Wriggle It - Indoor Play Centre & Cafe

Having an active 3 year old at home means needing a lot of play/learning to tire them out. And more often than not, before the child is tired, the parent already is.

Discovered  Wriggle It a month ago and decided to give it a go. Went with a friend and her 2 y.o. son last week and found that I actually enjoyed it! Well, not the playing, but the fact that it is close by and tires my 3 y.o. out. Enough for a good afternoon nap.

Went with this friend again today and brought another mum with us. We had so much fun! The children were safe in the play area, three big jumping castles to go around and plenty of slides for the different ages.

They cater for children 0-14 y.o., but I think 2 years and up will enjoy it more. Not sure about the 14 year old teenager though. Doesn't look big enough for a 14 year old to be on.

The fees are reasonable too, with adults and under 12 months free, then from 12 months to 14 years they range from $3.50 - $7.50. Unlimited play. They have a small cafe available with food and drinks at very reasonable prices too.

Wriggle It also does birthday parties and playgroups. We opted for the playgroup entry today and it was $10 per child, with fruits and sandwiches for children at morning tea, and some sandwiches for mums at lunch. It's not a huge portion, so be prepared to buy your own lunch. If you don't intend to make use of the playgroup entry, do consider spending two days there, within 7 days. They give a 50% discount for re-entry within 7 days.

You can find them on Facebook too. Their 2011 photo album is updated with the latest renovation photos.

It's a play centre that I'll go during school term, before my 3 y.o. starts Prep. I don't really like crowds of children, so we'll be giving this play area a miss during the school holidays.

The only downside to this place is that it is not very visible from the main road. Be prepared to miss a turn or so, but do give them a go.

Check them out at :
440 Kingston Road
Kingston Qld 4114(On the corner of Kingston Road and Queens Road)

Phone : (07) 3208 3033

Photos courtesy of Wriggle It .

Swimming at Runcorn Pool

I've recently taken to swimming at one of our local Council pools at Runcorn. It's more for the benefit of my pregnant belly and that annoying tailbone pain.

But for the price of $4.50 per adult entry, it's quite a worthwhile expenditure. I get to spend as much time in the pool as I like and have my much needed exercise, if any!

I bring my three-year-old girl with me and she goes in for the price of $3.20, and that's the price for 2-17 years old!

Not a bad deal, I reckon. I get to save a bit more on entrance fees in buying those 10 passes for myself and my little one.

So, what's so great about it?
- It's indoors and outdoors pools are heated
- The indoors pool has different depths for the various level of swimmers.
- The indoors pool also has a jacuzzi sort of corner, where water is jetted out to give the back a good massage
- It has a children's outdoors play area with slides and water showers
- Lockers (have to pay) to store your belongings in
- Opens and closes at times where people can visit

What don't I like about it?
- The children's outdoors play area isn't heated. Not suitable for winter.
- Not enough changing rooms or shower rooms to go around. Especially in winter, where people will be wanting to change indoors, they only have 2 shower heads, one baby change room and one Disabled/Unisex change room with a toilet and shower head. There are Male and Female changing rooms outdoors and a Disabled/Unisex change room, but I doubt that I'll be using that in winter.

This swimming pool also offers Aquarobics, swimming lessons for children and adults, Aqua Pilates and Mat Pilates. Pick one to join, or just dive in for a casual swim!

Runcorn Pool
37 Bonemill Road (Behind Runcorn State High School)
Ph : 1300 733 053
Visit their website here.

(Photo source : Runcorn Pool - Rackley Family Swim School)

Food Review : Yoplait Petit Miam Yoghurt

Received an invitation from Kidspot to trial Yoplait Petit Miam Yoghurt. It's the 6x60g, strawberry flavour. I accepted the invitation and received a Woolworths gift card to make my purchase.

And so I went  to my nearest Woolworths store to look for it. There were lots of yoghurt on display and took me awhile to locate it.

Checked out the price and was horrified to find that it costs $4.19! On well, thankfully my gift card is at $5, so that still gives me some change.

Bought it home and Miss 2.5 very hungrily devoured a cup.

What I didn't like about it :
1. The cups, when broken apart individually, has sharp edges and could scratch children under 2years.
2. It is very sweet. Sugar content is high
3. Very expensive for such small cups.

What I like about it :
1. It is very child-friendly. The cups are very easy to handle.
2. The yoghurt itself is creamy and does not have fruit bits. All blended in very well.

Will I buy it again? Perhaps not on my own, unless there's another gift voucher to be used.

Book Review : You Can Be Anything God Wants You To Be by Max Lucado

Having an identity crisis? Not sure what the future holds for you? Having doubts about your abilities?

When I received this book from Booksneeze a few months ago, I am eager to open it up and read it. Although it has a sticker on the front cover that says "Perfect Gift for the Graduate", I felt that it was a suitable book for any Christian.

Max Lucado drives in the message that God made each of us unique. An individual. One of a kind. Special.

You Can Be Anything God Wants You To Be is an easy read with short, powerful chapters, filled with relevant Bible verses, bringing the reader through finding his/her uniqeness, finding purpose and glorifying God through the gifts and talents He has packed in for each of us.

Max wrote that, "God packed you on purpose for a purpose." What a powerful statement! God actually made me before I was born, with gifts and talents that I can use to glorify him.

He emphasized in the last few chapters to be content with what we have and not be deceived by greed or the desire to be great. He used the story of a popcorn peddlar who is content being a peddlar and not the boss of a popcorn chain. The popcorn peddlar was happy selling popcorn with just one stand. But if greed comes in and he starts to purchase more popcorn stands and eventually manages them, will he still be as happy? "Suppose he swaps the open street and river of people for four walls and a desk. Will he give up more than he gains?"

Some of us are joyful, effective ministers as sales people, but once we give in to greed and seek higher promotion or a so-called 'better world' as the society deems, we lose our drive and energy to be effective for Christ, we lose our purpose in Christ.

I recommend this book to anyone seeking God's will and purpose in his/her life.

I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. 

Movie : Robin Hood

I'm a fan of Robin Hood. I read the story when I was in primary school. It fascinated me. The noblemen and the commoners; the fight for liberty, equality.

I'm sure I've watched a few other Robin Hood movies along the way, but I cannot remember them much.

A search on IMDB for "Robin Hood" produced dozens of hits. TV series and movies from decades before to the latest one in 2010 directed by Ridley Scott and starring Russell Crowe and Cate Blanchett.

The Robin Hood movie that aired this year focused on how Robin Hood came about. From his days in the king's army as an archer to a hero amongst the poor, the movie had a lot of killings, fightings and scheming.

For a two-hour long movie, it is generally rather slow-paced despite all the fightings involved. I'm glad I watched it on DVD and not in the cinema. Personally, I had expected a faster plot, but had to fast forward a few times to skip all the sceneries.

There wasn't much to comment on acting for the boys as there weren't much emotional scenes. Marion Loxley was well-played by Cate Blanchett, a spirited and dignified widow who, acoording to the movie, was only married for a week to her husband who then went to war for the next 10 years.

Strangely, for some reason, I don't recall much of the plot even though I just finished it 15 minutes ago. Probably because I expected a bit more of the thieving from the rich and giving to the poor than having so much background on the character.

Out of 10, I'd give it a 5.

Toilet Training - Wee Target

I bought a Wee Target some time ago to encourage Miss 2 to use the toilet. The intent of this toilet training gadget was to help boys aim into the toilet seat for their toilet training.

Created by Joanna and Daniel, parents to 3 boys and 1 girl, this invention has made toilet training for boys more a fun game than a training regime.

Each Wee Target has a suction cap attached to the top of the handle. The bottom part of the gadget is a black circle. When wet with urine, it changes into a picture. There are a few designs to choose from : Car, Tow Truck, Train, Ball, Fire Engine and Pony. The pictures 'magically' disappears when the toilet is flushed. However, it'll disappear faster in Winter, due to the coldness of the air.

To use it for boys, simply place the suction cap to the inside rear rim of the toilet seat and get them to stand at the front to aim at it.

Although it was meant for boys, I have found it just as effective when placed at the inside front rim of the toilet seat for girls. The only downside was, the only 'girly' picture they have was of a pony.

However, children are so fascinated by the appearance and disappearance of the pictures that it doesn't really matter.

Theme Park - Dreamworld

Went to Dreamworld with my husband recently. It's got nothing to do with dreams, but rather, rides. All sorts of rides. Kiddy rides and adult rides, with other little paid games and wildlife attraction.

Located in South East Queensland at the northern end of the Gold Coast, on the Pacific Hughway at Coomera, it is accessible by car, bus or train. You won't miss it.

I enjoyed myself thoroughly on the rides. Tried the bumper cars for the first time in years and it was great to be crashing into others without having to worry about a traffic ticket!

There was a new attraction, the Mick Doohans Motocoaster, which gives you the thrill of riding on a motorbike at a maximum speed of 72km/h. It would be the one and only time that I'll be on a motorbike!

Not all the rides were opened though. Some were closed for maintenance which is a must for the theme park. They do rotate their maintenance on the equipment, so that there will be plenty of rides for people to go on.

We bought the $69 unlimited entry pass. That allows us to re-enter for unlimited times for the whole month. Pretty worth, it I reckon! And, it's not just Dreamworld alone, you get to go to Whitewater World as well, for that amount!

While you're at Dreamworld, pop into their Tiger Island for a tiger performance. They also have other wildlife attractions like the koalas and crocs if you're interested.

We brought our own lunch and that saved another tens of dollars. No commercially prepared food or drinks are allowed in there. We didn't bring our home-made sandwiches in, but came out to the carpark to have our lunch. Too many things to carry anyway.

The best times to go would be before the school holidays to maximize your time there. Queueing for the rides can take up a long time and it'll be a shame to have to waste time at the queues. If you're not a fan of cold, avoid the end of winter. It can be quite chilly to be spun around on the rides. Bring a set of extra clothing and jumper, just in case you get wet on the rides.