They were celebrating Noon Year's Eve at Children's Discovery Museum at noon along with about 500 parents and kids at event that allows children to take part in New Year's Eve festivities without staying up too late.

Everyone gathered at the clock tower in the center of the museum to do the countdown 10 seconds before noon. The clocks - almost 20 of them - are part of a permanent display at the museum and include a funny, frog clock, a train, and comic character clocks.

Their parents Paul and Lea Parent said this activity would be followed by a nap so the children could wakeup and celebrate the New Year again at midnight with friends and family at their party at home.

Jo Schmidt, a volunteer from Noodles & Company, helped children make colorful pasta necklaces. Other volunteers and museum staff assisted with the variety activities.

Shari Buckellew, museum manger, painted colorful 2006 on children's faces and chatted with the children about the museum and about New Year's.

Parents also participated in many activities. Marty Davis said he opted not to try the limbo. He and his daughters Tori, 7, and Anna, 10, were among many who had been to the museum before but were attending their first New Year's celebration here. It was the museum's second Noon Year's Eve.

"This is it," said Jill Benson during the hubbub of the celebration. She brought her two children, Natalie, 8, and Sophie, 4, to the celebration and said they would be sleeping at midnight.

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