Baon Ideas: What To Pack For Light Lunch/Snacks

In two days, my little girl is going to start a fresh adventure as a grade schooler. We're all set. I managed to get everything done at crunch time. Books all covered, bag's packed and ready, school uniform waiting to be pressed, organized her drawers and sorted everything out (socks, undies, hankies and towels). Am I excited? Or am I excited? Can you tell? Haha.

I'm all set...except for the menu plan for her snacks and light lunch. We just learned a few days ago that her school schedule overlaps lunch break and now that school day is getting nearer I'm starting to panic (only in my head. i'm still smiling from ear to ear as I write this).

Thank God, I came across another blogger mom's post about baon ideas (thanks Mrs. C!) and I had a light bulb moment. Some days, the pack rat in me comes handy indeed. I dug up some of Maia's old menus when she still was enrolled in a "nutrition program" in school. I'm partly wishing they still offer that in grade school because that would really save me from the headache of planning menus week in and week out. I guess the good thing about this is I don't have to crack my head thinking about the household menu as well. The challenge here is for me to come up with a sustainable way to plan this (or maybe find a way to delegate the task to Ate Inday without me having to closely monitor).

For now, I will rely on the ones listed on the little girl's previous nutrition program menus. What's good about it is, they sent us copies of the menus and it was good for one quarter. At least I am safe for the next 8 weeks or so. And I know that they have been tested and proven since the kid hardly went home with left overs then.

Also I have a couple of the little girl's favorites that I've shared here and they will probably going to see their way into our weekly menus more frequently from now on. Unless, I find a way to convince the preschool canteen to still offer the nutrition program to the little miss at least for this year.

Maia's Favorite: Doc McStuffins Theme Song Lyrics

We do not subscribe to cable TV so Disney shows are a rare treat to my little girl. She usually watches them in You Tube during days when she's allowed to use the computer (which is during the weekends during school season). Of late, she's been enjoying Doc McStuffins probably because she dreams of becoming a doctor (among the many other careers that she plans to pursue) when she grows up.

photo grabbed from the Disney Junior page

She always hums the theme and would sometimes pitch in a lyric or two. She would also occasionally request for me to join in but the only part of the song where I'm confident I got the lyrics right is the chorus. So I'm posting the lyrics here now, for personal reference when the kid suddenly calls for me to join in. (Tara, let's sing it together!)

(Thanks to stlyrics.com for this!) 

photo grabbed from Activity Mom

The Doc is in and She'll fix you up.
if you're a toy then your in luck.
it's ok don't be afraid the Doc really knows her stuff.
Doo Doo Doo you know it's good for you
The doc is gonna help you feel better
Oh Oh Oh it's the place to go
when you feel a little under the weather
Let Doc McStuffins do her thing
to get you right back in the swing
Doc McStuffins Doc McStuffins
Come and let the visit begin
the doc is in.
Doc McStuffins Doc McStuffins
Come and let the visit begin
the Doc is in...

Maia Recommends: Travel Logbook by Caroline Istas

I cannot think of anyone I know that doesn't like travelling. Travelling in my opinion is the most fun (if not the best) way to learn about other peoples/regions/places/cultures. I want my daughter to nurture in her a love for travel and adventure. I want her to be curious of other cultures. I want her to be curious of the world. And so even with our limited (financial) capacity, my husband and I try our hardest to expose her to travelling as young as she is. 

To me, a family trip is most fun when we try to blend in with the locals. (Eat where the locals eat, go where the locals go -- or something to that effect). So we try to just that when we travel. We want to teach our daughter to love travelling despite some bumps along the way. And by bumps I mean the possibility of taking the local commute, the lack of air conditioning and (maybe) posh accommodations (or not being able to afford it), or maybe even love walking when the situation calls for it. At this time, she still is enjoying the fact that she can just yell - CARRY ME MOMMY! CARRY ME DADDY! each time she feels like it. But you bet, when she's old enough, we will impose stricter travelling rules (hehe, I assure you Maia, it is going to be fun that way)

Writing this just makes me even more excited to travel with my little girl. I look forward to backpacking adventures in the future. And to her filling up the pages of this latest discovery - A TRAVEL LOGBOOK by Caroline Istas.

I first saw this posted in COANM's Instagram account. I immediately asked where she got it and was happy to know that I am acquainted to one of the resellers - Lyra (who is also a fellow n@wie and a blogger mom that I frequently stalk). Lyra's blog - Hello Saigon - talks about living as an expat family in Vietnam. Do check it out one of these days. It's really fun and informative.

So anyways, let me give you a glimpse of this travel logbook that I'm talking about.

cover, inside cover and back page

just look at how intricate the drawings are in this log book.
no wonder my little miss illustrator was immediately smitten.
it was love at first sight!

it has pages to entertain a kid's restless mind.
the bottom left is 2 pages of beautiful hand-drawn stickers 

it's a very comprehensive travel log book that your kid will truly appreciate if she owned one.

The minute she learned the book was for her, she immediately grabbed a pair of scissors and started opening the package. She was very careful though (probably thinking what she was holding is very fragile and delicate)

She was so ooh'd and ahh'd at the drawings on every page and she immediately expressed her want to travel soon so she can fill up these pages. Soon, Maia. Hopefully, soon.

Do you want a copy of this book for your kid too? You can send an inquiry to Lyra at hellosaigoncity@gmail.com. I ordered this book from her and had it shipped through local post. It didn't cost much (a little more than P100 if I remember correctly). 

Where's Your Happy Place?

For Maia, it's just two places.

This is where she gets her chicken fix (I know fast food but...when she's happy, were happy hehe)

time stops when she's here. and she already recognizes the logo so there's no way we'd ever skip this place when we're in a mall. she'd rather waste time here than in a toy store (on most days i say).