6 Tips to Celebrate New Year With Kids

New Year celebrations tend to look a little different after you have a baby, especially if you stay up, out, and dancing until 3 am in a usually uncomfortable sequin dress. We are talking about the best ways to celebrate the new year with kids! The last night of the year may end a little earlier, and the first morning of the new year may start a little earlier, but you won’t have to cancel January 1 and stay in bed with a horrible hangover this time. That’s a big upside of celebrating the new year with your baby, for sure! You can make this day special for your whole family with various activities, delicious food, and some quality family time! 

Here are six tips on how to have a fun and baby-friendly new year celebration:

1) Embrace a night in

Going out for dinner and dancing with friends sound fun, but if you have a baby or a toddler, you will probably want to be there with your little ones on this special day. Having a cozy celebration at home will make everything easier for you and your baby. You can cook together, choose your family’s favorite music to play, watch some movies, invite other families or friends, and have a cozy and fun night all together!

2) Do “A year in review”

This was definitely a big year for your family, especially if this is your first new year celebration with your baby! Doing “A year in review” in any format can help you remember and appreciate the little things in this significant year of all your lives. You can write your favorite or biggest moments down on paper and hang them; you can make a scrapbook as a family activity, you can create a video, or just talk about it at the dinner table. 

3) Capture a family new year photo 

You might want to remember your baby’s big moments in the future, so capture this moment and take a nice family new year photo! Just think about how cool your baby would look with those big glasses on his/her little face! 

4) Create a promising board and make resolutions

Especially if this is not your first baby and you have older children as well, creating a promising board and making resolutions would make an amazing new year celebration activity! This way, you can teach your kids (and yourself) to set goals, make plans, and take action in order to achieve those goals. The resolutions can be anything from reading 40 books to learning how to ride a bike! Just make sure to mix easy and difficult or time-consuming resolutions to keep your spirits high during the year. You can visualize the resolutions somewhere you can see and track progress if you’d like!

5) Make a time capsule

Creating a time capsule with your family would make New Year’s Eve special, as well as a future day of your choosing. You can choose any future date to open your time capsule, for example, New Year’s Eve 2022. This way, you already have an activity planned for your next new year celebration with your family! Choose a box, decorate it with your family so you have some arts & crafts time, and fill it with important objects from the past year. You will love the nostalgia next year!

6) Plan and prepare ahead for the night

Planning and prepping ahead for the celebration will make your night easy and smooth. You can prepare the food beforehand, cook together with your family during the day, or just order in. You can find a lot of new year celebration food ideas. Make sure you and your family get plenty of rest before. Don’t mess with your baby’s usual sleep and eating schedule so they don’t get grumpy. Remember, your little ones do not have to stay awake until past midnight. Also, if you’re going to be at home, comfort will be key! You can get fancy with comfortable clothes as well; you just need to choose wisely!