August is here which means Back to School time as well as the start of the autumn season. When living in the Midwest, we would look forward to the leaves changing colors and welcome a reduction of heat waves. Since living in more southern areas for the past few years, we’ve adapted to our surroundings. It’s still going to be at least 90 degrees but you can feel the days getting shorter. As a tribute to the end of my favorite season, here are my some of the things I currently love.
– Kels

As many of us love Amazon, a lot of people aren’t aware of the Audiobook option through them. Audible sells digital audiobooks, radio and TV programs, and audio versions of magazines and newspapers. If you have an Audible membership, you will receive credits monthly. I signed up for a membership a while ago, and honestly forgot about it until our move in December (I needed something other than music on the 19 hour drive). I receive a credit each month for $14.95. I can choose from a large group of titles and have even had a chance to pre-order some books. I can’t wait to be notified of Michelle Obama’s new book Becoming. I jumped on that pre-order fast. But until then, I added Shonda Rhimes’ Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand in the Sun and Be Your Own Person to my audiobook library.

The Year of Yes was originally published in 2015. Why it’s taken me so long to read……..well, I thought the book would be about positive quotes or referring to the usual self-help books. But I should’ve known better. This is Shonda Rhimes we’re talking about. I applaud her for sharing her story of self evaluation and realizing it was time to make a change. Finally choosing to say Yes made a difference in her life. The personal stories are hilarious and very relatable. If you’re looking for an audiobook to add to your library, check out The Year of Yes. It’s a great way to get through the morning or evening drives to work during the week.

Our Instagram page @mommydaughteradventrs is growing and we are so appreciative of our followers and new community. One of the apps we use to create and edit our posts is Canva. There is a desktop option as well, but the mobile app is best for us as we’re always on the go. Canva allows you to choose various templates such as a Facebook cover banner, thank you cards or social media graphics, among other designs.

As many times we have moved, we’ve never lived in California. Rhi has never visited and the last time I visited, I was developing in my mother’s tummy. It’s been added to our travel bucket list and one thing we want to do eventually is go to Disneyland of course and stay to watch the Paint the Night parade. Initially this parade was supposed to end September of this year, but because of the praise its received, it has been extended. Hopefully we can get there to enjoy this colorful parade. If not, we’ll do what we did this summer……take advantage of the Disney Magic online. Disneyland streamed the parade for those not in the area and had viewers tweet their reactions. Have you had a chance watch the Paint the Night parade? If not, click the picture to be linked to the replay of Disneyland’s live stream.

After a long day of, well, anything, we go to our FAVORITE restaurant — BLAZE!!! We found Blaze Pizza while living in Texas and although it was good, we were still eating meat so had other options. Since Rhi is transitioning to be a full time vegetarian, we’ve focused more on the details of our meals. Blaze Pizza is modeled after the Chipotle concept of made-to-order approach. Create-your-own pizza to be “Fast Fire’d” in a high-temperature open-flame oven. It usually takes about 3 minutes to cook your pizza. There are Signature Pizzas to choose from such as the Meat Eater, Red Vine, and the Green Stripe. We like to choose the “BYO – Build Your Own” pizza. 

When Building Your Own Pizza, you’ll go down the line and choose your toppings. It starts with the crust – Blaze has Gluten free crusts which is rare for some fast food places. Next, you’ll choose your sauce, cheese, and meats. Rhi does white sauce, mozzarella, ricotta, and no meat while I do spicy red sauce, mozzarella, gorgonzola, and bacon. I’m not trying to be vegetarian, but I’m supporting 🙂 Next its the veggies. Rhi loves this part. She’s always loved vegetables, even as a baby. Finally add sea salt or oregano, give it a good look and off it goes to the oven! As stated earlier, it takes about 3 minutes to cook. They’ll call your name when its done and you can add a drizzle of sauce or take a seat indoors or outside and enjoy. We like to take ours home sometimes to enjoy while watching a movie for the night.

Blaze Pizza is a great place for friends and family as well. There’s something for everyone to enjoy. There’s also an app which will allow you to get Blaze Rewards. We’re on a hunt for that free pizza reward 🙂

Click here to see last month’s Things We Love.