Month: June 2015

DADDY, I Love You to the Moon and Back!

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Daddy asked, “How much do you love me?”

Little boy replied, “DADDY, I love you to the moon and back! Then will you bring me to Marina Barrage with my friends please?”

Daddy enquired, “When?”

Little boy answered, “On 19 June 2015. My teacher told me that we will be having a Father’s Day celebration there. She also mentioned that we can fly kites, blow bubbles, kick balls and scoot around.”

Daddy smiled and kissed the litle boy while whispering, “Certainly.”

Bright and sunny (extremely) weather on the morning of 19 June 2015 to welcome our Niwa-ians and their doting fathers (and mothers too) at Marina Barrage! Are your ready for the party? Oh yes!

Father's Day 1

“OOOooo… look at the kite in the sky.”

Father's Day 2

“Yeah, I am happy to be part of the Niwa Family.”

Father's Day 3

“LET ME HAVE A TURN.”

Father's Day 4

“My daddy is the best at flying kite.”

Father's Day 5

“Tricia, give it a try too.”

Father's Day 6

“Alden, let papa help you.”

Father's Day 7

“Uncle Darren, look at the kite.”

Father's Day 8

“Bubbles, bubbles in the air.”

Father's Day 9

“Mama, we are hungry now. Can we start eating?”

Father's Day 10

“So yummy……”

Father's Day 11

“Thank you, Daddy Gary!”

Father's Day 12

“Thank you, Daddy Welsey.”

Father's Day 13

“Ball ball, ball ball.”

Father's Day 14

“Thank you, Daddy Darren.”

Father's Day 15

“Mama, I want to feed you.”

Father's Day 16

“Torres, can we share the bubbles gun?”

Father's Day 17

“Mama, look at me! I can scoot so fast.”

Father's Day 18

“Quick, Blossom!”

Father's Day 19

“Happy Father’s Day, Papa Ling!”

Father's Day 20

“Shall I share the ball with Chervelle?”

Father's Day 21

“Pass the ball to me, Alden.”

Father's Day 22

“Tricia, want to play bubbles together?”

Father's Day 23

“Tricia’s turn.”

Father's Day 28

“Torres, drink water. The weather is hot.”

Father's Day 29

“Kite flying is my forte.”

Father's Day 30

“Let Ms. Evelyn help you!”

Father's Day 27

“Why is the bee hoon so yummy?”

Father's Day 31

“No, Cherv’s ball ball…”

Father's Day 32

“Papa, can I try myself?”

Father's Day 33

“I shoot you with the bubbles gun.”

Father's Day 34

“Pass me the ball, Uncle Welsey.”

Father's Day 35

“Cherv, you want the kick the ball?”

IMG_0651

“Goodness, that girl can kick.”

IMG_0652

“MOM! I need a cold drink.”

IMG_0654

“Who want to play ball with me?”

Father's Day 36

“TM’s water.”

Father's Day 38

“Alakay, can you catch the ball?”

Father's Day 39

“Mei mei, do you need help?”

Father's Day 40

“Alden, am I looking tan?”

Father's Day 41

“Yes, Cayden. I cannot even open my eyes.”

Father's Day 42

“Ready to take a group photograph.”

Father's Day 43

The Niwa Family at Marina Barrage!
(Missing the Tey Family)

Thank you for joining us under the warmth of the sun in celebration of our annual Father’s Day event. Till the next year.

Hint: It will probably be indoors.

If you like us, please kindly help us to click ‘LIKE’ and ‘SHARE’ for us to reach out to more parents who have the same parenting beliefs as us. We would love to meet you personally at Niwa Schoolhouse.

Give us a call at 6908 0855 TODAY!

Our Niwa-ians like their food raw…

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When we think of raw food, we have a lovely image of this.

Sashimi

And it makes us all go hungry now, probably thinking about some nice places to hunt for good food. For sashimi lovers, they will be trying hard to contain their hunger by now.

To our Niwa-ians, they love this!!

Yummy Food

A home-made recipe with Microgreens that can be eaten fresh (raw)! Tadaa!

As part of our parenting workshop, the Niwa-ians and their families also got the opportunity to try different recipes that were created with fresh (raw) ingredients, including ‘avocado’, ‘seaweed’, ‘cucumber’, ‘dou miao’ and ‘apple’.

If you are all in for a ‘green’ lifestyle, read on to learn more about these fuss-free cooking experiences that are also very easy for full-time working parents!

This was how we started with the first recipe.

Recipe 1

“You can just eat these ‘dou miao’ raw.”

Looking 1

“Add some sauce to create flavour for the food.”

Explaining

“If you like, you can try these rice crackers. I bought them from Cold Storage and they are really good food in replacement of wheat.”

Adding Ingredients

“Let us add the peanut butter into the bowl.”

Stirring and Mixing

“We give it a mix.”

Mixing

“Come, let me help.”

Trying

“I can’t wait. Let me try the dou miao first.”

Volunteering

“We can cut the cucumber into slices quickly.”

Sampling 7

“TM, try this. This is yummy.”

Sampling 8

“Yummmmmmm……”

Sampling 9

“Ms. Vivienne, can I try one too?”

Sampling 10

“Mei mei’s turn!”

Sitting 1

“Now, for another recipe that is coming up.”

Sampling 12

“Let’s try the sauce first. Can you give me one of your fists?”

Sampling 11

‘Fist-licking good!!!”

Sampling 13

“Desiree, nice?”

Preparing

“We are now ready to add the sauce onto the cucumber slices.”

Adding Ingredients

“I cannot stop eating the rice crackers. They are so good. Mama, can you buy some for me?”

Recipe 2

“The second recipe is ready for serving.”

Sampling 14

“Hurray!!! Let us try the (raw) food now! So yummy……”

Sampling 15

“I never know (raw) food can taste this good (when sharing with my Blossom).”

Sampling 18

“Oh yes! (raw) Food is heavenly.”

Sampling 16

“Desiree, come, take a bite.”

Preparing Salad

“Now, let us prepare the salad with apples and avocado that we can top with ‘sunflower microgreens’!”

Recipe 3

“Another healthy (raw) food recipe is ready within mintues.”

Sampling 19

“Mommy, let me feed you some!!!”

Cooking 1

“This recipe is for friends who like their food cooked.”

Cooking 2

“First, we add some egg tofu.”

Cooking 3

“And we just add the fresh ‘dou miao.”

Recipe 4

“Finally, a cooked dish that is ready for the Niwa-ians.”

Please continue to watch this space, as we will be sharing these healthy reciepes real soon.

If you like us, please kindly help us to click ‘LIKE’ and ‘SHARE’ for us to reach out to more parents who have the same parenting beliefs as us. We would love to meet you personally at Niwa Schoolhouse.

Give us a call at 6908 0855 TODAY!

Planting Greens With Mommies and a Dad

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おはよう、男の子と女の子、ダディとミイラ！

 Good morning, boys and girls, Daddies and Mummies! Welcome to Niwa Schoolhouse’s Urban Greens Parenting Workshop!

Set-up 1

“Say hello to the ‘dou miao’ and the ‘sunflowers’!”

Set-up 2

“We are ready to open our doors and welcome our parents!”

Family 1

“Good morning, Eunice and Vernice!”

Family 2

“Our little Desiree with Mom and Dad!”

Family 3

“When we asked Tricia to smile for the camera?”

Family 4

“Our hero and most capable helper for the day!”

Family 6

“Lucky Tian Ming with two teachers to assist him.”

Family 8

“Hello there!”

Family 5

“We are ready to start planting!”

Observing 1

“Tricia, look at the ‘dou miao’!”

Observing 2

“I want to touch too.”

Observing 3

“Eunice, can you see the seeds here?”

Listening 4

“Ms. Khai Lin, I don’t believe we can eat the ‘dou miao’ raw.”

Sampling 2

“Auntie Nicole was the first to try!”

Sampling 5

“Yummy!”

Sampling 3

“We just put them into our mouth.”

Sampling 6

“Come, daddy. I feed you.”

Sampling 7

“Tricia, want a bite too?”

“For the less-adventurous ones, they are still learning how to consume fresh vegetables on the go!”

Now, let us get started on the planting of the ‘Microgreens’!

Adding PM 1

“Tricia, do you remember the peat moss?”

Adding PM 3

“It is Desiree’s turn now.”

Adding PM 2

“Tian Ming, feel the peat moss.”

Adding PM 6

“Vernice, do you like peat moss?”

Patting PM 2

“Help, my hand is dirty! Never mind then. “

Adding Water 1

“Let me add some water now.”

Adding Water 4

“I can do it by myself, Mommy.”

Adding Water 3

“I need some help here.”

Adding Water 2

“This is easy-peasy.”

Adding Seeds 4

“Let the planting starts now.”

Adding Seeds 3

“How many seeds shall I add?”

Adding Seeds 2

“Mom said I can add 25 seeds.”

Adding Seeds 6

“I cannot count 25 seeds yet. I will just add randomly.”

Adding Seeds 7

“We can do it!”

Adding Seeds 5

“Mommy and Daddy, can I pour?”

Patting 3

“Giving it some loving pats before covering the box.”

Now, we just have to wait and greet the plants in 2 days when the shoots start appearing!

Give us a call today at 6908 0855 or email us at contact@niwaschoolhouse.com.

So……. It is our Harvest Time from the ‘Urban Greens’

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Do you know who Jamie Oliver is? We can hear some ‘Ooooo’.

Do you remember that Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolutionary Day was on 15 May 2015? We can hear some ‘Ahhh’ now.

Yes, do you recall that Niwa Schoolhouse had a collaboration with ‘Microgreens’ and the Niwa-ians planted some micro-seedlings of peas and sunflowers on 15 May 2015?

Believe it! Just after 7 days, the Niwa-ians had a bountiful harvest of the ‘Microgreens’ on 22 May 2015. The bonus was for the little ones to eat their ‘Microgreens’ fresh by following the simple recipes as offered by ‘WholeLife Consultancy Pte Ltd’.

Be ready, be amazed, be awed……….

Before we begin, let us share the amazing recipes for all to try at home. If you like, we welcome you to visit us at Niwa Schoolhouse for some free sampling too. Recipe 1 : Basic Nut Sauce Ingredients:

  1. 1 tbsp of Peanut Butter
  2. 1 tsp of Maple Syrup
  3. ½ tsp of Tamari Sauce (a wheat-free, gluten free soy sauce from San-J)

Method:

  1. In a bowl, spoon all the ingredients together.
  2. Mix the ingredients thoroughly, till well-combined.
  3. If the mixture is too thick, simply dilute with a tiny amount of drinking water, till it reaches a spreading consistency.

This sauce is great on the following cut vegetables/fruit, topped with sunflower ‘Microgreens’:

  1. Cucumber rounds
  2. Carrot rounds
  3. Apple slices
  4. Bangkwang slices

Recipe 2: Enriched Nut Paste Ingredients:

  1. 1 recipe of basic nut sauce
  2. ½ an avocado (skinned and cubed)
  3. 1 tbsp of radish microgreens (chopped)
  4. A dash more of maple syrup and Tamari sauce  to taste

Vegetables/ingredients to use for layering:

  1. Nori sheets
  2. Cucumber
  3. Apple rounds
  4. More radish greens
  5. Colourful seasonal fruit for topping (like red dragon fruit, cut into small cubes)
  6. Bananas / mangoes (optional)

Method:

  1. In a bowl, combine the ingredients together.
  2. Mash the avocado, but leave tiny chunks for texture.
  3. Get ready a Nori square.
  4. Layer this sauce on top of a cucumber/apple slice, stack it on top of the Nori square, top with a generous layer of ‘Microgreens’ and garnish with red dragon fruit.

Bon Appetit!

Now, our Niwa-ians are ready to show you their ‘actions’ of the harvest. Harvest 1

“Let us cut the ‘Microgreens’!”

Harvest 2

“Can you help me to cut some Microgreens?”

Harvest 3

“Mei Mei wanted a turn too!”

Harvest Greens

“WOW, our ‘Microgreens’!”

Explaining 2

“This is the Tamari Sauce that we can use.”

Sampling 2

“Goodness melt in my mouth.”

Sampling 1

“Let us try too!”

Explaining 1

“Do you like to eat the dragonfruit?”

Sharing 1

“How about adding some to our second recipe?”

Cutting 1

“Yeah, dragonfruit is my favourite for I like its bright colour.”

Feasting 1

“Why are you eating the goody before me?”

Yummy Food

“The goodness of ‘Mircogreens’ that melt in your mouth and crunch with each bite.”

Have you grown your ‘Microgreens’ today?

If you are keen, we would like to invite you to Niwa Schoolhouse to join us for more planting sessions to come this June. Give us a call today at 6908 0855 or email us at contact@niwaschoolhouse.com.