If you are anything like me, you will not be staying up until midnight this year to watch 2022 come. Don’t get me wrong, I love celebrating all the holidays but as a 30-something mama of toddlers, I don’t have the energy to party that late into the night. And for sure my sweet girls will be tucked into bed long before the clock strikes midnight! But just because we don’t actually see the clock change into the new year doesn’t mean we cannot celebrate the season!
I wanted to share some tips for celebrating the new year without staying up until midnight:
Watch the Ball Drop in Times Square
Here in Colorado that ball will drop at 10 pm, which is a glorious 2 hours before New York! If you have elementary aged kids, this can be a really fun time to do the midnight celebrations! You can ring the bells and shoot the silly string all at the strike of 10! If you don’t have cable, you can stream the New Year’s Eve ball drop at TimesSquareNYC.org!
Watch the Fireworks on Pikes Peak at 9 pm
Did you know there is a group of hikers called the AdAmAn Club who hike Pikes Peak on New Years Eve with backpacks filled with fireworks? They put on a show at the top for the whole city every year. This year, they are adding an extra-special show at 9 pm! Gather your family and watch them together, cheers-ing cups of hot coco and then head home to tuck into bed!
Celebrate Early by Going to the Electric Safari
Take the family out for an after dark, but before midnight, adventure! The Electric Safari at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is open on New Year’s Eve and a perfect way to celebrate the holiday and get home in time for bedtime! They have thousands of twinkling lights, awesome nocturnal critters, new inflatables, and pretty views of the entire city.
Do a New Year’s Day Celebration
Instead of staying up late, make a big deal about waking up to a new day! Do New Year’s Day breakfast with orange juice in champagne flutes, wear party hats, and decorate the table in a New Year theme! You can wear fun jammies to wake up in and have time as a family to make resolutions together or share things you are looking forward to do in the new year! It can be the whole New Year’s Party moved to the morning!
Most importantly, there is no “right” way to make memories with your family! If you know that staying up until midnight is going to lead to grumpy kids and grumpy parents, don’t do it! You can celebrate the new year without partying until midnight!
*Blog Post Originally Posted on the Colorado Springs Mom Blog Here.