THE LITTLEST REVELERS — and their earlyto-bed parents — celebrate another Noon Year’s Eve at the Orlando Science Center.
Orlando Science Center celebrates fourth ‘Noon Year’s Eve’
The countdown hit zero, the confetti dropped from the ceiling and balloons danced along the top of the crowd.
It was New Year’s Eve — at the stroke of noon.
The Orlando Science Center’s annual “Noon Year’s Eve” party was a place where kids who can’t make it to midnight can still celebrate the New Year, surrounded by family, friends and the bones of prehistoric creatures.
“This is the fourth year we’ve been doing this, said Laura Harland, a science program interpreter at OSC. “We wanted to give kids something to celebrate, with a big boom and activities.”
The event started off small, she said, “but it’s only grown since then.”
For 2018 — sort of, go along with it — Noon Year’s Eve was held in the DinoDigs exhibit, where a giant T-Rex skeleton welcomed visitors while smaller dinosaurs held court in the back, lest the T-Rex find them.
For Jason and Amy Beaird, it wasn’t only a way for their daughters Mavrie, 3, and Adelyn, 5, to celebrate the new year — it was also a way for them to do it.
“Oh, we won’t be up either,” said Jason with a laugh.
“We’ve got to be up at 5 in the morning,” Amy said. “We have to get our sleep, too.”
Over at the actual DinoDigs, where kids “excavated” fossils using brushes, hands or whatever they could find, Meredith Lester watched her daughters Rachel, 5, and Samantha, 7, uncover a potential new species, yet to be named.
“My kids love the Kinetic Zone, the lights area, DinoDigs, and obviously they love the kids
zone,” she said.
Noon Year’s Eve, she said, “is a nice alternative for kids who aren’t going to stay up.”
And, like so many others, for her as well. “Oh we’re doing an early dinner,” Lester said. “We’re not going to go out, that’s for sure.” Others agreed. “And it’s a whole lot nicer in here,” said Bev Garvey, referring to the chilly (for Florida, anyway) temperatures expected for New Year’s Eve.
“The little guy, he loves it here,” said Mike Parkinson of his nephew, Taylor. “[His parents] have annual passes and all that. We took him to a show up the road and halfway through it, he wanted to come over here.”
Just before noon, emcee Spencer Jones warmed up the crowd of hundreds awaiting the big countdown.
Joining him was a real Tyrannosaur, or at least one that looked like OSC staffer Anna Villanyi in an inflatable T-Rex costume.
“What?” said Jones to doubters. “That’s a real T-Rex!”
After the countdown, with confetti everywhere and beach balls bouncing in all directions, including into reporters, Paula Strobel picked up her daughter Flora, 5, and fixed the paper crown on her head.
“She doesn’t really stay up past seven,” she said.
Would Strobel, at least, actually be staying up for midnight later?
“Noooo,” she said. “By nine or 10, I’ll be out, too.”
Happy Noon Year to everybody — especially, it seems, busy parents.
“Oh we’re doing an early dinner. We’re not going to go out, that’s for sure.” Meredith Lester