On 27 February 2016, there was a program called Singgah Santai @ PNM. In case you are wondering, PNM stands for Perpustakaan Negara Malaysia. I came to know about this program from my husband.
As you can see, there are a lineup of activities and we thought it would be fun to take the kids there, as opposed to shopping malls which we frequent a lot on weekends.
There are a lot of booths for activities. For example, this booth sells beads on grids where kids get to pick a design, arrange the beads on the grid and then the seller will attach a keychain or a pin on the back of the design, according to your choice. Babycakes chose a little duck and turned it into a keychain. This activity is good for fine motor skills because kids will have to pick the tiny beads and arrange them onto the grid. It takes focus and concentration as well.
After that we went into the kids' library. The library is well-lit, well taken care of, fully air-conditioned and very colourful. It's a good way to instill reading habits among kids. They also have carpeted areas and a place where the kids can watch tv/movie.
There are also a number of computers for the kids to use and play game on.
By the way, before we entered the kids' library, we registered the kids' names and they received a goodies bag each, consists of a packet drink, a pack of biscuits and a mandarin orange (not in picture because Babypie was busy playing with it, thinking it was a ball).
When we were there, we found out that the are having a 'Si Cilik Cheongsam' contest. Of course we didn't bring Babycakes' cheongsam but Hubby was willing and determined to go back home to fetch her cheongsam so that she could join the contest. So hubby actually went back to fetch the cheongsam while we waited at the library. I had to keep the kids occupied.
Hubby arrived about 10 minutes before the contest starts so I quickly dolled her up, tied up her hair into buns and also put a teeny bit of blusher and lipbalm on her, much to her delight. I was glad that she finally got to wear this cheongsam which I bought for Chinese New Year. I was pretty sure that her kindy will be having a CNY celebration which was the reason why I bought it. Unfortunately the CNY celebration is only for the 6 year olds boohoo.
Parents and the other kids were eager for the contest to start. Can you spot Babypie in the picture?
Sad to say, there were only four kids in cheongsam that day so the emcee made an announcement there and then that any children with nice and pretty dresses may join in as well so four other kids went up the stage.
My Babycakes was all excited and happy to be on stage.
I must say that the organizers of this contest had failed on so many levels. I am sure this is not the first time they held such events and contests. For a start, they didn't even take the names of the children who participated in the contest. Secondly, they should come up with a number badge for each contestant so that it is easy to recognize them. The contestants had to do a bit of a catwalk and guess how they were called? The emcee started calling "OK adik yang pakai baju putih, sila ke depan, buat catwalk, posing2 sikit." "Adik baju gown pink pulak" "OK sekarang adik cheongsam biru". OMG how annoying can that be? At least give some recognition to these kids la! It doesn't help that their sound system was out too. One minute there's music, the next it went silent. One minute it was so loud, the next it went down so low.
After all the kids had showed off their cheongsams (and dresses), the emcee called one of the higher ranking person in the library to choose the winner. Well, guess what, the 3rd place goes to the little baby wearing a pink cheongsam. Apparently she won because she was brave enough to go on stage (she was crying and was being carried by the mother, btw) and her cheongsam had some red colour on it which is symbolic with CNY. Okaaaaay. As for the 2nd place, since the organizers decided at the very last minute that girls in dresses can join too, the person said he had to be fair (pffft) so yay he chose the girl in the pink Frozen dress. Okaaaaay one spot left. By this time I know that Babycakes had little chance. And my expectation became a reality because the first prize goes to.....
awwww....the girl in the white cheongsam. Smile, girl! You won!
So these four kids didn't win boohoo.
Guess what she got? Well whaddaya know, the same goodies bag that were given out earlier bwahhahahahah what a joke. Seriously. Yup, it contains the same things- a drink, a pack of biscuits and a mandarin orange.
Oh well Babycakes, I guess it is not your luck this time. It is not so much about the prize, not so much about the hamper (which consists of junk foods and snacks anyway) but I was just so disappointed with the way the contest was organized. They should be more prepared, they should pay attention to details and since it is a 'Si Cilik Cheongsam' contest, I strongly feel that they shouldn't allow anyone without cheongsam to join. But then again, of course they have the right to change and amend the rules as they please. Pffft. Yes, you can call me a sour grape or a sore loser as you wish but I don't think it is fair for those who took the effort and went that extra length to dress their kids in cheongsam. Why not next time just have a 'Si Cilik Bergaya' contest OK?
As for the whole event, they could do way better. There were a few foods and drinks stalls but hardly any place to sit down to eat. There were also a few booths selling all kinds of everything like scarves, knick knacks, toys, books etc but I think that the pasar malam fares better than this event. We left the place hungry and unhappy, for sure.
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