People get pretty crazy on New Year’s Eve, and I like to have fun, too. I don’t really do what most people my age do, though. While I know a lot of people like to party and cut loose with friends for the holidays, I always spend it with family. A lot of family. I go to my aunt’s house and hang out with my cousins (most of them younger), and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. Here’s what New Year’s with the family is like:

You get to spend your time leading up to midnight having crazy fun.

"Mario Kart," card games, intellectual discussions, you name it. Everything a great party needs. Not to mention the food that all the (real) adults brought.

You may not get your New Year’s kiss, but that doesn’t mean you’re not with those you love.

Instead of the usual “kiss at midnight” tradition, we have something a little different. We wave noisemakers in each other’s faces and scream, “Happy New Year!” Sometimes there’s even a balloon drop. Because we’re classy like that.

You pop the sparkling apple cider at midnight.

No alcohol for us. Just plastic glasses full of glorified apple juice. We cheer each other and pretend like we’re at a ritzy New York party with real champagne. And then we go back to playing cards.

You stay the night not because you have to but because you want to.

I know a lot of people who stay the night at a New Year’s party because they’re not fit to drive. I admire how smart they are. I usually stay the night, too, but it’s mostly for the Star Wars marathon. Okay, it’s totally because of the Star Wars marathon.

You end and start the year with your favorite people.

Nobody’s been there for me as long as my family has, and nobody has known me as long as they have. But I don’t get to see them half as much as I wish I did, so I take every chance I can get. I’m glad to say they’re the faces that bookend every year.