Project Homeland: The Dove Playground

We visited the Dove playground (at Blk 10, Dakota Crescent) last week. The boys really loved playing at there, simply because this was one of the playgrounds that still had sand!

They ran or crawled (in Baby J's case) across the bridge. Many times. 

They climbed up, or slid down the slides. (There are 3 slides in total.)

They careened wildly as they sat in the swings. These tyre swings are so rare these days.  

The baby had a field day. He climbed stairs. He climbed slides. He tried sliding down slides on his own, and bumped his head. He grabbed handfuls of sand and crawled all over. 

Lil J was especially delighted with the sensory aspect of it all. He played with sand. He busied himself picking up those tiny leaves that were scattered about the playground surfaces like confetti. 

As the hubby busied himself chasing the littlest, I was enjoying myself snapping photos of the kids, and admiring the lines and curves of the playground. The shapes and colours do lend themselves nicely for a photo shoot. And those pretty blue mosaic tiles!

I had to dig deep and long into a bucket of pastel coloured Perler beads to find all the periwinkle blue beads to match the tiles. Digging aside, it was hard to work out the curves of the playground on a square pegboard, so this is how our playground portrait turned out:

If you do have the time, do bring the kids to visit the Dove playground as I've heard that it would be demolished next year. (You can read about another mum's visit to the playground here, and about our trip to the AMK Dragon playground here.) Here's to a blessed week ahead!

Project Homeland: The AMK Dragon Playground

I caught some really nasty bug over in Penang and was down for the week. But I was feeling better over the weekend, so we decided to spend some time exploring some of the old playgrounds in Singapore. It has been something I wanted to do for the longest time, but we never got down to doing it. Guess that meant we missed out on visiting some of them like the Pelican (which is now extinct, I think), but better late than never!

We decided to head down to the Dragon Playground at Toa Payoh, and we told the boys we would visiting a playground that looked like a dragon. They were really excited, but when we reached we were told that the boys couldn't play there as they were filming something. Lil J was really upset, so we did a quick search and found that there was another Dragon Playground in Ang Mo Kio (at Blk 571, Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3, S560571). So we headed there instead. 

The boys loved it. They especially loved sliding down the slippery mosaic-covered slides, and went again and again. Even the baby went on the slide. 

They loved exploring the twisting, winding coils of the dragon. They ran up and down the steps, peered through the eye of the dragon, and ran. And ran. And ran some more. 

The hubby remarked to me that they no longer make such playgrounds with character. Which I agree. These mosaic covered ones were not as safe, with no guard rails at the top of platforms. It's more painful if you fall and bump into any of these structures. The metal parts were also showing the wearing effects of rain, corrosion and the pounding of little feet across the years. So I guess I understood why many of these ended up being replaced by the safer plastic modular playgrounds that are the norm these days. 

But the playground appealed to me, and to the hubs, and to the kids. Was it just nostalgia? I am not sure. I spent my childhood playing in similar mosaic playgrounds. We didn't run in dragons, but I remember playgrounds with sand. Playgrounds built with tough materials. I remembered spinning round and round in a tyre swing, and trying to push a creaky rusty merry-go-round. 

Perhaps it was how the playground had character. Mention dragon playground, and everyone knows how it looks like, which isn't the case for most of the playgrounds today. (How would you name them? The colourful plastic one with the spiral slide?) I think one appeal of the playground for me was how the structure was almost a work of art: a dragon made from mosaic slowly pieced together tile by tile. It took hands to form it, to weld the ribs together and paint them. It wasn't just plastic parts from a factory assembled together. So many of these have been demolished, and I really hope they will preserve the ones that still stand.

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The boys and I were working with Perler beads the past few days while I was home recovering, and I decided to start making fused bead playground portraits. So I started off with the dragon over in Toa Payoh (I can't seem to find beads of suitable matching shades for the one in AMK!). The baby took one look at it, and said "duck duck!" (I hope it does look like the real thing, at least a little!). I'll be working on more playground portraits soon. 

We'll be blogging about the other heritage playgrounds in time to come, so do stay tuned! Meanwhile, if you'd like to find out more about the old playgrounds in Singapore, here's a list of resources to check out:

:: A Google Maps listing of the heritage playgrounds. 

:: Mosaic Memories, a booklet looking at the history behind these mosaic playgrounds, and how these have inspired people today. This is a really good read. 

:: A very comprehensive and through list of old playgrounds in Singapore, some of which are no longer standing. Lots of photos!

:: A blog train featuring the heritage playgrounds, by some fellow mummy bloggers. It starts today over here! 

:: A Million Little Echoes' "amazing race" where they visited four of the heritage playgrounds in one day. 

:: SengKangBabies' Playground Project, where they visited many of the heritage playgrounds. 

If heritage playgrounds are not your thing, then check out Little Day Out's list of notable playgrounds in Singapore, or join Ai as she and her family explore various playgrounds around Singapore. Have fun!

Weekend Wanderings: Penang Hill

We decided to brave the crowds over the weekend and headed up Penang Hill with my parents. There are a few things that make Penang Hill irresistible: the (rather fun) train ride up, the much cooler weather, the nature. However, we learnt that it is not a good idea to head up the hill on a weekend or a holiday, since the crowds are simply crazy. We waited for nearly an hour to board the train, but thankfully the boys managed to keep themselves occupied: Junior J sketched lanterns that he saw, Lil J peered at the old train models on display, and Baby J munched on his snack.  (If you are headed up Penang Hill, always bring snacks for the kids, because you never know how long the queue is for the train. Also pack drinks, and stuff to keep the kids busy.)

We usually head to David Brown's for lunch (to get there, turn right upon exiting the train station, walk all the way down and then up a staircase on your right). They serve western food, and at Singapore prices, but we love the lawn where the kids can run about. The place is much quieter compared to the food court downstairs, so it's easy to get a table, even on weekends. (Head down to the hawker center for your dessert though, and try the cendol!)

The place is lovely for walking about. There's so much nature to soak in, and the cooler weather up there is a big plus point! 

We finally managed to take a somewhat decent family portrait when we were up there. (I just learnt that the best probably way to ensure the boys are looking at the camera would be to make them all roar like dinosaurs!)

It was a lovely lovely weekend. Here's wishing everyone a blessed Lunar New Year again!

Weekend Wanderings: Junior J's 6th

We celebrated Junior J's 6th birthday over the weekend, with a very small party with family, Junior J's godparents, and our church cell group mates. This round, we kept things really simple, as the in-laws were not around (FIL's still recovering back home) and the kids had just recovered from colds. There was just not enough time, so we skipped doing our customary crepe paper wall and also didn't plan any games. 

Junior J had requested for a prehistoric sea reptile theme. I was really stumped at what we could do for his theme, so he helped me to draw and paint a mosasaur and liopleurodon. We just stuck these up as decorations!

We had helium balloons again this time, and just chose a bunch of bright colours and pumped them up ourselves. Apatosaurus helped to hold them down until everyone collected theirs. 

And we had the usual blackboard wall greeting, with some sea reptiles and marine creatures to go with the theme!

I'll save the food and party packs for another post. All in all, we had a lovely time just catching up with friends, and the kids happily played together. 

Junior J was really excited about his party this time round, and was actually counting down to the day of the party! He helped alot with party preparations, and was a great host, giving out plates and helping out. I'm starting to think six is a nice age... but I still cannot believe this boy is now six! 

Weekend Wanderings: The Penang Ferry

We've been away visiting the in-laws over in Penang, and the boys have been having a really blessed time hanging out with their gramps. One of the things they really enjoy is riding the ferry that brings them across from the mainland to Penang Island. 

Perhaps it is every kid's fascination with boat rides. Or that you can spot jellyfish, or even large prawns in the water. Maybe it is how you can stand on the deck, taking deep breaths of the salty sea air, while the wind whips through your hair. The ferries are old, but that ride is always calming, and we always enjoy it. 

This was the baby's first ferry ride, and I was wondering if he would be afraid. Turns out, the lil boy loved it! The older two were busy climbing up and down the steep staircase to the upper deck, and just gazing out to sea. 

Anyway, I realize I hardly have any proper posts about things to do in Penang! Perhaps I'd get down to sharing more one day, since we've been there countless of times with the kids...

Weekend Wanderings: The Cloud Forest & the Canopy

The in-laws visited us last week and the boys have been having a wonderful time with their gramps. Over the weekend, we brought everyone to the Cloud Forest over at Gardens by the Bay. There is so much to love in this conservatory. Firstly, there is that wonderful sight of the waterfall, the crashing sound of water, and the cool feel of it's spray that greets you when you walk inside:

Then there are all the carnivorous plants that are clustered everywhere. The pitcher plants, in sort of colours and sizes, the sundews, glinting in the sunlight, and the Venus flytraps, tiny but menacing.

And the flowers. The fuschias, with their brightly coloured skirts. The orchids, some large and showy, some tiny and perched daintily on a leaf.

There was so much to see, so much to feel, so much to explore. Lil J found a tiny earthworm, and they spent some time examining how it crawled about. They gently touched some flowers, and felt the golden yellow pollen sprinkle across their hands. 

We met lions everywhere. Lil J was terrified of the carved lion gate, which reminded him of the lion with the glowing eyes over at the SEA aquarium. The boys clambered all over one carved version.

They had a lovely time exploring the place, and spending the time inside a cooled conservatory on a hot day was an added bonus.

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And to conclude the weekend, we all trooped to Changi Airport to send the in-laws off. Another friend was headed to the airport with her kids to meet her husband, so we decided to meet and check out the Canopy, a playground in Terminal 1 (you can read more about the playground over at this post by mummy blogger Adeline).

It was really really crowded and full of running, screaming kids, so we moved the kids out, and they were happy just hanging out together at the viewing mall. These boys are very good friends, so they had a great time just running around doing silly things together!

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All in all, we had a beautiful weekend, despite the hazy skies, and the kids would be missing their gramps. How was your weekend? I hope it was a lovely one too!

PS: We have been blessed to have our kids' clothing sponsored by FOX, and all outfits worn by our three boys as seen in this post were from their new Fall/Winter collection. I especially love that I am able to dress all three in shirts with matching prints!