First Night Buffalo

When it came to planning our big night out for New Year's Eve... the main idea was to find something family friendly (that didn't cost a bazillion dollars) and how to tire the kids out so they would actually be sleeping at midnight.

  The only person sleeping at midnight was Elliot but we reveled in family fun at First Night Buffalo. It is growing into a huge event for families, especially families that cannot find a sitter on New Year's Eve!

 I bought our advance tickets at Wegman's and we drove downtown to the Convention Center. We even showed up late (the whole thing runs for five hours) because I didn't think we could possibly need to be there that long. But I didn't factor in the long lines for bounce houses and carnival rides. We watched a little bit of the "Birds of Prey" show. What's more exciting than sitting in a large room with hawks flying low over the audience and instead of returning to their trainers... they perch in the fake ficus trees? We also became acquainted with this dude, Wacky Chad.

 

 Unfortunately, we missed out on arts and crafts and the Storytime village. There's always next year! For under $40, we ate ice cream, were nearly attacked by wild birds, laughed at a guy on his pogo stick, watched indoor fireworks, rode the merry go round and supported a downtown event in Buffalo. Not too shabby for a night out.

Elliot wasn't too sure about Wacky Chad.

 And due to our new digital antenna (thanks Gramps!), we watched the Times Square coverage after returning home. It had almost been a year without local channels and news - and it is comforting in a way to have it back. Just in time for the ball drop. Happy New Year everyone!