Happy Friday!
Some schools are already out for summer and meanwhile we still have less than two weeks left over here and are fully in that awkward in-between phase where the kids are mentally DONE with school. They want to swim all day, stay up late, and hang out with friends nonstop, but we’re also still juggling end-of-year testing, teacher gifts, class parties, signing up for camps, and approximately one million school things.
My brain feels like it has one foot in school mode and one foot in summer chaos and honestly it’s a lot. As much as I’m not quite ready for my house to officially become summer camp headquarters yet, I am VERY ready for all the end-of-school-year logistics to wrap up.
Before we get into this week’s favorites, don’t forget to check out this week’s newsletter covering dishes during summer, a realistic summer bucket list, keeping the kids outside, and lots more. Don’t miss it!
1. Maycember Casualty
The Tooth Fairy forgot to come not one, but TWO nights last this week, and honestly I fear her reputation may never recover. She’s apparently a little overwhelmed right now and barely surviving Maycember alongside the rest of us.
Nothing quite like hearing, “Mom…I don’t think the Tooth Fairy came…” first thing in the morning and immediately going into full panic mode. Thankfully, Matt remembered to set an alarm on night 3.
2. A Fun Summer Hostess Gift
Bringing back one of my favorite summer hostess gift ideas because it’s just too cute not to re-share. I grabbed bottles of Pool Boy wine from Whole Foods, added a fun gift tag in Canva, and they turned out so cute.
Perfect for summer parties, pool hangs, backyard BBQs, lake weekends, or honestly anytime you don’t want to show up empty handed.
Sharing the gift tag again because I know a lot of y’all made these last summer too! To download it, just right click it and select “Save Image.” Make sure when you go to print, you change the photo size to 3.5 x 5 inch and select the “shrink to fit setting” otherwise it will print as a huge 8×11 photo.
3. The Bite-Sized App Everyone Loves
These Pepperoni Bites are one of those apps I always forget about until I make them again and remember how GOOD they are. Crispy pepperoni cups stuffed with a cheesy ricotta-spinach filling and dipped in warm marinara…so savory and addictive.
They travel well, sit out perfectly for parties, and freeze beautifully which makes them such a great recipe to keep in your back pocket for summer hosting, lake weekends, or last-minute get togethers.
Ingredients (makes 48 pepperoni bites)
- 10 oz frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
- 16 oz ricotta cheese
- 12 oz grated Parmesan cheese
- ~48 large thin-sliced deli pepperoni (about 2 lbs)
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 eggs
- Optional: ⅔ cup chopped mushrooms or olives
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- In a large bowl, mix spinach, ricotta, parmesan, oregano, salt, eggs, and optional add-ins.
- Gently press a slice of pepperoni into each cup of a mini muffin tin to form a little shell.
- Spoon filling into each pepperoni cup.
- Bake for ~15 minutes or until the pepperoni edges are crisp and the filling is set.
- Remove gently and serve warm. Optional: serve with warm marinara for dipping!
To Freeze:
Assemble the bites in your mini muffin tin, then pop the whole tin into the freezer. Once frozen, transfer the bites to a freezer bag. When you’re ready to serve, return them to the tin and bake as usual.
4. Book Review: Lock Every Door by Riley Sager
3.5/5 STARS: I flew through this one and loved the creepy old apartment building setting and all the weird little rules surrounding the apartment sitters. It had very strong “something is VERY wrong here” energy the entire time.
Similar to the last Riley Sager book I read, I thought the ending got a little too wild and unbelievable for me personally. I liked the twist, it just crossed slightly too far into “okay be serious” territory. Still a really entertaining, fast-paced listen though.
5. Back To My Tried & True
After using approximately 27 tubes of gifted mascara over the past year, I finally made my way back to my tried-and-true favorite: Lash Idôle.
Nothing makes my lashes look better while still keeping them separated and natural looking. No clumps, no spider lashes, just really pretty everyday lashes every single time.
