Celebrating New Year as a family

New Year is a very quiet event in our house. One reason is that my daughter, aged eight, turns into a bit of a monster if she stays up past nine o’clock at night, so staying up late isn’t an option. I’m not a fan of late nights either, so I’m rarely awake at the stroke of midnight.

It turns out we are not alone. A lot of parents with children under ten say they don’t often stay up until midnight on New Year’s Eve because it just isn’t practical and it leaves everyone irritable the next day. So when it comes to New Year’s Eve we look for activities to do in the day time instead.

A few years ago we went to a pantomime which was a great of getting into the party mood. We’ve visited relatives too for games and a family meal when the weather has meant a straightforward journey – unlikely this year.

Since my daughter thinks she runs our single parent household, I have asked her this year what she would like to do to celebrate New Year. She’s keen to go out for a restaurant meal so we’ll combine that with a brief shopping trip to make an event of it. She’ll probably insist on taking her games console so there is unlikely to be much conversation, but at least we will be together. Then we’ll call in on friends on our way home before settling down for an early night.

When it comes to New Year’s Day I love Jen’s family's tradition of celebrating the start of the New Year then instead with a breakfast of freshly cooked pancakes. It means the children keep to their normal bedtimes and the family can celebrate, well-rested, the next day. But if your children do stay up late in New Year’s Eve, Catherine has some great suggestions for avoiding meltdowns when it comes to changes in routines over the festive period.

How does your family celebrate the New Year?