Addressing Childhood Myopia

It is really no secret that there is indeed a high prevalence of myopia in Singapore children. In fact, 65% of primary school-going children had varying degrees of that problem. There is definitely no stigma with wearing spectacles, and my kiddos even asked for spectacles so that they too can look studious or even cool! But it would even be better if there is no need for spectacles is it not?

There could be a myriad of reasons why certain kiddos get myopia while others do not. In fact it could even be genetics, as parents with myopia tend to pass the risk of it down to their offspring. For me, I tried to minimize the possibility of my kiddos having myopia by restricting their usage of electronic gadgets onto to school holidays. In fact, they hardly get any television screen time at all too. But because both me and my wife had varying degree of myopia, I do have my concerns.

Some sobering facts and figures!

The kiddos followed me to the Suntec City Flagship store of W Optics recently when I needed to my fittings, and I took this opportunity to check out the products and services meant for the younger customers, and even infants! They even have a special corner just for the kiddos, with colouring activities to keep them occupied, and filled with all the different cute eyewear meant for them. Leroy surely did not hesitate to try some of them out, while trying to look cool.

The kiddos doing DIY testing!

Since we were all there, I got Steffi and Leroy to try out the eye test offered for children at the outlet as well, so as to give me the peace of mind that their eyesight are all good! I have to commend the two optometrists who were assigned to the kiddos, for they did great at keeping the kiddos entertained throughout the process, which was comprehensive and yet totally fuss-free!

Going through the same tests I did earlier!

Thankfully for our family, both the kiddos need not have to wear any spectacles for the time being, with Steffi only having a very mild case of myopia and Leroy actually having hyperopia with hopes that it will autocorrect in the future. My wallet is safe for now but...
 

We were also advised to bring the kiddos back for regular eye check-ups because there is always a chance that their eyesight may deteriorate over just a short period of time, requiring spectacles in the end. For now, I shall I can only keep my fingers crossed that they continue to have good eyesight and stick to regular check-ups! If you notice your kiddos complaining about trouble with reading off the blackboard or whiteboard in class, do make an effort to get their eyes checked. Whilst there are no cure for myopia, you can do your part to slow its progression by catching it earlier. We were told that children with higher myopia at young age have higher risk of getting eye diseases later in life – so please send your kids for regular eye checks In fact, if your kiddos does have myopia, you can even consider getting Ortho-K for them. 

Note: This blog post is in collaboration with W Optics. The kiddos were provided with the eye examinations for review. All opinions and photographs remains solely ours.
For more information on W Optics, follow them on their Website or Facebook.

(Official hashtags: #WOptics, #WEYExperienceSG)

Thomas & Friends - Big World! Big Adventure!

[Media Invite]

Brought the 4 kiddos to Golden Village at Great World City yesterday for the Thomas & Friends: Big World! Big Adventures!: The Movie! Family Day on my own, because the wife has got to work, and I was glad I did because I got to meet quite a few friends there as well, including my Secondary School classmate! 

The kiddos had a blast getting temporary tattoos and glitters prior to the movie screening, which I had to remove individually last night since it was school day today. I was also most impressed with Louie, who was able to follow the instructions faithfully and completed his Thomas tag mostly on his own (with minimal help from me)! 

How can an event be without a photobooth? Well, there was one in this event of course, for all of us to take back wonderful memories of the fun time in the form of photos. As there was also a best dressed contest, some of the parents really took much effort in dressing their kiddos in elaborate costumes, complete with cardboard trains no less! I would probably have done the same if I was gunning for the great prizes!

Nowadays children really mature fast. While Stacci and Louie still enjoyed the movie, Steffi and Leroy found the animation a little too 'kiddish' for their liking already, now that they are already in their upper primary. But I still found teachable moments in the movie, such as asking Leroy about how he felt about Ace, the racing car, and if that should be the way to treat friends. The little ones will still enjoy the movie of course! 

There will also be a Thomas & Friends: Big World! Big Adventures! event happening at Waterway Point, L1 Village Square from 29 Aug - 09 Sep 2018 (11am - 9pm daily). Where you can catch the life-sized trains, and where the kiddos can also enjoy the obstacle maze and mini theatre as well! For the rest of you, this movie will only be screened exclusively at Golden Village cinemas. So you know where to get your tickets right? Well the link is here -> https://www.gv.com.sg. Thank you for having us at the fun event and preview Golden Village!

Shape Run 2018

[Media Invite]

So I posted about going for a run last Sunday and my friend who saw it texted me to ask what run I signed up for. She was actually doing some climb at Kallang Wave Mall and saw a sea of pink, all lady runners, and wondered if I was indeed in such a run. In fact when I tried signing up for the run online, I was actually unable to select 'male' at the point of registration. Hence I was officially 'Ms' Steven Teo when I registered for our first Shape Run, as my wife was away in China with our 2 youngest kiddos and my MIL.

My running tee from Skechers, swee boh?

We were so anxious with taking part in this Shape Run, that we even did a site visit the day before just to ensure we knew where the venue was, and to check if we would be able to make it on time with the 3 kiddos on the actual race day! Ok that was fake, and the real reason why we did that was kind of hilarious. I actually mistook the race day to be on Saturday and had waited for the shuttle bus in vain, together with the kiddos. I was even chided by the kiddos, especially Steffi who said that she would have slept in if not for my mistake!

The goodie bag not bad wor, and damn heavy! But a lot of stuff for my wife and not me... hee hee...

These new kicks from Skechers rock! My new GOrun 600 is lightweight and totally breathable with its sandwich mesh fabric!

The girls have their new shoes from YOU by Skechers range, great for casual walking and absolutely comfortable! Leroy also has his own Equalizer 2.0 sports shoes which he said made him look cool too!

Anyway, the event venue was at Gardens By The Bay East which was quite a distance from Stadium MRT. You can still walk there though. But thankfully there were free shuttle buses for runners to and fro Stadium MRT station, just to make it easier for parents like me. You really would not want the kiddos to start on a bad mood because of all the extra walking. However the shuttle bus service only starts from 7.30am, meaning that those in the 10km and 5km would either have to drive or cab there, or get a little warm up prior to the run!

We finally made it for the shuttle bus, after waiting in vain for it one day earlier! 

We were still early for our category!

Besides the fact that this was the first Shape Run we took part in, it also happened to be the very first time we ran with PROPER sneakers, and we have to thank Skechers for decking us in footwear of our choices! The usual crocs that my kiddos wore to all the other runs may be easier to wear and take off, but there did not offer the same level of comfort our latest kicks provided, and not to mention the safety as well!

Checking out the prizes of the competitive categories. We took part in the 1.8km Family Fun Run!

Skechers booth at the run, where you can try out their new range!

Some good deals for runners on race day! I could see many ladies trying out the new shoes available.

Overall, the run was well-organized with ushers to guide us from the moment we exited Stadium MRT, all the way to the starting point, and of course the entire running route as well. It was a very leisure jog for our family in this 1.8km fun run category, and a really scenic as well with Gardens By The Bay and MBS as the backdrop. You can see lots of runners stopping to take photos during their run. The early start time also meant that it was not too hot for the family, especially the younger ones.

They kids are loving their new shoes!

Luckily it was not hot!

Look at the beautiful scenery!

The kiddos were so looking forward to the finishing line! Lol!

Picking up our drinks and cereal bars after the run!

Ang Ku Kueh Girl!

And of course we have to take the mandatory 'medal munching' photo!

Those who got hungry after the run can sample the different types of granolas at the Kellogg's booth while those who had the soles of their sports shoes detached (I saw 2 pieces along the tracks), can get new Skechers from their booth at a discount as well! This years' goodie bag was designed by Ang Ku Kueh Girl, who was also present at the run in mascot form, whom many wanted a photo with. It was a great morning well spent indeed and once again, thank you Skechers for the invite and dressing us up for the run, we surely look forward to the future editions too!

The only thorn amongst the roses, or maybe with one other little thorn.

Eye Fix at W Optics

Of late I had been noticing that I have some trouble making out the words that are too far away, even when I had my spectacles on. As if that wasn't alarming enough, I also realized that at times, I seemed to read the words off books or the computer screens better WITHOUT my glasses! I am not going to lie, I only visit the optical shop out of necessity. My reason there is simply to get myself a new pair of spectacles or to get my damaged one fixed. And whatever tests I had to take, was simply just to find out my degrees. I do not know of anyone who visits the optometrist on a regular basis, do you? Or should you?

Anyway I knew I really needed a new pair of spectacles and visited W Optics along with my wife on my 40th birthday! The outlet we went to, was the humongous 5,000 square feet flagship store of W Optics. The store was impressively spacious and totally different from all the optical shops I had visited so far, where the eye-test could be completed with just be a single machine set on top of the display shelf for the frames. It feels so relaxing to browse through the various brands (such as Ray-Ban, Gucci, Stealer and many more) on display, and explore the different types of lenses (Essilor, Zeiss, Ortho-K hard lens etc) in comfort. Take a rest on the many sofas available too, while waiting for your tests to be done.

The above is called the Essilor Nautilus VR Experience. Unlike traditional optical stores, W Optics Suntec flagship offers experiential and interactive zones. They have another area called the VR Vision Studio. While my motive there was to get new spectacles, we ended up trying out their new service, an eye examination named W EYExperience, which is recommended for customers over 40 years of age like ME! So instead of the usual single test at other optical shops just to make the prescriptive lenses, this comprehensive 30-min eye examination required us to go through 6 different tests that covered practically everything that has to do with our sight, so as to determine the health of our eyes. Given this level of attention and service, W Optics had certainly demonstrated itself to place customers’ eye health first and foremost.

The optometrists whom served us were very professional and patient in answering my many questions too. I love how they sanitized all the part of the equipment that our faces had to come into contact with, so as to give us the peace of mind. Was told that the total cost of the equipment in the test room is more than your average HDB flat! Sigh, although I have half-expected it, but it is still a little disappointment to hear that I already have minor presbyopia at my tender age of 40 and that my degrees had gone up a notch! Degrees can change drastically over a short period of time, especially for the young kids. Hence it is always a good idea to have regular eye checkups to ensure that your eyesight is not compromised.

The prices of spectacle frames at the outlet ranges from $90 (kids) and $160 (adults) upwards, whilst you can get the full comprehensive W EYExperience done at $80, or just the standard at $25. We know prevention is always better than cure, so why are we not making a regular health check of our eyes part of our routine? We are lucky that our eyes are healthy, but after going through this check, it really made me reconsider my nonchalance about my sight. It is no less important than my other senses for sure. Thank you for having us over W Optics, as well as for our Stealer spectacles with Crizal Eyezen + Crizal Transition Lens!

Note: This blog post is in collaboration with W Optics. We were provided with the eye examinations and spectacles for review. All opinions and photographs remains solely ours. For more information on W Optics, follow them on their Website or Facebook. (Official hashtags: #WOptics, #WEYExperienceSG)

Gululu - Interactive Water Bottles!

Introducing the kiddos to sugary drink so early, is something I easily consider as one of the worst mistakes I made in my parenting journey. While I do admit I dislike plain water myself, getting the kiddos to drink up these days, is tantamount to wanting their lives! And it is an uphill task to get them to have enough fluid, unless they are of the sweetened type. I thought that was it, that I would have to rely on scolding, bribes and threats to get my kiddos to drink plain water. Then the unbelievable came along, the Gululu Bottle. For once in my entire parenting life, I actually had the kiddos asking me to refill their water bottles (and not with soda!), telling me that they had finished their plain water, and have them drinking on their own free will! 

The girls love their Gululu bottles! 

So what sorcery does the bottle do, that can get the kiddos to drink tasteless pure H2O without the constant nagging of yours truly? The magic is through gamification. Each bottle comes with a digital screen that is about 5cm tall by 4cm wide and houses a pet that the owner gets to select. This is so reminiscent of Tamagotchi that was all the craze previously. The distinct difference between Gululu and Tamagotchi is that the former requires users to drink the water in the bottle to level up and collect rewards, unlike the latter which only requires pressing of buttons.

The Gululu bottle comes in a very presentable box, and included a docking station and an extra drinking tip.

With the water intake monitored by the sensors within the bottle, I am able to monitor the water intake of each child through the app while the kiddos can happily upgrade their characters when they drink up! The ideal situation would of course be to educate the kiddos and teach them the importance of adequate daily fluid intake so that they will be do it willingly, but I would not be rejecting the help of our Gululu bottles any time soon! However I will still have to warn you that although the bottle is quite high-tech, it will not be able to differentiate the type of liquid. So let's just hope that your kiddo will not try to beat the system, if you know what I mean. 

Steffi and Stacci each chose their own pets.

When the bottles come into close contact, their pets can even 'jump' over to visit when you shake the bottles!

The pets get to level up and learn new tricks as well. Collect gems etc with all the different steps you perform.

I downloaded the Gululu app and started monitoring the water intake of the girls, which showed steady progress in their water consumption. And the app also allows me to limit the usage to only after school hours because the pets may make noise whenever the girls are drinking. And Steffi was being warned by the teacher once when we first started using the bottle as the teacher thought was playing games in class!

I can monitor Stacci's progress. And the required intake is determined by their age, weight and height if I remembered correctly.

Only one app and I get to monitor both Steffi and Stacci!

I can also set the time that the pet will be active too.

The Gululu interactive bottle retails at $199, with an additional $20 for local postage. You can find out more about the bottle and the functions on their official website. If you wish to get it now, you can place your order conveniently at https://reurl.cc/L3bpL and get the bottle protector and strap free. Be pleasantly surprised by the willingness of your kiddos to drink from the bottle the moment they receive it! You can also email to Ulialin.app@gmail.com if you wish to clarify anything with regards to your purchase.

The one on the left is with the bottle protector and strap. 

Note: This blog post is in collaboration with Gululu. We were provided with Gululu bottles for review. All opinions and photographs remains solely ours. For more information on Gululu, follow them on their Website or Facebook.