Tag: children

SMALL IS THE NEW BIG

Family and Fashion; two things that are very closed to my heart. So, when Kobi & Roo reached out to me for their first ever collaboration with the entire family, I was so thrilled!  AND…I can not say NO. So here we are representing this urban apparel brand for modern family originally from UK.

Processed with VSCO with a6 preset

And I am believer of a small beginning. Everything starts with a seed. And when you water them regularly, it WILL definitely grow.

Nothing was born BIG. But all things was born TO BE BIG.

Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin,…” – Zachariah 4:10

Big shouts to all the small shops across the world, I am proud of all of your boldness and courage. Including my dearest friend, Kobi & Roo. It is a small shop with a big potential. Run by a multitasking mom of two, Ezi. (love you girllll. X)

And today I had a chance to interview her further about her childhood dream and how this small shop has changed her life and her community. SO, here we go!!

1. Firstly…I must know what made you choose the name Kobi&Roo? 
Kobi & Roo was inspired by my two kids Nigerian middle names. My son is Kobimdi (Kobi) and my daughter is Chierika (Roo) They both inspired the brand.
2. What inspired you to get into business and start your own clothing label? 
I have always dreamt of owning my own fashion business from a young age. I finally took the bold step to set up my own modern clothing label during my maternity leave with my second child. I feel great ideas come during maternity leave (haha!) I was inspired by my kids. I love shopping for them but hate the stress of going to the shops and shuffling through piles of clothes. I am more of an online shopper, so i knew a lot of other moms are like me and want modern, unisex clothes for their kids and would prefer to buy it online. I also like the excitement i get from knowing that the postman would bring me a surprise soon and i know many people would too. 
3. Why do you go for small business? What impact does it make to your life?
Small business is very important to me. I feel It is where we all start from. Start small grow big. I believe small business is a learning process, a way to make an impact to your family, community, and the world in general. I like the fact that small businesses support each other and many more people are supporting small businesses. Gone are the days of competition, we now live in a world where collaboration is king.
4. I know for myself that I struggle to find work life balance and I feel as though I am always working, How do you manage the two? 
It is still a struggle as 24 hours just doesn’t seem to be enough. We as mums are blessed to be multitaskers. we try our best to wing it all. I do have my moments with balancing work and life, but the good thing about being a mom and having an online business is that you can work at your own schedule. No deadlines and no pressure. I try to balance my life by doing the most important things first, which is nurturing my family before i get down to business. 
5. I know for myself too that running small business is a tough gig, with limited time and resources we have, how you overcome those and stay motivated? 
I stay motivated by trusting God to see me through. I always put God first in my life as he is the giver of all good things. I also try to stay motivated by keeping to schedule. Like if i need to update my social media or create a new product for my store. Sometimes when you feel really exhausted, its best to give yourself a break and the motivation will be back if you are passionate about what you are doing.
6. Lastly, what do you think about the community’s response to small businesses today? What changes do its make to the community? 
I’m so impressed with the way people support small businesses. I tell you, social media is a gold mine filled with lots of talented and creative small businesses making an impact in their community. Being a small business owner, i have met some amazing small business owners and we encourage one another through regular small business Saturday shout outs, charity and fund raising activities, and regular raffle draws. its a small business revolution.
image5image4image3image2image1

 

Today, Kobi & Roo is running its 2nd brand enthusiast search for kids and has been featured on some local page. Way to go girl!!

SMALL IS INDEED THE NEW BIG

So, what are the small things you have in your hand today? Are you willing to take a big step unto them?

It’s not gonna be easy, but we are here walking this journey together and cheering on you. Oh..and any favourite small shops you would recommend? Please leave them coming on the comments below.

SHOP SOME MORE OUR FAVOURITES HERE

Love,

Kenny

Meaningful Play Based Education & Care

Everyday thousands of families across Australia entrust Child Care Centre with the education and care of their children. Choosing a quality child care centre is so important. But, yet challenging. WHY?

The most important influence on a child’s brain development is where and how they spend their early years. Positive stimulating and nurturing environments help them to thrive and grow and learn; alternately negative environments can have a significant adverse impact on their cognitive, emotional and behavioural development.

In response to that, Guardian Early Learning Group has a commitment to provide the best supports for families to strengthen their work and life balance with an early education centre and care approach that nurtures their young children in their early years so they may fulfil their potential through formal schooling, life and employment. Through their unique play-based early education curriculum which is designed to build confidence and initiative, helping children develop successful social relationships, resolve conflicts and become emotionally resilient, preparing them with a set of skills and aptitudes to become active participants in an increasingly complex, globally-connected and changing world.

And this afternoon, I and my son had a privileged to be hosted a private tour at the new centre in the heart of Barangaroo – level 1, 100 Barangaroo Avenue(Corner of Shipwright Walk and Hickson Road). We had such a fun time playing and learning. And, as I promised I would give some reviews on the whole experience.

Location: convenient for the parents who work within the area. Easily accessibly by public transport. Since its a new centre, finding car parks for a drop-off and pick-up could be a bit challenging as they’re located right on the side of the main road, Hickson Rd. They are currently working on getting some car parks available for parents. SO it won’t be a problem anymore in the long run.

Centre: closed and exclusive area for staffs, parents and children’s enrolled ONLY. You need a swipe key to get in which I strongly agree on. Safety first when it comes to your children. Spacious indoor play area as well as outdoor area (still in construction) featuring lush natural gardens, sand-pits and play structures designated according to the age groups and children’s interests. Wooden custom based – natural made material – to educate the children on preventing further degradation of the environment. Processed with VSCO with a6 presetProcessed with VSCO with a6 presetimage1

Staff – most of them are welcoming and helpful during my visit. They all look presentable and collective. So, I am quite happy.

Learning Curriculum – focuses on developing children’s natural skills and curiosity to prepare them for success in life long learning, such as problem-solving and to respect one another. They enforce the older children to learn to do things that most adults usually do, for example: pouring water onto their own glass (non-plastic), serve their own meal using ceramic plates and utensils. They are also the first centre which commence initiative designed to help the children to build connections to Australia’s indigenous community.Processed with VSCO with a6 presetProcessed with VSCO with a6 presetimage2Processed with VSCO with a6 preset

Special Program – “Out & About” excursion program. It is designed to connect the children with the local community. They build their 8-seaters pram which I though so cool. I wanna ride it.image10

Opened kitchen – healthy nutritious meals, prepared by on-site cooks using fresh and seasonal produce in a commercial kitchen. Children are allowed to see and involved in the process of serving the food as well as requesting some snacks they’d love to eat. Breakfast starts at 7am and first drop off at 7.30am. It gives sometime for parents to sit down having breakfast together with their children as well as lunch.Processed with VSCO with a6 presetProcessed with VSCO with a6 preset

For those parents who are currently looking for a high quality Child Care Centre around the CBA area. Get your eyes on this new centre which just opened 2 weeks ago. They have such an exceptional positive environments and staffs for your young ones. They provide a meaningful play based centre for early brains.

For further informations, visit Guardian Early Learning Group Barangaroo, level 1, 100 Barangaroo Avenue –  or contact 02 8321 2280 for more info. And I wish you all the best!!

Processed with VSCO with a6 presetProcessed with VSCO with a6 presetimage4image31-e1497342072539.jpg

Love,

Kenny

 

 

 

EASY RECIPE // WINTER KIDS MEAL

Dinner time in the house is my favourite time. We all called it “family dinner” simply because this is the only moment where ALL of the family members are able to gather on a table to enjoy the meal after a busy day of individual routines. Perfect time to engage and interact to one another. Sounds perfect aye! (to me at least)

Until I realised, that this toddler is sitting on the same table at the same time with us. Well, that is another story, isn’t it? Often times dinner would be the most unpleasant time of the day. mayday, mayday, mayday….My body was drained out after full day of babysitting/working, cooking dinner and now grumpy toddler is refusing to open his mouth because the plate looks “greeny”. I mean….Seriously?! It is because I have no blue/red clean plate at the time little fella, so just bare with me and pick that god damn beef sausage, and put it in your mouth. Gah.

Then I got a revelation somehow one day, that I gotta prepare meal which comforts their “eyes” and their “tummy” 

  1. Comforts their eyes – basically, what they see is what they get. If the presentation itself does not satisfy their sight, the wrong information will directly send to the brain commanding them to lock their mouth. Once they’re happy with what they see, they would surely open their mouth and give it a go. Be mindful to make their favourite element stands out on the plate. In my case, noodles, soup, chicken, and meatballs are the thing that J loves the most. So, I put extra effort on that piece and make them as visual as it can be. Hiding veggies is always wise to do, add them to your homemade meatballs mixture. It’s a winner for the whole family. Yeahhh!!
  2. Comforts their tummy – Next step is making sure that they consume enough nutritions intake to their tummy for the day. Eating together increase healthy eating habits and provides a model for children to carry with them into adulthood. Studies show family dinners increase the intake of fruits and vegetables; families who eat dinner together tend to eat fewer fried foods and drink less soda; and family meal frequency is linked to the intake of protein, calcium, and some vitamins. I am struggling to get my protein son to consume veggies, but after I implement this new family dinner rule for a while, I am glad to report you that he slowly improving his tolerance for veggies. And for this colder season, I am using a lot of in-season produce too, like carrots, orange, citrus, lemon, garlic, ginger (they are powerful to boost your immune system).
  3. Spend less time on the kitchen –  please do not spend too much energy and time on the kitchen (unless for special occasion). 30-45 minutes max would be the ideal time from preparation to presentation. Spend more time to sit down and have a nice conversation with one another. Here are some killer recipes you can do under 30minutes. They are super delicious healthy on low budget.

Ginger Beef Soup With Rice Noodles and Mixed Veggies 

Meatballs

250 gr chicken or veal mince

1 tbsp garlic powder

1 tbsp reduced salt soy sauce

1 tbsp fish sauce

 1 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

1 tsp grated garlic

1 cup of chopped shallots

Soup

4 cups (1 litre) chicken stock

3 cups of mixed veggies (carrots, baby bok choy, white cabbage)

90g rice noodles 

½ cup of enoki mushroom

1 tbsp freshly grated ginger

salt & pepper to taste

How to make:

  1. To make meatballs, mix all the ingredients to food processor, blend it well.
  2. Divide into 12 even portions. Squish and roll in your hands into a tight ball (grease your hands for easier process). Set aside for a minute at room temperature is fine.
  3. Place homemade chicken stock and veggies in a large saucepan and bring into boil over high heat.
  4. Gently pop in the meatballs. Bring back to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer and cook for further 8 minutes.
  5. Add rice noodles to the soup and cook for another 3-4 minutes.
  6. Turn off the heat.
  7. Season with salt & pepper.

Honey Soy Orange Glazed Chicken with Soba Noodles And Miso Soup

250 gr of chicken thigh

1 tbsp honey

1 tbsp reduced salt soy sauce

1 handful mixed herbs

1 crushed garlic

1 tsp grated ginger

good pinch of salt & pepper

1 carrot

1 navel orange

1 knob of unsalted butter

90 gr soba noodle (gluten free)

miso soup package

How to make:

  1. Marinate chicken thighs with honey, reduced salt soy sauce, mixed herbs, crushed garlic, grated ginger, salt & pepper. Leave them aside at room temperature.
  2. Heat up your oven at 210C
  3. Heat a good knob of butter on the pan, fry the marinated chicken thigh, carrot and oranges on the pan for 3-5 minutes (both sides) at medium heat.
  4. Transfer the pan to the oven for another 10-12 minutes.
  5. Cook the soba noodles over medium heat for 3 minutes.
  6. Put miso soup package on a small bowl and pour boiling water onto it.
  7. Place the roasted chicken, soba noodles and miso soup next to each other.
  8. Make a fun way to eat the soba noodles (dip it or soup it)Processed with VSCO with a6 preset
    Processed with VSCO with a6 preset
    Processed with VSCO with a6 preset
    Processed with VSCO with a6 preset

Those two are our family favourites, rich in proteins, vitamins and minerals, and all could be done under 45 minutes. Have a try and comment for any feedbacks or suggestions. X

Love,

Kenny

DIY GOLDEN RUSTIC EASTER EGG

WHO’S EGGCITED FOR EASTER?! WE ARE!!

While my boy is so freaking excited to eat tons of chocolate eggs, mommy is so NOT agree on this matter. So, I decided to shift his attention by asking him to decorate foam eggs to add extra details touch to our wooden dinner table in house.

Talks about wood, I am going to create something rustic for this easter. I decided to make a DIY: GOLD RUSTIC EASTER EGG. A perfect decoration for both indoor and outdoor easter festive. A pretty little touch to your dining table and to the tree too.

Let’s get into business now. We’re gonna get a little messy here. These activities are full of splish and splash, I would say the messier the merrier. I didn’t get a chance to take picture during the painting process because we were both soaked up in paint and too afraid to take the camera with me 😦 It was a messy process but again FULL OF FUN! J loved it too. Yeahhh.. who doesn’t like making a mess?! huh.

so….Here are some of the stuffs you need to prepare (you may get most of them on the art & craft shop nearest your place)

foam egg
white poster paint
brown poster paint
gold poster paint
black poster paint
kids paint brush
comb
cleaned egg cage
toothbrush

And here’s step by step – how to make GOLDEN RUSTIC EASTER EGG:

  1. Mix white poster paint with a dash of brown poster paint to create cream colour.
  2. Dip in the foam eggs into the mixture (cream colour) – leave them to a complete dry.
  3. Use the kids brush, paint roughly some lines on the coloured cream egg with gold poster paint. Leave them to dry.
  4. Cover your table surface with newspapers, cause we’re going messy now. Splish splash the black poster paint on the foam egg by brushing the toothbrush onto the comb until the whole egg covered with black dots. Leave them to dry
  5. Place the eggs on cleaned egg cage.
  6. Voila!! They are ready to beautify your dinner table. 

What an easy way to make your DIY rustic eggs, huh? It is rustic yet sophisticated. One easy way to sweeten your dinner table and impress your guests this weekend. Now, clean your house, get the chicken roast and find some unexpected spots to hide the eggs. Hope you all had an amazing Easter Celebration with beloved ones.

Processed with VSCO with a6 presetProcessed with VSCO with a6 presetProcessed with VSCO with a6 presetProcessed with VSCO with a6 preset

Oh and Easter is not complete without an easter bunny right? Say hello to our companion this year, this white bunny worth for $1.96, bargain sale on Bed Bath & Table. Mommy is happy! So, how do you like my new creation? Comment below for your opinions.

Bye for now. See you on my next DIY project. Cause mama makes things happen on any budget. X

Love,

Kenny

#THANKYOUPARTNER – ZAIBOB : KIDS WINTER MUST HAVE ACCESSORIES

Another series continued today, I would like to thank you my next partner for my current RELAUNCH PROJECT (www.mamaonrepeat.com); Zaibob THANK YOU!

Zaibob was launched in December 2015 when owner/designer Kalee Abdollahi started the label inspired by her son Zai. Zaibob is all about creating fashion forward clothing and accessories for your little ones. We like to create clothes that allow kids to be kids without having to sacrifice style. 

As you’ve read above, Zaibob is focusing on kids fashion. And who can skip a mini fashion section. hey?? Oh lawd….you know you’re a mom, the moment you started to load your shopping basket with kids stuffs and clothes, aren’t you? But, sometimes shopping on shelf is impossible for me. The demands of my toddlers are way beyond my ability to shop. So, again I ended up in the kinder egg surprise stalls. Thus, I do a lot of online shopping at home, which gives me more time to pick and drop on my cart. And, YES! I love shop small, they are amazingly talented and quality driven.

So, I have been connecting with Zaibob since 2016, it was Jared’s first brand repping. And the moment we received their goods. We fell in love straight away. Kalee has a divine sewing skill. I love how neat the finish product was. I remembered that winter was approaching the time we rep for Zaibob, and I was in need for some winter accessories for boys, because they don’t have much in store other wool beanie. Jared is suffering from eczema, so he can only wear cotton fabric. Yeahhh..wool beanie is NOT an option for us. Thank God, Zaibob delivered me such a right product for us; slouchy beanie. And it’s stylish too. Jared wears them every single day during winter/autumn until now. It is a great way to hide a “pillow hair” for the kids too. 😉

And I am super thrilled to hear the news that Zaibob just relaunched their new range of slouchy beanies with a thicker fabric + more range of colours selection. So ready for a chilly spring and freezing under here. Are you?! Check out their website for more range of kids fashion http://www.zaibob.com

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Processed with VSCO with a6 presetProcessed with VSCO with a6 presetProcessed with VSCO with a6 presetProcessed with VSCO with a6 presetProcessed with VSCO with a6 presetProcessed with VSCO with a6 presetProcessed with VSCO with a6 presetProcessed with VSCO with a6 presetProcessed with VSCO with a6 preset

SO….WHICH ONE IS YOUR FAVOURITE COLOR? xx

 

Love,

Kenny

NEW WAYS TO DEAL WITH TANTRUMS & REBELLIOUS TODDLER

 

Attention to bad behavior increases bad behavior (yelling, lecturing, scolding, spanking and punishing are all forms of negative attention), while attention to good behavior increases good behavior.

I was struggling to deal with a two year old J. He becomes fussier, more demanding, more fractious, more resistant, more stubborn. I freaked out whenever the tantrums hit. Especially ON PUBLIC, when I’m doing groceries or coffee catch-ups. When all eyes are ON me; all fingers are pointing AT me. Yelling, spanking, bribery, I literally unload all stuffs inside my bag. I did everything I could, but he went more hysterical and rebels against me.

And then I read above quote : Attention to bad behavior increases bad behavior (yelling, lecturing, scolding, spanking and punishing are all forms of negative attention), while attention to good behavior increases good behavior.

Then I realised that I’ve been give a wrong approach to J’s tantrums and bad behaviours. The harder I push myself on fixing his bad behaviour, the more efforts he will hardened himself to change. It’s just the nature of growing. So, I’ve learned from my mistakes.

And here are my successful tips in dealing with tantrums and rebellious toddler:

  1. Try to BE CALM in every situation : your kids are able to sense your feelings/emotions. If they see you’re panicking, they will become one too. But, if they see your calm face, then they will calm down themselves too. When they hear you yell or scream, they will cry even harder.
  2. Learn to IGNORE – or walk away from annoying behaviour : when you stop giving attention to the annoying behaviour, there’s nothing in it for the child. They may start to throw more tantrums at first for not getting what they want as it used to be, but eventually they will realise that tantrums won’t work anymore.
  3. DISTRACT their focus to their favourite things : this trick is the best magic we could ever do to Mr. J, this guy loves his snack time, and whenever he cries in the car, in the laundry, under my feet, I always straight away offer him food. And as soon as he hears snacks, he stop crying. Do not focus on saying “don’t cry, stop crying” cause it makes them more focus on the crying itself, cause that’s the only word they could hear from us.
  4. Give an instruction only ONCE : Don’t foster greater disobedience by giving it a lot of attention. If you focus on their defiance, it will actually increase. With J, I try to tell him once and then watch his following reaction from a far. Most of the results surprise me.
  5. CHANGE our language – find the “positive opposite” of “stop” and “don’t” instead of saying “do not use your shoes at home”, change it to “please take off your shoes before you enter the house”
  6. REWARD every positive good behaviours they do : after all, this thing matter the most, they learn and grow become a better person. So, every little praise, smile, high five, word of encouragement counts. Give extra attention to the positive behaviour they do and give them an assurance that they are on the right track.

These methods NOT only works well for Jared, but for me too. It gave me a big change. To be ease on myself, cause after all, I can’t change people according to my time and will. I can expect them to change the way I want them to be in such period of time. I gotta remind myself that I’m dealing with a 2.9 feet tall human being that see things differently than what I see. One way to understand their perspective is by kneeling down on their shoes and become a mature version of them. So, mommies, let’s take a deep breath and be easy on ourself and to our kids more. As long as we live on this earth, we are all still on the run of learning process. This is called the SCHOOL OF LIFE. xx

 

Love,

 

the Tjungs