A Capitol Hill NYE and Kids

Originally uploaded to flickr by Spirit Mama.

As I read the post on NYE festivities on the Hill, I spaced out and imagined what sparkly shirt I would wear and what great bars I would hit to ring in 2011. And than reality slapped me in the face as a child’s shriek echoed within the walls of my home. As a mother of two small children, my NYE festivities are pretty limited. I’ll be lucky if I make it to midnight and don’t pass out in my chair with a bottle of champagne still chilling in the fridge.

But those of the parenting set, your NYE really need not be so glum! There are a couple of possibilities. One of course is find a babysitter and go on out for a night on the town. However, it’s been my experience that you need to book a sitter for NYE well in advance, and I’m not a planner. Even if NYE happens on the same day every year.

Another option is The Family Room over on Barracks Row.  They will be hosting an early NYE party, with music and food, from 3-8 p.m. The cost is $10 per adult and $5 per child. The celebration will have a ringing in of the new year at 6 p.m. for those who go to bed well before midnight. Parents and children included.

The route we are going this year is having a celebration at our house. Deciding a start time has been an issue, as we have many friends who have kids, and many who do not. The conclusion we’ve come to is to invite our kid friends over for 6 p.m., giving them a enough time to nosh on some goodies and drink some cocktails (the parents not the children, though we will make some fun mocktails for the little ones). This gives the child people time to be grown ups, but enough time to make it home before the stroke of midnight when those little cherubs become gremlins.

We’ve told our other friends to come on over at 8. This is the first year we’ve tried this two-start party approach, but think it may be the most practical. We wanted to include as many people in our wide friend circle as possible. We have two kids of the pre-eight o’clock bedtime and of the pre-dawn wake up hour. Our do-it-yourself NYE party will include an amusing game of Apples to Apples, some Wii bowling and, once we down a few glasses of spirits, some Wii Karoke.

Whatever your NYE plans may be, the good news is that there are still plenty of ways to celebrate the passing of one year and the start of another. Even if in between there are a few diaper changes, temper tantrums and whining or wine-ing.