Happy New Year!

Because I already took my two weeks vacation earlier this year, I was one of the few poor suckers who got stuck at the office for two weeks. But, there are upsides to being the only one in the office. Once my coworkers return, they’ll be digging through 14 days worth of emails, and I’ll be over in my cubicle like:

How was your Christmas break? Halston and I survived our first Christmas as a married couple and enjoyed our time together with friends and family.

We rang in the new year at The Alfond Inn‘s New Year Gala. Located right next to the Winter Park Library, this 112-room boutique hotel boasts a full service restaurant and bar, pool, fitness center and it is minutes from Park Avenue. If you haven’t been there before, make sure you visit during your next after-brunch stroll!

This is the second time the hotel hosts this event, but the year before we were at the Orlando Museum of Art’s Brilliant at 90s bash.

I love getting dressed up and attending fancy New Year’s celebrations, and don’t mind spending a little bit more for a fun night.

 

From the moment we walked in, we had a feeling that we would be one of the younger couples at the event. Lucky for us, we are usually in bed by 9:00 p.m. and suffer from aches and pains, so we could easily relate to the older crowd attending. Okay, the guests weren’t that old…

Food: Delicious smells greeted us upon entering the hotel’s atrium. There were different stations set up with sushi, steak, antipasto, dessert and more. I hit up the sushi station about three times – no regrets (hey, last meal of the year. Go big or go home).

Drinks: There were two full liquor bars set up for the event and it only got busy around 11:30 p.m. Champagne was passed around right before midnight.

Music: The Buzzcatz were the entertainment for the night and they did not disappoint! This local live band played everything from classic Sinatra to Motown to Top 40. I closed my eyes during their “What A Wonderful World” and could almost picture Louis Armstrong crooning into the mic.

The best part about the music was that young and old could all connect with the songs. Also, old people give no damns on the dance floor. We saw everything from professional ballroom dancers to a mom in a fur coat breaking it down. And since Halston is all elbows while dancing and I’m all butt, we felt right at home. Jab, jab, bump, bump.

Next door to our ballroom, the Alfond was hosting a second event for a younger crowd (a.k.a. my age group) so I popped my head in for a sec. Everyone seemed to be too self-conscious to dance. Typical youths.

All in all, it was a great night and a wonderful start to the year!

Where did you ring in the New Year? Did anyone check out Kristin Chenoweth performance at the Dr. Phillips Center or attend the Enzian’s James Bond party? 

xx