🎉 2026 New Year’s LIVE! 🧨

Welcome! - 9:07 AM

*intro music* 

Ladies and gentlemen…here we are LIVE in writing from the studio at 2204 Shadow Creek Ct!

When I wrote the title of this column, I didn’t know whether to call it 2025 New Year’s or 2026 New Year’s…does anybody know? I suppose the new year will be 2026, and this is what we’re celebrating, so that’s what I decided to call it. But is that right? It’s still 2025! 😆

At any rate, I’m sitting at the kitchen table on a dark blue Chromebook; to my left there’s our kitchen with little new years decorations. I’m looking out the window at a red-berry tree of some sort! The time on the oven says 9:05 AM! It’s a gooood morning. Today comes the Kernan New Year’s Party!! My mom has been meticulously “proofing” the house…as we’re having quite a few peeps over;

-The Spradlins (Mom, Dad, Luke, Cyrus, Samuel, Jude)

-The Paskvans (Mom, Dad, Thomas, Tristan)

-The Parkers (Mom, Dad, Nash, Nora)

-Us! The Kernans (Mom, Dad, Clare, Simon)

There’s a tangible excitement in the air. At around 8 this morning, I took a crisp 2-mile run on the Westlake Trail; it seemed everyone running had a new pop in their step. It feels good out here.

I just made my bed and ripped my “December” calendar page off, revealing a NEW YEAR. I’m very excited.

I’m about to go take a shower now, so wish me a good enjoyable time!

Way later - 4:06 PM

Gotta say this fast because people are going to start arriving soon, but:I did take the shower in a rush. It feels good just to let warm water run over your skin…its sooo amazing. Anyways, then we headed over to St. Joseph’s senior living village where my grandfather lives and built gingerbread houses. 

Mine had an A-frame roof. I put little fondant light strings up all around the ground, covered the front with red and green holly candies, and crushed up red and green M&Ms to make the roof look cool! It's a good way of unleashing your creativity, without having to have artistic talent. I think it looks very nice.Then I ate a chicken salad sandwich in the bistro with everybody, and played a pool game with Nash. That feeling of anticipation and excitement has definitely carried throughout the day.

It skyrocketed when we got home at 1; Calvin came over with his friend Will…

We created ten levels of mini-challenges for the people at the New Year’s Eve party to compete in. Said competition is now a paper inside the “ominous orange envelope”...

We played marco polo and the levels in the bounce house until around 3:40 PM. I’ve been cleaning up the house since now, and here we are back at my seat at the kitchen table. I’m wearing a white Snoopy shirt, with Vuori sweatpants. At around 7 PM during the party I’m going to change into my green christmas pj bottoms. That’ll be fun!

Gotta go now; my mom just asked me to take out the trash and prep the cooler with ice for the drinks…which include:

-Coca-Cola

-San Pellegrino (Tangerine) YUMMY

-La Croix (Lemon)

-Sprite

-Cool water

-Chilled “Hint” water - for Tristan, Cyrus, and me (just a little special I picked up as we were getting drinks)

Anyways, see y’all sometime soon!

Phew! - 4:32 PM

Just set up the mini-speaker; it's playing a jazz album that is 59 minutes long. Assuming this, it's going to play about 8 times by the time it's midnight! WOW! 

I’m SO EXCITED Oh my gosh WOOOHOOOO!! 😄

My dad just walked in with a veggie tray and lush fruit tray so that’s even better! The past two years the Paskvans have brought a sushi tray that spells “26” in big lettering…it's SO COOL! If they bring that here again I’ll let you know!

It’s all prepped! - 4:46 PM

Alright. Everything isss prepared! I put out signs that say “party (this way)”, “drinks” and instructions on labelling your name on your Solo cups! 

Also I set out some party games on the dining room table: Tinderblox, Sounds Fishy, Chameleon, You Can’t Say Umm, and Telestrations (which we had a lot of fun with last year). 

Paskvans - 4:56 PM

Here come the Paskvans in their dark blue Tesla! As I walked out there, I noticed a tray of something…

Oh hang on…I’m running out there now. 

Just got back…THEY BROUGHT THE SUSHI TRAY! One tray spells “26” in crab meat sushi with Philadelphia rolls all around; the other has some real exotic pieces; uncooked salmon on rice, spicy sauce sushi, and shredded crab with avocado and sour cream (which turned out to be my favorite). Enclosed at the bottom of this article is a picture!

Tristan also brought a game called “Splendor”, which is gonna be fun to play later tonight!

Everybody arrives - 5:08 PM

Just came downstairs…and the Spradlins are filing in the kitchen door.

A few moments later…here come the Parkers in their blue Volkswagen Atlas! Just finished a little basketball 1v1 against Cyrus Spradlin. 

It’s gonna get hard to stay live as much as I have been, but I’ll try and pop in every once and a while!

Party status: full swing! - 5:58 PM

Just finished bouncing around in the bounce house…everybody seems to be having a good time. 

We just finished playing some party games. People enjoyed it, although “You Can’t Say Umm” definitely threw a few ripples in a peaceful lake…

The sushi is always a big highlight…it's SO delicious. I also am drinking a “tangerine and clementine” San Pellegrino, which is SO GOOD. Wow. 

The “fun bustle” feeling of a good party is here at the Kernan home, and its so much fun. Each year this is like our “big party”.

What a night! - 9:24 PM

Finished up the minigames my mom prepared! She did a great job…it was SO FUN!

Every year she wraps 4 or 5 boxes inside each other, and all the kids gather around the dining room table and unwrap it as fast as possible. The twist: it's with oven mitts on! It moves on from person 1 to person 2 once person 2 rolls doubles on the two dice. Last year Thomas won, so I deliberately placed myself right after him…and while some of it is definitely luck, it may have helped… 

This year, I won the 50 dollar Amazon gift card! WOOHOOOO!

The minigame challenge was a HIT! - 11:02 PM

Remember that “ominous orange envelope” that some friends and I prepared earlier today? Well, I was secretly nervous we’d never get to it; things like that are very idealistic and hard to keep organized.

But through a wondrous blessing, it was the most enjoyable, most organized thing I’ve ever done. WOW! Tristan helped me quite a bit, so that was great. 

Contestants: Tristan, Nash, Nora, Samuel, and Cyrus.

The Qualifiers:

• Spot 1 (Fastest Times): Won by Nora (did not advance)
• Spot 2 (Find-the-Item): Won by Cyrus (advanced)
• Spot 3 (Race): Won by Nash (advanced)

Championship: The championship was a simple game of basketball; first person to make three shots in the hoop wins.

You’ll have to go to Google Drive and find the live broadcast, but in the end…Nash won. It was a fun, exciting moment. The end was surprisingly tense. We recorded a video for Will and Calvin. Thanks for helping me get it together guys! It was great.

Listen to it here!

Happy New Year! - 12:24 AM

Hello friends! This is Simon creating content for the first time in 2026!

What a life. What a fun party!

We just finished doing the firecrackers and counting off the new year from Uncle John’s phone outside. We also did a big knockout game with the dads and the boys. It was so fun!

Warning: hehe Tristan really likes fire…and he had the lighter. As we were making a huge pile of Pop-Its on the ground, Tristan jokingly brought the lighter close to the pile. OH GOSH 😆🤣Unfortunately we never did get to play Splendor. BUT we’ll definitely play at some point in the future. That’s just about it! I’m going to clean up my room and BED IT. GN, and God bless.-Simon

Highlights:

1. Everybody arriving
2. The sushi trays!
3. Using the strobe effect in my room to make it feel like a video game at 30 frames per second
4. Playing Telestrations
5. The knockout game with everybody
6. Goofing around in the bounce house
7. The finale of the Minigame Challenges
8. The minigame competition

Adios, la Pringlevillians! God bless.