Happy New Year! How Bay Area kids celebrated 2025 before midnight
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Some families were looking for an earlier, family-friendly option to ring in the New Year that didn't require a late night.
That's why the Lawrence Hall of Science in Berkeley celebrated all day long.
VIDEO: Lawrence Hall of Science in Berkeley hosts family-friendly NYE celebration
Dozens of kids thought it was 2025 well before midnight, and they had the confetti to show for it.
Confetti was shot out of three different cannons inside UC Berkeley's public science center.
The learning lab came up with the idea of doing a family-friendly confetti launch every 45 minutes for the kids who can't quite make it to midnight.
"We have disco ducks, we have gemstone ducks, we have inflatable ducks and we have a behind-the-curtains kind of 'Wizard of Oz' moment where we have a cherry picker where our host will be MC'ing from above everyone and we have three different confetti cannons that will erupt filled with streamers and glitter and all sorts of fun to ring in the new year," Director of Public Engagement Claudia Bustos said.
Tickets to what they're calling the 2024 "grand finale" also included admission inside the Lawrence Hall of Science for the day.
MORE: Here's a look at New Year's Eve events happening around the Bay Area
In the North Bay, the New Year 2025 was off to a bouncing start in Novato, literally.
A ball drop happened at the stroke of noon, when thousands of small rubber balls were dropped from the top of a fire ladder truck for hundreds of kids scrambled to collect.
An excited crowd gathered at high noon in downtown Novato, waiting for a New Year's Eve ball drop like no other.
"Never heard of anything like it," said Emily Pasillas.
Kids wearing tiny hard hats and carrying buckets were into it and ready for the annual bouncy ball countdown.
It was a spectacle watching 25,000 small rubber balls dropped from a ladder truck 40 feet up. Hundreds of kids were scrambling to collect them.
Another ball drop for older kids was happening down the block at the same time.
"Lots of fun for the kids, very cool to see all those balls falling at once," said parent Natalie Smith.
"It's mayhem it's chaos, but it's really fun," said Stephanie Koehler, executive director of the Downtown Novato Business Association.
Koehler says she got the idea years ago when she worked for a science museum back east.
"Out of my brain I said, 'Wouldn't it be fun if we dropped bouncy balls from a really high place at noon,'" Koehler said.
Counting all the balls was the hard part.
"We were up all night counting every single one," Koehler said.
"It's a bouncy ball drop for those of us who can't make it to midnight," said the event's emcee.
A fun way for families to celebrate, without staying up late.
"It's one of the best events we do every year, a great way to bring the whole community out for the people who won't make it to midnight. Middle of the day energy is fantastic," said Novato Mayor Tim O'Connor.
Here's hoping your 2025 new year has just as much bounce.
