Families around the world love community-organized First Night festivals that help ring in the New Year in high style. Adults appreciate the many daytime shows for children, open-air activities that parents can drop in and out of, and the festive but civilized, alcohol-free environment.

We know families who have saved money on babysitters in years past and taken their kids dancing in Grand Central Station in New York, to live theatre on Miami's Lincoln Road, to Boston's ice sculpture exhibits, to Worcester, Massachusetts' Resolution Bonfire (write out your resolutions and toss them into a public inferno), and to street performances in lively downtown Vancouver, either before or after a celebratory meal.

The First Night of the First Night Story

It began in Boston when an independent arts organization decided to marshal community talents for a whopper of a show celebrating the Bicentennial on New Year's Eve, 1976. By the time the millennium rolled around, First Night Boston 2000 led more than 200 similar First Night events throughout the US, Canada, England and New Zealand.

What's the big deal? Typically, these corporate sponsored, day-long festivals of music, dance, puppetry and other arts are staged in different theaters or auditoriums, public spaces and other venues for little or no cost. Kids activities rule the daylight, and arts events occupy the night. Although many events are alcohol-free, partying and fireworks usually ring in the New Year.

There are dozens of events being celebrated across the U.S. on December 31st as part of the First Night USA cultural program. For information on celebrations for 2011 becoming 2012, families can check their website to learn more about the nearest family friendly celebration in Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia or Washington state.

The flagship First Night Boston will feature hundreds of artists in exhibitions and performances at over 30 locations, including local colleges. On December 31st, Boston attractions include the Family Festival at the Hynes Convention Center, packed with interactive activities for all ages. The gigantic ice sculptures are back on Copley Square and the Boston Common, including the First Night Frogs. Two glittering fireworks display, and a Mardi Gras-style Grand Procession down Boylston Street to Boston Common that sweeps through the streets. After dark, it's dance, comedy, theater and almost every type of music at a variety of venues. And after more than three decades, the Boston event costs just $18 for an all-access button.

After a dozen years, First Night Flathead in Montana has moved beyond the main street of Kalispell to many neighboring communities whose shops and theatres serve as performance venues. This year, families will find free children’s activities in the Kalispell Center Mall featuring hat decorating, face painting, free pony rides and a First Night Commencement Parade conducted around the Mall. And for visitors, there's a great deal: the Kalispell Red Lion Hotel is offering a New Year’s Eve room rate (including a hot breakfast) to First Night button holders of $69 for two adults, with kids 17 and under free. All proceeds go to support Glacier National Park.

The whole family can don a glittery T-shirt for the St. Petersburg, Florida First Night, which is commemorating nearly 20 years of New Year's Eve celebrations of the arts at multiple venues in downtown St. Pete. Family-oriented festivities will take place on music stages, with entertainment, drama, dance, games, art, fireworks and more, so check on their Facebook page for the latest updates.

Family Activities Prevail on New Year's Eve Day

There are several commercial versions of First Night as well.

Denver is typical of many cities that have picked up the First Night vibe and made it their own. They're putting on a family-friendly fireworks show on New Year's Eve at 9pm, followed by the traditional midnight extravaganza, both over the 16th Street Mall. Downtown Denver's mile-long pedestrian promenade boasts 28 outdoor cafes, many of which will be serving that night. Other family activities include the "Noon Year's Eve" at the Children's Museum of Denver, where balls will drop five times each hour till 4pm so kids can practice their countdown and throw confetti around. At the popular Denver Zoo, a child-focused "wild" New Year's Eve party begins at 5pm, with family entertainment, activities, and the beautiful lights that glitter overnight over the Zoo's 38 acres.

Several destinations also have their own interpretation of Times Square's famous "Ball Drop" and it can range from the sublime to the ridiculous, and changes from year to year. For New Yorkers, the Times Square New Year's Eve Ball is actually a 12-foot geodesic sphere weighing 11,875 pounds. It's covered in 2,668 crystals and powered by 32,256 LEDS which produce a stunning kaleidoscope effect. Perhaps not as brilliant as Lady Gaga and Justin Bieber, who are both scheduled to perform live from Times Square for the 2011-2012 first night.

For Floridians, the glittery "ball" is a bird. Sort of. As many as 50,000 Pensacola residents ushered in 2010 by lowering a 13-foot tall, 3,000-watt illuminated pelican with a 17-foot wingspan.

Residents in Mobile, Alabama await a ritual beginning with a tradition that began as 2008 became 2009. The "MoonPie Over Mobile" is a 12-foot, 650-pound MoonPie hovering above Cooper Riverside Park that's set to signal the start of 2010. This year it coincides with a rare blue moon -- a second full moon in a calendar month -- shining above. Afterward, an edible 50-pound blue MoonPie will be served to ball-goers attending Mobile's inaugural New Year's Eve Ball.

In Annapolis, Maryland, in other foodie example, an illuminated neon crab descends at midnight. Last year in Delray Beach, Florida, 50,000 inedible ping pong balls will shoot out of a cannon.

Children are the primary focus in the Lafayette, Louisiana New Year's celebration. In place of a traditional countdown to midnight, the New Year's "Noon and Countdown Carnival" takes place for kids of all ages. The 12th annual Children's Museum of Acadiana event features a confetti drop at noon and street fair in the mid-morning and afternoon.

A New Year Marked by Family Fun

Did you realize that archaeologists believe the Babylonians are the first civilization to celebrate the New Year, and that they enjoyed an 11-day holiday tied to the vernal equinox? Some European cultures marked New Year in spring, the Jews still mark it in fall, and the Chinese, as we all know, celebrate in deep winter.

However, somewhere back in Roman times, New Year's was celebrated on January 1st, a custom that was eventually adopted in the Middle Ages by many Western countries.

Now it's become more organized fun with a worthwhile formula. According to First Night USA, an umbrella group, "First Night organizers share a commitment to promoting the performing and visual arts as catalysts for unifying their citizens on New Year’s Eve (and beyond) through creativity, imagination, and participation."

We'll drink to that! Don't forget their website has information and links to First Night events in hundreds of communities. Happy New Year!