K!dz Pop Con Asia Review

The much anticipated k!dz Con Asia is finally here! If you missed it, there is always next year. The inaugural one is fantastic, so I can't help but have anticipation for the future runs. I didn't expect the family to stay for 8 hours, but that's how long spent there and we haven't even finished playing and shopping! There was a lot to see and do, and most booths have free activities to engage the children. 

My #2 was exceptionally excited to see her "idols" live. So did a lot of young toddlers. The queues for photo-taking were long but still bearable. Believe it or not, we took photos twice with Peppa Pig. That's how much the kids loved her. They even hung around for the story-telling or just colouring/ watching Peppa shows at their booth. 

Our favourite add-ons event was Beard's Papa Choux Puff filling event. The kids also got to design their homemade cookies. It was a great experience given how much our family love the Choux Puff. I had to coax my little ones to give me a bite. It was a delicious time. On top of that, we even bought some puffs to redeem the glitter tattoos for the children. The experience cost $20 per child, but do book early as slots can run out and on the day purchases may not be possible. 

Another big reason for the children to go was the bouncy castle. It took nearly 1/3 of the entire space and the children had lots of fun bouncing through different variations. There were many helpers stationed there to make sure the older children were not too rowdy and to ensure that no younger kids could sneak in to the play areas meant for the older children. 

Most places like this would charge an arm and a leg for the food. But I thought they priced the food very reasonably. It helped us better utilise the time spent there and we ended up spending the whole day there. The food portion was also very generous. For the adults (if you are a toy lover like me), you will end up grabbing items home too. My Little Pony and Hot Wheels had quite a bit of the adult fans. 

For the older children, there was also a Beyblade contest. It gathered quite a bit of hype and I nearly bought one home too. In terms of the pricing of the toys, there were no special fair deals or closing time discounts, a little disappointed. Overall, we really enjoyed our time and WE JUST CAN'T WAIT FOR NEXT YEAR'S!

POP MART Summer POP-Up Store at Mandarin Gallery

Fans of Labubu rejoice, Mandarin Gallery is having a POP MART Summer POP-Up Store. If you would like to have a stack of pretty stickers like me, head up to the Level 3 Conceirge, collect a POP-UP passport and visit all 8 photo spots around Mandarin Gallery to collect the stamps. After you complete the passport, post on Instagram with #popmartsg and #pmsgsummerpopup. The photo spots are all really insta-worthy, so be sure to bring a pal along so that you can be in the photos too. 

The sticker packs are while stocks last, so be sure to go down fast as the POP-Up is only until 13th July. Considering it is at Mandarin Gallery which is really convenient to get to, you can even grab some food and drinks there while you are completing your passport. (Psst, a lot of my favourite F&B are there, perhaps one day I should do an exclusive tour on it. Hehe.)

The POP-Up Store is a must-step-in because there are lotsa cute Singapore-exclusive merchandise and fan-collectives available. For those who are after Merbubu (LABUBU Hide and Seek Vinyl Plush Doll Pendant), you would need to purchase via raffle draw. So exclusive right? But guess who got one...hehe.

Fans of Dimoo will also be happy to find a nice whole collection of photos spots and merchandise. Just because you reading, here's some clues on where to find most of the exhibits - 4 of them are outside and those indoors are mostly at the lift area. You are welcome, enjoy shopping~!~ Can't wait for more pop-ups like this!

My First Ballet Experience

 

A one-day only event, I decided to invest in my first ever ballet - We call it Ballet: Sleeping Beauty Dance & Light Show. I was not entirely sure what to expect and whether I could sit through a full performance, so I decided to give my virgin experience to something more contemporary and hyped with lights. The whole show lasted for around an hour and it was very family-friendly. Don't bring your toddlers as I would envision elementary school kids and above to better appreciate the experience. 

We took the second best seats and it was free-seating. It was dark enough to enjoy the lighted costumes yet bright enough to see the footwork skills of the dances. I have never been really trained in dance but I seem to enjoy critiquing. The 3 fairy godmothers seems to be forever dancing their own and there were some scenes that seem to be overly-romantic (i.e. the price and the fairy). Because I got some discount, it was not as expensive and was  money well spent. I realised I enjoy watching ballet even though I envisioned it to be a lot more graceful and better choreographed. I can't wait for Swan Lake now by a more experienced dance troupe just to do some comparisons. For info, photos are prohibited until the last 15 minutes. :)

Food Tour 58 - The Finer Things in Life

It has been a while since I wrote about this. But every once in a while, we do pamper and indulge ourselves. You can bookmark this review for special occasions :D

1. Jiak Kim House

This one popped up on my social media. Honestly, sometimes food that hijacked me like this usually don't taste too good. So I was very pleasantly surprised by theirs. They are located at the old Zouk. The whole warehouse was of opulence deco, made possible with their high ceilings. For their reservations, they asked me to provide a photo (to allow a proper welcome). I did, but still they asked me who I was. Like what the...

Apart from that, the food was really good and a place which I would strongly recommend. We did Ala-carte and all their food were really good. If I had to recommend, these are my top 3 favourites: Mushroom Herbal Tea 'Macchiato' (S$24), Seafood Laksa Fettuccine (S$44) and Tingkat of Memories (S$26). We went with the waiter's recommendations. Even the complimentary bread and Entremet were top-notch. 

2. Hansik Dining Collective

The Korean Raw Marinated Crab was in my "To-Eat" list for the longest time. I have seen a lot of raves on social media which first pipped my interest. Close friends have also spoke well about this dish. So, I really wanted to try it. I hunted this place down because it was said to have the best, most authentic dish. It was worth the trouble because the ambience of this place was top-notch and the food which we ordered were all unique and super yummy!

The Ganjang Gyejang (Soy Raw Crab) was nearly a hundred dollars. I enjoyed it a lot but unfortunately I have slight allergies to it (this might mark my last taste of this delicacy). It is a little on the salty side, but goes well with rice. The spicy oyster and seaweed pancake was pretty unique ($35). My soup was a seasonal special, and it was so good I felt it should be a constant on the menu. This is definitely one of the best Korean Restaurants in Singapore!

SG 60 at the Zoo

SG60 sure has many perks, one of which is discounted tickets to the local attractions - one of which is the zoo. The elderly in the family bought the discounted annual passes and we tapped on the discounts to make another trip in. By now, we are quite familiar with the offerings of the zoo. But it is still a great place to go because the area is pretty big and we can break the visits to focus on different areas. 

Also, the children really enjoy it. Apart from checking out the animals, they would spend most of the time at KidzWorld at the petting zone. They will be showing lotsa love to the rabbits, guinea pigs and grooming goats. Even for the adults, it is pretty enjoyable if you are a lover of furies - I was feeling all warm and fuzzy when a rabbit came to me to be petted. There is also a dry and wet playground within the area. 

This time round, we didn't managed to get any feeding sessions. Note: If you are going on a weekend or during the school holidays, be sure to book for these sessions ahead. Otherwise, they will be fully booked. One new event that caught my eye was the Hello from the Wild sessions. My friend went for it and it seems really cool. But it was definitely more expensive as compared to the feeding session. Each pax cost an additional ~$50 and a family of 4 would cost nearly $200. For me, this is more a special occasion than a normal day out. 

My daughter, being pretty excited also dressed herself as a ranger and attracted the attention of the real rangers. We went to some of the sharing sessions and learnt about the fossils/ bones of the animals. The whole Mandai experience has always been wholesome. Can't wait to check out the latest additions - Rainforest Wild Asia and to try out Colugo Camp and Mandai Rainforest Resort (both waiting for the price to drop and service to stabilise!)

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Ticket to Zoo: https://www.klook.com/en-SG/activity/141-singapore-zoo-singapore/

** Use the discount code "BABYNFAMKLOOK" when you book through Klook for a 5% Discount. Applicable to All Klook Activities with min. spend of SGD50. Discount capped at SGD15.

Intergenerational Workshop at Reunion – Heritage Food Series, Bubur Cha Cha and Egg Tart

My boy shares a common interest of baking with his Ah-Gong. So when I saw the - Intergenerational Workshop at Reunion – Heritage Food Series, Bubur Cha Cha and Egg Tart event, I immediately signed them up for it. There were a few in the series but most were quickly snapped up. Egg Tarts and Bubur Cha Cha was something the 2 has never made so this was as fun an activity for them. Most importantly, they did not have to clean up after themselves. 

On the day itself, I did notice adults bringing their grandparents. I should have done the same. I am sure my grandmother (the children's great-grandmother) would have enjoyed the day out. We left the 2 on their own and went to explore the other exhibitions at the National Museum (which was free for Singaporeans). 

As there was a recommended age group, we brought our little girl to the other activities such as story-telling. We checked out the The Mama Shop Of Memories: Exchange Your Memories Of Singapore For Childhood Goodies and the Once Upon a Tide exhibition. The kids could also redeem a gift after completing the questions in the booklet. 

Overall, the children and grandparent had lots of fun and we are looking out for their future activities. We also got a children booklet which encourages us to pop by all the different museums in Singapore. I think we will struggle to complete everything. But...we will probably try. :)

K!dz Pop Con Asia 2025

Parents and kidults alert, K!dz Pop Con Asia is probably the biggest and most exciting event this June holidays. I was running through the programme and I have to say that even I was excited! Apart from the bouncy castles, the toddlers will be able to enjoy Baby Shark's 10-Year Anniversary Party. I can already imagine my kids going wild. 

There is also the much-anticipated cosplay competition. The prizes are super attractive, with the top prize including a stay at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel: 2-Night Stay in Sea View Room (Inclusive of breakfast for 2 pax). On top of that, there will be play zones and interactive areas at the booths. As a parent, I am quite interested in some of the educational activities and workshops. (Popular is going to be an exhibitor, so I am looking forward to some great deals ;P)

For paid add-ons, there is Beard Papa's X Bells baking workshop, Viper Challenge Obstacle Course, The Little Lost Dreamers Immersive AI Experience which I believe the older kids are bound to enjoy. My kids are into Peppa Pig lately, so I am pretty pleased to see that they will be part of the exhibitors. For me, I am ready to swoon over My Little Pony. 

In terms of the tickets, there is a little bit of variations. Being the kind reviewer, I have taken a good look at all of them and I found the "1-Day All Access + Crayola Per Pax: S$62 (worth $202)" the most  value for money. Each family should try to take at least 1 of this ticket because you don't really need duplications of the crayola gift. For the parents or older children, who are not into bouncy castles, a day pass ~$8-$15 will work. You can then add on the paid activities. 

To sweeten the deal, each ticket includes the above entitlements which basically offset your basic day pass. And they can be used after the event. See you there! You can purchase your tickets here!