Papa Murphy’s jack-o-lantern pizza

I passed on a Thursday Rundown last week because I published a 40th birthday blog post. But back to our regularly scheduled programming because I have five fresh topics for you tonight. Let’s jump right in…

Joint Birthday Party – On Sunday, I had one last hurrah celebrating my 40th birthday as I did it in conjunction with my brother turning 37. My bro celebrated his birthday on September 23 and he kindly waited until after I entered “over the hill” status for both of us to be honored at my parents’ house. As you can see, the elder Reser brother received the bigger cake. Love you, Glen!

My 40th birthday cake was delicious…and I think Glen liked his mini bundt cake too 😂

Panda Express Dinner – Normally my dad would grill steaks, ribs, or chicken for an event such as a joint birthday celebration. However, Glen and I made a request for our party: rice bowls! My parents made a bunch of bacon fried rice and then hauled in big containers of Panda Express orange chicken and Beijing beef. It was quite the feast and I must say the presentation was aesthetically/colorfully pleasing.

Besides the Panda Express rice bowls we also had fruit and salad. So good!

Boba Mystery – I don’t get the boba craze. Don’t understand it one bit. My kids love boba tea with boba pearls. Me? I dislike the taste of tea and the texture of boba pearls makes me squirm. But this past Sunday as a reward for running errands with me, I purchased Sloan and Beau boba drinks at the Spokane Valley Mall food court. They pleaded with me to try their drinks and I just about threw up when, despite my best efforts, I sucked up one of the boba pearls from Beau’s liquid creation. These drinks are not for me.

I am NOT a fan of boba but my kids are. This is them with their drinks at the Spokane Valley Mall this past Sunday.

Jack-O-Lantern Pizza – I think the last time we bought one was three years ago so we were due for one this Halloween season. Last week we purchased the $10 jack-o-lantern pizza from Papa Murphy’s. I don’t think this latest pie looked as nice as the one from 2023 but it still tasted great. You will notice that the photo below doesn’t include the signature olives for eyes—like their daddy, the kids won’t eat them—so Sidney removed them.

This was our 2026 Papa Murphy’s Jack-O-Lantern pizza that we purchased last week.

Thanks, Retro – Once again, I was completely spoiled by Retro Donuts owner Jon Fine on my birthday. He delivered two boxes of donuts to my parents who eventually drove them over to my house (after taking a couple treats for themselves…hey, it’s only fair) for my family to enjoy. And believe me, “enjoy” is putting it loosely because the donuts from Retro are out-of-this-world. But what truly needs to be mentioned is that Retro Donuts celebrated its 10th anniversary yesterday (Oct. 14, 2026). The shop will be celebrating the milestone over the next 12 months as they should.

Thanks to Jon Fine, Retro Donuts owner, for once again spoiling me on my birthday with his incredible product.

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Hope the first half of October treated you well. Keep fighting the good fight and I will catch up with everyone next week. Don’t Blink.

It is the final Thursday Rundown of October which means Halloween is right around the corner. Hope the costume is picked out, the pumpkins are carved, and the trick-or-treat candy is purchased! Let’s get to tonight’s five topics…

Jack-O-Lantern Pizza – I am always in the mood for a good holiday-themed pizza which is why I am a sucker for the Papa Murphy’s pumpkin and heart-shaped pies that come out during October and February, respectively. We picked up our jack-o-lantern pizza this past Sunday and instead of opting for the $10 large-sized pizza we went with the $13 family-sized pizza. As per usual it was delicious but I wish they would use something besides olives for the eyes…perhaps sausage or pineapple?

This was the Papa Murphy’s family-sized pizza we got on Sunday night.

Best Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe – Back in my Coastal Carolina University days, I worked with a guy who was so revered for his food management and food preparation skills that he was called The Foodman. Jeff Stone, CCU’s Director of Food Services at the time, knew (and still does) everything about food. From time to time I will ask him for tips when it comes to preparing dishes. The other day I asked him for his best chocolate chip cookie recipe. You know what he told me? He said to pick up a bag of Nestle chocolate chips and follow the directions on the back of the package. I was expecting something elaborate but I thought it was a credit to Jeff that sometimes the most simple and tried-and-true recipe can be the best.

That’s me (in the Santa costume) hanging out with Jeff Stone (aka THE FOODMAN) in Dec. 2014.

The Evolution of Arthur – On Tuesday night, we read “Arthur’s Halloween.” After we finished the book, Sidney and I started talking about the changes in Arthur’s appearance over the years. We both remembered reading those “early” books where he just didn’t look very modern or kid friendly. I looked up the transformation of Arthur on Google and I found that his evolution was even more complex than originally thought.

Arthur sure has changed a lot over the years.

Titanic Book – I am trying to introduce more non-fiction books into our nightly reading as Sloan seems to take a great interest in it. Last week we read a book on the Titanic. I did question whether it was appropriate for her but I remembered how much the story of the Titanic intrigued me as a kid so I moved forward with reading it to Sloan. She also found it very interesting and talked a lot about it the next day. The book broke down a time period of four days that included initial boarding, life on the ship, its sinking, and the arrival of survivors in New York. “Four Days on the Titanic” is a good option for introducing this historical event to children.

This book on the Titanic was very interesting.

Time With The Blessed Mother – This past Sunday, we had another one of our Spokane Valley Young Adult Catholic meetings. While the adults met, I kept an eye on the kids. We were roaming around the St. Paschal campus when Sloan spotted this small statue of our Blessed Mother. Without skipping a beat she sat down on the bench and started to pray. Aria, the adorable daughter of our friends Ryan and Allyson, joined her. Sloan’s/Aria’s acts of reverence, the beautiful statue, and the gorgeous fall colors made this photo a special one. Let us all pray for peace to our Blessed Mother during these very contentious times we are living in.