When I was a kid and I
wanted to escape, I rode my bike. My bike was as retro as they come and I felt
like it could transport me anywhere. The body was black satin, the seat a
"bread loaf" banana seat, and around the tires, molded blue plastic
fenders that made it look like a motorcycle. On the front was a racing placard
that read Thunder Road 42, and when I was on it, I felt like I could go anywhere
or be anything I wanted to be. Many afternoons, I would ride my bike to the
White Hen, our local convenience store where the owner Mr. Polich would ask me
how my family was and would tell me not to loiter outside the storefront. Once,
he hired me to stuff Sunday papers in the back room and gave me odd jobs when
he couldn't come out from behind the counter. He always paid me in silver
dollars, which I felt looked more like treasure than any bill he could give me.
Sometimes, I'd use his
payment to buy a pack of Pixie sticks or those wax Cola bottles and sit in the
back corner near the magazine rack and read comic books until the fresh ink
would turn my fingers black and he would yell "Hey Bernholdt, this isn't a
library!" Sometimes I wouldn't hear him because I'd be so lost in the
world of Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird's creation, The Teenage Mutant
Ninja Turtles. It almost sounded too ridiculous to be true and that's what
I loved about it. On rare occasions, when I had enough money, I'd buy that
comic book and race home to read it over and over again.
Back when "Totally radical" and "Cowabunga" were common phrases,
you'd be hard pressed to find someone who didn't know who Raphael, Donatello,
Leonardo, and Michelangelo were. While at Target the other day, a woman at the
checkout peered over at my items: Vintage TMNT shirts for the kids and me.
"Oh are the Turtles back?" she asked me. "In my house, they
never left" I responded.
When I started mowing
neighbor's lawns for pocket money back in the day, I also started buying up all
the TMNT toys. Once older, I put them away for that day when my own children
and I could go back to those days together. It's the reason we squirrel our
childhood things up into the attic for that "someday" in the future.
Part of bringing back the things from our childhood also includes—not
surprisingly—food.
You can't watch a Teenage
Mutant Ninja Turtles show without getting a craving for pizza. The
two things are synonymous. To this day, I can't scarf down any pizza without
thinking of the pizzeria fueled ninjas yelling “Turtle Power!” Every day after
school, my brother and I would come home ravenous, but we weren’t allowed to
use the oven. This is where Ellio’s Pizza came in; from frozen to toaster oven,
it was an easy snack to prepare without violating mom’s “no oven” rule.
So, it’s only natural that
nowadays when my kids and I watch episode after episode of the turtles eating
pizza, we all start hankering for pizza ourselves. For me, this triggers memories
of watching cartoons and eating pizza after school all those days. That's why
creating a #Pizzastalgia night together with Ellio's Pizza is the perfect
fit for our family – it’s the common denominator that brings us all together.
What’s more, Ellio’s frozen pizza is easy to make, and all my kids love it.
Those are qualities that are hard to come by in our household.
An Ellio's #Pizzastalgia
TMNT night usually begins by playing with the old toys I bought
as a youngster with money I made when I mowed lawns for the people in our
neighborhood. Playing with the kids gives me ample time to warm up my toaster
oven and cook the Ellio's Pizza. In just fifteen minutes, we’re all ready to
chow down on some 'za and as a parent, I feel good that what I’m serving them
is made with 100% real cheese with no artificial flavors. Then, I just pop in
the retro cartoon series and hang with my dudes and dudettes. When it's time
for bed and story time, it means taking out old issues of TMNT and
reading a few of Eastman and Laird's storytelling before bed. My little ninjas are
usually ready to crash in no time.
Do you have an idea for a #Pizzastalgia night with your kids? What would you bring back
to share with them? What retro things from your childhood would you introduce
to them? Share your photos of a #Pizzastalgia night with Ellio's Pizza and
your family via social media. You can find
Ellio’s on Facebook , Instagram, Twitter and Tumblr and for more
information on their awesome pizza (including where you can find Ellio’s near
you) check out the Ellio's website.
Don't forget to join us
TONIGHT—Thursday, May 19th—at 8pm ET for the #Pizzastalgia Twitter
party with Life of Dad and Ellio's Pizza. Cowabunga!
If your kids are old
enough to work a toaster oven, Ellio's is a good option for an after school
snack. While we may have grown up, Ellio's hasn't changed in their dedication
to delicious ingredients with a variety of options for all palates.
Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post on behalf of Life of Dad and
Dr. Oetker USA LLC. I have received compensation for this post; however, all
opinions stated are my own.
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