Posts from — July 2009

Have you ever spent more than just a couple of minutes reading labels of kids vitamins in a grocery or pharmacy? While each brand may say why they are better, I have always taken things a step further by trying to understand what’s in the tablet. As we know that these supplements have potential impact on health and overall development of kids, I think it is understandable why we put more attention. It’s more than selecting weight loss supplements. Of course another factor we probably look at when selecting vitamins is how ‘acceptable’ they will be to the kids. I’m referring to flavor, taste, or even ‘form’ (e.g. chewable tablet, syrup, etc.) of the supplement. Good to know that most vitamins are not bitter pills to swallow.

Parents would want the best for their kids and family. That would include choosing the water that we drink. While we were in the Philippines, we got used to buying mineral/filtered water since the water straight from faucets may not be the best option. Now that we’re in Australia, we still use water filter even though tap water is generally safe to use. Perhaps it is just preference. Or maybe it’s a reflex to provide the best options possible.

Just how good is the Wii fit? Well, we just had ours for a few weeks so it may be too early to tell. But basing on the short experience, I can probably share a few things. From a weight loss perspective (and comparing it with real aerobic exercise), it may take a bit longer to achieve the desired results. While it may be slower, I won’t be surprised if some still prefer it over nuphedra. Anyway, from a family game perspective, I think the Wii has a lot to offer. Though it may take a bit more effort to play together as you would have to go back to the top of the menu to switch players. But still, the games control is relatively fresh compared to most hand-based controller games.

A couple of weeks ago, everyone in our family attended the Hillsong Conference 2009 from 7-10 July. It was a new and refreshing experience for our family. My husband actually attended last year’s conference and thought that it would be great for everyone to share the experience.

Even though it was school holiday, we had to wake up really early as we had to prepare and pack lunch and snacks as well as take the kids to Kidsong World programme before we go to the main conference sessions. Physically, I wouldn’t say it was a walk in the park. However, in terms of the learnings, blessings, and the overall experience, there is no doubt that it is worth it! How I wish I could be more explicit in describing. Without exaggerating, the experience during worship and preaching is indescribable. We are indeed thankful to God for giving us the opportunity to attend the conference.

Here are some photos taken during the conference.

It’s the last week of school holidays here in Sydney. Last week, we stayed pretty much indoors to nurse some colds and coughing. We realized that the kids did not get a chance to really go out during the school break (last year we went for a quick trip to the Snowy Mountains). So we found it a good excuse to get the kids a Wii Fit. Several shops have put up great offers for consoles and accessories for popular gaming consoles such as PS3, xbox 360 and the Wii. Perhaps the retailers are also thinking that school holidays is good excuse to get such things in lieu of an outdoor holiday.

We recently attended the Hillsong Conference in Sydney. There was a kids programme so we decided to register our daughters. It was pretty close to a ‘camp’ experience for CN (perhaps the only thing missing is the sleepover). We had to pack her bag with food for the entire day as well as some spare clothing. The challenge was for her to identify her bag from a huge bunch of bags from all the kids. While she can ‘read’ her name and recognize her bag, we thought that putting a tag would be best so that she could pick her bag without much hassle. Having symbols from custom rubber stamps would have been ideal. But it something probably worth considering when she enters the big school next year.

I just learned that the MasterChef Australia Finale attracted more than 4 million viewers yesterday. Now that surely is a record of sorts. I wonder what that means? Perhaps ‘food’ has indeed an audience across age groups and thereby capturing the entire family. I wonder what happened to all those people encouraged to shed off weight through the reality show it followed (Biggest Loser). Of course I hope that they are simply inspired to cook healthier meals and not just confined to the best diet pills. Anyway, whatever pulled people to watch MasterChef will likely be back in the next season.

Is there an ideal age difference between parents and their kids? Some may say yes, while some will probably argue that it does not matter. I have to admit that my preference was to grow up with my kids. In that way, we parents could enjoy the kids while we can still run, jump, and simply do things that would otherwise be rather challenging for people at a more mature age (yes, things that can’t be remedied by the best wrinkle creams). But then, there are no right or wrong answers. Some would prefer to be really mature and stable before taking on parenting. The important thing is to enjoy the journey.

We decided to go for a rather light movie to cap the weekend. We watched a girly movie called The Clique. In a nutshell, it is a story about a girl (Claire) who moves to a new school and was faced by a clique who was determined to give her a tough time. This turned Claire to be a mean girl herself to get the clique to her side. But only for some time. Her mother made an advise that gave a turning point to how she does things. That is, doing the right thing.

In doing the right thing, Claire was able to pull some smarts. In one scene, Massie (the clique leader) put a number of girls (who unfortunately had peanut allergy) to danger by letting them use cosmetics made from peanuts. Their lips started to swell and started to plan on suing Massie for the injury (perhaps they need help from a Rochester personal injury lawyer). With some oatmeal, Claire made the allergy go away! But I guess the best thing Claire did was to show how she cared for Massie. And that turned things around.

Perhaps the theme of getting a hard time to ‘fit in’ is common in real life for several teens. We parents would probably be quick to tell our kids that they do not need to fit in to be ‘okay’. In this simple movie, we should also be reminded to always give that other advise: Do the right thing!

The MasterChef Australia 2009 winner has been named. And the winner is (drumroll), Julie! Now this should be quite an interesting inspiration to moms out there. Julie has been frequently tagged with home-style dishes. But in the finale, she bested her competitor, Poh, in all three challenges. I think it was quite smart for the winner to showcase some of the techniques she learned during the previous master classes and challenges. Anyway, congratulations to Julie.

My daughter RD and I have quite followed this show and would definitely miss it. Well, we’re looking forward to the next season!

A few weeks back, my husband signed up on a new mobile phone plan. He ordered the iphone and shared the news with our little girl, CN. When CN heard the news, she immediately exclaimed, ‘wow! iphone!’. She further went to say ‘what’s an iphone?’ Well, it wasn’t long after that when CN and the iphone were introduced to each other. They are now good buddies. She would then eagerly borrow the phone as soon as her dad comes home from work. My husband beefed the phone with iphone accessories to make sure it has extra protection for play. Yes you read it right… it’s for play. While it is a phone, it still is a new toy for CN (and to be fair to CN, it’s a toy for everyone!)

Just how important is it to pay attention to product recalls? For parents, I believe it is very important. That is because toys are one of the critical items which may be recalled. So far, I have yet to experience having a purchased item subject to product recall. Well, there was almost one case. This is regarding a craft toy formerly purchased overseas and then after some months, we learned that it was subject to recall here in Australia. Anyway, even before the recall, we already made certain precautions whenever our kids play with this ‘toy’. Lesson learned? Again, parental reflexes. It does not hurt to be extra careful. Otherwise, one may end up resorting to a Morristown personal injury lawyer. So how can we be more aware of product recalls? Registering (where applicable) a product is one thing I can think of. Other than that, just keep your eyes and ears open.

I am quite sure many are wishing it never happened. The use of asbestos in housing or building materials some years back is something that has brought horror to many. The link of asbestos to several health problems is enough to get the news to put a spotlight on almost any discovery of the presence of this hazardous material. Recently, a focus on asbestos at an aboriginal reserve in New South Wales made the papers. But even on daily basis all around the globe, there may be several people who are directly or indirectly affected. Some would seek assistance from Mesothelioma lawyers perhaps in bid not only for compensation but also for greater public awareness.

Just towards the end of the second school term, we received a letter from the school confirming our daughter CN’s place for kindergarten next year. We read the letter out loud to CN and her face can only be all smiles. She really is quite excited in getting into the ‘big school’. Well, we parents share the excitement. We already look forward to seeing her do what the big ‘little girls’ do. One thing which we are curious to find out is how she will take on the challenge of the public competition on which her elder sister RD is quite fond of. CN is a big fan of RD so there is a great chance she will shake off any public speaking anxiety, if at all she’s gone one. But whatever activity CN will go for, we parents will definitely be there to cheer her on!

Owning the first family home is a great dream for everyone. With some attractive incentives being offered recently here in Australia, several have taken the brave leap to become home owners. On the other hand, it is sad to note that there appears to be some who try to ‘take advantage’ of the situation by raising real estate prices. In a television item a few days ago, it was revealed how some prices are even overpriced by over $100,000. It is indeed massive. It can build more than just gazebos. But then, it’s a free market out there. The lesson is probably to make sure everything is laid out before making this life changing decision.