We tried very hard to stay up until midnight on New Year’s Eve. Did make some mimosas around 9 p.m. so we could have a toast with Mom to mark the end of one of the most significant years in her life as well as ours. We chatted a while about just where the celebrations started in the Pacific Ocean and where it was currently over the Atlantic, and some related anecdotes, but staying up until the magic hour just wasn’t going to happen.

The next day, however, was more celebratory, as my granddaug...