Fun activities for little hands - Busy Bags

Filling pockets of time with novel activities while we are home with the kids can be a challenging task. When we discovered the range of busy bags from Busy Tots Bags, filled with activities to keep young children entertained and engaged with, we were excited to introduce them to Aiden and Ava.

1) Button Up Shirt 

This travel size wooden shirt is perfect for those little hands. Align the buttons on the holes and thread the lace through to secure the buttons.

At 24 month old, Ava enjoys this activity. She would take the buttons out and independently try to string them back on the shirt after observing how I do it. 

 

This appeals to older kids as well, though it is a simpler activity for them and takes them a shorter time to figure out the stringing. 

The kit includes 2 wooden shirt, 6 buttons and 1 string, and helps with improving hand eye coordination and fine motor skills.

2) Thread the Holey Ball

The bright colored balls attracted both Aiden and Ava. It was tough initially to guide them to thread the pipe cleaners through the balls as they were more excited rolling and bouncing the balls around.

They found it challenging to slot the pipe cleaners through the holes, and ended up with tangles and interesting shapes instead.

This kit includes 4 plastic balls and 5 pipe cleaners, it is a fun activity that trains hand eye coordination as well as fine motor skills.

3) Mother Hen

Ava was attracted to the felt hen in this activity. Intuitively, she went for the eggs and removed them from the hen before going on to remove the buttons from the wing. The buttons were slightly challenging for her.

Aiden takes over buttoning and snapping the eggs in place. Great team work! We used this to practice counting in English and Mandarin with Ava.

4) Fun with pony tails

Learn how to braid hair, untangle hair and tie them with rubber bands. This activity is fun and interests Ava more than Aiden. It helps with the development of fine motor skills and unleashes your child’s creativity. 

5) Geo Board Shape Fun

This versatile geo board is great for teaching the kids about shapes, numbers and alphabets. 

This is more suitable for kids 3 year and above, and encourages creativity as they can create various shapes and patterns with the bright colored rubber bands. Activity cards are provided to guide the kids on forming letters, numbers and various shapes. 

This kit includes 1 plastic geo board, 20 rubber bands and 8 geo board activity cards.

Exclusively for our readers:

Support local this Christmas! Shop at BusyTotsBags and enjoy 10% off all orders $40 and above simply by keying this code upon check out, ‘PriviKidsChristmas’. Valid till 25 Dec 2015. 

Christmas Giveaway:

Two lucky readers will stand a chance to win a $20 voucher to shop for busy bags for your child. Simply leave your name, email address and which activity kit would you love for your child under comments. 

Share and spread the love this Christmas, follow PriviKids Facebook page & BusyTotsBags Facebook page to increase your chances of winning. 

Christmas Limited Editions

Check out these limited edition Christmas bags, they makes perfect gifts for young kids. 

All in one Christmas Magical Set

This magical set includes 4 Christmas busy bags:

1. Dazzling star

Have a fun time of bonding with this star ornament craft bag. Colour the star, talk about how many sides the star has, and hang it up on the Christmas tree as the little one's proud contribution to the decorations this season.

2. Magical Tree Wand

Learn about numbers, the Christmas way! Match the numerals and numbers of stars on the 'wands' to the numbers of stars on the trees. 

3. Merry Lacing

Lace strings through the holes on the limited edition Christmas foam shapes. Learn to recognise the shapes and develop fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination.

4. Hallmarks of Christmas

Get crafty-painty with these painting stamps. Tip: Get a big piece of paper, let your child stamp the shapes, and use as gift wrapping paper when dry. See your child beam with pride when the gift is all dressed up in his/her masterpiece!


Christmas Tree Fun

Get your little one to be a part of the Christmas decorations this year, with this unique craft set! 

Paint the circular base in your child's favourite colour - or leave it as is. Describe and discuss the tree and decorative stickers, as you get crafty together. Unleash your child's creativity and develop his/her fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination, as he/she decorates the Christmas tree with the stickers provided. 

We love how these busy bags are compact and convenient to bring around, and they make great in flight activities during our recent Tokyo trip with the kids. Shop early and support local this Christmas.

Tips on kids photography: Snap happy!

What's tougher than taking photos of a kid?

Taking photos of two kids at the same time! It is almost mission impossible especially when doing it alone.

You'd never be sure of how it will turn out to be, and here's some advice:

1) Go with the flow. As much as you try to give instructions on where to stand, how to pose, it will rarely turn out the way you want it. Forget about top models. 

2) Bring snacks, lots of it. If they can be in theme and included in the photos, that's even better. Otherwise bring mini size snacks so that they won't be distracting in the photos. Don't try to take the snack away for a 'clean shot', it won't happen. You will end up with teary eyes and angry fits.

3) Say something funny like, 'Look at her mouth, she has got ice cream all over!' instead of 'Look into her eyes....' to achieve the pose you are striving for. Kids love exaggeration and funny actions/ remarks from you.

4) A brightly lit area would be great for photos, think outdoors, greenery or plain walls. Look closely in the vicinity as you may not need to travel far to get the right backdrop. Light, natural light always do wonders.

Of course, these are the photos that make it to the blog. Do not lose heart if you do not get any perfect photos. Often I love the photos not making the cut, as they share real emotions and sweet moments between the kids.


Kids wardrobe:
Popsicle Tank Top (Yellow on Ava, Green on Aiden) at $19.90 each
Yellow checkered bubble shorts on Ava at $25.90
Denim bermudas on Aiden at $32.90
All available at PriviKids, Suntec City Tower 3 unit 02-712, Changi City Point unit 02-04 and Privi-Kids.com.

Minimalist fashion for kids

Black has always been the dominant color in my wardrobe. Working in the beauty industry for ten years, where the dress code is mostly black. Black is also the comfort color to go to on days I feel fat, and a safe color for an outing with the kids where spills and stains are inevitable.

A beauty event for YSL with international makeup artist, Patrick.

 In kids fashion, more minimalist brands have gained popularity with their stylish, simple designs reflecting adult styles. Huxbaby and their collection of simple stylish essentials made of super soft organic cotton are winning hearts around the world.

Huxbaby new collection, Fall Winter 2015

Believing less is more, minimalism is a lifestyle that is clear of clutter, allowing kids and adults alike to be ourselves without sacrificing style.

Our favourite from the collection, Rolling Bears Swirl Dress

The material is so soft, rest assured for happy faces

You'd even want to wear them to sleep! (Credit: @melodylulu_)

Hux Bear short romper (Credit: @kierazhy)

Loving what you see from the new collection? Now baby and you can twin in the same styles you like. Shop the Huxbaby new collection from our online store now or visit our store at Suntec City Tower 3, unit 02-712.

Exclusively for our readers:
Stand to win a S$80 Zalora voucher for kids wear simply by taking part in the quiz, 'Which stylish celebrity mum are you?'
Redeem for our PriviKids selection of apparel in Zalora with this voucher.

New In Stores: Jaime King for Sapling Child

Who wouldn't want to give the best to their babies? From the day we hold our baby in our arms, we want to protect them and provide for them. Every precious moment is recorded on our phone cameras and it is a joy dressing them up.

Sapling Child teams up with Jaime King to launch this collection of organic cotton fashion line for babies and children.

This collection is inspired by Jaime King's childhood wonder - from the sprawling skies of Nebraska where she grew up to the seascape of California where she now lives and forms her son's James Knight's childhood.  

This Shine Bright t-shirt is available for 6-12M and 1Y, this grey t-shirt is the must have t-shirt this season and can be paired with endless options! 

Give the best present to your loved ones with the Galaxy Bear print bodysuits. Available from 0-3M to 1Y, in the softest organic cotton material. 

Love the halter bubble suit in this season's prints - soft, sweet Galaxy Bear in Pink, bright bold Peony Garden and refreshing feminine Lotus Flower. 

By choosing organic cotton, you are choosing one of the safest and most natural clothing options for your little one. Producing without chemicals throughout the entire production process, this helps prevent harmful chemicals from finding their way into your baby's bloodstream. The pure fibers allow your baby's skin to breathe naturally, and does not irritate sensitive skin or cause allergies.

The collection is available now at Privi-Kids.com and Suntec City Tower 3 #02-712.

eXplorerkid's Baby & Junior Race 2015

Get ready for the eXplorerkid's Baby & Junior Race this year,  which will be held on 19 & 20 September 2015 at D'Marquee at Downtown East. Expect amazing prizes, goodie bags and fun activities at their 11th annual race. 

Exclusively for our readers, enjoy 50% off the registration fee (usual price $36) with this promotion code 'BLOGBFF18' when you sign up here.

Ava at Julia Gabriel Playclub II

We decided to sign up for a term at Julia Gabriel after our initial trial session with them. We opted for the bilingual class so that Ava can be exposed to both languages in a more structured play group setting. A 2.30-4.30pm class would be perfect leaving us with some time to explore after class before returning home for dinner. However, Ava's nap time is later nowadays so we went ahead for the 4.30-6.30pm class.

Snap snap! No monday blues.

No more pictures Mummy! Where's the sweet you promised?

Ava missed her nap before her second class, and with only thirty minutes of shut eye on our way to the centre, she woke up cranky and clingy.

The kids were introduced to ketupat (rice dumpling packed in a woven leaf pouch), and did a simple art work of peeling off double sided tape and sticking square shapes paper onto the ketupat. Unwilling to participate at first, I encouraged her by guiding her to peel the edge of the tape and she was curious to try doing it on her own.

 

The kids were introduced to the color yellow, parts of a duck and sound the duck makes. They painted and used soft feathers to complete their art work. The hands on activities helped Ava remember what was taught and she had fun learning.

There were some free play time in between the different activities. The kids were taught to play together in a group, share the toys and pack the toys together after they are done.

Likes how Ava independently feeds herself finger food and drinks from a cup during their tea break.

This cranky little one finally warms up at the end of the session at the free play area.

 

Time to hit the streets after class :)