Disclosure :: This post was sponsored by our friends at RaceTrac, but these pizza-loving opinions are purely my own!
Pizza + A Movie :: Making Memories with my Daughter
The moment I found out I was pregnant, I started praying for a girl.
I wanted a little girl. I NEEDED a little girl. My mom and I are so close, 
and I wanted so badly to have a daughter to share that same special relationship with. I also started craving the now-extinct orange cream slushie from RaceTrac and stopped for one nearly every day, so my girl’s affinity to all things RaceTrac began in the womb. Anyway, back to my mom.
One of my favorite childhood memories is summertime with my mom.
She was a teacher, so for three long months in the summer, I had her all to myself. (Remember when summer was actually three months long?!) At least once a week, we’d hit up Blockbuster and get a new release (if there were any left on the shelves!) and a few oldies-but-goodies. We’d take them home, pop some popcorn, and hang out on the couch, just enjoying those slow, sweet summer days.
Well, now that I’m an adult with far too many things going on, those slow, sweet days are hard to come by. But I make it a point to savor the ones we get by creating traditions, much like my mom always did for me. One of those traditions is called The Couch Picnic. Let me break it down for you:
The perfect couch picnic involves six very crucial elements.
On a Friday or Saturday night, we’ll gather the supplies and preheat the oven. Usually a Costco frozen pizza does the trick, but sometimes we’re just too hangry to wait for that oven. On those nights, we’ve started hitting up our nearby RaceTrac for some pizza! Best. Decision. Ever.
Rascal Mae lights up when I suggest we go to RaceTrac.
It may have something to do with Swirl World – the fact that Little Miss Independent can pick a cup, a cake cone, or a waffle cone, choose any flavor of ice cream or fro-yo (or sorbets or Italian ice, for that matter) and THEN pick her own toppings from the 40+ options? She is in her own personal strong-willed heaven. She’s also psyched that she gets to eat dessert first, something I typically don’t allow- but sometimes, for the sake of making memories, I let it slide.
Now on to MY favorite part: the pizza.
We first tried the Meat Lover’s pizza, which is right up my alley. Rascal prefers plain cheese, so I win because I just pick off all her toppings and enjoy them myself. BOOM :: DOUBLE Meat Lover’s. The sausage, bacon, and pepperoni all tasted fresh, like they had just been cooked. In fact, they HAD just been cooked- the pizzas are assembled in-store using fresh dough, mozzarella cheese, sauce, and toppings. We 
brought a slice of the limited-time-only Buffalo Chicken pizza home for Daddo, which he really enjoyed, too. Buffalo is not my personal style, but he loved the Franks Red Hot + breaded chicken + ranch combo. Another great thing is that the slices are HUGE and they’re very reasonably priced. We walked right up to the hot case and grabbed two for Daddo, one for me, and one for Rascal – and she only ate half, so I was able to save the rest for lunch. Inexpensive, easy dinner – done! Do I smell another mom win, or is that just the delicious scent of freshly baked pizza?! You decide.
Making the Memories
With no oven preheating necessary, we get home and park ourselves right on that couch, snuggle under the blanket, choose our movie, and chow down on those slices right out of the box. If we’re feeling fancy, we might use plates. The 
most important part is that I put my phone away and really just enjoy our time together. We snuggle under the blanket, giggle at the silly Pixar jokes, and enjoy a little taste of that slow, sweet summer feeling.
Now if only RaceTrac would bring back my orange cream slushie, we’d be set.
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RaceTrac partnered with influencers such as me for its Pizza campaign. As part of this Program, I received compensation for my time. RaceTrac believes that consumers and influencers are free to form their own opinions and share them in their own words. RaceTrac policies align with WOMMA Ethics Code, Federal Trade Commission (FTC) guidelines and social media engagement recommendations.
