So, we decided to host our 1st ever kid-friendly New Year’s Eve party.  And it was a big success! So, I hope it is the 1st of many! Want to throw your own kid-friendly New Year’s Eve party? Here is part 1, focused on setting up for your party.

1. Make a photo booth with items from the Dollar Store.  I bought 2 large sheets of poster paper (2 for $1), and also bought some gold garland ($1 each).  Last, I got some fun hats and glasses.  I set 1/2 of the items in a basket next to the photo booth area.  Theother 1/2 Ihad at the front door, ready to give to part goers as they arrived.  This helped everyone get in the party spirit.:-)

2. Set the table with lots of yummy appetizers and ask your friends to bring an app to share.  I am a fan of making a party easy to throw.  So don’t over-burden yourself by thinking you have to provide everything. Plus, it helps bring more fun to the party to see what people bring.  I missed getting a pix of our beautiful spread, so I took this photo after the fact.  I promise there were tons ofgreat goodies.  I like to give people a category of food to bring, so you don’t have 5 cheese/meat platters. I asked one friend to bring a fruit app, another to bring a dessert item, etc.  Bonus tip: If you haven’t before, you should purchase some of this awesome chalkboard fabric.  Lay it on your serving table and people can easily write a note to describe their dish. * There had been shrimp where the hat is in this pix:)

3.  Make an area designated for adult drinks (*assuming people that come will drink responsibly, since they are caring for their children).  You’ll also notice the sign says that “adult treats” are nearby.  I wanted the cookies to be out of view for the young children so parents could decide on their own if they wanted to sneak a treat just for themselves or share with their kids (for my 1 year old, my philosophy is no sugar if we can avoid it – except Bday cake).

We had the mixings for several drinks.  Favorites of the night included White Russians, and an adaptation on a Grapefruit Flirtini. I’m naming it the “Dazzling”, since “Dazzling” was the theme for our party.

2 oz vodka

4 oz grapefruit juice

Fill with Champagne to desired size

 

Read more… Part 2: New Year’s Eve kid-friendly Games and activities…