What Are You Doing for New Year's Eve?

[Meryl]

New Year's is one of those holidays that sometimes falls through the cracks.  Most of the family stuff is over, and the relatives have headed back home.  People often feel pressured to have a good time because of the party hearty reputation that the day has.

My roommate and I are having some friends over for a light supper and lots of gabbing, and we'll probably watch the ball drop in Times Square.  I've lived in NYC many years but never had the fortitude to actually brave going down there for the event.   Once I went to Chinatown for dinner on New Year's Eve, and the waiters ran the Chinese New Year dragon through the restaurant.  That was fun! 

So what are you doing?  Going to a big bash?  Having a quiet dinner at home?  Watching the ball drop on TV?  Sleeping? 

[Kelda]

I'm undecided.
Callum's friend is having a houseparty about 10miles away - we may well go to that. Only thing is there is a possibility of 80mile an hour winds which I don't fancy getting stuck in the middle of.

Truthfully I'd be quite happy curling up at home with  good few bottles of nice Champagne and some nice munchies, and seeingin in the new year just the 2 of us.

[belbbmfan]

this year, it will be just the four of us on new year's eve and new year's day. My kids chose the menu for tomorrow night. We having roast chicken with french fries!
and after that we're going to watch a dvd! My youngest picked 'the Simpsons'  I'm sure I'll love that! 

And on New Year's Day, i think we'll go to the zoo, weather permitting. We did that a couple of years ago and it was really nice.

happy new year! 

[Shakesthecoffecan]

I am hoping for a quiet eveing at home, in front of the TV, with a glass of wine. I can't muster the energy for much else.

[MaineWriter]

I am not a particular fan of New Year's Eve and many years ago, Tony and I decided that our favorite thing to do was stay at home, have a nice dinner, and retire early. Well, we retire early most every night of the week, why should New Year's be any different? LOL. I did stay up to see 2000 come in (watching the fireworks from around the world on TV was fun) but that might have been the last time.

Hannah has a friend here from New York City. She has invited a few other friends over and they will be having a sleepover. Dinner is going to be pizza on the grill. With a gang of teenage girls taking over my living room, I am sure I will be retiring early, this year too!

Leslie

[Jeff Wrangler]

God, I hate New Year's Eve, the whole New Year's business. ... 

It always makes me think of one of the lines that Dickens has Scrooge ascribe to Christmas: A time for finding yourself another year older and not an hour richer.

That said. ...

I plan to make myself a nice dinner of steak, pasta, and salad. I'm invited to an open house in the evening. Then I'll probably go by the Usual Watering Hole to ring in the New Year.

New Year's Day will feature a good Pennsylvania German New Year's Day dinner of pork and sauerkraut (baked pork chops in my case). Philadelphia has its annual New Year's Day Mummers' Parade, which passes up South Broad Street right under my windows (you still see more on television  ), but this year rain is apt to ruin the festivities, possibly even postpone them, depending on how fast that storm comes in from Texas.

[Penthesilea]

Kerstin and her family will come over to us. We'll be four adults and five kids. We'll wait until the two most little brats  (both three years old) will be asleep, then start a late and long dinner. We'll have cheese-fondue:





Then we will play parlor games (? I looked that word up; never heard it before; hope you know what I mean) until midnight. Some time between we'll watch "Dinner for one" on TV together. It's traditional in Germany (Leslie started a thread about it: http://72.232.132.224/forum/index.php/topic,7025.0.html).

At midnight we'll go outside and watch the fireworks in our street. We even bought some fire crackers ourselves.
Then we hope to send the older children to bed, so we adults can sit and talk some, until we're dead-tired. Last year our girls were up as long as we were. New Years Eve is the one night in the year they are allowed to stay up as long as they want. Theoratically. In fact, we sent them to bed at 2 am last year. Their energy is unbelievable.

On New Year we'll do nothing but relax and recover from the night before.

[Ellemeno]

We (husband and 3 1/2 yo and I) will probably have a pretty regular evening, and let M stay up as late as she wants with the goal of being able to go out and see the fireworks at midnight.  I love them from a distance.  It's cold here, so we may bundle up in the car and just find a good place to park and watch. 

On New Year's Day we will have black eyed peas (a U.S. southern tradition).  We often have an open house (inviting friends to stop in for any time during the day), but I haven't done a thing to organize that this year.  (We just got back two days ago from two weeks away, and I am still just getting used to being home.)  Maybe tomorrow I'll call a few friends and see if I can get something together. 

Tuesday is the first regular day, with husband going back to work, and daughter going back to school.  I am looking forward to that by now.  It's been a relaxing, low key holiday time for me.  No big highs and no big lows.  Stability - who knew it could be so enjoyable? 

[Front-Ranger]

I am glad to hear that you had a low-stress trip Clarissa! Every mom deserves that!! With 5 ft of snow in my neighborhood, we just may set off some firecrackers ourselves. No fire hazard this year!! I'm hoping to go downtown and take in a spectacular fireworks display and partay with a Brokie friend or two!!

[Ellemeno]

I am glad to hear that you had a low-stress trip Clarissa! Every mom deserves that!! With 5 ft of snow in my neighborhood, we just may set off some firecrackers ourselves. No fire hazard this year!! I'm hoping to go downtown and take in a spectacular fireworks display and partay with a Brokie friend or two!!

Lee, I was at the grocery store this morning and saw a large display of avocados and seriously thought of overnighting  some to you.