Super Mario Galaxy movie

We received a shower or two this month but as Justin Timberlake is fond of saying, It’s gonna be May! On cue, the start of the new month tomorrow is going to bring a stretch of days in the high 70s and even low 80s. But before that, let’s enjoy the fifth Thursday Rundown of April with these five topics…

Homemade Pizza Again – Back in 2022, I wrote about the joy and magic that comes with making homemade pizza. We were obviously feeling a little magical at the end of the weekend because that is what we had for dinner. I have become quite impressed with Sloan’s cooking skills and she didn’t disappoint when it came to pizza either. The way she layered the sauce, cheese, and pepperoni showed skill and plenty of thought—especially how she aligned the final layer of pepperoni into a face. The pizza was delicious and I ate leftovers for lunch during two different days at work.

Sloan stands near her baked homemade pizza.

Cotton Candy at Birthday Party – We had a couple birthday parties to attend over the weekend. Although the pool party at the YMCA was cool, I think Beau really enjoyed the at-home outdoor birthday party that had a bouncy castle. But what made the bouncy castle party really stand out was the cotton vendor that set up shop and made free on-demand treats for all the attendees (and parents). Given the choice between birthday cake, root beer, rainbow sherbet, and others, Beau went with something else—banana! He ate it all in under three minutes (no joke).

Beau, complete with a fruit punch red Gatorade mustache, holds his banana cotton candy.

M Movies – Over the past several days I watched an adult blockbuster at home and a kids film in the theater. On Friday night I used HBO Maxx to watch “Marty Supreme” and I loved it. Even though it was nearly three hours my attention was captivated the whole time by the brilliant acting and creative cinematography. As someone who grew up playing ping pong, the movie was a lot of fun for me. On Sunday afternoon, I took Sloan and Beau to the theater for “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie.” Although the kids loved it, I was pretty bored. However, the tub of popcorn we got to share may have been the best movie theater popcorn I had in a long time…so there’s that.

“Marty Supreme” was pretty epic.

A Third of the Way There – I like to point out significant break points in the calendar and today marks the completion of the first 1/3rd of 2026. Four months down and eight months to go. With 33% of the year in the books, it is an opportune time to look back on goals and determine whether you are heading in the right direction. Don’t like what you see? No worries, you have plenty of time to turn 2026 around.

Check that calendar! We are 1/3 of the way through 2026.

Touching Note – It was on this date 12 years ago that my dad flew back west after accompanying me on a cross country trip to my new home in South Carolina. Several hours after he left I opened my silverware drawer to find this note and a $5 bill.