The Limmies goes to Tai Cheong Bakery!

WE LOVE TO EAT. Mama Lim is a glutton, Papa Lim is also a glutton, so the Bub naturally inherited our gluttony genes by default. So on days that we have a little bit of free time, Mama Lim would usually scheme to hatch her next destination to feast in gluttony. This time, she has decided that we should head to Tai Cheong Bakery @ Holland Village for breakfast.

We were fortunate that Grandpa Tan and Uncle Ming were cool with to go along with Mama Lim’s suggestion to try out Tai Cheong Bakery and they gladly drove all of us there on a rainy Wednesday morning.  We managed to get there at about 1015am and we were expecting a huge crowd to form at the store but the rain seemed to discourage some of the other foodies and we were lucky to get a cushy table indoors!

We managed to beat the crowd… but there was already a queue forming after we got there!

 

Hohoho~ We are the Lucky Limmies! We managed to get a nice comfy indoor seat! 🙂

We loved the way the place was decorated and its classy decor was complimented with the little-assorted items that remind us of the store’s rich Hong Kong history and heritage. I particularly loved the old school tiles as they reminded me of the tiles on the floor of my grandma’s kitchen. I was expecting to smell like pastry the moment I stepped into the bakery but to my surprise, the place was very well ventilated and airy!

Doorway to the indoor seating area of the bakery.

 

Loved the pretty and intricate “old-school” tiles.

 

The interior of the bakery is well decorated and ventilated.

 

Decorative items were displayed under the glass table tops in the bakery.

 

Mahjong anyone?

 

Laser cut letters mounted onto the vintage wooden laminates. Do you spot the missing piece?

 

The crew working hard at prepping food for the customers.

Mama Lim was looking forward to trying out most of their famous fare but was kind of disappointed that the majority of the menu would only be available after 11 am. Undeterred, we quickly made do with the breakfast menu and ordered their Egg Tarts, Char Siew Polo Buns and a set of Scrambled Eggs w. Toast/Bolo Bun + Spam Fries.

Service was prompt and breakfast was served swiftly to our table within minutes of submitting our orders. I personally loved the Char Siew Polo Buns as it was full of yummy Char Siew fillings. Close friends would know that I love Char Siew and yeap… this Char Siew Polo Bun is DAEEEEBAKKK!!! The traditional and Pandan Egg Tarts were pretty delicious too and the Bub gobbled up his egg tarts in the blink of an eye. The only gripe we had was that the Spam fries were a little too salty. But then again, it’s spam so it was probably going to be salty to begin anyway.

Char Siew Polo Bun! It’s a must try!!! Recommended by Papa Lim!!!

 

Char Siew Polo Bun full of yummy Char Siews!

 

Mama Lim’s Polo Bun Set w Scrambled Eggs & Spam Fries.

 

Traditional Egg Tarts for everyone!

 

The Pandan Egg Tarts were simply irresistible! I want more!

The total damage amounted to about $60++ and I guess that is pretty ok for a satisfying breakfast for an entire family. We will be back again to sample the main menu and I bet it will be as good or even better than the breakfast menu! 🙂

*PS: This is not a sponsored post… just sharing own opinions of our food adventures. 😛

The Bub is a Potato No More!

 

The little Bub has always been most comfortable speaking in English, and there were many times that he expressed his disdain for Mandarin. He used to tell us that he is an “English people” and not a “Chinese people” to both our shock and amusement.

At first, we thought that it was a phase, but we started getting very very worried when he was continuously rejecting all forms of communication in Mandarin. We tried exposing him to Mandarin songs to pique his interest in the language but to no avail. We made it a point to speak Mandarin to him every day but he just was not receptive to the language and he made a conscious choice to reply to us in English. We were somewhat relieved that he understood Mandarin, but we just could not make him speak it.

Then out of the blue, the little fella shocked both Mama Lim and I, by randomly spewing phrases in Mandarin. AND he UPPED THE ANTE BY SINGING MANDARIN NURSERY RHYMES!!! (O_O) We were both happy and relieved that he was finally able to embrace speaking his mother tongue. Lots of credit has to be given to his nursery teacher, Ms. Zhao for instilling the interest in Bub and we are thankful for her efforts. 🙂

Yay!!! The Bub is a Potato no more! 😀

Shopping at T For Toys!

We love shopping for toys to add to the little Bub’s collection at home. It can be difficult to find good and affordable toys these days. But we are lucky to know of a friend who owns a toy store. To us, there is no better place to look for good and affordable toys other than T for Toys! Just to be clear, we are not being paid or asked to write an advertorial for this store and we  just wanted to share this hidden gem of a toy store to as many friends as possible.

Located at 140 Paya Lebar Rd #01-07, Singapore 409015, AZ Building @ Paya Lebar. The shop is conveniently located very close to Macpherson MRT Station. You can check out their Facebook Page @ https://www.facebook.com/tfortoy/ for regular updates or head straight to their website @ http://tfortoys.com/ to check out their products. If you like their products but do not have the time to pick up the toys, they can provide delivery services to you at a friendly rate of $5 per delivery. If you spend more than S$120, they will provide free delivery to your home in Singapore too!

We love the open concept layout of the store as it allows the Bub to walk freely and test out the many toys on display. We feel that it is important to see and feel the toys before we decide on buying the toys for Bub. T for Toys carry many fun and educational toys at really affordable prices and the staff are always very helpful and friendly with their demos on how certain toys work. Other than educational toys, T for Toys also carry wooden toys, musical instruments, puzzles, stickers, toy dinosaurs + animals, colouring sets and many other types of toys. If you are sourcing for items to include for your kid’s birthday party goody bags, this is the place to go to as they have so many affordable items that you can easily mix and match.

Zooming down the lanes with the London Bus!

 

I’ve got an itchy backside! 😛

The Bub thoroughly enjoyed himself as he took his time to sample the toys on display. He eventually picked out a Duplo compatible toy ambulance set that he really liked and we decided to get it for him as it goes well with the other existing toys that he has at home.

We love shopping at T for Toys and we will definately be back to visit again with the little Bub! Do drop by the store to get really good and affordable toys as they are open on Mon – Fri from 1pm to 7pm and Sat & Sun from 11am to 7pm!  🙂

Check the rest of the photos from our little adventure below!

Musical Instruments for everyone!

 

Educational Toys!

 

More educational toys!

 

Really good and fun interactive toys for children!

 

Make learning fun for your kids with these educational toys!

 

Enough animals to open your own zoo!

 

Windup Toys!

 

This is the ambulance set we got for Bub!

 

Games that you can play with the entire family!

 

More games for the entire family!

 

They’ve got lots of wooden toys here!

 

They’ll make a perfect gift for kids who like to play make believe games!

Mama Lim is looking engrossed with the toys too!

 

Looks like Mama Lim wants to get this for herself! LOL~

 

Mama Lim wants this too!

 

A great collection of toys that you can use during a day at the beach!

 

Puzzles anyone? 😛

Aqua Bub is Leveling Up!

The Bub has surprised us all again! This little Aqua Bub is improving in leaps and bounds with each passing week. For the past few weeks, he could only do a doggy paddle while maneuvering himself in the pool. But this week, he actually raised his hips up to the surface and kicked purposefully to propel himself forward! Looks like signing him up for the swimming class is really worth it as he has become super confident in the water and has completely no fear of it now.

In the past, he would display signs of fear when he is close to the water but he is now just super confident and super ready to get into the pool for splashing good time! Most of the time, he would just wanna stay in the pool and not come out. We would have to convince him that his favourite McDonalds lunch would be sold out if he does not come out of the pool.

We’re looking toward the next weekend to have a splashing good time again! 😀

Powering through with his powerful kicks!

 

Emerging from the pool like a seasoned pro!

 

Cheeky Bub Bub!

Hanging out with the big boys now!

Bub – The Sensitive Boy

The Bub is a highly sensitive boy. He is super aware of his feelings and he is not shy to tell you if he is happy or upset with you. As his parents, we have learned to how to avoid his trigger points in order to keep him in a good mood.

For example, he does NOT like to be called a small boy. This is despite the fact that he is really relatively small in both size and age. As his parents, it is easy for us to avoid this. But we often warn friends or relatives in advance that he does not like to be addressed that way.

We have read that for kids like him, we will have to be very careful with our words and actions as they may leave a lasting impact on his mind. Therefore as his parents, we tend to be more mindful of what we do. But this does not mean that we avoid disciplining him altogether. We still let him know when he is in the wrong and sit him down patiently to explain why some of the things he does is unacceptable behavior. We also do our best to explain to him the consequences of his actions so that he understands that for every action, there is an effect and consequence, so that he is able to learn how to make the right decisions in life.

He is also very aware of our emotions and tends to pick up signals really quickly when we are feeling frustrated or agitated with him. He would stop us and ask us if we are happy with him. It surprises us that he is not only in tune with his emotions but also with the emotions of the people around him. Sometimes, he would just randomly blurt out phrases like, “I love you, Papa & Mama” just to let us know how much he loves us. We don’t really need him to tell us that he loves us, as we know that he loves us as much as we love him, but it is still so sweet to be hearing such lovey-dovey words from him.

We love him just the way he is, and we hope that he keeps loving us the way he does too. 😀

The Bub can get a little emo sometimes.