Ohhhh, Pizza Pockets. Some might call them calzone or stromboli. There’s endless discussion about what defines each, usually related to your region(especially here in Pennsylvania.) So we decided that these are going to stay as pizza pockets, because that’s what they’re called in the recipe we used. Plus, the kids will gobble anything if you say “PIZZA.”

Pizza Crust Recipe From PW HERE. – I doubled the recipe and subbed 4 cups of whole wheat flour for 4 of the cups of flour.

Pizza Pocket Recipe HERE.

Just using 1 recipe worth of pizza dough from above(so the equivalent of 2-ish pizzas) gave us about 20 small pockets. I made them small because I was making them to have easy things to grab for lunch for the kids, an adult would easily eat 2(my husband might eat 4 or 5.) They each had one for lunch and loved them and the rest would probably keep in the refrigerator, but I threw them in a freezer bag and into the freezer for another day when I need something quick. I’ll heat them in the oven if I have time, otherwise I’ll pop them in the microwave and call it good.

A few tips:

• Make sure you seal all of the dough edges. I played with them a bit and tried to just roll some and put them seam down and it wasn’t the smartest move ever.
• The topping options are endless, obviously. I used broccoli and mushrooms along with the cheese and sauce.
• At Another Lunch, she suggest putting down the cheese first and I thought that was genius.
• TRY THESE! You won’t be disappointed.

{this moment} – A Friday ritual. Capturing a moment from the week. A simple,

special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

-Amanda Blake Soule

:: The August Break was fantastic. Just what I needed as we transitioned into me going back to work more – about 30 hrs a week right now with all hours in the evening/weekends. It’s exhausting to get used to, but it makes me appreciate all of the different ways we all figure out to make things work for our families. This is giving me the time with my little ones during the day and keeping them with family when we need the help to cover our overlapping schedules a couple of days a week. It’s making me ache for more time with my husband, especially since I’m missing even just our evening of sitting on the couch together after the kids are in bed. I normally complain about him laying on the couch watching tv while I sit in front of a computer, but with us having 2-3 nights a week now that I’m home in the evening, at least one of two of those including errands, house projects, small grocery shopping(I’m getting better about managing that one and making these trips less frequent) or just spending time with friends without kids, it leaves 1-2 night for us to just sit and relax.

::I love hand-me-down toys so much. Especially toys given because they’ve been so loved and outgrown and they need some new littles to love them. I love knowing that someone had these special toys stored away because they couldn’t bear the thought of part with something that was so dear to their little one’s heart, but giving those toys to more children(ours) who could have fun made it easier to swallow the lump in their throat as they were handed off.

::I’ve officially changed my budget category for “kids clothes/activities” to “thrifting.” Seriously. I’m completely done with buying anything new for my kids. We find so many great deals at consignment stores and at our Salvation Army and Goodwill. This week I found a brand new wooden doll cradle. I was tempted to save it for Christmas, but I didn’t. I think I am going to start making some regular trips, though, with a list in my head of things to get for Christmas – an easel and small containers to create a pouring center like these is on my current list.

::I’m head over heels in love with Another Lunch. I love all of the pictures and great ideas for fun lunches and I especially love her suggestions for so many fun tools – the little silicone cups, the mini cookie cutters. My favorites – the sandwich cutters and the egg molds.

::I called and canceled our cable today which means no more tv unless we watch on the computer. John is kind of bummed about it, but I can honestly say that I don’t care at all. Maybe because most of my zoned out/wasted time happens on the computer, but I’m still looking forward to no more tv around here.

::Rhythm of the Home for Autumn is here – don’t miss the goodness!

::I’ve officially started a yearlong photography project as of Sept. 1st. In case you haven’t heard of them (I think I may have been the last on earth, so I just assume everyone else has been there and done that!), it’s a project where I take at least one picture per day for 365 days straight – for better or for worse.  If you want to follow along, here’s a link to my daily pictures and I’m going to add one on the sidebar, too. I’m not entirely sure what my goals will be for my project beyond taking at least one picture daily for 365 days and I’m adding in 50 words or less related to my day. I’ve been really lax over the summer about all of the learning I want to do related to photography, so I’m looking forward to jumping back in and expanding my knowledge bit by bit. If you want to join in, let me know!

{here’s the before in case you’re curious}

1. I left the house tonight to return a movie. After bickering about my irresponsibility related to Redbox rentals. I can admit it – it’s not a deal if I use a code for 1 night free rental, but keep it for 3 nights. Oops. So I went out to return it and I was going to get ice cream on the way home. But I turned a corner  and I was greeted by the most insane hot pink sun. So I rushed home to grab my camera and rushed back out, shooting out the window.

The whole drive was at most 20 minutes. But there’s something about ending a weekend and starting a week knowing that the kids are in bed, chasing a sunset, windows rolled down, hair whipping in the window, Simon and Garfunkel on the radio. It felt fantastic.

2. The kitchen is PAINTED. HALLE-FREAKiNG-LUJAH!!! It’s a bit darker/brighter than I thought it would be and so similar to the kids’ room that we had to laugh at buying a can of paint when we had another. I love the color and I’m the one who gets to look at it 95% of the time. I’ll be posting pictures at some point in the future, but it still has a good bit left before it’s ready for a reveal. We still have half of a kitchen worth of cabinets to paint and hang and I haven’t even begun to figure out small details or artwork. But it’s coming together – YAY!

3. Because I just can’t resist. Found the link to these fantastic number and alphabet poster downloads via Simple Kids and had to share them. So adorable and just what we were needing to add to either the kids’ room or the currently-a-work-in-progress basement playroom project!

4. Last thing.  I love 3 year olds taking pictures:

And this is BETTER because I’ve done a LOT already. ::GASP::

I’ve been spending some serious time down here this week and it feels so great. Getting things organized for a garage sale, consignment sale, to give away and to TRASH. There’s so much junk I couldn’t take one more second of it. I have the weekend off entirely from work, so while John paints the kitchen, I plan to finish the basement. Then we have to move on to the garage…::cue scary music::

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – I’m a terrible housekeeper. Our basement has been a dumping ground for things that we didn’t feel like dealing with and old boxes that just keep making the moves with us. So we’re(me mostly) sorting – choosing what’s worth keeping (photos of our grandparents that we needed to get out of the basement asap) and what’s trash (anyone need an old girl scout sash complete with badges??).

It’s so funny to be looking forward to a weekend of cleaning, but I am. A weekend at home with all of us here, beautiful weather, a Saturday night date with John – it all sounds fantastic. Especially after today – I literally went and googled to see if it was a full moon. We were all completely off yesterday – Nick slept almost all day and I would have sworn that he was sick. Mia didn’t nap at all yesterday. They both woke up grumpy AGAIN today. I lost my patience with a big, mean, “WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAT???” after the 1,000th “MOM MOM MOM MOM MOM” of the day and wound up apologizing in tears for being so cross and for the fact that she was saying it so many times because I wasn’t listening to her in the first place.

So, we had a little lesson about politeness and getting someone’s attention with an, “Excuse me, ____” and waiting for their response. And, for today, it actually worked. So we’re starting over. Naps all around this afternoon. Work for me tonight and a date with daddy tongiht for the kids. All of us home for the next two days. Walks around the neighborhood, breakfast in the mornings, painting, basement organizing, yardwork and a whole lot of playing outside are on our agenda.

::I’ve been feeling all sorts of wistful about fall coming this week. I love it so so much and I can’t wait for it. But. BUT,  I know that this is a big problem for me – the endless looking forward to things, usually in a romanticized, idealized fashion and then setting myself for life in general to never live up to my expectations.

The truth is this: It’s still summer. In a very serious way. The pool is still open, we can get out the grill, eat popsicles and ice cream. So, instead of wishing away summer, we’re focusing on our Summer List in the next couple of weeks – soaking up those last bits of goodness and fun adventures we just haven’t done yet this summer.

::I have two grumpy kids today. I had big plans for getting our list off the fridge and picking something exciting, but instead I think we’ll stick close to home. The little one is already down for a nap this morning(he usually only takes an afternoon nap) and I have two generally grumpy kids. So we’re going to go for some nature/sleep therapy today and lounge around and go for some walks and play in the backyard and work on some gardening. I might attempt to throw in some basement organization if I’m feeling especially ambitious during afternoon nap time. And I think we’re going to try making some bagels!

::Our garden seems to be dwindling. It’s been such a learning experience this year and I can’t wait to apply it all next year. I’m going to do a whole post about the things I’ve learned, but in the interim, I’m researching some fall plants to keep it rolling!

::I wish I could better convey how huge this tomato is right now. And still growing. It’s labeled as a variety called Belgian Beauty and I had a hard time finding much info about it beyond where I got the plant. The info says that the tomatoes will be 1-2lbs. each.   The one tomato growing on the plant is, indeed, HUGE!

A comparison in my hand of another tomato:

::I get a lot of hits from searches for the Dyeing Playsilks with Kool-Aid tutorial, so I just had to share this fantastic link: A color chart at Tried & True with fantastic details on how to achieve very specific colors using certain Kool-Aid flavors.

::I’ve been really enjoying the august break. I think I’m officially going to jump in and do a project for 365 days – to be more aware, to learn, to get better – so many things. Here’s where I’m joining the fun - hop on over if you want to join in, too! I’m still thinking about what parameters I want to set for myself, but I think they’ll include a flickr set and not a blog every day.

::Question: Where are you favorite places to visit for inspiration – for photography-related or generally creatively inspiring and things that make you stop and appreciate the little lovely things in life? What lovely little things are you loving today?

My favorites right now(among many flickr groups): The habit blog, I Heart Faces, Shutter Sisters, The Creative Mama, The Maternal Lens, Slice of Life Tuesday, Tuesdays Unwrapped, PW’s Photo Assignments, We Deserve This,  Enjoying the Small Things..I know I’m forgetting a bunch more!

Driving home, I realized that it was probably our last swimming excursion for the summer and it made me a little sad. He’s not going to be a baby anymore by the next time we go swimming outside.

the august break

This morning I got up to a cloudy, breezy, almost chilly day – it was fantastic. We headed out to our favorite market and I let myself venture further into the territory I shouldn’t go anywhere near – the flea market side.

I spent a good 15 minutes staring and loving all of these salt and pepper shakers and trying to decide on just one pair for our table. At the end, I walked away and decided to think about what I *really* want for the next time we go and I’ll whittle down the options  a bit more. Outside, there were tables and tables full of treasures, but this was the building that sucked me in. Salt and pepper shakers, character glasses, tons of books, more cookie jars than I could ever imagine, walls and walls full of board games galore and vintage toys and kids things. My favorite: old school Holly Hobbie sheets for Mia! They were a hit – they’ve already been washed and she’s napping on them as I type.