After five years of celebrating New Year’s Eve with my own kids, I’ve discovered the secret to a stress-free New Year’s Eve celebration: skip midnight altogether. We count down to 7pm (midnight in London), pop balloons in our living room, watch real fireworks on YouTube and we’re all in bed by 8pm. It has become our favorite family tradition and the kids look forward to it every year.
If you’ve ever dealt with tired toddler meltdowns at 11:45 p.m., or spent New Year’s exhausted from staying up late, New Year’s Eve noon is about to change everything.
In this Guide:
- What is noon and why does it work?
- 11 Tried and Tested Activities (With What Really Worked for Our Family)
- Tips by age for toddlers through preschool
- How to celebrate without the midnight chaos
What is Midsummer’s Eve?
New Year’s Eve Noon allows young families to celebrate the New Year without keeping the kids up past bedtime. Instead of waiting until midnight, count down to noon (or whatever time works for your family) and still enjoy all the excitement and traditions of New Year’s Eve.
The beauty? Full flexibility. You are not locked at noon. Many families (including ours) synchronize countdowns to midnight celebrations in other time zones, giving kids the full New Year’s excitement without the late nights.
Because New Year’s Eve actually works
We tried to force the countdown to midnight and it didn’t work. Our kids were cranky, we were exhausted, and no one was having fun. When we got to the countdown at 7 p.m. in London five years ago, everything changed. The kids feel like they’re part of a real celebration, they’re excited instead of overtired, and we all wake up refreshed in the New Year.
The way I see it is that kids remember the companionship and the fun, not the exact time on the clock. Here are the ideas I’ve found the most success with.
1. Choose the perfect countdown time
Don’t feel pressured to celebrate at noon. Choose whatever time works with your family’s schedule and energy levels.
Time zone celebrations we love (we’re on Eastern time):
- 18:00: Midnight in Germany (ideal if your city has German heritage)
- 19:00: Live London Fireworks on YouTube (our passion for five years)
- 20:00: Still early enough to avoid overtired kids
What we do: We set up a balloon in our living room, have sparklers or confetti poppers ready and watch the real London fireworks on YouTube. Children feel connected to a real world celebration.
Pro tip: Check to see if your local science center, children’s museum or historic village is hosting formal events on Midsummer’s Eve. Many offer countdown celebrations designed specifically for young families.
2. Broadcast a kid-friendly countdown
Zero Prep Option: Search YouTube for “kids New Year’s countdown” for ready-made celebrations at various times.
Our tried and tested favourites:
These work beautifully when you need something simple that still feels special.
3. Create your own DIY ball drop
Bring Times Square into your living room with a balloon that kids can actually activate.
Simple version (what we did):
Attach a plastic tablecloth full of balloons to the ceiling with string. When the countdown is on, let your toddler or preschooler pull the string to release the balloons. Don’t overthink it so the balloons actually fall.
Edited version:
Create a balloon clock by decorating balloons with specific times (6pm, 7pm, 8pm). Upload one every hour until your chosen countdown. Each balloon can contain confetti, small treats or notes for the next activity.
4. Create excitement with hourly surprise bags
Fill small paper bags with age-appropriate activities or treats: stickers, a small toy, a special snack, or a family game. Mark each bag with a time (5pm, 6pm, 7pm) and let the children open one each hour.
5. Make a kid-approved snack board
Create a herding board that acts as an activity. Include favorites like fruit, popcorn, cheese cubes, pretzels or tiny sandwiches cut into fun shapes.
Let your child help choose items and arrange the board. For toddlers, this may mean choosing between strawberries or grapes. For preschoolers, they can arrange objects by color or create patterns. This gives them ownership of the celebration and builds confidence.
Note: Be aware of choking hazards. The emergency room will already be full of “hold my beer” incidents, so don’t wantonly add popped balloons and grapes while dancing to the mix.
For older children: Create a “snack countdown” where you reveal a new treat every hour.
6. Start a “Family Wishes” jar.
This has become our most essential tradition. Each family member contributes a wish for the coming year – something they would like to try, learn or experience.
Real answers from our kids (ages 3 and 4):
- “I want to learn to ride a bike without training wheels”
- “I want to go to the beach and build the biggest sandcastle”
- “I want to eat ice cream for breakfast”
We place all the wishes in a decorated vase and keep it somewhere visible. Throughout the year, we take them out to create intentional memories together and check off our wishes as we fulfill them (or decide we no longer have any interest in doing so). Hilarious and heartfelt responses become treasured memories.
7. Create a Family Time Capsule
Time capsules transform the abstract concept of time passing into something tangible that young children can understand.
What to include:
- Drawings or paintings by each family member
- Photos of favorite moments this year
- A handprint or print from your youngest child
- Written or dictated memories from everyone
- Small souvenirs (ticket stub, a special leaf from a memorable hike)
Ask each person to explain why they chose their contribution. It’s a nice way to reveal what each family member valued most.
Storage tip from experience: Keep your time capsule with New Year’s Eve decorations so you don’t forget it next year. Opening last year’s capsule before creating this year’s creates a beautiful tradition of reflection and growth.
8. Watch a “Year in Review” photo slideshow.
This simple activity helps children understand the passage of time while celebrating growth and change.
What we do: We show photos from exactly one year ago and go through our photo album month by month. “Remember your first day of PreK? Your first lost tooth? When we got the puppy – look how tiny it was!”
For preschoolers, having a physical calendar helps keep them oriented and reinforces learning about the months and seasons. When we traveled, we also took out a map to show where we went.
Done with the future: Ask each child what they hope for next year. Write their answers word for word. The honesty and creativity of the responses from three and four year olds is priceless to read again twelve months later.
9. Create a Family Gratitude Tree
Create a tree on poster board or butcher paper (or use a branch in a vase with paper leaves). Each family member adds leaves throughout the evening, writing or drawing something they are grateful for.
Young children may be grateful for their favorite toy, pet, or “when daddy made pancakes.” Older children and adults can reflect on relationships, experiences or personal growth.
Great: Take a photo of your completed tree. You’ll want to remember how your younger family members responded.
10. Throw a Cozy Pajama Party
Consider bending the bedtime rules and letting the kids stay up a little later, even if “late” means 8 p.m. instead of 7 p.m.
Spend the night in your warmest pajamas doing special activities: build a fort in the living room, tell silly stories, watch favorite movies together, play board games or camp out in the living room with sleeping bags.
The key is to make the night feel different and special without the pressure of getting to midnight.
11. Learn New Year’s customs from around the world
Use the evening as an opportunity to teach your children how different cultures celebrate.
Ideas to try:
- Denmark: Jump off a chair when the clock strikes the countdown
- Spain: Eat twelve grapes (or twelve raisins for younger children) for good luck
- Germany: Watch a special countdown at 6 p.m. (midnight in Germany)
- United Kingdom: Watch London’s fireworks live at 7pm. EST
- Scotland: Open the front door at midnight to let the old year out and the new year in
Choose one or two traditions and talk about why people in this country do it and what it means. This cultural education feels more like fun than a lesson.
Make it work for the ages of your family
For families with toddlers (1-3 years old):
Focus on sensory activities like balloon drops, simple crafts and special snacks. Keep the timeline short and finish while everyone is still happy.
For families with preschool children (3-5 years old):
Add more structure with hourly countdown bags, simple traditions like the wish pot, and cultural learning about how other countries celebrate.
For multi-age families:
Combine activities so older children can help younger ones. Older kids can write wish jar entries for siblings who can’t write yet or help set up the balloon drop.
The bottom line at noon on New Year’s Eve
After five years of celebrating New Year’s Eve, here’s what I know: the most successful holidays are the ones that are tailored to your specific family. Don’t feel pressured to do everything – pick two or three activities that sound fun and manageable.
The goal is not perfection. It creates happy memories that work with your kids’ ages, energy levels, and family dynamics. What our children remember most is not any single activity, but the feeling of camaraderie and the anticipation of starting anew together as a family.
Have you celebrated New Year’s Eve with your family? Share your experiences in the comments below. I’d love to hear what traditions have worked for other families.
See also: Photo Ideas for Baby’s First Valentine’s Day
