Mid-Autumn Festival and making snowskin mooncakes!

I'm so blessed to be part of a loving and multi-talented homeschool co-op! We made vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free Snowskin mooncakes during our Mid-Autumn-themed lesson. Each mum contributed something - I did the Chang'E and Mooncake Rebellion stories while the other mums prepared the ingredients, the lantern-making craft, the poems, songs, and food.

On my own, I would NEVER have attempted to make mooncakes, but the other mums prepared the glutinous rice snow skin paste and the lotus paste, and all we had to do we to knead them, shape them and put them into the molds. It was so therapeutic that I brought the extra dough home for a repeat session! Sadly, I don't have pictures of the homeschool co-op mooncake session. We were too busy having fun and eating as we made them, and our hands were too gooey to take any photos! Here's the recipe and step-by-step instructions on making no-bake Snowskin Mooncakes.

On Mid-Autumn night, we gathered for a potluck dinner at Bishan Park, followed by lots and lots of fire play with lanterns, sparklers and candles! It's not often that children are allowed to play with fire, and they were entranced. Which means that we mums had lots of time to do what we needed to do - stuff ourselves and talk. And Talk. And TALK! It's a highly important activity. It keeps me sane, makes me feel understood, gives me new ideas, and let's me know that I'm not alone in this sometimes overwhelming world of motherhood!

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The Influence of Barney on Businesses

I must confess that of late, a few of our evenings have been spent at United Square, awaiting the appearance of a purple celebrity.

It was 6pm on a Saturday night,  and the restaurant was packed, each table with at least two eager children. The air was filled with anticipation and even the adults seemed more cheerful than usual. All the children seemed unusually well behaved. By 6.50pm, my own husband could bear it no longer. Armed with two portable chairs, he strode out of the restaurant to reserve place with a good view. At 7pm, the restaurant was practically empty.

When I commented to the friendly waitress that business was good, she explained that the Barney show split the customers into two frenzied sessions, before 7pm, and after 7.30pm, and that they even had to extend their working hours because many people started dinner late after the show ended!

Thanks to my eager husband, we managed to get front view box seats! We sat through Angelina Ballerina, Bob the Builder, and Fireman Sam, but when Barney came out, you could practically hear a collective intake of breath, followed by cheering!

It was then that I realised that a large number of Singaporean parents know Barney songs by heart. Very impressive. Some were even singing along as they walked around the mall.

At 7.40pm, the mall was back to normal, but with everyone smiling just a bit more than usual. Just because of a purple dinosaur.

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Live musicals daily at United Square till 16 Dec 2013. It's an annual event.

Visit the website for more details.

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