My Little Climbing Room (Exclusive Media Preview and Giveaway)

I remember a time a few years ago (honestly not too long ago) when both Jah and Bella would look forward to their next session at an indoor playground almost every weekend. Of course this usually meant that the poor parents (us) had to crouch, crawl and bend through the average 2 hour session. We have almost stopped visiting indoor playgrounds entirely in recent time because these bones are getting older and the kids now don’t need us to join them but WANT us to join them. But more so because most indoor playgrounds now lack an appeal or a challenge to the now much older JahBella.

When My Little Climbing Room invited us to an exclusive sneak preview of their new attraction for kids activity in Singapore, we thought why not? After all, its been some time since we have been to one of these indoor playgrounds and the concept seems alittle different.

We told JahBella that we were taking them to a ‘climbing place’ and they wanted to go immediately. These monkeys have taken to climbing recently so I was also happy to unleash them while the adults could ‘sit back’.

We got to My Little Climbing Room on a weekend afternoon and there was ample parking at their location (The Promenade @ Pelikat). Yes hooray for the North-East siders because this is just at our backyard..no need to battle the East or Central crowds 😉

Each pre-scheduled session last for 90 minutes and the kids got tagged and suited up as soon as they arrive. As with all ‘dangerous’ activites :p they had to watch a safety briefing video although honestly I think it is really more for the parents to learn how to use the rope system. My Little Climbing Room is literally a room lined with different types of climbing walls, with varying degrees of difficulty and levels of interaction. Kids were given a mission card where they could collect stars for each level of difficulty that they complete. There were also little balance equipments to play with while waiting for your turn or if you just wanted to take a break.

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The session started with the kids all running off to claim a wall and a parent/ adult would have to help belay them or tighten/ loosen their rope as they climb up or come down the wall. Easy peasy for the adults since the kiddos were well pretty light 😉 The kids took awhile to warm up and get their groove. All starting alittle apprehensive and giving very cautionary looks to their parents. Almost as if they were asking, you sure I can climb this? That’s when I realized we probably tell them “no don’t climb” or “please come down” abit too much as opposed to “go for it” or “you can do it”

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By the time the kids were all warmed up, it was time for a ‘break’ (for the parents that is ;p). The staff at My Little Climbing Room took over for the next 30 minutes and starting playing games with the kids. Lights out, music on and let the games begin! The kids were going crazy! Screaming! Squealing! Laughing! Running! Climbing! Oh this is going to get them nice and tired. 😀

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The kids went back to their climbing routine after the games and if you think they were too tired for more climbing by then. Think again! The kids all seemed to have this sudden renewed appreciation for climbing and they all somehow went higher and did better. Jah and Bella almost didn’t want to leave when it was time to go.

Verdict

Jah is 6 years old and most of the walls were right up his alley, save for a few harder challenges where he really had to push himself in order to complete. But they honestly challenged him more than they deter him. In fact, we were almost at the end of the 90 minute session when he realize he still had a few missions to complete. He was almost resigned to coming back another day but suddenly found a new burst of energy and yes he completed it and claimed his prize.

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Bella who is 4 years old, was able to complete most of the Level 1 challenges and hung out a lot more at the interactive walls such as the number wall and the obstacle course wall. She didn’t complete her mission list but was totally chill about it because she had so much fun!

If you are wondering if your kid is too young for this, the answer is no. My Little Climbing Room caters to children below the ages of 4 too but it will just mean that they have to take baby steps to scaling each wall but still an awesome introduction to the world of climbing!

My Little Climbing Room has just opened their doors to the public 2 weekends ago. If you are thinking of heading down to try the place out, we would doing an online booking first to make a reservation. As there are fixed slots throughout the day and each slot can take up to 15 children, it would be best to have a slot secured so that you don’t end up waiting around for the next slot. Admission is free for one adult, with every paying child and $5 for an additional adult.  For more details, check out https://mylittleclimbingroom.com/

GIVEAWAY

My Little Climbing Room has also very kindly offered 2 pairs of admission passes to 2 of our lucky readers. To enter, just follow the following steps

Like My Little Climbing Room Facebook Page

https://www.facebook.com/mylittleclimbingroom

Like Growing Up with JahBella Page

https://www.facebook.com/growingupwithjahbella/

Like and Comment on this post in Facebook and tag your friends.  (Every friend tagged is an additional chance to win)

Giveaway ends 19 Oct, Thurs (2359hours)

Disney on Ice presents Magical Ice Festival – JahBella’s Tips and Highlights [Media Invite]

We attended our first Disney on Ice 2 years ago with Jah when he was a teeny weeny little baby ok maybe I exaggerate, he was almost 3 years old then. So we figured it was about time for Bella to have her first Disney on Ice experience since she would be turning 3 in 2 months! Oh how time flies…

With Bella all decked out in her Princess Anna costume (never say never! :p) and Jah in his Marvel Avengers outfit (yes this boy is still holding out for a superhero show), we headed for Disney On Ice presents Magical Ice Festival at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

Before we go into the highlights of the show proper, let me take you through some tips that we learnt from today’s experience

Arrive early

While parking didn’t seem like too much of an issue and there was more than enough parking across the road at Kallang Leisure Park, getting a lot right in front of the stadium was perfect for ushering kiddos quickly into the car after a 2 hour long show. (Trust me the parents will need it even if the kids don’t 😉 ) Also coming early would help you beat the crowd queuing to for the bag check and entry and give you some time to leisurely check out the merchandise and F&B.

Bring cash for the merchandise and snacks.

There are some pretty cute and interesting merchandise. We got Jah and Bella a pair of binoculars at $16 each. Perfect for keeping them busy!

Snacks and drinks are also sold inside.

In fact if you are seated in the first few rows, you will be able to get them for the mobile kiosk in front of the rink. Oh and in case your kids ask for popcorn and you do not want to indulge in such a big tub, there are also smaller boxes available for sale (think movie theatre size)

Booster seats are available on a first come first served basis.

But honestly I preferred to go without because they don’t really fit well on the seats. Given that half the audience were kids, it was pretty easy to ensure minimal blockage by seating them strategically behind another kid.

Go ahead, prep your kids for that big Frozen Spectacular thats happening at the end of the show.

Yes 1.5 hours might seem like a long time time in ‘kids light years’ to be waiting for something and I was afraid to oversell what was coming at the end so I had pretty restless frozen hungry kids towards the end of it all. If I had known any better, I would have promised them a Frozen extravaganza which it turned out to be. 🙂

Now for the HIGHLIGHTS!!!

Storylines!

We absolutely love the fact that there were storylines to follow. Rather than a random act or song, we got to revisit a few acts from each tale. Awesome for those who were familiar with the stories because we could enjoy all the little details and perfect for this who weren’t familiar because they were introduced to the likes of The Little Mermaid, Tangled, Beauty and the Beast and Frozen. Who said you had to be a fan to enjoy it! Incredible storytelling!

 
Skills!

The aerial stunts, the ice skating techniques and the synchronised choreography. The spins, twirls, lifts and flips! I can tell you that the kids were not the only ones wowed.
 


  
Set!

The backdrop, costumes, props and effects were phenomenal! Fans of the Disney tales would notice the details and the larger than life similarities. Fireworks, floating lanterns, snow! The amount of snow that fell on the rink during the Frozen segment was truly an effect alright! Without giving too much away, I actually thought that it was quite interesting how they presented a Frozen Anna.

   
Bella was captivated as all the other young princesses were and Jah was hooked on the fight scenes as all young princes/ superheroes would be. :p

 
All in all, it was truly a Disney experience!

 
Disney on Ice presents Magical Ice Festival will be in town from now till 20 March 2016.


Tickets are priced from $25 to $120.

Tickets for Disney On Ice presents Magical Ice Festival can be purchased online via http://www.sportshubtix.sg.

To learn more about Disney on Ice presents Magical Ice Festival, please visit http://www.disneyonice-asia.com/magical-ice-festival/

Disclosure: We received complimentary VIP tickets to attend Disney on Ice presents Magical Ice Festival for a media review. No monetary compensation was received and all opinions are my own.

SpongeBob SquarePants Krabby Patty Celebration ‘Live’ On Stage (City Square Mall- Christmas 2015) – Media Invite

Every year the kids will need to do at least 1 of their Annual Christmas Live Show/ Meet & Greet Sessions at a mall (yes I know they don’t just do it during Christmas ;P) But somehow the ambience is always little merrier and more special during the festive season.

This year they chose to attend the SpongeBob SquarePants Krabby Patty Celebration ‘Live’ On Stage at City Square Mall. Honestly they aren’t really fans of SpongeBob or at the very least have not been exposed to the cartoon series yet. However SpongeBob and his best friend Patrick in their larger than life costumes were so infectiously funny that the kids were drawn to them really quickly.
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The thing I love about the shows at City Square Mall is that you don’t find yourself ‘queuing’ or waiting for 1-2 hours, only to find that the show is 10 minutes long or that the characters appear for 2 dance numbers and then leave abruptly.

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SpongeBob’s little party was approximately 20-30 minutes long if you include the prelude/ skit we enjoyed before the main characters came on stage. Yes there was a prelude! Which was also Jah’s first time on stage in front of a live audience at a mall! I think I was more nervous than him but he was all game to go onstage and help out the nice friendly pirate :p

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If you or your kids are fans of SpongeBob and his friends then you shouldn’t miss this Live Show which is ending its run this weekend. And even if you aren’t fans of the yellow spongy fella, there are enough crazy fun, catchy tunes and a storyline for a bit of weekend entertainment.IMG_6794

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Need more fun? You can proceed outside to first-ever outdoor SpongeBob Playland where there are several activity stations for the kids to test their reflexes and bounce away their endless energy.

 

More details on the Live Show and SpongeBob Playland can be found below.

 SpongeBob SquarePants Krabby Patty Celebration ‘Live’ On Stage

Date: 5 – 20 December 2015 (Except Mondays)

Time: 2pm & 7pm (Tues – Fri); 1pm, 4pm & 7pm (Sat & Sun)

Venue: Level 1 Atrium

Tips: Redeem a Meet & Greet pass one hour prior to each show and snap a photo with SpongeBob and Patrick, limited to 50 passes per show.

First ever Outdoor SpongeBob Playland

Date: 20 November 2015 – 3 January 2016

Time: 12pm – 10pm daily (last admission at 9.30pm)

Venue: Level 1 City Green park

Tips: With a minimum spend of $30*, shoppers can redeem a SpongeBob Playland activity pass at the L2 Customer Service Counter. Activities are suitable for age 3 and above.

 Snowy Playtime

Date: 20 November 2015 – 3 January 2016

Time: 8pm & 9pm daily

Venue: Level 1 City Green

SpongeBob SquarePants Episodes Free Screenings

Date: 5 – 27 December 2015 (Saturdays and Sundays only)

Time: 8.30pm

Venue: B1 Fountain Square

JahBella’s Mummy

Pasir Ris Park for Kids – JahBella’s favourite playground 

This post has been long overdue but I am kind of glad that I had put it off until now. Pasir Ris Park has been one of our favourite go to places on weekend mornings since Bella came along. Not only is it Papa and Mummy’s favourite places because it’s super easy on the pocket ;). Except for the money you have to spend on the ice cream and drinks from ‘ice cream uncle’s’ van, everything else is free.

  DCIM100GOPROGOPR0461.And the reason why I’m glad that I’ve put off the post till now is because today was one of those days where Jah and Bella were ultra adventurous.
They normally spend a couple of minutes playing with one or two things in the park (yes there are tons! as you will see from my photos) Then they will spend the rest of the time just playing with their sand toys and sending me or Joel on multiple water collection trips. There is a water point for washing up so no worries about the kids getting grubby.
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We brought our picnic mats just to have a place to sit at while the kids play with the sand. But we had no such need because we spent an hour going from ‘station to station’. We have also done family picnics there before so if preparing some finger food or snacks is your thing then there are lots of big spaces to plop yourself for the morning.
 DCIM100GOPROGOPR0506.There are lots of ‘stations’/ play areas for different age groups. Playgrounds from the smaller ones to spiderweb climb areas for the bigger or more proficient kids and then there is also everything in between. The kids will never get bored because there is just so many activities to choose from. Even the simplest of structure which to me, looked like looked well just like an ordinary ‘useless’ structure, was a source of amusement for the kids. They spent a good 15 mins scaling it up and down and walking through and around it. Yes my imagination leaves much to be desired but I’m amazed by their creativity.
So if you are looking for a really good park to spend some time at, you can try Pasir Ris Park (the end near the Home Team Chalets). Now I’ll just let the rest of the photos do the talking.
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