1. Make a homemade meal. Considering that ordering out on
New Year's Eve often costs more (since prices are usually increased for the
holiday), this is a good excuse to splurge a little and make a family meal at
home. Pick out dinner food that everyone enjoys but you don’t get a chance to
have very often, like steak, chili, or lobster. This family meal can turn into
a New Year’s Eve tradition.
You could also consider making a meal out of appetizers. This
could lead to a more casual dinner setup, and the kids will like having the
ability to pick and choose different kinds of food.
Cheese fondue is another fun dinner idea for New Year’s Eve.
Eating cheese fondue with bits of bread and meats will require everyone
to sit and eat together. You can take turns dipping your food into the cheese
and tell stories from the past year as you eat.
2. Make fun snacks and desserts. Consider making cookies, toffee, or other desserts that you can make together as a family and eat throughout New Year’s Eve night. You can get even more in the New Year’s spirit by making New Year’s specific desserts. Lots of cultures have New Year’s Eve desserts like Vasilopita, a Greek New Year’s Eve cake baked with a coin hidden in the dough. Whoever gets the piece of cake with the coin will have good luck for the upcoming year.
Marshmallow countdown skewers are another fun dessert idea.
Each marshmallow has two or three numbers drawn on with edible ink, and you can
eat the marshmallows as you count down to midnight.
A fun idea for New Year’s Eve kid friendly drinks are milk
and cookie toasts. The kids can join in on the New Year’s toasts by clinking
their milk glasses together and eating their cookies as they toast.
3. Make some holiday drinks and mocktails. Kids will love having hot cocoa, fruity soda pop, and sparkling grape juice on New Year’s Eve. You can even make other mocktails like strawberry-kiwi spritzers, cranberry sparklers, and peppermint drinks. Be sure to use plastic champagne flutes or other plastic “adult” like glasses to make the kids feel really special. Adults can make their own specialty drinks, or stick with classic champagne.
If you or family members are starting to feel tired,
consider making some fun coffee drinks with and without alcohol.
4. Have a family game night. Bring out board games, card
games, and electronic games, and even
group video games to play as you wait for the clock to strike midnight. You
could make up game tournaments, or try to play all the games at least once
during the night.
5. Have a movie night. Pop in a movie you already have at
home or rent a movie that you all have been wanting to see. Watching a movie
can be just one aspect of your New Year’s Eve plans, or you can turn it into a
movie marathon. During this time you can eat and drink different snacks that
you have prepared for the night.
You can also use this time to watch old home videos and
reminisce on good times. Depending on how many home videos you have, you can
make it a dinner time activity, or have them playing throughout the night.
6. Create a New Year’s Eve photo booth. Arrange an area of
your home to be the photo booth stage. Find a wall or background that you can
use as a backdrop, and decorate it with some holiday decorations or your
written resolutions. You could even print out some masquerade type costume
pieces, and have your very own photo props.
7. Play dress up. Bring out everyone’s best clothes and
make everyone in the family feel like they are a part of a fancy New Year’s Eve
party or ball. You could play music, dance, and everyone’s fancy outfits can
make for some great photos.
8. Make countdown bags to open every hour. Fill small bags
with different snacks and goodies to open up at every hour leading up to
midnight. You can make as many bags as you want depending on how early you want
to start opening the bags. Some ideas for bag fillers include:
- Disposable cameras
- Activity tags: watch a movie, eat ice cream, play a game, etc.
- Craft kits
- Candy
9. Make your own New Year’s Eve decorations. Make your own
party hats with some construction paper, string and decorating supplies. You
can also make your own New Year’s Eve noisemakers by putting rice, confetti,
and glitter inside empty water bottles. Simply twist on the cap and shake to
loudly bring in the New Year. Consider making a balloon drop for when the
clock strikes midnight:
Simply blow up balloons, and create netting around an
overhead fan with some tape and wrapping paper or fabric. Place all the balloons inside the netting, and release the
balloons whenever you plan to ring in the New Year.
