New Year's activities solve the age old question… what to do until midnight? The hours from dusk till dawn need not be boring!
For children, and many adults, the New Year’s holiday is a rather lackluster event. Little ones, try as they might, seem to miss it more often than not. For those stubborn few who are able to keep sleep at bay long enough to actually see the glittering ball drop, they are left feeling cheated.
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What was the big deal? Adults tend to echo this sentiment. New Year’s Eve is a 10 second holiday better spent sawing logs with the little ones who couldn’t make it to midnight.
Bring Back the Magic
There is a way to reignite the allure of this midnight celebration with planned New Year's activities. This year plan your New Year’s Eve with special activities to help you say a fond farewell to the old year while greeting the new one.
When making your activity plans keep your family’s needs in mind. It is not such a bad thing to let small children sleep through the New Year’s birth. It is much better celebration to leave established bedtimes more or less intact, unless you really want to mar the first day of the new year with cranky temper tantrum prone children and sleep deprived adults.
This does not mean small children take no part in New Year’s parties. On the contrary capitalize on the fact that these young would-be partygoers can’t really tell time. It won’t matter to them if they yell happy New Year at 8:30 instead of midnight. They will never know the difference unless you tell them.
Celebrating with Small Children
Apart from maintaining bedtime, there are few rules to playing ‘happy New Year’ with your child. Have your children draw pictures of their favorite memories from the old year, and create a wish picture book of what the New Year holds. Purchase a few picture frames (these can be obtained inexpensively at the local dollar store). Place these master pieces in the frames for display in the New Year. This is great fun for the kids, and helps build good habits for New Year resolutions.
Kids also really like the non-fire fireworks. Get a few poppers, crackers or snappers. At the appointed hour let your kids pull the strings to make a loud chorus of pops to ring in their new year. Pots and pans played with a wooden spoon create an exciting din of their own in lieu of crackers.
Once the New Year has been shouted in, serve a treat! It isn’t a party without party foods. Cupcakes, cookies, a bit of chocolate and fizzy soda served in fancy glasses will end the night on a high note. They will never know what they may have missed.
Celebrating With Older Kids
Teenagers will most likely want to get the New Year to themselves, so unless you want a fight you will need to again modify the time schedule of your party. Teens like food. To this end have a fancy dinner with them, and let them go their own way. If you are look for parent of the New Year award, allow your teens to host a party in your home.
If you're a lucky parent who has a teen that wants to spend New Year's with you, make sure to include them in the festivities as much as possible. You don't need to make an elaborate deal out of it, but do something special with them to create some great memories. Starting a new tradition is never a bad thing!
If you do allow your teen to host a party in your own home, make sure you establish some ground rules. You're giving them a lot of trust by letting them host a party. Teens are prone to rebelliousness, so don't be too surprised if you end up with a couple problems to start the new year! Hopefully, though, all will go well.
Recapturing the magic of New Year’s Eve is easy when viewed through the eyes of your children and fun New Year's Activities. Don't overcomplicate things and focus on enjoying time with family. The holiday season is, after all, about families and making memories together!
The image featured at the top of this post is ©Mike Flippo/Shutterstock.com.