Author Archives: brent

A Surprisingly Convenient Process

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I held off until the very last minute.

Although I should have acted more promptly, COVID got in the way. Having lived in Spokane for more than four years now (this second time around), I should have secured a Washington driver’s license within months of moving to the state. But the pandemic had other ideas as it made it nearly impossible to do business with the Department of Licensing, especially for remedial tasks like re-issuing a driver’s license to a prodigal son. Believe me, I tried.

So I held onto my South Carolina license right before it expires next month on my birthday. Nothing like receiving a license that is good for 10 years, right? I was issued my Palmetto State ID in 2014 and used it for 119 of the 120 months that it was good for.

I probably would have used it for all 120 months but I figured that might be cutting it a little too close. If obtaining my license was anything like it was in 2020, I should expect delays and thus give myself plenty of time to secure it. So at the end of August, I made plans to visit the DOL and get it done.

Memories of complete horror shows flooded my brain from previous experiences at DOLs/DMVs in multiple states. Whether it was the state I live in now, Montana, or South Carolina, I couldn’t erase from my mind the long lines, countless people, and wasted hours that characterized my visits.

I thought it would be a repeat this most recent time but thankfully I was pleasantly surprised. The first indication that perhaps my whole day wouldn’t be shot was the opportunity to schedule an appointment. That’s right, a couple days before I visited the DOL I was able to snag an appointment time online. And guess what? When I checked in on Saturday morning my appointment was honored and I saw a DOL representative right at my scheduled time.

But even crazier was that it looked like an appointment wasn’t even necessary for showing up at 10 a.m. on the weekend. The center wasn’t crowded and a full team of DOL employees were at their stations helping customers.

My transaction took five minutes. Because I had scheduled an appointment by noting the service I needed, the DOL rep knew I was there to obtain a Washington state enhanced (real ID) driver’s license. I handed her all my paperwork, she processed it, and she asked me a couple questions about my height/weight and whether I wanted to be an organ donor. She then had me look down to take the vision test. To be honest, I was slightly nervous considering my eyes were about 10 years older from the last time I took it but my anxiety was unfounded. It was easier than ever!

After I aced the test she took my photo. I provided a signature that would go on my license (I asked to re-do it a couple times) and then I paid more money than I wanted to. She then gave me a printed white sheet to serve as my temporary license and off I went to enjoy the still young day.

Yesterday I received my permanent driver’s license ID card in the mail. Watch out folks, I am once again an officially licensed driver of the state of Washington. Much love to my state for making the process much more tolerable. Don’t Blink.

Golden Rings At St. Mary Catholic School

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Watch a “First Day of School” video of Sloan and Beau

It seems hard to believe, but our family started our FIFTH year at St. Mary Catholic School today. Sloan kicked things off in the Pre-K3 program in the fall of 2020 and now she is a big, bad second grader. More on that in just a moment.

Today was the first day of school for Sloan and Beau at St. Mary in Spokane Valley.

This “golden ring” year (get it?) for our family brings with it the most confidence and optimism for a school year yet. Principal and friend Stephen Hart introduced so many positive changes during his debut year in 2023-24 that the school couldn’t be in a better spot as the doors swung open this morning. Among the many improvements last year, the best part was just the overall embracing of a strong, devout Catholic culture. Thank you, Mr. Hart!

Stephen Hart, principal of St. Mary Catholic School, welcomes Sloan on the first day of the 2024-25 school year.

Okay, back to Sloan. She will spend her second grade year in Mrs. Abbie DeRuyter’s class. Sloan’s close-knit group of classmates will be joined by three new peers this year—all girls! I know our daughter looks forward to getting to know them while Sid and I are excited to welcome their parents and families.

Sloan sitting at her desk ready to start her first day of second grade.

Actually, we already know one of the “new” parents really well. The mom of one of the second grade newcomers is Mrs. Kristen Mead, the leader of the St. Mary Pre-K4 classroom and Beau’s teacher this year! With Beau’s Pre-K3 class in close proximity to Mrs. Mead’s class last year, we got to know her a little bit. We can’t wait for Beau to learn from her.

Beau sitting at his desk ready to start his first day of Pre-K4.

A big change for Beau from last year to this year is that his school day is now all-day. What better way to get him ready for kindergarten, right? Much to the satisfaction of mom and dad, Beau is still a napper so he will have to adjust his schedule a bit now that he is attending school all-day like a big boy.

My kids on our porch prior to their first day of the 2024-25 school year at St. Mary Catholic School.

One item that needed no adjustment on the schedules of my children was wake up time this morning. Sloan and Beau attended summer school at St. Paschal Educare the past couple months and were used to rising early. Because of that, there was no shock getting up at 6:30 a.m. for today’s first day.

It is going to be another great school year at St. Mary Catholic School!

Here we go! Another year at St. Mary Catholic School is underway and I know it will be a blessed one. Please pray for the teachers and students not just at my children’s school but everywhere. Don’t Blink.

Summer 2024

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Today is Labor Day and that means a lot of things to a lot of people. For our family, it always means “Return to School Eve.” Many also consider Labor Day the end of summer. So with my children heading back to St. Mary on Tuesday combined with the prevailing opinion that fall is just around the corner, I thought today marks the best opportunity to recap the summer.

It was a truly memorable summer—and not just for all the activities we crammed in. I will always remember Summer 2024 for significant life events and historical happenings. In the same way that I have recapped summers in the past, today I want to remember Reser Summer 2024 with 10 distinguishing themes/events.

Walla Walla Kickoff – Our summer truly kicked off with a mid-June weekend in Walla Walla. We ventured to “the place so nice they named it twice” for my Aunt Patty’s 60th birthday. The four of us joined my parents, my sister’s family, and my aunts/uncles/cousins for a birthday bash and so much more. The actual party on Saturday night at gorgeous Pioneer Park was the highlight but we also enjoyed a water park outing and a “welcome” pizza dinner on Friday night.

A look at the birthday party for my Aunt Patty at Pioneer Park in Walla Walla.

St. Paschal Educare – This summer, we sent both our kids to St. Paschal Catholic Church for its educare program. Although it was more or less daycare, Sloan and Beau considered it summer camp and had a blast. Sid and I felt thankful to send the kids to a safe, fun, and faith-filled spot while we worked during the summer months.

Sloan had so much fun making new friends and playing hard at St. Paschal Educare in Spokane Valley.

Hoopfest Weekend – What fun this weekend was! I volunteered to be a court monitor at Hoopfest 2024 but I wasn’t the only one from the family who was serving the community. Sidney, Sloan, and Beau volunteered, too, as they kept score during the games and performed all the extra administrative work needed to make sure a bracket runs smoothly. When action wasn’t taking place on our court, we had the opportunity to watch our friends and loved ones play in their own brackets.

Saturday afternoon, we posed for a photo after we finished the games on our court.

Fourth of July – It might have only been a day, but I feel obligated to give Independence Day 2024 its own spot. What an incredible day it was! We started with a Fourth of July parade in Coeur d’Alene, then headed to Riverfront Park to play at a carnival, drove out to my parents’ house for a cookout, and finally headed to Pavillion Park for the fireworks show. You can’t epitomize summer much better than that.

Our Fourth of July was a lot of fun. We  attended a parade, went to a carnival, had a cookout at my parents’ house, and then went to Pavillion Park for fireworks.

New Job – I will always remember this summer for taking the next step in my career. In June I interviewed for the marketing director position at Eastern Washington University and was offered the job the same month. I spent July wrapping up my tenure at WSU and on August 1 I officially started at EWU. True, a lot of this past summer was devoted to a major professional transition but I am grateful it didn’t take away from all the fun stuff I got to do with my family.

Check the ID, I am an official EWU employee.

Visit From Sid’s Parents – In July we enjoyed a special visit from “Gami and Dada.” Sid’s parents came for a week and had their stay extended (yay!) due to the CrowdStrike snafu. It was nice to have my in-laws in town to experience Spokane in its complete summer glory. We had game nights, boated on Lake Coeur d’Alene, visited a Post Falls festival, and much more.

What a blessing it was to host Sid’s parents during summer in Spokane.

The Olympics – I can’t estimate the total hours my family spent watching the Olympics except for the general assessment of A LOT. We had such a joyful time watching the different events, keeping a close eye on the medal count, and rooting for the USA. As I mentioned in my wrap up, the Olympics took place during a very memorable stretch for our family.

Sloan turned into quite the fan of Team USA and the Olympics in general.

Silverwood – During the short break I had between my time at WSU and EWU, the four of us went on our annual summer excursion to Silverwood Theme Park. We hit up the water park first and then transitioned to the rides. A magic show, bottomless soda, and some carnival games were also mixed in. It was Beau’s first trip to Silverwood but it won’t be his last.

We had a great family Silverwood trip at the end of July.

Family Vacation – This summer we traveled to Leavenworth for our family vacation. It was refreshing and relaxing to visit a new/unique place with so much charm. We stuck around our hotel for most of the time as we took advantage of the pools, games, movies, and delicious food. We also made the most of downtown Leavenworth and some lovely family dinners.

We had an amazing time in Leavenworth.

Water – The mercury reached some record-breaking heights this summer so we made sure water wasn’t ever far away. From swimming in the area lakes/rivers to visiting public water parks to splashing in the private pool of a dear family friend, Sloan and Beau improved their comfort with the water and managed to stay coooooool.

We spent a lot of time at pools over the past few months.

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Thanks to my wife and kids for making Reser Summer 2024 truly memorable and FUN. I don’t know if a future summer will ever quite compare to everything that went down over the past 2.5 months but you never know. Bring on the fall. Don’t Blink.

Veggie Thursday Rundown

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The last Thursday of August is here and what better way to mark it than with five random topics? Here we go…

Teacher Outreach – This week, both of my children received post cards from their teachers ahead of school starting next week. I appreciated the fact that they received their own item in the mailbox and that the correspondence conveyed positivity and enthusiasm. First day of school is Tuesday!

I thought this was a really nice gesture from St. Mary teacher Mrs. Mead. Sloan received a post card from her teacher too.

Throwback Siblings – Long story on how I found it, but I discovered a photo on Instagram the other day that I didn’t know existed. It was an image of my siblings and me at the window of an espresso stand. We were riding in my brother’s Honda Civic and I couldn’t help but smile since it was such a natural photo where we looked so nice and young!

The Reser siblings out for a cruise.

A Game For Suckers – I have seen a particular new engagement method at recent community events I have attended. Most people call it a sucker board and it allows kids to possibly “win” a couple times. The “contestant” pulls a lollipop of their choice from pegboard and gets to keep it. However, if the bottom of the stick is covered in ink (only the head of the sucker is visible from the pegboard), the child receives an additional prize. Often, the ink color corresponds to a specific prize tub near the board. For example, a red-marked sticker might win the contestant a stuffed animal while a blue-marked sticker would allow the contestant to pick a prize from a tub of bubble gum. More often than not, at least in the case of my kids, the bottom of the sucker doesn’t have any ink so they have to settle with just the free lollipop.

Sloan picks a sucker from the pegboard at Millwood Daze.

Jesus 2024 – The other day I was driving north on Argonne in Spokane and the below billboard seemed to glowingly stand out, even from far away. It was essentially a “campaign” sign for Jesus Christ and I don’t know if it could have been more effective. We all have our candidates we want to win this November, but I think it is important that we vote for Jesus as our leader every single day in our hearts.

This “Jesus 2024” billboard is on Argonne in Spokane.

Veggies – I am sure you toss and turn in the night wondering what my favorite vegetable is, right? Well, on this date in 2018 I provided a list. For this particular blog post I counted down my top 5 favorite veggies and they included (in descending order) celery, green beans, corn, and carrots. My #1 vegetable? Well, you will have to read the blog post to find it. I did describe it as a food that is “versatile, readily available, and yummy.”

Carrots and corn — two of the greatest!

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Have a fantastic Labor Day weekend, friends. What a summer it has been. Don’t Blink.

Face Painting Pains

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Our family attends a lot of community events. I love to take the kids out on a Saturday morning to whatever festival or celebration is taking place in beautiful Spokane. If you attend enough of these events, you won’t be surprised to encounter some of the given attractions such as kettle corn, prize spinners, photo booths, and chalk art.

Uh oh, I missed one. Actually, no, I didn’t, I just wanted to save it for last for dramatic effect. After all, it is what this blog post is about.

I am talking about face painting!

A photo of Sloan after she got her face painted at the Spokane County Interstate Fair in 2021.

My kids are crazy about face painting. They will apply the full court press on me to get their faces painted and if it is free, I will usually relent. But daddy, why would you put up any hesitation at all? Well, let me give you a couple reasons…

– The wait can be brutal. A long line plus the love/care that a lot of these artists put forth while doing their craft can be a big time suck.

– It is hard enough for me to keep my hands at my side, let alone my children. They are always touching their faces and if they have face paint applied it seems like the tendency to touch their cheeks increases tenfold. Not a big fan of smeared face paint and stained fingers.

– It is Murphy’s Law at its finest. If Beau doesn’t get his face painted, he most definitely won’t fall asleep in the car on the ride home. IF he does get his face painted, he will fall asleep the second we pull into the driveway. When the latter occurs it creates a dilemma of whether we place him in his bed peacefully so the paint will rub off on his pillow OR attempt to wipe it off while he is sleeping and risk waking him up (which always happens).

– Speaking of wiping off face paint art, sometimes it can be really hard, even if my kid isn’t sleeping while I try to do it.

I mentioned that Sloan and Beau got their faces painted the past two weekends. On Aug. 17, we attended the Unity in the Community event at Riverfront Park. There was a booth sponsored by the Filipino American Northwest Association and they had a professional face painter who was painting the faces of kids for no charge.

Beau getting his face painted at the Unity in the Community event.

Then this past Saturday we encountered another free face painting booth. We attended Millwood Daze and found ourselves at the West Valley High School Senior All-Nighter table. Although the artists weren’t professionals (they were just high school seniors trying to score some donations), they did a wonderful job.

After getting his face painted the prior weekend, he once again got his face painted this past Saturday at the Millwood Daze event.

Although letting my children get their faces painted isn’t my favorite thing in the world, I do appreciate the joy it brings them and the attention they receive from the artists. Now if only Beau wouldn’t fall asleep with a fully painted face. Don’t Blink.

My Site’s New Look

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It is something that happens about as frequently as a Presidential election or a leap year. We are talking the passage of not just months—but years—before the old is finally replaced with the new. But unlike the election or Feb. 29 when a pre-defined set of time passes before the event occurs, the change I am addressing is unpredictable.

I am alluding to my blog header.

Prior to this weekend, I have only used four blog headers over the course of 13 years. If you count the 11.5 years since I migrated from Blogger to WordPress, I have utilized just three. As I mentioned above, I don’t publish a new header with a set amount of time in mind that it will grace Don’t Blink. Rather, a header usually runs its course once a significant life event transpires—usually a job change.

You see, in the past I featured headers that reflected the employer I was working for. Obviously, once I moved on from one university it was necessary to update the most prominent real estate on my blog. With my newest header, which I will discuss in just a moment, I strayed from tradition.

But before we get there, let’s go down memory lane. I don’t have my first ever header file from my blogger site (it featured me wearing a sombrero and flexing) but that is for the better. Instead, the first one you get to see is the header that graced Don’t Blink when my WordPress site was launched in 2012. It features me against the backdrop of Washington-Grizzly Stadium where I spent many Saturdays in the press box when I worked for the University of Montana. When my brother saw this retro header a couple days ago, he thought it looked awful. Glen scoffed, “It looks like you created it.” Well, that’s because I did 😂.

This header made its debut in 2012 when I launched this current WordPress site.

When I started working at Coastal Carolina University, I needed a new header that reflected my new gig and the different part of the country I was living in. CCU designer Jonathan Ady not only created the header but he shot the photography too. That’s me with a dreamy beach scene on the left and CCU’s Singleton Hall on the right.

Jonathan Ady created the blog header I used during my CCU era.

Upon my announcement that I had accepted a job with WSU, my friend and CCU videographer Geoff Insch made my next header. He cropped me from the backyard photo shoot my Coug-clad family participated in shortly after I accepted the WSU offer. He then combined my image with a crimson background.

In 2020, this header designed by Geoff Insch replaced my CCU-themed one.

Although I didn’t change out my WSU header until three weeks into my employment with Eastern Washington University, you know what they say about better late than never. My childhood friend Kip Johnson graciously volunteered to create what you see currently at the top of my site. For the first time in over a decade, my header doesn’t reflect the school I am working for. But this isn’t me shortchanging EWU. Rather, it is just me being more mature. My blog is not associated with my employer and I owe it to EWU not to muddy those waters by creating any type of confusion. Thanks, Kip, for doing a fantastic job.

My newest header was designed by Kip Johnson.

How many of these headers do you remember? If you are a longtime reader and remember all four, THANK YOU for your loyal readership. By the way, I think Vegas is taking bets on what year I will transition to my sixth header. You better get in the action now! Don’t Blink.

Help Wanted Thursday Rundown

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Greetings, friends. The summer rolls on here in the northwest as we continue to enjoy warm days and refreshingly cool nights. However, a hint of fall can now be felt in the early mornings. Let’s get to tonight’s five topics…

It Is Still Summer Vacation in Spokane – August can be a funny month. The phenomenon begins right when July ends and at the start of each following week more and more photos pop up on social media. I am talking about the back-to-school blitz that sends many K-8 students back to the classrooms. However, in this part of the country, summer is still in full swing. It might be because I grew up in Washington and lived the same academic calendar my kids do now, but it seems so wrong to go back to school in AUGUST. Sure, the kids who are already back in school now will begin summer vacation earlier, but I think most reasonable children would trade time off in May for more opportunities to hit the pool, lake, and ballpark in August. Sloan and Beau start school on Sept. 3.

Summer continues throughout the month for Sloan and Beau.

Stamp Inflation – Back in 2021, I selected a book of stamps as “Brent’s Gift of the Year.” I love sending (and receiving) snail mail and have always appreciated the fact that a single stamp can send a letter anywhere in this country. However, I am a little irritated at the frequent price hikes. The cost for a book of stamps has gone up TWICE in 2024. A book will now cost you $14.60, a 26% increase from its price ($11.60) in 2021 when I tabbed it as my gift of the year. Inflation sure sucks.

Me holding the book of stamps I paid $14.60 for on Wednesday.

Come On Man – My apologies, my rage continues. I posted this on my X account on Saturday but there is enough insanity to go around to post here, too. This bag of On The Border tortilla chips I found at WinCo doesn’t even attempt to look like its filled halfway. In my opinion, the price should be slashed at least 60% because that is about how many chips are missing.

Try harder.

Help Wanted – There is nothing I like to do more than ask for free design work (sarcasm), but I did want to offer something that others have considered an opportunity in the past. I need to update my blog header image because the WSU-themed graphic is just a little outdated now. If graphic design is your thing and you want to spend a minimal amount of time creating a new header for Don’t Blink let me know. Your work will be seen by thousands and you will be celebrated and promoted by me.

Some of my blog header photos over the years.

8-22 – In case you didn’t know, today is August 22. For me, this date has absolutely no meaning except for the fact that I have written a few blog posts on it over the years. For example, in 2016 I wrote about “Stranger Things” and what really drew me to that first season. The following year I described my experience observing the Great American Eclipse in totality. On Aug. 22, 2018, I gave credit to Sidney as she returned to the classroom for another school year as a second-grade teacher. In 2019 I wrote about my very late discovery of “King of Queens.” And, last but not least, in 2022 I revealed our secret about how Sid and I got around Hawaii when it seemed like every rental car and Uber wasn’t available.

Before Sidney went off to her classroom on Aug. 22, 2018, I took this photo of her. She started her fifth year as a teacher that day.

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Once again I extend my gratitude for your readership of Don’t Blink. Have a terrific weekend and I look forward to catching up next week. Don’t Blink.

Don’t Blink: My Personal Motto Explained

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It is a question I get all the time: Why Don’t Blink?

In fact, now that I have started a new job and met a whole different group of people, I am receiving the inquiry even more. It’s a completely valid question—considering it is the name of my blog and plastered all over my social media—so tonight I will briefly explain…

I have my personal motto on pretty much everything.

Don’t Blink has epitomized my personal brand for more than 15 years. It speaks to my conviction that our earthly lives are short and we best make the most of the limited time we have. I verbally say “Don’t Blink” to others on a daily basis to remind them of the fleeting existences we have been gifted on this planet, especially if they comment on the passage of time, celebrate a birthday, or mention how fast their children are growing up.

Don’t Blink is such a part of my personal brand that I ordered pens with the phrase and my blog URL written on it.

I obviously didn’t coin the term Don’t Blink—people have been saying it forever—but something did inspire me to adopt it. In 2007, Kenny Chesney released a song called (you guessed it) “Don’t Blink.” The beautiful track speaks to the advice given by a 102-year-old man about his secret to living a fulfilling life. The centenarian utters the two-word phrase and discusses the importance of prioritizing what matters in life. The lyrics spoke to me and the powerful music video only made me latch on harder to what would become my personal motto.

My wife had a ring made that says “Don’t Blink” on it  in my handwriting.

My verbal utterances of the phrase soon started showing up on my social media as well. In March 2009 I used “Don’t Blink” for the first time on X (formerly Twitter). It would be the first of thousands…

This was the first time (of many thousands) I ever used “Don’t Blink” on social media.

Don’t Blink fit so well that I eventually used it as my nightly Twitter “sign off” (cheesy, I know). Before going to bed, I would tweet “Don’t Blink.” Oh wait, did I write that in past tense? Because I definitely still post “Don’t Blink” every single night…even as a 37-year-old married father.

My daughter wore custom made “Don’t Blink” onesies.

When I launched my blog in 2011, there was really only one thing I could call it. Do you blame me? Additionally, in the same way that I sign off with the phrase at night on social media, I also use it to sign off at the conclusion of each blog post. Yep, at the end of all 2,570+ blog entries I have ever written, they all conclude with Don’t Blink.

My blog, which launched in 2011, is naturally titled “Don’t Blink.”

I have expressed Don’t Blink in either verbal or written form more than 10,000 times in the past 15 years. This blog post has already added about 20 additional times to that total. Do I ever get tired of it? Not really. It is still a phrase that I believe in and am not embarrassed to use. Also, it is so wrapped up in my identity (do you have any idea how many people will greet me simply by hollering “DON’T BLINK!”?) that it wouldn’t be smart to re-brand myself at this point. Take it from a marketer: If a brand ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Don’t Blink.

AM/FM Radio Memories

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In the past, I have written at length about satellite radio. However, since today is National Radio Day, I want to pay homage to the way radio was meant to be listened to—on the AM/FM dial. I hope you entertain me as I reflect on 10 memories I have from listening to terrestrial radio as a kid.

Listening to the radio growing up provided me with a lot of memories.

– I cherished my boombox I got for Christmas. Although I used it to record myself on cassette tapes as I conducted fake talk shows with my siblings and friends, its main purpose was to play the radio. I can see myself right now lying on my belly as I scrolled through the stations.

– Couldn’t feel any cooler during the summer driving with my mom as she took me to summer camps and sports games with the radio blasting top 40 hits.

– Speaking of my mom, she would play a promotional radio game offered by Oldies 101.1 FM. Once per day, at a random time, listeners would be prompted to call the station. The ninth caller would be brought on air and asked to predict the next song that would be played (needle in a hay stack, right?). If the caller correctly predicted the tune, they would receive $1,000. My mom and dad each reached the air once but unfortunately they couldn’t predict the future. But dang, if you could only imagine the excitement and nerves when they made it through the line and the DJ told them they were the ninth caller…

– People my age and older remember the frustration of going on a road trip and losing the radio frequency of your favorite stations. When we would go to Walla Walla to visit my grandparents, I knew exactly at what point in the drive that we would have to transition to AM stations because our FM stations were no longer coming in.

– On the other side of the coin, there was always the novelty of approaching a different city and your vehicle picking up the local stations. Not only did it signify that you were almost to your destination, but it immediately conveyed the vibe and culture of your new surroundings.

– I grew up listening to Seattle Mariners radio broadcasts. Both in the car and via my dad’s alarm clock radio on long summer nights, I had the pleasure of listening to Dave Niehaus call hundreds of games. I learned so much about storytelling.

– There was a certain station growing up called Radio Oz. This particular format would play music geared toward pre-teens/young teenagers. Radio Oz would also take requests. I would join my siblings and friends as we would flood the station’s line via our landline phone with song requests. The songs we asked for were so embarrassing I am not even going to mention them here.

– My first exposure to sports talk radio came from listening to Spokane legend Dennis Patchin. Believe it or not, my dad even let me call the program one evening when I was probably 10…and I actually got on the air!

– Another really memorable radio memory from my childhood came during the Christmas season. Whenever we drove by houses with elaborate light displays, the ante was always upped when the presentation was choregraphed to the music emitting from a radio station. Tuning the radio inside our vehicle to sync with what was transpiring outside of our vehicle was always special.

– Not unlike the TV, a disagreement would occur every now and then about what station to listen to among the Reser kids. If the argument went on for too long, my dad had a simple solution: classic rock, baby.

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Do you have any terrestrial radio memories? OR, better yet, do you still consume old school AM/FM content? Regardless of your habits, perhaps it would be fun to listen to an FM country station or listen to the local news on a solid AM signal at least once this week. Don’t Blink.

Cake Mix S’mores Cookies

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One of my mom’s signature Thanksgiving dishes is her famous sweet potato balls. She boils the potatoes and mixes them with brown sugar and butter. She then does something truly innovative: My mom adds a marshmallow. She forms the potatoes around the fluffy desserts and then runs the balls through a graham cracker mixture. They are delicious!

Well, you can put a marshmallow in other delicacies too. If you are my friend, you have likely enjoyed some of my cake mix cookies. In a blog post I wrote in 2023, I expressed how I am constantly pushing myself to evolve my favorite baked item. Thanks to inspiration from an Instagram Reel, my mom’s sweet potato balls, and a suggestion from my wife, we created something new in the Reser kitchen on Saturday night.

These are the ingredients we used to make our cake mix s’mores cookies.

About a week ago, I watched a Reel from the Pillsbury Instagram account that showed how to make marshmallow-stuffed cookies using its vanilla cake mix. Based on how delicious the cookies looked combined with past experience eating other yummy marshmallow-based recipes (i.e. sweet potato balls), I knew I wanted to give these a try. When I pitched the recipe to Sid, she gave me one piece of advice: add chocolate chips to the batter and make it a true s’mores cookie. GENIUS!

Sloan mixing our cake mix s’mores cookie dough.

Okay, back to Saturday night. Thanks to help from my sous-chef, Sloan, we baked our cake mix s’mores cookies. We mixed the cake mix, two eggs, and a ½ cup of vegetable oil in a bowl. After stirring it to create dough, we added in chocolate chips. We then placed balls of the dough on a baking sheet. From there, we used a spoon to make indents in the middle of the unbaked cookies. We placed a marshmallow in each indent and then covered it up with additional dough. We then popped the baking sheet in the oven for 10 minutes at 350 degrees.

A photo during the marshmallow-stuffing stage.

These cookies turned out really nice! After pulling them out of the oven we let them sit for about 15 minutes. When the time came to test them, we dug in with forks as they were still a little gooey. But gooey or not, they were GOOD…and also really rich. After we each had one, we were satisfied.

A look at what the cookies looked like right out of the oven.

Our cake mix s’mores cookies were even better Sunday morning. After church we ate another one, this time not using any utensils. The cookies had cooled completely overnight and the marshmallow was completely entrenched in the cookie. It was a lot of fun to take a cookie from each end and pull it gently as it would stretch several inches thanks to the marshmallow. So good!

Sloan handling a cake mix s’mores cookie the morning after baking them.

If you want to attempt this recipe, let me reiterate that these cookies are rich and on the bigger size. Any child would be satisfied (and perhaps pretty full) after eating one. August is a big month for s’mores and what better way to celebrate than to make our cake mix s’mores cookies? Don’t Blink.