BEST Indoor Playground 6

Spacezone Playgym

Spacezone Playgym is Singapore 1st space-themed indoor soft playground for children from 1-12 years old. Featuring Space Walk Bridge, Space Capsule, Aliens Shooting Ball Game and Double-Lane Slide.

 

Although there are numerous Kids Indoor Playground all around Singapore, Spacezone Playgym has its advantage whereby it's small yet cosy, where your family can have fun and even have the whole playground yourselves! It is also located conveniently located slightly off the town area.

 

As there are many competitors in this industry, Spacezone Playgym should at least have a website so people can know more about them. They can also work with the nearby pre-schools to organise outings, birthday party packages for the kids. Since weekdays are also the quieter periods of the week, this can be a great way to promote their playground to more people.

 

Private parties is also available at Spacezone Playgym. This is a plus point compared to some other bigger Indoor Playgrounds, whereby Private Parties might not be available. Client can also choose one of the following for their private parties: Mr Bottle's Magic Show, Face Painting or Balloon Sculpting from Mr Bottle's Kids Party, or Piñata or even Mascot Squirrel Appearance, @ $600 only! It is a place great for small parties!

Spacezone Playgym
UE Square Shopping Mall
81 Clemenceau Avenue #02-24 Singapore 239917
Contact: 62351089
Opening Hours: 10am - 8pm

Best Outdoor Fun

New Children's Garden at Gardens by the Bay

 

Children's Garden

Families now have another reason to head to Gardens by the Bay, where the Far East Organization Children's Garden was launched on 20 January 2014, and is now open free to the public six days a week.

The 1ha garden, located between the Cloud Forest conservatory, Satay by the Bay and the Sun Pavilion, features tree houses, climbing ropes, slides and water play areas for children aged one to 12.

Sand and rubber bottomed play areas are woven among more than 100 species of plants, including the old man palm, yellow jade orchid tree and even a baobab tree from Madagascar. This is to give children a chance to climb trees, dodge hanging vines and swat away low-lying leaves and branches in a garden cum playground, to help them interact with nature.

This is a ideal place for family outing, great for family bonding. The kids can experience the outdoor scenery, understand the different types of plants and breath fresh air rather than staying in an air-conditioned room. Children can also build their courage through the climbing of ropes and even by playing slides. The BEST thing is of course, the kids can learn through play, together with their family!

Garden Hours
Bay South Outdoor Gardens	5:00 AM - 2:00 AM, Daily
Cooled Conservatories & OCBC Skyway	9:00 AM - 9:00 PM, Daily Last ticket sale at 8:00 PM Last admission at 8:30 PM
Outdoor Gardens Audio Tour	9:30 AM - 5:00 PM, Monday* to Friday 9:30 AM - 4:00 PM, Saturday, Sunday, eve of and on Public Holidays *Tours begin at 12:30 PM every 1st Monday of the month
Shuttle Service	9:30 AM - 5:00 PM, Daily* Service begins at 12:30 PM every 1st Monday of the month

The Ideal Place to Cook, Bake & Host

ToTT

Tools of The Trade

 

ToTT is a place to cook, bake and host parties! You can either take up cooking/ baking lessons OR rent a space to do your cooking/ baking. Yes, it is as convenient as it sounds.

 

 

 

Hunting for something unique for your kid's birthday party? ToTT could be your choice. Let the kids express their creativity through baking. 30 minutes is all you need for a bag of freshly-made yummy cookies! Thinking of activities to keep the kids busy during the baking? No worries, other than the Children's Play Area, you can engage entertainment programmes from Mr Bottle's Kids Parties like Magic Show by Mr Bottle, Science Show by Professor Messy, Balloon Sculpting by N2, Face Painting by Twinkle Artist or Interactive Games.

 

ToTT not only caters to individuals and kids, it is ideal for corporate events like Team Building and Family Day etc.

Buffet, ranging from high-tea to 8-course meals, is also available for your events.


ToTT Store
896 Dunearn Road Sime Darby Centre S(859472)
Email: cookbakehost@tottstore.com
Tel: 62197077

EatPlayLove Cafe

Welcome to EatPlayLove Cafe!

Cafe

Hunting for a Cafe where you can relax, while the kids can use the imagination to do craft? Running out of ideas to bond with your family? Missing the old school charm you had? Love to do handicraft but find it cumbersome to get all the materials?

If it's a 'YES' to one of the above answers, EatPlayLove Cafe is one stop that you cannot miss for your next outing with your family or friends.

The Cafe is situated at Aliwal Street, off the buzz from Bugis. It serves Thai delights with simple western fare at affordable prices.   The cafe also sells old school snacks and toys like Ding Dang & aeroplane.

Kids Craft Corner

Craft ranging from coloured beads, coloured pasta, strings in rainbow colours, crepe paper, crayons, markers, glitter glue, cardboard egg trays, bottle caps (plastic and metal), paper plates, Yakult bottles, coloured furry balls, feathers, confetti and a whole lot of others! The cups used are the old school metal cups and the water at the water station is stored in an old school thermos flask!If you're a big fan of retro stuff, you difinitely cannot miss this place too~

Think that it will cost you a bomb to use the craft corner? Then you are wrong... Simply $5 is  enough to fill up your kids for 2 hours during the weekdays & 1 hour during the peak period, on weekends. 

Some handicafts which you can do with the kids include DIY dolls, shrink art, necklace, handbag, key chain, puppets, rings, and the list never ends.

 

Get inspired! Browse though the Crafty Books before getting started.  

Party Packages

A unique and fun way to celebrate your kid's birthday party at EatPlayLove.You can book the entire craft corner or even the whole cafe for your party! Isn't it great to get the kids to DIY something on the spot for the birthday kid?

As kids are charged only 50% of the adult package price, and kids craft are charged separately based on the no. of pax joining in, this is very attractive and fair to the client.

Decoration packages are also available for your party. Although own decoration is allowed, their client is only allowed to set-up & remove within the party slot of 2.5 hrs. It seems like restricting their clients to have their own preferred decorations and kind of 'force' them to get the Cafe's Decoration Packages. We do know of some restaurants where helium balloons are included in the party packages. Moreover, they also help their client to helium-fill the balloons the client bought and add into the party too. Hence, this is a point they might want to review on, in order to remain competitive in this industry.

Personally, we think that there should also be more Helium Balloons included for the higher-priced packages, then it will be more attractive to their clients and a better way to up-sell their decoration packages. They should also print their Cafe's logo on the helium balloons, for marketing purposes, as the kids can bring home after the party.

Party host is also not included in the package. We think that a party host is important in this kind of setting. As least the client and their guests will have someone to attend to whenever required. Cake-hosting is also what most parents would require in a party, rather than simply 'renting' out the venue. 

EatPlayLove can also up-sell their party packages by including Shows like Magic Show & Science Show and Fringe Activities like Balloon Sculpting, Face Painting & Caricature, which Mr Bottle's Kids Party can offer.

The Cafe only opens at 12pm, even on weekends and PHs, we think that they should open slightly earlier, e.g 11am on weekdays and 10am on weekends. On top of that, with their kitchen closed from 3pm-6pm on weekdays, parents will think twice before going into the restaurant, as they and the kids will not have something to munch on while the kids are doing the craft.

28 Aliwal Street
#01-07
Singapore 199918
Tel: 6444 6400
Email: eatplaylovecafe@yahoo.com
Open 12pm to 10pm Daily, Closed on Tuesdays
Kitchen closes 3pm to 6pm, except weekends & PH

Kids Friendly Restaurant: Stuttgart Blackforest - Boutique S-Cafe

What is Stuttgart? Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Wurttemberg, in the southwest Germany.

One uniqueness of S-Cafe is the showcase of art, culture & innovation of Stuttgart and the Black Forest. Slow down your foot steps to take some time to experience the cuckoo clock wall, art gallery and wine vault. 

Other than the ground floor, S-Cafe also provides event space for rental, including Mezzanine and Private Room.

Thinking that S-Cafe is only suitable for adults but not kids? Wrong! S-Cafe is also an ideal venue to hold your kids party. The cafe is spacious and have different parts that caters to different party sizes. When I first stepped into the Cafe, it gives me a mystic garden kind of feeling. It even comes with a 'flowing river'. So if you are having a Alice in Wonderland, Robin Hood or forest theme party, I think the venue will be ideal! (Add some balloon animals and microfoils for the forest theme.)

Your guests will definitely enjoy the authentic German food on the buffet spread, which is very uniquefor a birthday party! 

Book some children entertainment and the adults can have their own relaxing time; drinking S-Cafe's signature beers! 

Smacked right in the city, with Bugis and Bencoolen MRT just a stone's throw away, it is convenient for guests who don't drive. Ample parking lots are also available at the HDB carpark at Queens Street.

I guess the only con is that you do have to pay a separate charge for the use of the venue space on top of food. If S-cafe can do away with that, then I am sure that it will be a very popular place for birthday parties! 

In summary, S-cafe is definitely a great place for birthday parties and families. Drop by and have a meal, they even provide tablemat with kids activities to occupy your children while waiting for the food to come!

Here's some details.

Stuttgart Blackforest Boutique S-Café
141 Middle Road #01-01, Singapore 188976

Telephone:6336 8675

Fax:633 68713

E-mail:shop@scafe.com.sg
Web site :www.scafe.com.sg

How to Host a Birthday Cake Cutting Ceremony

by Kien
Although most party companies usually provides this service free of charge, I decided to put this out online so everyone can do the cake cutting ceremony themselves without sweat. 

But first, I think we have to discuss the objective! It's a must for every birthday party! Cake cutting ceremony is a great time to take photos with your guests and naturally, you want to freeze this special moment with your cameras, especially with your family.
1. Schedule – Most of the cake cutting is done towards the end of the parties but I have seen a few parties doing it at the beginning. There is no right or wrong but I guess you have a find a suitable schedule, when the most important guests are here or right after the magic show when you have most of the guests attention.

2. Preparing the cake

• Find a place to take the photo. It can be a nice backdrop that you already decorated. (Not against the light if you have glass walls)

• Take the cake out of the box first (duh!)

• Put the candles on the cake

• Some cakes will have this plastic transparent thing covering the side of the cake. Remove that.
• Have the lighter ready with you. (But do not light the candles yet.)
• Put the knife on the table beside the cake. Remove it from the plastic cover first. (Most cake shops will provide a safe plastic knife.)
• For 2D cakes, prop the cake plate up with a plate or small bowl underneath. Face the cake in such a way that it shows the words the right up way when the photo is taken.
• Have the plates and forks ready

Want everyone to see your 2D cake? Prop it up with a small bowl or plate so your guests can see it!

3. Birthday Kid – Get the birthday kid to stand behind the cake. Take a few photos of the cake with the kid alone. (if there is a chance!)

4. Guests – Some may want the family to be in the photos, and some may prefer to have the kid guests to be in the photo since it’s the child’s birthday. Getting all the kids to stand properly for the photo taking is an art. Kids usually crowd in the front or side where they have the best view of the cake. If you use a long table, it is easier to line them up at the table; behind the cake.
5. Getting the kids to smile – I usually like a few photos before I light up the candles. Because once the candles are lit, the time to take photos is short especially with certain fancy candles. You can get them to shout the birthday child’s name or simply ‘cheese’ at the count of 3. (So everyone says it at the same time!) Remember to ask them to look at the camera. You can ask them to do certain actions like hooray, yay, funny faces, etc. 

6. Light the candles – I recently found some wind-free lighters which is great for birthday candle lighting! If you use a normal lighter, it tends to get too hot after a while. Using a spare candle to light the others may get wax all over the cake. After the candles are lit, I get them to pose for a few more photos.
7. Singing the Song – I count to three so everyone starts the song at the same time. In school, kids are usually taught different versions (Eg. Mandarin) I may let the kids take control of the different versions they want to see. 

8. Blowing the candles – I may remind the kids that ‘it’s ______ birthday today, so let ______ blow the candle. Ask him to make a wish first. (Great photo opportunity when the kid shuts his eyes for this.) Blow the candle. Your camera should snap non-stop during this step.
9. Cut the cake – Get the kid to cut the cake while smiling at the camera. 

10. More photos? – There may be guests who want to take photos with the birthday child and family at this point of time too.

11. Serve the cake – That’s it! Ask the kids to queue up while you serve them the cake. I think it will be great to ask the birthday kid to serve the cake too and thank the guests at the same time.

Kien is a psychologist by training and decided to put what he has learnt to good use by performing magic, since graduating from NUS and NTU about 10 years ago. He changes into Mr Bottle when he is with kids and has been specialising in children magic for the past 14 years. He has since helped host about 2138 cake cutting ceremonies since he started his trade. (He think he should advance to start doing weddings ROM too.) He can find out more about his magic shows at www.magician.com.sg or email him for a chat at enquiry@magician.com.sg

Preparing your 3-year-old (or younger) for a birthday party

by Kien

Recently, we have been receiving a quite a few enquiries and bookings for 3-year-olds so I thought I should discuss a little on this subject: Preparing your 3-year-olds (and younger) for a birthday party. Before I continue, I must say that every child is different so the following advice applies to most kids but you do have to use your own discretion to do what is best for your kid! 

Plan early – Nothing is worse than a stressed out mummy. You should how your own emotions can affect your children. Get professionals to do up your décor, food and entertainment so you have more time to take care of guests and kids.

Spiderman theme decor - Source around for different decorations packages suitable for your parties!

Think of who you should invite – Sometimes, your young kid can be overwhelmed with the sudden increase number of people talking to him or her.  Keep the party manageable for the birthday child and yourself. You can even also stagger the arriving time of different groups of people to keep the crowd manageable for him.

Do In a school – This is after all in his familiar environment so he will generally be more comfortable with his friends, teachers and parents.

Teachers and kids enjoying the magic show together in school.

Avoid their naptimes – For obvious reasons.

Do something suitable for them – Can a 3-year-old understand a magic show? Yes! But not all magic shows are suitable so choose one that you think three-year-olds can enjoy. Children of this age may not understand magic fully yet, so Mr Bottle focuses a lot on comedy and fun bits which is more important for this age group.

Lots of comedy for younger kids! That's what matters most to them!

Because of their short attention span, you can also choose fringe activities like balloon sculpting and facepainting. Mr Bottle’s Kids Party’s mascot service also includes games, sing-a-longs so if your crowd consists mostly of 2-4 years old, this can be an option too. Some 2-year-olds do get scared of mascot but some love them. We have many interesting stories of our mascots with 2-year-olds, maybe we will tell you next time about it in our future blogs!

Mascot are great for younger kids from 2 to 4 years old!

Facepainting is great kids of all ages!

Magic Show? – If you have a magic show with kids of various age groups, the older kids will ‘teach’ the younger kids how to react. For a 3-year-old, this is probably the first time he or she is watching a magic show so he is not sure what to do. Should he go up on stage when the magician asks for volunteer? Is it all right to laugh? With older children, the younger kids simply imitate what is appropriate.

Do you see the kids imitating what Mr Bottle is doing?

I would also recommend the parents sit with their 3-year-old kids during a magic show, especially if the crowd consists of ONLY 3-year-olds. The parents can laugh and participate in the show together! Mr Bottle’s magic shows are just like Disney movies; fun for kids and great for adults too!

Magic show is probably not the best for 2-year-old because their attention span is too short. I have discussions with magicians around the world on this, and MOST says that they would only do a show for children 3 years old and above. (Some even restrict their shows to an older age group.) Although we have several instances in which 2-year-olds sat down and even participate in Mr Bottle’s show without any problems, in 95% of cases, they would probably stand up and walk around. So again, if you want magic show for your 2-year-old, sit down and watch the show with them.

Warm Up – The younger kids tend to need a little time to warm up to what is happening around him or her. If you are booking a show, you probably don’t want it too early in the party.

Mr Bottle warming the kids up before starting the magic show!

Practise makes perfect – Bring him or her to a friend’s birthday party first so he knows what to expect at a party. Most, if not all, children love birthday parties so if your kid is uncomfortable at a party, the reason is not they do not like it, but they are just unfamiliar with it. You can explain to them what happens at the party like they get presents, cut the cake, play with their friends, etc.

It's okay to laugh out loud at parties!

Do not over-excite them – A lot of parents tend to get the kids overly excited for their big day, by repeatedly asking them about their party. But do not over do that especially for the younger kids. You can to treat it like a ‘normal’ fun day with friends.   Even for the older kids, I have seen quite a few cases of kids losing sleep and even getting sick because they are too excited over their party.

In schools, sometimes the teachers will get 2 year old kids to join in. This is not a problem as long as the magician knows how to arrange them to enjoy the show the best!

Do not put too much pressure on them – Let them be. If they do not want to greet strangers, do not force them. If the magic show needs volunteers, but your child is not comfortable participating then, let other kids have the chance.

Most of the kid magic shows have lot of participation!

Involve them – I think it’s meaningful to let them to write their own invitation and thank you cards for their friends or do up their own drawings to paste on the wall. Treat this like another craft cum family bonding activity that everyone in the family can take part.

Let kids get involve in their parties!

Kien is a psychologist by training and decided to put what he has learnt to good use by performing magic, since graduating from NUS and NTU about 10 years ago.  He changes into Mr Bottle when he is with kids and has been specialising in children magic for the past 14 years.  Other than making sweets and presents appear in his show, he has also made 2 kids of his own appear in his life (and of course a wife). He can find out more about his magic shows at www.magician.com.sg or email him for a chat at enquiry@magician.com.sg