah. :p

A quick tip for those who want to bring home decent family photos at the end of your cruise. There are many photo opportunities with professional photographers during the entire cruise and you can purchase each photo for S$25 each (yeah pretty pricey I know). However if you purchase the unlimited photo package on the first night, you will receive $50 off the package price which means you only pay $200 for unlimited photos and soft copies. We bought the package on the first night and went crazy taking pictures after that (we took home 56 photos in total!!).

Here are some of the professional photos from the first night..

Our after dinner shot before entering the Savoy’s Theatre for the Welcome Show

When the cat (Bella) goes to sleep, the mouse (Jah) comes out to play (to get a late night photo with his fav character Alex!

Next Up – JahBella’s first ‘fine-dining’ experience at Giovanni’s Table (Mariner of the Seas’ Italian Speciality Restaurant) and more…

JahBella’s Mummy

31Dec2014

JahBella’s Top 10 Blog Posts of 2014

Posted in Eating Out with Kids, Holidays, Kids health, Online Shopping, Perth, Photoshoot, Plays/ Theatre, Reviews, Tips with Kids, Travel Planning, Travel with Kids, Weekend activities with kids by jahbella

2014 marks the beginning of our blogging adventure – a decision to document our special family moments and vacation experiences as well as to give a little insight into the everyday lives of two full-time working parents, with two childcare going children. Although we have only been blogging for the last 5 months of 2014, the attempts to note down our experiences and thoughts have truly enrich our lives in more ways than we could imagine.

So to round off and recap our year, here are our Top 10 Blog Posts of 2014.

1) Why a C-Section Doesn’t Make You Less of A Woman/ Mother

A reminder to all c-section mummies that regardless of birth method, we are all precious in the eyes of our little ones and a c-section does not make you any less a mummy.

2) Little Nyonya – Peranakan Outfits for Little Girls

Want to know where to pick out food quality Peranakan outfits for yourself and the little one? Little Nyonya has really authentic and beautiful pieces!

3) The Playhouse @ Rochester – Review

An Outdoor AND Indoor playground for the kids, with yummy brunch food for the whole family

4) Update on Jah’s Head Injury

A life-changing and scary moment for our family this year in fact the entire family + uncles and aunties are still pretty shaken by this event. We thank God that Jah is well and healthy today.

5) 3 Must-Have Items When Flying With Kids

Our family’s must haves when flying with kids and looks like we will be trying these items on Bella in 2015.

6) My Top 4 Kiddy Products of the Moment – (Sep 2014)

While we are no longer using our Double Stroller, the other 3 items still continue to be my favourite parent-life saver of the moment..

7) How to Survive an Eye Test with a 3 year old

We will be attempting our 2nd eye test with Jah in Jan 2015. Perhaps another post soon on how we survived the same test, this time at a private practitioner. In the meantime, this should lend some insight on what goes on during an eye test at a government hospital.

8) Trigg Beach Family Photo Shoot (March 2014)

Our first of many more family photo shoots in Australia (i’m sure). Its really hard to get the whole family to look at the camera together pix especially when attemping wefies so I’m totally for photo shoots during our vacations..at least it guarantees some nice pics to take home with us 😉

9) Hop and Honk (I Theater) – Review

Jah’s introduction to his first full on theater play + an intermission and we survived! In fact keep a look out for more reviews on upcoming I Theatre productions in 2015! Can’t wait!

10) Getting Spectacles for Jah – The Ups and Downs

Finding a place that offers spectacles for kids below primary school going age, is really a tough feat in Singapore.

We are glad we found a place to go to for good quality spectacles that are ‘child resistant’ – a 3 year old is not going to treat his specs with the same care as a 13 year old.

So here are our Top 10 Blog posts from 2014!!

Thank you everyone for your support and we hope to share more of our adventures, tips and activities with you in the new year.

Happy 2015!

JahBella’s Mummy

19Dec2014

Hard Rock Food – Room Service, Kings Club and Restaurants

Posted in Eating Out with Kids, Holidays, penang by jahbella

Penang is definitely the haven for good food and I am always complaining that there is just never enough days on our Penang trip to eat everything we want to eat. This is made even worse when your hotel also serves fantastic food!! Yes it is a torture to be spoilt for choice. :p

We started our trip on a really good note – awesome Italian food at the Hard Rock. We were rather tired by the time we arrived. After an hour long car ride and kids nearing their nap time, I was very worried that waiting for lunch would be a nightmare. However the food was served really quickly and the good service and bubbly staff were really infectious. You can tell from JahBella’s big smiles that they had forgotten about the long journey here already and a nice nap was awaiting for our full bellies.

We over ordered!!! The portions were huge even for the kids meal!

She doesn’t smile when waiting for her food anymore…:( She screams!

First of many mocktails during the trip

We had the standard buffet breakfast at their main restaurant during the first half of our stay (when we were staying in the Lil Rock Star Suite. Given that the hotel was on full occupancy, there seemed to always be seats available at the main restaurant. The variety of the buffet was also really good – from Asian (Hawker fare) to Cereals to Western to their own ‘pau’ section. Kids were also given their own cutlery which made the experience extremely kiddy friendly.

Appetizer?

During the second half of our stay, we enjoyed our breakfast at the Kings Club (when we were staying in the Rock Star Suite). The Kings Club breakfast offered a very limited buffet spread with the standard cereals, fruits, muffins and a small selection of hot food. The real star of the Kings Club breakfast is their ala carte buffet menu that you can order from. Having your food served to you is always welcomed when you have kids to take care of. We were so spoilt for choice and we had to stop ourselves from over ordering.

Its almost like he had breakfast in bed…

Hot breakfast served at your table

Breakfast Menu! Hungry yet?

Staying at the Rock Star Suite also allowed us access to the Kings Club to enjoy teatime snacks and evening cocktail. We were there for a quick evening cocktail before heading out for dinner and Jah was extremely happy with the chocolate tarts and mocktails. 😉

Want to share? 😀

While room service is often a last resort, Hard Rock’s Room service is one of the best I’ve had. The kids were too tired after their morning swim to head anywhere so we settled for room service and discovered a gem! Jah loved his Fish & Chips while we were very very pleased with their Nasi Goreng. We were not expected much but found their Asian fare to be pretty authentic. We also tried their lamb with pea mash and I can tell you that I have never tasted such a good pie before. The room service meals were so good that we actually had it for two days.

So if you are concerned about what to eat in Penang (hmmmm..) especially if your kids might be too tired to head out or if like me, you had a little one with a fever on the last 2 days. Then Hard Rock is the perfect place to base yourself out of and enjoy their wonderful yummy treats.

Next Up – Yummy Food Outside of the Hotel!!!! (Fishing Village Seafood, Nonya Breeze, Golden River Zi Char)

JahBella’s Mummy

15Dec2014

Hilary’s Boat Harbour – Perth (March 2014)

Posted in Holidays, Perth, Travel with Kids by jahbella

The last day of our Perth Holiday 2014 was spent at Hilary’s Boat Harbour. It was quite a drive out from where we were staying (approx 45 minutes) and I would have given it a pass, if not for the fact that I had to collect our photoshoot pics. But I’m so glad that we were ‘forced’ to make that trip and quite sad that we didn’t do this earlier in our trip.

We were spoilt for choice when it came to food options but we settled for The Sorrento Beach Shack because of its very apparent child friendly facilities. Jah was more than happy to explore their dedicated play area and he would have gone home with a few of those toys if he had any say in the matter.

Close by to the restaurants, was a little inlet with very shallow waters and a nice sandy ‘beach. Thanks to our photographer’s advice, we came prepared with swimming gear and a nice picnic mat. The weather was nice and warm and Jah had tons of fun trying to catch little fishes with his sand bucket. To be honest, Joel and I had lots of fun trying to catch them too. :p Bella entertained herself with ‘sand eating’ on the beach and well making new friends. 🙂

There was also a little playground on the beach but that area got a little hot towards mid-day.

I wished we could have spent the entire day at Hilary’s! There were attractions like a Marine Discovery Centre or ferries to take you to Rottnest Island. There was even a water theme park situated right next to where we were. I think the kids would enjoy it if they were a lot older. And there was definitely no shortage of food and drinks options to keep everyone full and happy for a whole day.

This brings me to the final instalment of our Perth Holiday 2014! It also just made me realize that since we only scrap the surface with this trip and fully intend to revisit most of these places, our to-do list for future Perth trips just got longer!

Recap of our Perth 2014 Itinerary

Day 1: Four Seasons House

Day 2: Swan Valley Caversham Wildlife Park and Margaret River Chocolate Factory

Day 3: The Maze, Chinese Food and San Churros @ Northbridge

Day 4: Penguin Island

Day 5: Trigg Beach Family Photo Shoot

Day 5 (Part 2): Lansdale Farm School

Day 6: Kings Park Lotterywest Family Park

Day 7: Swan Valley Cuddly Animal Farm

Day 8: Adventure World

Also check out our Perth/ Margaret River, Western Australia Trip (Auguest 2016)

So yes, if anyone thinks Perth is too boring and has nothing fun to offer the kids and adults, think again! 🙂

JahBella’s Mummy

26Nov2014

Adventure World – Perth (March 2014)

Posted in Holidays, Perth, Travel with Kids by jahbella

Before I start on this post, I have to apologise for the lack of photos as our camera’s battery went dead on us and well handphones and theme park/ water theme park don’t agree. :p

Adventure World is a giant theme park that has a big water park area and a nice rides area suited for the young ones. The place also has huge empty grass patches throughout the park where families can set up shop. I seriously have no idea why we never came to this place in all our years of holidaying in Perth!

Adventure World is really a place for people of all ages. I would recommend coming early so that you can find a good spot especially if you are coming during the weekends. A lot of local families bring their own ice cooler box, little camping chairs etc, but a picnic map, towels and a change of clothing is all you need if you want to travel light.

We parked ourselves in front of the big water play area which was relatively shaded. That area is also closed by to the toilets, lockers and some food kiosk. We attempted the big water play area a few times but chickened out everytime some water hit us as it was simply too cold. Yes our photos seem to suggest that it was warm and sunny but I remember it was approximately 23 degrees or so. The kiddy/ toddler water play area was 100m away and the kids spent some time there but yes it got cold after a while too. I’m guessing all these will be perfect and very popular in summer.

From the kiddy waterplay area, you could see some of the rides available – Old school Viking ship, rickety roller coaster and a spinning tea cup ride to name a few. I will always remember Adventure World as the place where Jah experienced his first roller-coaster ride. I really don’t know what got into him but he wanted to try it and he also wanted to try the Viking Ship. I was petrified during the rides, petrified for him and that he would freak out in the midst of it. He took it well though and endured the rides till the end, but when asked if he wanted to repeat it, he gave politely or not so politely declined ;). The only ride that Jah wanted to go on repeatedly was a ride that took us around the park and it gave us a bird’s eye view of everything from above. The only downside for me and Joel was the fact that we had to pedal it ourselves!!! It was a 2 seater which meant that I had no help from the one sitting next to me (he couldn’t even reach the pedals!). It also doesn’t help if you have someone/ two teenagers in the ‘car’ behind you, going extremely fast and chasing you down. Come on! No fair!

For those after a thrill, the park also has humongous slides and it was very very popular with the teenagers. I really wanted to give it a shot but I doubt Jah would have allowed me. Ok I asked him for permission but he said no. :p

Adventure World will definitely be back on our itinerary again the next time we return to Perth. And while we have never been to Perth in summer, this might be a tempting and good enough reason to.

Next Up – Final post from our Perth Series – Hilary’s

Go to this link for all links to our Perth, Western Australia Trip (March 2014)

Also check out our Perth/ Margaret River, Western Australia Trip (Auguest 2016)

JahBella’s Mummy