Christmas 2018

Christmas is coming (wasn't Thanksgiving super early this year? And winter break super late? Yikes.) I did a Christmas/advent post several years ago, but I wanted to update the activities. Here is a current list!

Santa Barbara Events

Christmas Pickle Tree Lighting at Westmont College Tuesday November 27th 5pm

La Arcada Walk Photos with Santa, Christmas goodies and carolers Wednesday November 28 5-8pm

Old Town Goleta Parade Saturday December 1 6pm

Milpas Holiday Parade Saturday December 1 5:30-8:30

Hollister Village Market Family friendly activities, balloon art, music and more  Saturday December 1 11:30-1:30

Snow Leopard Festival at the Santa Barbara Zoo Sunday December 2 10am-3pm (9am for Members)

Santa Barbara Holiday Parade Friday December 7 6:30pm

Pancakes, Santa and Reptiles a Fundraiser for the San Marcos Parent Workshop Saturday December 8, 8-11am

Waldorf Winter Faire is free with activities to stimulate your child's imagination Satuday December 8 1:30-5:30

Holiday at the Ranch at Stow House Holiday crafts, caroling, hay rides and tours. Saturday and Sunday December 8&9 11am-4pm $5/$2

Santa Barbara Wharf Parade of Lights Sunday December 9 5:30pm

Storytime with Santa at Paseo Nuevo Thursday December 13 10:30

Jingle Jam at SBCC hosted by Mission City Church Bounce houses, face painting, dance party and showing of the movie Elf Friday December 14 6pm

Breakfast with Santa at the Boys and Girls Club of Santa Barbara Saturday December 15 9-11am

A Non-Musical Puppet Christmas at Community Covenant Church of Goleta Saturday December 15 and Sunday December 16 6pm $6/family

Ongoing
Candy Cane Train at the South Coast Railroad Museum Saturday and Sunday1-4pm  (11/23-12/23) $5 per person

Lane Tree Christmas Lot has tree for sale, but also a corn maze, hayride and farm animals to visit. 9 or 10am - 8pm until 12/20.

Living Nativity at First United Methodist Church December 20, 21 and 22 from 5:30-7:30.

Pictures with Santa at Paseo Nuevo from now until 12/24 (10 or 11am - 7 or 8pm).

Pictures with Santa at La Cumbre Plaza from now until 12/24 (10 or 11am - at least 6pm)

Snowfall at Paseo Nuevo 6 and 7pm Daily until 12/31

The Trolley of Lights is already sold out, but you can find space on the Rockstar Trolley or you can make your own tours using these directions or these directions. Houses on Ontare in Santa Barbara and Carlisle in Goleta have longer light shows with music (tune in on the radio).

Did I miss anything? What are your favorite local holiday traditions?

Veteran's Day Activities

Veteran's Day is quickly approaching and while Santa Barbara/Goleta does not have a lot of Veteran's Day activities, there are a few.

The Veteran's Day Parade is Saturday November 10th starting at noon. It runs along State Street (at Sola St.) and turns to go along Carrillo Blvd ending at the Carriage Museum on Castillo St.

The Carriage Museum and the Pierre Claeyssens Veteran's Foundation have their annual Salute to Vets luncheon Saturday November 10th from noon-5. Tickets are $20 and Lunch is $10, children under 12 are free. There is also live music and military vehicles on display.

The Patriot Parachute Team display is part of the Salute to Vets event (Saturday November 10th at 1:30) but in the past it could be viewed from Cabrillo Blvd near Los Banos.

A Veteran's Day Ceremony (Sunday November 11 10am) takes place at the Santa Barbara Cemetery (902 Channel Dr.). It is one hour with a performance from the Santa Barbara Choral Society and a keynote speaker.

Another Veteran's Day Ceremony (Sunday November 11 11am) will be held at El Presidio de Santa Barbara State Historic Park (123 E. Canon Perdido St.) hosted by the Santa  Barbara Trust for Historic Preservation. There will be a color guard ceremony and a chance for the veterans to address the crowd.

While not an official event, I plan to take my girls to walk the Eling's Park Veterans Memorial Walk to talk about why we need people to serve in the military. (Yes, I do know there is a difference between Memorial Day and Veteran's Day, but this is a way to start the conversation.)

SLO Creek Farms

We took a jaunt up to SLO the other day to go the Great American Melodrama (blog post to come) and visited the SLO Creek Farm to pick apples. It was a fun little trip as part of a larger day trip.

SLO Creek Farm is a 44 acre organic apple farm with other u-pick produce during the year. There is also a 3 acre vegetable farm onsite. The apple season is August- the end of November.  The apple trees are trimmed low, so there is no worry about falling off a ladder!

Cost: Depend on the amount and type of apples/produce picked (it was $1.99 a pound of apples the day we were there)
Hours: 11am-5pm August-November
Time: 1/2 hour to 1 hour
More information: https://www.slocreekfarms.com/index.html
Directions: Take the 101N about 50 miles to exit 196 San Luis Bay Dr. Turn right onto San Luis Bay Dr, then left onto Monte Rd. The farm is on the left.

Related posts: Summer of the Easy Day Trips