As the holiday season winds down and the New Year approaches, we want to slow things down and start 2017 by reflecting on our goals and setting intentions for the new year. We did exactly that with our friend from Love Always, Audrey! Audrey planned a brunch where she gathered her closest friends, ate amazing food and generated a list of resolutions that she wants to accomplish in 2017. Here’s Audrey:

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Ahhh, New Year’s Day. A quiet, crisp, thoughtful day that can be used for so many things — a hangover, a hike, or lounging around with family and friends while soaking up the last of the holiday season.

Personally, I love New Year’s Day. It feels fresh, like taking a shower and washing away the remnants of the last year (and after 2016, we sure need it). I love to spend holidays with family and friends, but New Year’s Day for me is about relaxing and getting to work on planning the upcoming year.

This year, I wanted to marry three things I love: friends, food, and planning. So, what else would I do but plan a brunch?

First Things First: The Food

Avocado toast (or any toast for that matter) has kind of been my jam lately. I used this amazing cookbook, Toast, to create 2 delicious meals. The first is a seeded bread topped with goat cheese, artichokes, shaved Parmesan, and fresh basil.

The other toast I made (and my favorite one), has seeded bread topped with goat cheese, red peppers, and fresh dill. I literally ate all of these. All of them.

I also made these cute little fruit and candy skewers for people to munch on alongside their mimosas. Oh, and you need mimosas. Lots of ‘em!

Next Up: The Décor

I wanted my brunch table to be bright and colorful, just like the new year ahead. I used this chartreuse wrapping paper as the base, then used mums from Trader Joe’s to decorate the rest of the table. I thought the yellow on yellow was a cute way to say “wake up! It’s 2017!”

On all the plates, I left my favorite candy bar in the world, Compartes’ Cereal Bowl white chocolate bar. It’s tastes exactly what it sounds like, and it is delicious. I also included a notepad and a fun pen for each guest to write down their musings or goals for the new year. I figured it’s important that goals be tangible and realistic!

For favors, I made little gift bags for the guests, which included an eye mask, a “Thanks a Brunch!” card, and a mini latte or brunch emergency kit. These gift bags served as a very colorful centerpiece!

Last But Not Least: The Conversation

While this brunch is pretty and fun, I wanted to make it more about goal setting than mimosas. I brainstormed thought provoking questions that I wanted to focus on this year and made a little list to ask my friends as well.

Reflecting on 2016:

1. Which 2016 memories will be cherished?
2. What did 2016 teach me?
3. What worked for me in 2016 and what didn’t?
4. What was a habit I formed in 2016? Should I keep it or should I ditch it?

Prospecting 2017:

1. What are three things I want to accomplish in 2017?
2. What values did I learn in 2016 that I will continue to live by in 2017?
3. What can I do in 2017 to make every day more meaningful?

Here are a few of my own resolutions I want to focus on:

Overall, I’m kind of in love with the idea of a New Year’s Day brunch. It’s a fun yet productive way to lay it all out for the new year… plus, there’s toast and mimosas!

Cheers to the new year! I hope the next 365 days are amazing for you and your loved ones, and
you reach your goals (and then some). Happy New Year!

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Audrey is an Arizona girl turned Chicagoan, and loves DIY projects, coffee, calligraphy, exploring Chicago, and dabbling in yoga. She works full time in digital marketing, but spends her spare time blogging over a Love Always, Audrey.

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