Mom's Retirement Party

My mom retired this past Friday, so on Saturday my Aunt Cindy had a little party for her down in Carlsbad, California. It was a great time to spend with Cousins, Aunts, and Uncles, as well as my Mom, and best friend Ashley. It was very fun, and I am glad we could take a day to honor my mom and all that she achieved in her years of working. In honor of the occasion, my Aunt decided we would eat a meal themed around the food my Grandma Vivian (RIP, I love you) used to make all the time.

There were tons of hors d'oeuvres (pictured above) including almonds, sourdough bread rolls and butter, cranberry sauce and cheese, m&ms, Godiva chocolates, and my personal favorite pepper jack cheese and crackers.

There was a lot of food at this bash:

Salad with green bell pepper, cheese, tomatoes, and crutons, with choice of Ranch or Italian dressing. This was a nice starting point.

Deviled eggs with smoked paprika from Spain. My Aunt had some paprika from Barcelona, which was a really neat way to perk up traditional deviled eggs! Saying the paprika you sprinkled is from Barcelona is, in my opinion, much cooler than from here. 

"I love the eggs"

"Ohhhh yesss, the paprika is from Barcelona"

"Oh my!"

Just a really nice touch. 

Nachos with ground beef, salsa, olives, and beans with chips and cheese. This was actually a recipe in a fair cookbook from my mom that my cousin Scotty made. It was great! You can't really much but the chips, but basically there were beans layered all over the dish, topped with the meat, salsa, olive mixture, and then around the sides and on top is chips and cheese. Once this came out of the oven, everyone dug in like savage beasts. I mean, seriously, it was gone in like five seconds. 

You can't completely tell what's in the crock pot but it's roast beef. So, we used to rolls to make our own roast beef sandwiches, but with all the tasty liquid, it was basically like a beef dip. It was tasty.

Bbq'd bean sidedish. Classic.

Zucchini Casserole. My Aunts, Uncles, and Mom raved on and on about Grandma's Zucchini Casserole, and I must say at first I was a bit skeptical. However, I was pleasantly surprised. It was like cheesy gooey zucchini madness, but it was good!

Here is a full plate of the meal I had, although really, this is only part of what I actually ate. Pictured on my plate is some nachos, salad, deviled eggs, beans, zucchini casserole, and my sandwich. 

With how much I love fancy foods and exotic ingredients, it was nice to just eat what I would consider classic down home cookin'. It was a really great time, and I loved it! 

Grandma, thank you for some great recipes. We had a great day as a family; eating, sharing stories and pictures. It was great to spend time together, and we were all thinking of you. I know you and Grandpa were smiling at us from above and were with us in spirit. I miss you and love you! 

Four stars