August 2013

We’re counting down the days till STGCC (Singapore Toy, Game and Comic Convention) this weekend and the kids are super stoked about it. If you haven’t heard, it’s basically Comic Con, Singapore style right here at Sands Expo & Convention Centre, Marina Bay Sands. Happening in 2 days time, y’all!

For starters, there’s going to be the insane Ironman Hall of Armor showcase that we’ll be ogling at for extended periods. And by we, I mostly mean me.

Also, there will be Disney. Uh huh, D to the I-S-N-E-Y. My kids are not your normal level of Disney fans. We’re talking major overdose of Disney mania fanatics here. They are crazy, die-hard, passionate, hardcore Disney addicts. Granted, it’s probably my fault for spreading the Disney fever to them but seriously, Disney!! Who doesn’t love Disney?

It just so happens that there’s some extra magic Disney dust around these parts at the moment because we have an epic trip to Disney World coming up soonish. (55 days to be exact but who’s counting?!!) We originally wanted to keep it a secret from the kids until the day we were scheduled to leave but who am I kidding? There’s no way I would have managed to not spill the beans for 2 WHOLE MONTHS. We were so excited we pretty much told them the moment we booked the trip. There might also have been some screaming and jumping around involved. Ok, a lot.

In the midst of all the planning, we’ve been going through some old Disney photos and just looking at them makes my heart skip a beat. Like I said, we’ve got Disney on the brain.

But first, back to STGCC. Disney and Marvel will be having a booth to showcase the launch of Disney Infinity, a new video game universe that brings together all the popular characters from Walt Disney & Pixar Animation Studios – that means Mickey, Cinderella, Nemo, Mr Incredible, Lightning McQueen, Sulley and Ralph all in one game.

As both a gamer and a Disney fan, Disney Infinity sounds crazy fun. In addition to the main story adventure, we’ll also be able to collect characters, vehicles, upgrades and gadgets, which can be saved to a virtual “Toy Box.” And the items in this “Toy Box” can be used to create one-of-a-kind Disney adventures featuring any combination of characters, environments and items across all franchises. I foresee some quality time with my PS3 up ahead.

On a side note, up to this point, Kingdom Hearts is by far my favorite console game ever. The part where Sora had to say goodbye to his new friend Pooh over at the Hundred Acre Wood made me want to cry (in a good way). One of these days, when the kids are a little bigger, I’ll play the entire game all over again with them. That is, if I have time left over after I’m done with Disney Infinity.

Over at the same booth, Marvel fans will be able to get up close and personal with some of the biggest Marvel creators like C.B. Cebulski, Senior Vice President Marvel Studios/Disney and Cort Lane, Producer of Disney XD’s Ultimate Spider-Man and Vice President of Animation Development and Production for Marvel Entertainment. I hear they’ll be bringing along a preview of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and something from Thor. I hope it’s the hammer. Or Chris Hemsworth would be pretty cool too.

Aight, see you guys at STGCC this weekend.

*1-day tickets are retailing at $19 and the 2-day tickets are retailing at $25. There will be free admission for children under five on 31 August 2013, plus free admission for children 12 years old and below on 1 September 2013. 

Over the years, I’ve come across some really bizarre fertility tips. Not that I ever needed to use them because I’m a member of the “anyhowly touch also get pregnant” club. Most of the time, we’re trying to figure out how not to get pregnant because contraceptives? Um, ewww. If not for the fact that we’re considering having a fourth kid, one of us (ahem, not me) would be going for a vasectomy. In any case, that’s definitely happening after #4.

One time, when one of the husband’s colleagues heard that I was pregnant with Kirsten 4 months after Truett was born, she shouted “WAH, YOU ARE VERY FERTILE!” across the entire office. Followed by a very awkward silence all round.

But it’s something I’m very thankful for though. I’ve always wanted kids and I don’t know if I’d be able to cope with the agony of wanting a baby and not being able to have one. We have some very dear friends who have been trying for a baby for years without success and every time we talk about babies, I just want to give them a great big hug and send some baby magic their way.

On some level, fertility is not something most of us talk about. Partly because it’s so painful for those who are trying for kids and there isn’t very much we can say or do to make them feel better. Which is not to say that we shouldn’t talk about it, because when done in a sensitive way with much love and tact, sharing the right information can sometimes be helpful.

And I’m not talking about crazy myths like eating more oysters and bananas (although they are delicious). Or doing a handstand slash raising your legs in the air for 20 minutes after the sexytime (unless you want to work those abs, then go for it). Or drinking cough syrup before sex (one way train to woozy-town). Or go missionary instead of other slightly more creative positions (I shall not elaborate on this one). Or just relax and you’ll get pregnant. Honestly, if I was trying for a baby and someone gave me that kind of advice, that someone would have been popped in the face.

The good news is that there are several available and effective options for infertility treatment these days. In fact, modern fertility treatments have been proven to work really well. (YEAH SCIENCE!) The common misconceptions regarding fertility treatments is that it’s very expensive and ineffective but with subsidies and government co-funding (of up to 75% of the cost), it is now easier to seek medical help.

It can be a stressful process if you’re trying for a baby and it definitely helps to consult a healthcare professional plus get the right information on issues related to fertility at websites like Fertility Asia (supported by Merck Serono), where you’ll be able to get clear answers on common fertility questions and tips that might actually help.

And here’s sending some love your way.

One of the things I’m concerned about quite often is whether the kids are getting enough nutrition because I have 2 little picky eaters on my hands, each with their own set of strange preferences.

When they were younger, I had some pretty major food battles with the kids, mostly involving an impressive collection of vomit faces (and sometimes actual vomit) as I tried to make them eat food they thought were yucky. I tried every trick in the book like dangling incentives, withholding privileges, chopping up vegetables into tiny pieces and hiding them in food they like, cooking up all sorts of new recipes but they rarely worked.

Their quirks remained as quirky as ever.

Like Truett eats fish but only when he doesn’t see the skin. Kirsten, on the other hand, must have the skin with the fish. Kirsten eats broccoli but not cauliflower and certainly nothing green or with leaves. Truett does not touch any variety of vegetable unless it’s a potato (which is crispy and golden brown). Truett loves berries, grapefruits and oranges but not Kirsten. She goes for sweeter fruits like apples, durians and grapes. And the list goes on.

I used to have a chart to keep track of who was short of which vitamins because their picky diet wasn’t giving them all the nutrients that they needed, to the point where meal times were turning out to be a cause for tremendous stress for everyone involved.

Over the years, I’ve come to realize that some battles aren’t worth fighting so while we try to give them a diet that’s as balanced as possible, we also make up for whatever’s missing with supplements.

We’ve tried a rather large variety of supplements and discovered that the key to choosing a good kid’s supplement is a balance between nutrition and taste. In fact, I’d go with taste first over nutrition because it has to be something that they will actually want to put into their mouths. And then we look for something that has the right amount of vitamins and minerals they need.

The kids recently tried some new gummy supplements by UK healthcare brand, Merck Seven Seas and that was a definite winner in the taste department.

Usually we’ll have to bargain with them like if you eat this supplement, we’ll give you another regular gummy as a reward. Not with this though. They like it so much that these fruit gummies are a reward in itself. How’s that for killing two birds with one um, gummy?

Truett’s favorite flavor is the strawberry one and the great thing is that is comes with Vitamins A, C and B6, which he doesn’t get enough of from not eating vegetables. Kirsten prefers the blackcurrant version, but she’ll also take the orange one from time to time because it’s apparently “quite yummy”.

I like the fact that each flavor comes with a unique set of vitamins so instead of going for a generic multivitamin filled with stuff that the kids don’t really need, we can give them something that provides them with the specific nutrients that they’re short of.

In an ideal world, my kids would eat all their vegetables and we’d live happily ever after but in this world, my kids make vomit faces at vegetables. So I feel a lot better knowing that whatever they get from supplements help to keep their little growing bodies a little stronger and healthier.

If you’d like to try these tasty and nutritious vitamin gummies, I have 3 sets of Merck Seven Seas Kids Fruit Gummies Gift Packs (worth $38.70 each) up for grabs. All you have to do to take part is answer the following question.

“What are the 3 flavors available in the Seven Seas Kids Fruit Gummies range? “

Send your answer (along with your full name, NRIC, mobile number and email address) with the subject title “Mother Inc: Seven Seas Kids Fruit Gummies Contest” to merck.chc@merck.sg by 31 August 2013.

**From now to 31 December 2013, get $2 off every bottle of Merck Fruit Gummies purchased. While stocks last.

I’ve been a fan of Comic Con for a while, so much so that the husband and I have talked about flying to New York to attend Comic Con at least once so that our inner geeks can geek out together with the rest of the geeks (ok, and some cool people) in what’s known as the ultimate celebration of geekness.

If you love movies and superheroes and comic book characters, Comic Con is where you’ll see all of them come to life in the coolest costumes imaginable.

With that in mind, we were really excited to hear that Comic Con is coming to us right here in Singapore. In collaboration with ReedPOP – the makers of the New York Comic Con (NYCC), Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo (C2E2), Star Wars Celebration and the New York Anime Festival, The Singapore Toy, Game & Comic Convention (STGCC) basically created our own version of Comic Con. SGTCC combines the best of pop culture from East and West, uniting the worlds of comics, anime, manga, toys, collectibles, games and movies in one awesome event.

Happening in less than 2 week’s time (on 31 August and 1 September) at Sands Expo & Convention Centre, Marina Bay Sands, this year’s event looks to be better than ever. Possibly because of this.

Alright folks, that right there is the Hall of Armor from Tony Stark’s Malibu mansion – the Mark I through the Mark VII, with the Mark XLII as the centerpiece. No, seriously, all I need is Robert Downey Junior doing his hand suit-up move and my life will be complete. Depending on how heavily guarded it is, I might attempt to try it on at the risk of getting hauled off by security.

I know for a fact that Truett will join me in this mission because this is what he’s been doing at home lately.

It will be a really fun time for families and kids so remember to bring your kids along, especially on Sunday, 1 September, where kids aged 12 and below will get to have free admission to the event. In addition to this, there will also be tons of super cute exclusives available for sale at this event. Like this build-your-own minion.

And this Despicable Me 2 Minions Monopoly, in which Gru is back with another evil plan and it’s up to you to collect Banana Bucks and own all of your favorite properties before he succeeds.

And this limited edition Tokidoki Comic Corno Unicorn.

And exclusive Nanoblocks.

And some Rilakkuma and Sanrio Kuji, whom I believe are distant relatives of Kirsten’s favorite Hello Kitty.

And speaking of Hello Kitties, limited edition Hello Kitty dressed as Ugly Dolls (the characters, not random ugly dolls in general). Because ugly is the new pretty.

And more actual Ugly Dolls, which are strangely, kind of cute.

It’s going to be a blast, so mark your calendars and head down for some family geekout fun.

Also, more to come on a special Disney Marvel showcase, stay tuned.

*1-day tickets are retailing at $19 and the 2-day tickets are retailing at $25. There will be free admission for children under five on 31 August 2013, plus free admission for children 12 years old and below on 1 September 2013.