Years from now, our kids will reminisce about what they were doing in 2020. They’ll trade quarantine stories and smiles about the family memories they made during this unprecedented year. While memories of quarantine birthday parties, homemade forts, or living room recess activities might be dominant themes during a year of stay-at-home activities, we couldn't have survived without the greater Long Island community.

As we close the book on 2020, we're taking a minute to offer some well-deserved gratitude to the Long Island spots that stayed open, reinvented themselves, and overall saved our sanity this year. Here are 10 Long Island destinations worth raising a glass to as we turn the page to 2021.

With 2021 just hours away, I'm sure I'm not the only one ready to kick the dumpster fire of 2020 to the curb, but in the spirit of optimism and silver linings, I'll be doing so with a grateful heart. Twenty-twenty tested us in ways we couldn't previously imagine, but it also brought out our best in many ways, and now that we're almost through it, let's take a little time to offer some gratitude to the New York City people and places who saved our sanity in this crazy, never-ending, groundhog day type of a year.

So, join me in raising your glass to these (lucky!) 13 New York City characters and the hope on the horizon.

Families are certainly ready to say goodbye to 2020, a year full of heartache, loss, and struggle for so many of us. With schools and daycares closed, parents were particularly burdened in a difficult year.

But it wasn’t all bad, of course. We continued to find moments of light and yes, silver linings within a painful global pandemic and all that came with it. We asked our readers and staff what they learned or gained in 2020 and what they resolve to continue doing into the new year, here’s what they said.

We love the inclusivity of mocktails. Now kids, pregnant mamas, and teetotalers can safely get in on the cocktail countdown fun.

From pink-hued sangria (with Shirley Temples) to mojitos (and minty limeade), we have five yummy cocktail-mocktail pairings for parents and kids to enjoy together.

Find more creative ways to celebrate New Year's Eve at home with these 12 kid-friendly activities.

To say 2020 was a tough year for parents is an understatement. Now that it’s (thankfully!) nearing a close, we wanted to look back at some of the people, places, and things that helped make it possible to keep some semblance of sanity. Parents suddenly became teachers, chief playmates, and head chefs, and it was not easy. But happily, events got creative, parents got plucky, and kids mastered ways to play and socialize online. So, as we ring in 2021, we just wanted to say a huge THANK YOU to everything that helped us survive a year like no other.