Everyone should be bathed and tidied. Upon returning home, house lights traditionally remain lit to welcome the new year. The first and second days of the New Year are dedicated to ancestor worship and the family. Traditionally all stores closed and everyone had a holiday. Today, many Chinese -Americans celebrate in the evening after work.
Families prepare special dishes to enjoy and celebrate the New Year.
Often the ingredients have a names similar to words of good fortune, longevity, health, prosperity, and the like. Eating these foods brings wishes of the same name. The family enjoys snacking on all the sweet pastries, nuts, and candies which have been brought out especially for this time. The remaining days are for fun and feasting, visiting friends and distant relatives. On the seventh day, the day on which every-one's birthday is celebrated, another family meal may be planned.