5 Things you can do if you have too many kids at your wedding banquet

 

Let's face it: you'll be much too busy primping, posing for photos and getting married to worry about whether or not every single guest is enjoying themselves. So why not plan ahead and find great ways to entertain guests and minimise potential wedding stress? Believe it or not, there are tons of unique and easy ways to engage family with kids during your special day and ensure that your wedding will be one to remember. 

Photo Booth 

Traditional, most wedding photographers roam the reception snapping candid shots to commemorate the event. Unfortunately for your guests, they rarely get to see the finished product.

Photography-related activities and favours are a huge trend on the wedding scene right now. Having a photo booth on your wedding event allows the guests, especially family with kids, to cherish this moment frozen in time, and you'll also have a photographic log of the many beloved people who attended your nuptials.

Provide silly props like feather boas, hats or sunglasses and watch the guests stage and informal battle over the best strip of photos. 

Source: Dream Wedding

Kids Activity Kits

Simply set up some kids tables and chairs, keep children occupied with some colouring or craft. Download and print some colouring sheets, print them out, buy some crayons and that's it! There are also pre-packed craft kids readily available in the market. If you need some to run some simple craft activities, you can enquire Mr Bottle's Kids Party or selected art schools for customised craft to suit your theme! 

Make a snow globe at a snow theme wedding!

Source: Dream Wedding

Kids Corner

Get Mr Bottle to entertain your kids with his magic show. 

If a large number of children will be at your reception, consider incorporating a kids' corner or room. Book an extra function room and have a party organiser plan activities! A good kids corner will have different activities like shows, fringe activities and craftwork to occupy the kids of various age group for at least 2-3 hours. You can even have balls pools for the toddlers and bouncy castle for the younger kids. 

Our bouncy castle is perfect for indoors and fits most function room. Only $300 for 4 hours, which is value for money! 

To give the parents a peace of mind, you can ask the party planner to set up a IP camera so they can see their kids enjoying themselves in another room, and not worry what is happening to their children. You can also arrange with the hotel to serve kids buffet. 

Food, Snack or Candy Bars

Banquet starting late? Food, snack or candy bars are a great way to fill kids' stomach since most banquet starts way past children's lunch or dinner time! 

See our list of favourites :
1) Popcorn Bar
2) Veggie Bar
3) Chocolates and Biscuits Bar
4) Cupcakes Bar
5) Fruits Bar

6) Candy Buffet 

We also love the idea of a DIY confetti bar, where guests can put together a colourful, custom bag of confetti to throw at your march-in / getaway.

Source: Dream Wedding

Cartoon Screening

This is not a top choice for me (as a parent) personally but it does the job! It keeps the kids glue to the tube for a quite while; and adults can concentrate on the reception. The best cartoon to screen? Cartoon version of the Mr Bean; you don't have to switch on the volume for the kids to understand the story so you can still have this in the same room in a corner while the rest of the activities are going on. 

Kids Friendly Restaurant: Starz Restaurant

Starz Restaurant

 

Hard Rock Hotel, Starz Restaurant, is located in a centralised location at Sentosa. This means you are minutes away from some of the region’s top attractions, such as Universal Studios Singapore^® and S.E.A. Aquarium™, as well as Asia's flagship of the world-renowned ESPA.

 

 

 

International Buffet Dining

This colourful and fun restaurant offers buffet Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner, with a wide variety of international and local cuisine, which is ideal for both locals and tourists.

Activities for Kids

On every 1st Sunday of the month, starting from 6 July 2014, a whole range of kids activities are specially lined-up for the little ones. The adults can watch them play and laugh while they indulge in the sumptuous spread.

Kids’ Activities
12.00pm – 1.30pm	Registration / Face Painting
12.00pm – 4.00pm	Special Kids Buffet and Movie Screening at Hall of Fame
1.30pm – 2.30pm	Story Telling / Games
3.00pm – 3.30pm	Magic in a 'Bottle' by Mr Bottle

As a diner, I might not be aware that there are activities only on the 1st Sunday of the month, and might have mistaken and head down for a Sunday Brunch. Upon knowing there isn't any activities, I would get rather disappointed and probably decide to dine at another place before stepping in. I might even decide not to patronise the restaurant anymore to avoid disappointment again. I would rather the restaurant have activities on all Sundays, with 1 or 2 activities per time. In this way, regular diners can enjoy different activities on different visits. This will give them a refreshing and surprise feeing on every visit.
   

	It is great to have activities for kids all lined-up for the Sunday Brunch. However, what about the adults? For those who just come in with their small family and does not come with their friends, it is unlikely that they will stay there for 4 hours. Hence, there is a tendency that the parents will want the kids to leave the restaurant. It is commonly seen where parents will "grab" their kids and stop them from what they are doing/ watching. To counter-act this, the restaurant should also have some activities for adults, e.g. Close-up Magic, Caricature & top-up a certain amount for Wine for the drinkers.
	Address: Resorts World Sentosa - Hard Rock Hotel Singapore. 8 Sentosa Gateway, Sentosa Island Singapore 098269 Operating Hours: Breakfast: 7.30am - 10.30am   Lunch: 12pm - 2.30pm (Mon - Fri)   Dinner: 6.30pm - 10.30pm   Hi-Tea: 12pm - 4pm (Sat, Sun & PH) Tel No.: +65 6577 6688 Email: dining@rwsentosa.com

Win dining voucher for 2 at Park Hotel Clarke Quay and 5 reasons why you should reserve your tables now for their Easter Brunch!

There are 5 reasons why you should quickly reserve your tables at Brizo at Park Hotel Clarke Quay! 

1. Your child can win for you a FREE dining voucher for 2 pax worth more than $100 when they take part in the Easter Egg Decorating Competition! The hotel has prepared hundreds of eggs so they can even do multiple entries! 
2. There is a 25% discount if you quote 'MrBottle' before 13 April. Wow, Mr Bottle is like groupon now! Usually discounts do not apply on peak days like Easter! So this is a rare offer.Latest update is that there is only about 30 seats left! 
3. There are Kids Activities to occupy your children throughout! You can enjoy your buffet in peace while the kids get busy! Brizo is a nice cozy restaurant so no matter where you sit, you can see your children at the kids corner.
4. The food - do I need to say more? Even my favourite Egg Benedict is on the list. This is making me hungry already and I just ate.
5. Mr Bottle is performing his new Easter Magic Show only at Brizo.

Want to win Dining voucher for 2? 

Find the number of Easter Eggs hidden in this picture. Go to this link, then comment on the photo, share the photo and like the page to win! 

Art for your Kids

Another passion of mine is art!

I would draw my own comics series, like Tin Tin. It's a pity I throw quite a bit away during spring cleaning some years ago. Here's what left:

I also love drawing the latest cartoon series on TV like ghostbusters and ninja turtle!

(My very own "How to Draw Cartoon" book)

Here are activities you can do with your kids:

• Give them a blank book or my Nothing Book, tell a story and ask them to draw it. You will be surprised how different the perspective of your kid can be from adults!
• Give them a blank book or my Nothing Book, give them some ideas to kick start their own storybook or comic.
• Draw some shapes and ask them to imagine and expand their own drawing from there.

Hope you enjoy them!

Sand activities!

We have a lot of different new activities recently. One of the most fun activities that we are doing is Sand Castle Building!

Every Saturday from 12-3pm at Tanjong Beach Club, Sentosa, we will having lots of sand related activities like sand relay games, seaside craftwork and even a session when we will make a casting of kids' footprints! (which you can bring home for souvenir!)

The sun, the sea, great food (brunch for $28+++), a fun kids pool, with lots of cool activities. I definitely will be there lots!

March Holiday Programme

Since it's almost March Holidays, there's lots of activities around Singapore for our kids! Here's one free programme that is really interesting!

Activity in Jan 2011

Asian Children's Festival 2011: Bring your kids! Click here for schedule and more information!

The Little Explorer’s Travels

http://www.acm.org.sg/exhibitions/eventdetail.asp?eventID=673

Kids, take an exciting trip through Asia only at the Asian Civilisations Musuem! Journey to the colourful worlds of China, India and the Middle East through exhilarating performances, wonderful workshops and fun kids’ craft. Listen to thrilling tales of adventure, dress up in exotic outfits and look forward to an afternoon of pure fun!

Free admission to galleries from 9am to 7pm

Mount Faber

Mount Faber is such a gem! Other than the usual view that you get of Singapore from the top, you will also find very interesting historic stories about the hill at Mount Faber. Try to find these when you are up there:


1) Do you know that there are only 5 official Merlions in Singapore and 1 of them is in Mount Faber. You can see 1 other big Merlion from Mount Faber too!


2) Spot a "ship" that is "stranded" on the top of this "mountain".


3) Spot a red and white communication tower... don't mistaken it for Tokyo Towers!


4) A lot of people didn't know this beautiful building (below) is in Mount Faber (Pender Road). It's the Danish Seaman Church!

5) Lastly, you can find a few of Singapore's unique Black and White colonial houses on the way up.

Pulau Ubin

Have you told your kids what Singapore looked like in the 50s or 60s? It probably looked like Pulau Ubin!

Families can rent bicycles cheaply there at one of the many rental shops and they will even provide maps for free. However, there's are certain steep slopes that one must look out for!

My personal favourite is House No. 1 or the English Cottage. Now restored, it shows information about Chek Jawa, one of the nature gems of Singapore.

You can try to spot different animals like wild boars (there's one domesticated if you cannot find any in the wild), mudskipper and a crab with a big claw!

Science Centre

I love the Science Centre! We were very lucky to have performed at the magic exhibition there hence had a lot of chances to visit the place.

In fact, I love the outdoor gardens! Kids can easily spend about an hour playing around the outdoor exhibit. My favourite is the dragon optical illusion in which one can see the dragon head move! The garden is open 24 hours! (of course it gets a little too dark at night!)

Bottle Tree Park

What is really love about this place is the vast amount of place that kids can run about. This place is not related to Mr Bottle however!

One can find really unique bottle-shaped trees native to Australia. Families can do activities like fishing and of course, eating at their famous seafood restaurants there!

Bottle Tree Village60 Jalan Mempurong (Sembawang) Click here for Google MapsSingapore 759058Restaurant : 65 6752-6953Fax: 65 6753-2491

Bottle Tree Park81 Lorong Chencharu (Yishun) Click here for Google MapsSingapore 769198Restaurant : 65 6759-7077Office: 65 6759-5771Fax: 65 6759-5796

Supermarket

What?! A supermarket as an outing?

A trip supermarket can be made fun too! Create a shopping list for your kids and ask them to find the items in the shortest time possible! If you have 2 or more kids, you can have a competition!

Of course, there are some very important rules you must tell the kids like no running, no disturbing other shoppers, etc!

Changi Coast Road

Did your kids like aeroplanes? I am sure they see the inside of the planes all the time but how about when the plane takes off?

I think the best place to see it is at Changi Coast Road. You can actually see the underbelly of the planes at the edge of the runway.

You can park at the Tanah Merah Country Club or rent a bicycle and cycle all the way from East Coast Park!

Enjoy!

Singapore Flyer

Boarding the Singapore Flyer can be fun too! Kids get restless after 30-40min in a capsule. So why don't you make it like a "treasure hunt" of the buildings for the kids. Here are some ideas and quizzes that you can give your kids.

Singapore Flyer Questions
Q: Who can point out to me, where is Singapore Grand Prix (F1 race)?
A: F1 Paddock Club
Q: Who can point out to me, which building has a casino on it?
A: Marina Bay Sands
Q: Who can point out to me, which building has the number 13 on it?
A: Marina Barrage
Q: Who can point out to me, which building has the number 13 on it?
A: Conrad Hotel
Q: Which hotel has round windows?
A: Ritz Carlton
Q: Who can point out to me a creature that is half lion and half fish?
A: Merlion
Q: Who can point out to me, which hotel used to be a Post office?
A: Fullerton Hotel
Q: Which structure looks like 2 durian shells?
A: Esplanade
Q: Who can point out to me Singapore’s tallest Hotel?
A: Swissotel (Raffles City)
Q: Who can point out to me where is the National Day Parade held this year?
A: Padang
Q: Who can tell me how many capsules are there on Singapore Flyer?
A: 28
Q: Who can tell me which is the World’s largest Ferris Wheel?
A: Singapore Flyer (at least for now… the others eg. in Dubai are still building…)
Q: Who can point out to me where is the nearest MRT?
A: Promenade MRT Station (near the carpark, millenia walk, etc.)
Q: Who can point out to me which company are we from?
A: Mr Bottle’s Kids Party
Q: Who can point out to me one restaurant that can be found in SG Flyer?
A: Popeyes
Q: Anyone can tell me what is the name of the garden?
A: Yakult Rainforest Discovery garden (double check if the sponsorship has ended… :P)
Q: Who know how tall is the Singapore Flyer?
A: 165m / 42 storey
Q: Who can point out to me where is the YOG opening ceremony held?
A: Floating Platform.
Q: Who can point out to me the structure that looks like DNA?
A: Helix Bridge (near sands, beside YOG park, and floating platform)

St John's Island

This is another great one day getaway for the family. There's a few trekking routes that your family can go on. If you are lucky, you can even see the Rafflesia flower there! (It's rare because full bloom only last about 3 days and it takes at least 1.5 years to reach it.)

Rafflesia is the world's largest flower and named after Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, the founder of the British Colony of Singapore.


Source: http://static.atlasobscura.com

Let your kids understand the fragility of the flora and fauna and have fun at the same time!

Getting There: Take a ferry from Sentosa Ferry Terminal. Departure times: 10 am and 1.30 pm (Mon to Sat), and at 9am, 11am, 1pm, 3pm and 5pm (Sun and public holidays).
Return ticket $10.00 (adults), $6.00 (child 3 to 12 years).
Duration of the boat ride is about 45 mins. (Source: New Asia Singapore)

Go to Kusu Island with your kids

Kusu Island or Tortoise Island is a small island off Singapore. I was really lucky to be able to go there because of an event.

Well, it's a small island but it's a great place to spend an idly time with your family. (Avoid the pilgrimage seasons when devotees go there in droves.) Bring a picnic basket and mat and set up tent by the beach! Kids can freely run around too.

You can tell your kids the legend of Kusu Island as you arrive at the Island. (Legend has it that a giant sea turtle turned into an island to save 2 shipwrecked sailors - a Malay and a Chinese. As an act of thanks, the two men built a Chinese temple, Malay shrine and a huge turtle sculpture on the island. Source: New Asia Singapore)

You can find more information like ferry information at http://www.wildsingapore.com/places/kusu.htm

Take Photo of F1 Car

I figured that would be out-of-reach for most people! But you can find replicas of the F1 car around Singapore! Bring your kids there and take photos with these instead.

• Cycle and Carriage (Mercedes) showroom at Alexandra Road. - (I hope it's still there!) It's the most authentic one that you can find for free!
• Comm Centre -
• Singapore Flyer - These life-size F1 cars there are made of cardboard!
• Borders Bookstore at Wheellock Place - We made a lifesize F1 car out of balloons and it is on display at the bookstore along Orchard Road. Here's a picture of it!

Here's the process of making a F1 Car!

Let me know if there are more places you can see these cars!

P.S. I knew that Comm Centre has a stimulation F1 car game, is it still there?

Go on a food trail with your kids...

I know kids don't eat much and don't really care what they eat (most of the time at least!). One way to go on a food trail is to make it fun for the kids! Personally, I feel that architecture of old shophouses along Balestier Road has a lot of stories to tell. Hence you can make it like a treasure hunt for your kids! Ask your kids to look for:

• A pillar with guards holding guns
• A kiosk which dispense free water to people
• Count the number of stalls that sell Bak kut Teh
• Locate all the Tau Sar Piah stalls in the area
• Find a charming restore building call "Old Place" (Lao Ti Fang)

When they are tired, you can always find food to nimble on. Continue your hunt once you are rested!

You can find more information and ideas at http://www.ura.gov.sg/rediscoverSpore/pdf/balestier.pdf