When a teacher retires, it's only appropriate to throw an A+ shindig! Complete with chalkboards and apples, my mom and I threw her good friend Sharon a party to send her into retirement in style! Sharon was an art teacher for many, many years and is super creative so we had to do something simple but special! I think we succeeded! Thank goodness for the popularity of chalkboards, because I used them for everything including the invitation from this cute Etsy shop. I especially loved these mini chalkboards I found at World Market. They just put a World Market right by me and I think it means trouble. I also found a variety of teacher-y ribbons from Michaels like these ABC ribbons I used to tie the napkins... ..and these apple ribbons I used to tie around the champagne flutes! I was obsessed with these little ribbons! Since Sharon was an art teacher, I found paintbrushes and paint from the Dollar Store. Don't discount the Dollar Store for your miscellaneous party needs! It's a real treasure trove and I still can't get over that everything's a dollar. In keeping with the artsy theme, I had my go-to caker Jen from 13 Tiers create a fun cake with an art palette and paintbrush. Complete with a "Retirement is Sweet" sign. Finally we gave out apple and schoolbus specialty cookies created by SugarBakers who always do an amazing job. It was such a fun party and also made me realize how long I have until I retire haha! In foodie news, I made this Cooking Light cover recipe for Sweet Potato Soup last night and it was so yummy and easy to do! I highly recommend picking up the issue and making this comforting fall soup. And finally, in miscellaneous news, my hilarious father made an appearance on the Today Show this morning commenting on a story in his current city of New York. Oh big Joe. Happy Tuesday!