Something we love to do as a family is host family pizza nights. They’ve become a staple of our home life! Whether it’s an ordinary weeknight, a weekend, or we’re hosting friends or family – we always find that homemade pizza is the gift that keeps on giving. Everyone gets excited about homemade pizza! Of course, an Indian summer “Quarantine Pizza Night” was no exception! It definitely made this night at home a special one. Last year, we got a specialty pizza oven, which has really taken our pizza nights to the next level.

We make our own dough a few days in advance. And I find no problem with letting everyone get their hands dirty! Whether it’s rolling out their pie or picking out their ingredients, pizza is an activity we can all do and have a blast with.

My go-to is a white pie with lemon, and arugula when it comes out of the oven (a take off one of the pies at one of our favorite local spots in Los Gatos, Oak & Rye). Dillon loves a classic pie with sausage, peppers and onions. He’s always spicing it up with some Mike’s Hot Honey. Nolan gets down with pizza sauce and Buffalo mozzarella (because he can be sensitive to dairy), with black olives and prosciutto!

We were so very lucky to get my brother in-law and my five nephews and niece to drive all the way out here from New York. My brother in-law came to build us the most beautiful bed you’ve ever seen, and getting to see the kids was the cherry on top!

Nolan had so much fun, he hasn’t stopped talking about it since they left. Understandably so – it was the highlight of summer quarantine! Not to mention, this was the ONLY family we’ve been able to see since February, which is so hard and unusual for us. Even though we live far from everyone, we make it a point and are lucky enough to have fairly regular visits with the fam bam!

This was a quintessential summer evening for us, and felt like the good old days when we could laugh, hug and enjoy good food with the ones we love.

Were you able to enjoy any family visits, or nostalgic summer nights this year?