Little Wonders Taiwan's Bilingual Natural Parenting Site Clearance Sale

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100% organic cotton diapers from Imse Vimse, half price!



My website, www.littlewonders.com.tw, is about to change.  First, I need to clear out some old stock, some things that have been sitting a while, and some things I will no longer act as distributor for.  Items are now priced from low as TWD100, and include a range of items.

So, please help me out and share the information with people you know in Taiwan with babies and young children!  I'm sure your friends will thank you.

2011 Christmas Shows I

Now, I have to say, some of this information is a little incomplete at the moment, but as the shows sell out very quickly, I wanted to get them up so you could at least try to get tickets.

These shows' tickets can be bought through I-Bon at the 7-11.  You need to show the 7-11 staff the name of the ticket company (for these shows, it's 兩聽院售票處  ), the Chinese name of the show, and the price (票價 of the ticket you want (if you need to choose)

Here is a translation for you to use at the 7-11 if you cannot speak enough Chinese to get by.  Sometimes, you can choose the seat no. and row you want to sit, but for shows I have booked, I haven't been able to through I-Bon.

Please help me book the following tickets using IBON 請幫我在IBON訂購以下的票:
Co:  兩聽院售票處
Show: (cut and paste the names from the shows below)
Price: 票價:
No. tickets: 幾張:

Chiang Kai-Shek Cultural Center Happiness 100 – International Immigrants Day 2011

Described in the Cultural Center's monthly progam booklet as a “festival and fun fair, for the immigrant community, with popular Taiwanese host duet, Plungon, will ensure a wonderful time for everyone”, this event will feature song and dance by new inhabitants and international students from Vietnam, Thailand, the Phillipines, Cambodia, Indonesia, Japan, and China. There will also be local Taiwanese performances.

Chinese Name: 辛福100.2011國際民日PARTY GO!

When Dec 10, 2pm-9pm (New Inhabitants from 2pm until 5:30pm; 100 Year Celebration Concert from 7pm until 9pm)
Cost: Free
Where: Chiang Kai Shek Cutlural Center's Main Plaza

2011 Dec 17: Hakka Children's Musical Hey! A-Digu

The established drama company Paper Windmill is putting on a free performance of Hey!A-Digu (嘿!阿弟牿). This is an adaptation of Hakkanese author 小野's “Polly Comes Back” The story highlights the Hakkanese harmonious relationship with nature.

A-Digu lives on a small island. Polly is a member of a Typhoon family, and the time has come to prove herself grown-up by thrusting herself upon the island. Polly is very nervous, and fails in her duty. Trying to help her, four typhoon set themselves upon the island, resulting in catastrophe. Polly works out a solution to the situation, and gentle rains fall upon the land.

Chinese Name: 嘿!阿弟牿

Venue: Chiang Kai Shek Cultural Center
Time: Saturday December 17 2011, 7-9pm
Cost: Free

2011 Dec 24: Family Christmas Concert

Let the cello tell the story. Accompanied by a soprano soloist and 管風琴, it will share tunes including “White Christmas” and “Silent Night” with you. This event is noted as a family event.

Chinese Name:

Venue: National Concert Hall
Time: Saturday Dec 24^th, 2011, 7:30pm
Cost: TWD500 (Under 12's TWD300)

2011 Dec 18: Y17's Christmas Party Under the Tree

This is a family musical event to celebrate Christmas. The introduction talks about Barbie, holding hands, gifts, and pinecones, but doesn't actually say what is going to happen. If anyone knows more, please let me know!

Chinese name:

Venue: Y17, 3^rd floor performance hall
Cost: TWD300 (10% discount for Eslite card holders, Yushan/Taishin/Cathay credit card holders)

2011 Dec 23-24 Who Is Father Christmas? By If Theater

It's the night before Christmas. It's not snowing. An old man is not enjoying his life. He thinks he has no friends, that his family members don't care about him. He gets to meet Father Christmas and regains faith in Christmas and his life, and realises that life itself is the best gift of all.

Venue: New Taipei City Cultural Center (新北市藝術文中心)

Cost: Tickets range from 300 to 1200 per person

*We went to see a show by IF Theater recently. My five-year-old didn't quite understand the whole story presented but enjoyed the colorful costumes and larger-than-life characters. My seven-year-old thought the whole thing was hilarious. The audience seemed to be mostly seven to twelve year olds. The show was in all in Chinese, and kids need to have a fairly good grasp of the language to understand the jokes. Their performance was very professional.

When We Get Together (當我們童在一起II - 兩聽院售票處 )

Presented by a Taichung Percussion Group, this show aims to share the happiness of childhood with children and adults alike.

Sunday Dec 4, 2:30pm: Hsinchu Cultural Center Theater

Sunday Dec 11, 3pm: Jiayi Cultural Center Theater
Cost: TWD300/400

Appeal from the Community Services Center - Telephone System Blow-out

The Community Services Center in Taipei offers a wide range of necessary services to the expat community, including an emergency counselling service.  The recent disaster with their telephone system has thrown them right out, and they are reaching out to the community they service for support.  Please, spare a dollar or two to help them get over this hurdle.

The Center’s phone lines and switchboard burnt out in a power surge recently.  We have to replace the whole system.  As you can imagine this is a very unexpected and considerable expense for a non-profit and we really need your help.
 Our phones are hanging on by a thread. We can still receive calls but we cannot, for instance, use any touch tone systems when dialing out.  This means our counselors and staff are unable to call hospitals and other emergency referrals.  Emergency referral is something we often need to do.  I cannot overstate the difficulty of running the Center with an inoperable phone system.
 So this December 18th The Center Running Team – who last year ran to support the now one-year-old Hsinchu Counseling office - will also be dedicating this year’s  run to raising funds for a new phone system for Taipei office.
 So if you support The Center and the efforts of the 16 people who will be running a total of over 330kms for the Center (that is like running from Taipei to Kaohsiung!) please help in any of three ways:
 1)      Going to www.gofundme.com/TheCenterTaipei and giving a lot or a little; everything will help.  You can use a paypal account or Credit Cards and donate online.  500, 1000, 10,000; every little bit will help.
 2)      Dropping in at The Center and make a donation in person.  Ask for Grace.
 3)      Participating in our pool.  This is for those who want to get more involved in the runners and the times they might finish their runs.  Choose the right time a runner will finish and win prizes including bottles of wine, cool coffee mugs and a host of other items.  Come in to the Center to sign up.
 Our phone system is a lifeline for the whole international community.  We need that lifeline to be working properly and reliably. And that is why I am turning to you, the community, for help at this time.
 This one is urgent…please help.
 Steve

No. 25, Lane 290 Zhong Shan North Rd., Sec. 6
Taipei 11161
Taiwan

http://www.communitycenter.org.tw/index.php?q=civicrm/mailing/optout&reset=1&jid=457&qid=63911&h=2d8d2741b41da500

Christmas 2011: Improv Children's Christmas Show, Taichung

I am going to take liberty and cut and paste from the Improv Theater's website.  For more information about Improv, the show, and the people, please go to their website.  Please note, they keep a guest list, and if you are on the list, you get first priority for seating.  So, if you are sure you want to go, drop them an email at TaichungImprov@gmail.com.
ng Improv and Stock 20 present:

Taichung Improv's Annual Christmas Kickoff for Kids
Date: November 26/ Time: 2:30 - 4:00 PM
Location: Stock 20 (Click to see our page about them).

Santa comes early this year as Taichung Improv kicks off the Christmas Season with a show sure to delight both children and adults. Using suggestions from the audience, Taichung Improv creates short plays that are spontaneous, funny, and definitely entertaining.

Want to see us pretend to be Sponge Bob Squarepants wrestling a gorilla? No problem.
Want to see us pretend to be a man stuck on the moon? No problem.
Want to see us pretend to be ants in a chocolate box? No problem.
Come with your own ideas and shout them out when we ask. We will try to pick the best ones.

The show is ideal for kids of all ages. The show will be in English, with descriptions of what is happening before each play in Chinese. The show is very high energy and fun, which means it can be understood by kids that know no English, a little English, or a lot of English.

We request a small donation of $100 pp for the show. For more information, visit our website at www.TaichungImprov.net or email TaichungImprov@gmail.com. Also look for us on facebook.

Drinks and refreshments supplied by Happy Marion, Taiping Branch. A special thanks goes out to them for their support.

Taichung Improv 年度耶誕秀
活動時間：11.26（六）14:30 - 16：00

Cycling in Taiwan With Children - Taiwanxifu

One way I like to take a break from my work online with my business www.littlewonders.com.tw is to browse some of the forums based in Taiwan.  Recently, people have been discussing the article published by the Lonely Planet online, ranking Taiwan as the 9th-best country visit in 2012, because of cycling.

I remember my first proper cycling experience in Taiwan.  My teammates and I were preparing for a triathalon, and we cycled from Taipei to Wulai, had a barbecue and a swim, and cycled back to the city. At that time, there were really no cycling paths that let you travel a decent distance on the bike, so you just had to grit your teeth and take on the traffic.  I would not have recommended family cycling trips at that time!  There has been much work put into developing Taiwan's cycling trails over the past few years, and there are now plenty of places to go cycling by yourself or with your family.  

As a follow-up to the Lonely Planet article, another Taiwan-based blogger, Taiwanxifu, has taken time to introduce 10 spots ideal for cycling with your family. 

You don't need to buy a bike to enjoy the trails.  You can rent bicycles from the starting points of most trails.  However, Taiwan is "famous" for it's bicycle manufacturing industry, and you pick up some nice bikes at reasonable prices around the island.  One thing that is a little harder to find is a decent child-seat for the bike, and if you are moving to Taiwan and have one already, I would suggest packing that up and bringing it over.  Other expats are sure to want to buy it off you when you finish with it. (You can sell it at the Forumosa, or Taiwaneasia forums' Sale sections.)

English-language Breastfeeding Support Group in Neihu (Right by MRT Station)

An English breastfeeding support group is up and running. It is one Monday a month and open to all nursing moms free of charge. The leader of the group, Berta, will choose a topic for discussion each month and then this will be followed by an open discussion about any concerns, questions or advice. There is also a private, online group for discussions between group meetings.

The next meeting will be November 14th at my friend's new family activity center Parents' Place. You can find the registration form and map at www.parentsplace.com.tw

**Parentsplace is right by two MRT stations and bus stops, so it's easy for people all over the city to get to.  Its also near the exit of Highway 1, and lots of car parks nearby.  So, even if you live "far" from Neihu, it's not hard or too long to get to the support you need.