Coolest frog

When I saw this pod, I thought the whole concept was really cool. It took awhile before I actually went all out and ordered one from Sparkability.com.

When I got my package, this was bigger than what I had somewhat imagined. Anyways, first thing I did when I got home was install the attachment to the bathroom wall. The set came with the adhesive backed panel. Followed the instructions carefully but after a couple hours, the whole pod fell! The adhesive was not strong enough to hold the pod alone. Tried even using my own 'strong' double-sided adhesive tape but still not had luck.

Just when I thought I'd have to put this into storage and writing this off as a disappointment, I found out from the Boon site that they now also offer a suction cup attachment instead of the adhesive-backed one (of course I cannot use the screw option as we're only renting the apartment). Immediately contacted Boon and they replied within a couple days! They offered to send me this suction cup attachment without any cost and their manufacturer in Taiwan was immediately in contact with me that same day! I was very impressed with the service and speed of response esp. after getting the attachment via courier within a few days later.

So now I am a proud owner of the coolest frog in Shanghai! Holds a lot of the small toys the kids play with in the bath and keeps a few other items dry.

Potty Training Time

It's that time when the kids have to start potty training and for this, I went all out and bought the Potty Bench from Boon. Actually I've been eyeing this online at Sparkability.com for some time before going ahead and buying it.

The design is really cool with the 2 storage compartments on the side and being able to use this also as a step. I'm still trying to convince to get the kids to use this for potty...

My First Homemade Boardbook

A while ago, I came across a blog entry on DaddyTypes.com about making your own homemade boardbook. And since then, I've been planning on making one for the kids but never found the time to do anything about this plan.

So a couple months ago, when we had a bit of 'quiet' time at the office, I started thinking about this again. While 'researching' on some TV characters that the kids like, I came across some downloadable colouring book files that can be found on the Nick Jr. site. And this gave me the idea for how to start my own homemade boardbook.

Printed all the printables from Kipper the Dog into PDFs then used Photoshop to colour in the 10 pictures. Using InDesign CS2, I did my own layout by having big numbers side-by-side to the coloured in pictures. For the cover, I printed to PDF one of the other files available. Once all has been done, sent it to the printer to get it printed onto a 300gsm weight paper stock.

Putting the book together took some time. Did not really follow the instructions on DaddyTypes.com to a 'T' but used this as a basis esp. with the way the pages are put together, folded, and glued. I did add some laminating film on top to give it some more protection. Unfortunately, I had a bit of a slip-up when I stuck the cover on the wrong side hence you will see a 'cracked' strip near the cover's edge (after I pulled this apart). This happens when you are putting something like this together at 3am!

After I finished putting everything, the feeling of having made something for the kids is simply rewarding, and esp. after seeing their reaction to the book. Unfortunately, I had to do a lot of persuasion to share the book. Both wanted to hold the book!

I'm planning on v2 which is a book about the ABCs of Dora the Explorer possibly with a slight approach and a few improvements... so stay tuned.