How To Plan An At Home New Year's Eve For Your Family

Enjoy your New Year’s Eve at home with kids. Here are 7 ideas of how you can ring in the New Year at home, while having lots of fun!

It’s the last week of December and the New Year is almost upon us. It’s time to look ahead and get excited for the next years adventures and journey.

When you have a family, celebrating New Year’s Eve at home with kids is a lot more enjoyable and relaxing. My husband and I have always enjoyed being at home to welcome the New Year and now with four kids we definitely like staying home for New Year’s Eve.

It’s very easy to move a sleeping child from the couch to their bed when you are already home.

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How To Have Fun At Home With Kids on New Year’s Eve

Make it a party! Even though it’s just your family celebrating that’s a great reason to make it extra special. I’m sharing some of our favorite ways to celebrate New Year’s Eve at home with kids.

1. Create A Photo Backdrop

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Make a photo backdrop with a few party decorations. For our backdrop I used a gold plastic table cover from the dollar store and taped it onto a photo hanging in our living room.

I cut it into strips and tied two strips together near the top to make the flowing background.

Next I taped the “Happy New Year” blow up balloon at the top.

Lastly I added our Balloon Countdown as a boarder. It’s fun to watch the progression to midnight in the photos. You’ll see by the end of the night the balloon boarder is completely gone.

Have fun with some photo props and take lots of silly photos throughout the night!

2. All The Snacks And Drinks

Skip a formal dinner and set up a snack station with fun finger foods. Let the kids each request a favorite snack item for the night.

Have some fun paper plates and napkins with festive drinking cups and straws.

Here’s what we served in our snack bar:

cheese ball with crackers
shrimp w/cocktail sauce
summer sausage
mini hotdogs
pickles & olives
chips and salsa
gummy bears
chocolates
sparkling cider

3. New Year’s Eve Balloon Countdown

A countdown to the New Year can add an element of surprise and also some structure to the night.

We filled 12 balloons with a fun activity or talking prompt. Starting at 6:30pm and every half hour until midnight we had a balloon to pop.

The kids all took turns popping a balloon and this gave them some excitement each half-hour leading up to midnight.

These New Years Eve Countdown Activity cards are included in the New Year’s Eve Printable Party Pack available in my shop!

4. Send Them On A Scavenger Hunt

Help the kiddos get out some energy by sending them around the house on a scavenger hunt. The first to complete the hunt can be awarded a small prize or treat!

5. Reflect On The Past Year

Take some time to talk about memories from the past year. It’s fun to record your kids view of their year.

You can use the Year In Review printable found in the New Years Countdown Party Pack.

Print one out for each family member. Parents or older siblings can fill in the paper for younger kids.

When everyone is done filling in their review paper go around and share your favorite and best memories from the year.

Then snap a picture of them or keep them in a memory book or scrapbook. It’s fun to pull out and read from past years.

6. Let Them Stay Up Late!

With a wide range of kids ages in our home it’s always a competition to see which kiddo can stay awake till midnight! Part of the fun for the kids is being allowed to stay up way past their bedtime. Just make sure you don’t have plans the following day, as the kids will be extra tired!

7. Watch The Countdown LIVE

There are many channels to choose from on YouTube that have LIVE countdowns from many cities. You can even find generic countdowns. (Note to Parents: Make sure you always preview anything from YouTube before letting the kids watch it!)

Netflix will have a New Years Eve Countdown Collection that is appropriate for all ages!

Make the end of this year a memorable one with your family by creating your own fun New Year’s Eve at home with kids. The kids will be very happy to be included in the festivities and you will be making memories for a lifetime!