Ringing in the New Year

We made it back from Texas in time to celebrate the New Year at home. When fevers for me and Emmeline caused us to cancel any plans, we decided to make some fun in the comfort of our own house. I was itching for some pinterest-y activities with the kids, especially since I had decided not to do our Christmas Countdown this year, so I turned to my little file of New Year's activities and got to work. The end result was an absolute blast! It was such a fun evening spent with just our little family, and I hope the kiddos remember it for years to come!

new year's eve countdown, with activities hidden inside each balloon

The idea is to have activities planned for each hour as you count down to the new year. When a new hour starts, you pop the corresponding balloon and read the strip of paper inside to find out what to do next. There was no way I was letting my crazies stay up until midnight, so we compromised by letting them stay up until midnight in Rio (9 pm our time.) To make things move fast and keep everyone interested, I planned activities for every half hour, starting at 6 pm with the last activity at 9. That worked out well since it gave us less downtime. As soon as we finished one activity it was time to pop the balloon and find out what we were doing next.

first balloon of the night

6:00 pm - Make wishing wands with a hope or goal for the new year. 
This craft took the most prep ahead of time, but they turned out so cute. The boys enjoyed adding sequins and glitter to the contact paper in the middle to make their wands sparkle. We wrote a goal around the outside of the star, added some curly ribbon, and they were set!

6:30 pm - Sit down with Reporter Mom to discuss your year in review.
This was hilarious!! I recorded each boy individually as I asked questions like "Who is your best friend?" "What was your best memory of this year?" and "Where would you like to go on vacation?" I will have to post the videos separately since they are on Brad's phone.

7:00 pm - Time for a parade! Grab your noisemakers and put on your beads and party hats. 
As you can imagine, this was quite a bit loud but quite a bit fun. It turned into a dance party/parade and we all got into it!

poor little E...she had a fever of 102 but she hung in there and was so sweet

even elijah couldn't resist joining the party

7:30 pm - Time for a treat! Head to the kitchen to make sparkle floats.
Cream soda, vanilla ice cream, and a variety of yummy toppings all served in a fancy wine glass. You can't go wrong!

8:00 pm - Work together to come up with a family mission statement and a few resolutions you'd like to work on in 2014.
This poster is now hanging on our kitchen wall, and we've been trying to recite it every night. :)

 8:30 pm - Photo booth time!
Leyton received a kit from his cousins AJ and Finn to make his own photo booth props. With the help of his brothers, we made them early that afternoon to have them ready for our party that night. Brad set up a sheet in front of our computer, and we had ourselves an instant photo booth! Here are some of the best pics!

i think daddy was having more fun than anyone!

9:00 pm - Happy New Year! Celebrate with sparklers and a champagne toast!
By this time, body aches and chills were setting in for me and Emmeline was sound asleep with a belly full of tylenol. But we couldn't end our party without a few fireworks and non-alcoholic bubbly. :)

Cheers to an incredible 2014!