What are your plans for New Year's (Eve and Day)?

[ourbabygirl]

I've been focused on just getting through Christmas, and now I'd like to make some New Year's plans. We have kids ages 3-10, as well as my mom, to include. She was thinking of dinner and a movie, if nothing else, and I thought it would be fun to host a little get-together, but all I can think of right now is fondue and/or board games and appetizers.

What are you up to for New Year's? :)

[PZMommy]

My mom is flying in to visit us and arrives on NYE. We will most likely go to a family friendly restaurant for dinner, and then play some board games. Odds are we will all be in bed by 10. lol

[SnuggleBuggles]

Board games, appetizers and fondue. Just our little crew. Bottle of champagne too for the grown ups.


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[DualvansMommy]

Just ourselves for the evening with board games, fun drinks for the kids and champagne for DH and I. We’ve to figure out the day portion with our friends and their daughter...but low key which we love.


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[carolinacool]

We have good family friends who always hosts a party. There aren’t really any planned activities. Just a lot of drinking and eating and occasionally making sure all the kids are still alive somewhere in the house. :ROTFLMAO: Everyone manages to stay up at midnight, including the little ones. Things start winding down around 1 AM. It’s a pretty fun night

[jerseygirl07067]

We have a pretty large party every year. It's one of my favorite days, and it also happens to be my birthday :)

Actually I started having people over every year staring in grad school and it has just continued. DH and I continued this every year, and invited all of our friends. We stopped for 1 -2 few years when the kids were babies but then a friend of mine gave me this idea to have a party and drop balloons for the kids at 830 pm. So that is what we started 12 years ago when my oldest DD was 3. At that time, the kids and their families would head home by 11pm, but each year as the kids got older families started staying later and later. Now all of kids stay up well past midnight and many families don't leave until about 1 am. We've had it just about every year since, and it has grown as we now include our 3 kids' best friends and their families, neighbors, etc. It has turned into quite a large party but I love it. I usually get appetizers from BJs (similar to Costco), and people bring a dish and whatever they'd like to drink. We get a bounce house and have karaoke. It is a blast!

[trcy]

We'll be out of town, but don't plan in doing anything for New year's. I really don't like to be on the roads for new year's, too many drunk drivers.

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[gatorsmom]

Each of my kids invited a friend and their family over. Fortunately I like the parents of the kids they invited so it will be fun. Our little community is orthodox Catholics so these are big families. We are expecting 4 families with around 30-35 people to play board games, video games, pool and eat. We are having a taco salad bar and a dessert buffet. It should be a lot of fun.

[MommyAllison]

Staying home for NYE, but we throw a big cards party on New Years Day. It's similar to progressive rummy, every hand you rotate tables and as you move up tables, the food gets better ;) prizes for the winners, adults only. We have between 20-30 people and it's always super fun!

[gatorsmom]

Staying home for NYE, but we throw a big cards party on New Years Day. It's similar to progressive rummy, every hand you rotate tables and as you move up tables, the food gets better ;) prizes for the winners, adults only. We have between 20-30 people and it's always super fun!

This sounds really fun. Who makes the food? Do you have it catered? What kind of foods do the winners progress to?

[essnce629]

We never have plans besides eating appetizers all day and night and staying up till midnight.

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[AnnieW625]

On NYE we are going to a minor league hockey (AHL) game with my BIL and his wife and kids, plus friends of theirs so there will be 12 of us total.

On New Years Day we will watch The Rose Parade, and probably The Rose Bowl and not do much else other than take the dog for a walk.


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[liz]

DH and I are both working. We usually have family over for take out and board games. This year it will just be us. I'm planning on takeout, board games and a movie for us (if DH and I can stay awake). The kids want to stay up until midnight and watch the ball drop. They love to watch the Three Stooges marathon leading up to midnight.

New Years Day, my mom takes us out to a nice restaurant.

[MommyAllison]

This sounds really fun. Who makes the food? Do you have it catered? What kind of foods do the winners progress to?

The food has varied over the years based on budget :) traditionally, the top table has shrimp and a fancy dessert (chocolate mousse in wine glasses or similar), while the bottom table has m&m's and peanuts. We haven't had it catered, though I am leaning more heavily on ready made things than all made from scratch things as the years go by! It's a 4 hour game, so it's tricky to think of 6 tables worth of foods (one sweet and one savory per table) that can sit out at room temperature and still be appealing! (Obv the shrimp is on ice, and things like chocolate mousse only have enough set out for one or two hands and then are replenished) So many appetizers are best warm. I also try to avoid things that need dipping/sharing, so no cheeseballs or cream cheese/jelly dips. This year the top table will have mini cherry cheesecakes and a selection of meats and cheeses, while the bottom table will have m&m's and popcorn (due to nut allergies). The middle tables will have things like chocolates, chex mix, baguette w/brie, fruits & vegetables, cookies, etc.

Since it goes through the dinner hour, I will also be serving two different soup options - there is so much snacking, it ends up being plenty of food. :) If you have any other questions feel free to ask!

[gatorsmom]

The food has varied over the years based on budget :) traditionally, the top table has shrimp and a fancy dessert (chocolate mousse in wine glasses or similar), while the bottom table has m&m's and peanuts. We haven't had it catered, though I am leaning more heavily on ready made things than all made from scratch things as the years go by! It's a 4 hour game, so it's tricky to think of 6 tables worth of foods (one sweet and one savory per table) that can sit out at room temperature and still be appealing! (Obv the shrimp is on ice, and things like chocolate mousse only have enough set out for one or two hands and then are replenished) So many appetizers are best warm. I also try to avoid things that need dipping/sharing, so no cheeseballs or cream cheese/jelly dips. This year the top table will have mini cherry cheesecakes and a selection of meats and cheeses, while the bottom table will have m&m's and popcorn (due to nut allergies). The middle tables will have things like chocolates, chex mix, baguette w/brie, fruits & vegetables, cookies, etc.

Since it goes through the dinner hour, I will also be serving two different soup options - there is so much snacking, it ends up being plenty of food. :) If you have any other questions feel free to ask!

Wow, they sounds like a ton of work for you. Do you play cards too? Or are you too busy in the kitchen? Are the adults who attend usually couples? With all that work in the kitchen, do the other couples who attend bring wine or flowers or anything? Do you have any help with the food? Approximately how many people attend? Sorry about all the questions but depending on the amount of work involved, this sounds really fun and like something I might enjoy doing in a few years when the kids no longer want to hang out with us on New Years. ;)

[lizzywednesday]

DD and I are having a living room fondue picnic with either Italian soda or sparkling cider in plastic champagne flutes to drink while we watch either the MythBusters mega marathon or New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest on TV.

On NY Day, we've got a extended-family party at the ILs' (5 minutes away) in the afternoon.

[twowhat?]

DD and I are having a living room fondue picnic with either Italian soda or sparkling cider in plastic champagne flutes to drink while we watch either the MythBusters mega marathon or New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest on TV.

On NY Day, we've got a extended-family party at the ILs' (5 minutes away) in the afternoon.

I have a dumb question - we don't have cable but get the major networks (ABC, NBC) over-the-air via antenna. If we watch New Year's Rockin' Eve, do they show the Times Square ball drop? That's what my kids really want to see. And do they show it live? (so if it's 11pm Central where we live when it's midnight in NYC, then would we get to see the ball drop at 11pm Central?)

Anyway, that's what our kids want to do - stay in, play games, watch the ball drop in Times Square, attempt to stay up until midnight. We plan on making fondue (haven't figured out the how part yet because we don't have a fondue pot, so I might be rigging a double boiler - all they really want is the cheese fondue!). No real plans for New Year's Day other than to sleep in :)

[smilequeen]

NYE, just hang out with the boys, order in dinner, and try to stay awake.

New Years Day...DH, DS1, and I are going to the NHL Winter Classic

[magnoliaparadise]

NYE day we are going to see some family friends who are in town once a year and then (hopefully) go to a show. But we will be back by about 5 pm, mostly because my kids can't make it to midnight and I don't like to be on the roads on NYE. We will probably watch a movie and/or do a board game with my parents and might make it an early night.

NY day we are going to a relative's house for a very little get together midday.

So it will be a very relaxed weekend and not a big thing.

[TwinFoxes]

We had outdoor plans for NYE, but it's supposed to rain, so...

NY's Day I'll be watching the Rose Parade and Rose Bowl game like the good little So Cal girl that I am at heart. :)

[SnuggleBuggles]

I have a dumb question - we don't have cable but get the major networks (ABC, NBC) over-the-air via antenna. If we watch New Year's Rockin' Eve, do they show the Times Square ball drop? That's what my kids really want to see. And do they show it live? (so if it's 11pm Central where we live when it's midnight in NYC, then would we get to see the ball drop at 11pm Central?)

Anyway, that's what our kids want to do - stay in, play games, watch the ball drop in Times Square, attempt to stay up until midnight. We plan on making fondue (haven't figured out the how part yet because we don't have a fondue pot, so I might be rigging a double boiler - all they really want is the cheese fondue!). No real plans for New Year's Day other than to sleep in :)

They do show the ball drop. As for the central time airing...I don’t know. But, it is the right show! :)


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[MommyAllison]

Wow, they sounds like a ton of work for you. Do you play cards too? Or are you too busy in the kitchen? Are the adults who attend usually couples? With all that work in the kitchen, do the other couples who attend bring wine or flowers or anything? Do you have any help with the food? Approximately how many people attend? Sorry about all the questions but depending on the amount of work involved, this sounds really fun and like something I might enjoy doing in a few years when the kids no longer want to hang out with us on New Years. ;)

It is a fair amount of work, but by the time the party starts, all food is made and ready to set on tables. DH helps me with the prep, and one friend who loves to cook brings something each year (this year he is making the mini cheesecakes). All of the other desserts this year are from Costco and don't require any prep, and only about half of the savory stuff is from scratch. The soup will be made ahead of time and kept in Instant Pots to stay warm til serving time. DH and I both play cards! I think you could totally have it catered if you wanted to cut way down on the work involved. It's probably 75% couples, with some singles thrown in. We can fit 6 tables, ideally 4 people per table but we can squeeze in 5 per table if necessary. So far this year we have 24 people coming, which is perfect. I think we play 7 hands, and each hand the tables rotate (whoever wins the table moves up to the next table, whoever loses moves down one table) so I wouldn't do much bigger than that, as you can't begin the next hand until all tables have finished.

When this NY tradition started, friends of ours hosted it, and she had some of us bring food for the party. As it grew bigger, they switched to a suggested $5/person cover, and used that for food and prizes. (It is easier to have all the food ready to go when the first guest walks in, rather than having the food arrive gradually, and what if someone gets sick and doesn't make it) Eventually they moved out of state, and then we moved out of state, so we started the tradition here. Here, people haven't generally brought much, though last year some people wanted to contribute some cash toward the prizes and food.

We host regularly throughout the year, but this is the most elaborate thing we host. It's always so fun though, and that makes it worth it for us! :)

[lizzywednesday]

I have a dumb question - we don't have cable but get the major networks (ABC, NBC) over-the-air via antenna. If we watch New Year's Rockin' Eve, do they show the Times Square ball drop? That's what my kids really want to see. And do they show it live? (so if it's 11pm Central where we live when it's midnight in NYC, then would we get to see the ball drop at 11pm Central?)

When we're at the ILs' AZ place, New Year's Rockin' Eve is on tape-delay to drop at midnight local time, but, of all things, CNN shows the ball drop live at NYC-time.



Anyway, that's what our kids want to do - stay in, play games, watch the ball drop in Times Square, attempt to stay up until midnight. We plan on making fondue (haven't figured out the how part yet because we don't have a fondue pot, so I might be rigging a double boiler - all they really want is the cheese fondue!). No real plans for New Year's Day other than to sleep in :)

Alton Brown, in his fondue reloaded (https://www.cookingchanneltv.com/recipes/alton-brown/fondue-finally-5496018) recipe notes, recommends using cast iron because of the higher specific heat. We do not have a fondue pot, either, but managed to snag the Trader Joe's microwave fondue today - our store got more in and we are over the moon about it, YMMV - which stays nice and liquidy for a decent amount of time, but it's my opinion that it wouldn't hurt to use a heavy ceramic dish or even a small crock pot to keep it warm if you've got one.

[SnuggleBuggles]

A party invite came our way but we’ve already been to 3 this week plus another next weekend. I think we’re sitting it out to do our original games and fondue plan. No champagne though possibly as ds1 will likely be heading out with friends and could need rides (ugh).


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[LD92599]

We will be driving home from DC, then meeting 2 other couples for early dinner. we may have a little party at home after dinner to ring in the new year.

[ang79]

We get together with some friends and their kids every NYE. We alternate whose house we are at and have been doing this since college. Just 4 adults and 4 kids. We play games, watch movies, hang out while the kids play. Eat lots of junk food and wine and mixed drinks (sparkling cider or sparkling grape juice for the kids). We live 1.5 hrs. away from each other so we start in the afternoon on the 31 and then stay to through lunch on the 1st (always have pork and sauerkraut and mashed potatoes for lunch on New Year's Day). Before kids we would always go out for a fancy meal on NYE, now we cook in (that was easier to do when we had 4 little kids!). A few years ago we did cheese fondue and chocolate fondue and the kids have deemed that tradition now. Its always fun to see what new things we can find to dip in fondue!

[mom2binsd]

Going to friends 3 doors down, eat apps/drink wine/play games, our newest is something similar to Cards Against Humanity, called Relative Insanity, we have decided when we read all the questions we use a goofy southern voice, as they often say something like "when my Uncle Earl walked in the door and saw grandma on the floor he exclaimed ......" and you put a card down with a phrase. Silly and more appropriate if your kids are older.

We are going to also try out our new Telestrations games.

New Years Day watching the Winter Classic with friends at BWW, jealous of smilequeen going to the game. Hope you guys have fun and Go HAWKS!