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Light up Lakewood (Photo by Can Türkyilmaz)
Lakewood lights up
The festive Light Up Lakewood, happening on Dec. 2 from 6 to 8 p.m. at Lakewood Shopping Center/Harrell Park, is sponsored by Lakewood Neighborhood Association as well as a number of neighborhood businesses. It started small back in 2002 as a simple customer appreciation event by Talulah and Hess owner Elizabeth Mast. Within a couple of years, most of the surrounding businesses joined the holiday effort. The focus of the event is not on shopping, as you might expect, but on community. There’s something for everyone, including a visit from Santa, a petting zoo, face painting, a balloon artist, a marionette show, toy soldiers on stilts and more. Hear the choirs from Lipscomb and Woodrow Wilson sing carols, along with the Woodrow marching band. But be sure you don’t miss the huge tree lighting at 7 p.m. —Patti Vinson
Light Up Lakewood
Dec. 2, 6-8 p.m.
Lakewood Shopping Center, Gaston at Abrams
lakewoodserviceleague.org
Christmas in Casa Linda
Alex Sanger Elementary choir sings at the Casa Linda Tree Lighting
When temperatures drop and shoppers begin to pick up the pace, it’s fair to say the area of Casa Linda already has begun preparing for Christmas. This year, some changes have taken place, but the East Dallas neighborhood still will be a place where locals can go to feel the holiday spirit and give back to others.
During past holiday seasons, residents flocked to the annual tree lighting at Casa Linda Plaza, but this year, the event will be a no-go. The tradition came to an end last year when new owners EDENS Real Estate nixed the celebration, seemingly to save tenants the $37,000 bill, although they did not officially comment on their decision to end the event. EDENS told the Advocate they will instead sponsor the nearby Casa Linda Lights. The holiday luminary event was started by Casa Linda Estates neighbors to raise money for first responders and their families. On Dec. 10 and 11, volunteers will light 7,000 luminaries throughout the Casa Linda Estates to raise money for the Guns & Hoses Foundation of North Texas, which provides financial support to the families of firefighters and police officers who died in the line of duty.
“What started as our neighborhood’s hope to create a beautiful holiday tradition in East Dallas has evolved into a great way to build relationships within the community and show our great thanks to local firefighters and police officers in the doing,” says Kara Kennedy, one of the event organizers.
In 2015 the luminaries in Casa Linda raised $7,000 for Guns & Hoses. The year before, $5,000 was raised for a local firefighter, Jeff Patterson, who suffered third-degree burns while fighting a house fire.
Casa Linda Lights
Dec. 10-11, after dark, Casa Linda Estates
casalindaestates.com
Close by, everyone can walk among rows of Christmas trees ready to be taken home to decorate thanks to neighbor, Jeff Patton who is once again putting up a Christmas tree lot at the Casa Linda Plaza, 9446 Garland Road. The Christmas tree lot is open from Nov. 25 through Christmas Eve from 9 a.m.-9 p.m. More information can be found at facebook.com/pattonschristmastrees.
12 Days of Christmas
The beloved carol “The 12 Days of Christmas” was first printed in England in 1780 but didn’t become the classic song we know today until 1909 in an arrangement by English composer Frederic Austin, who added the iconic “five golden rings.”
Over at the Dallas Arboretum, they take the traditional tune to new heights. Want to see nine ladies dancing or seven swans swimming? The botanical garden sets up fanciful scenes with painstaking attention to detail, right down to the rhinestone-encrusted pears surrounding a rotating partridge.
Called “12 Days of Christmas at Night,” the event offers a rare chance to tour the arboretum after dark. The expansive gardens glow with the twinkle of more than 500,000 holiday lights, which are paired with classic carols for a festive holiday evening. Tickets are $12.
The historic DeGolyer House will be open on select nights, serving up robust meals like roast pork with raspberry chipotle sauce in a merry setting. The entire home is expertly decorated for the season, and this year will feature Claus Collection Santa Exhibit, a display dedicated to St. Nick in his many iterations. Dinners are $55 a person and reservations are a must by calling Emily Gavin at 214.515.6511. Tours of the home are available during normal garden hours. —Emily Charrier
12 Days of Christmas at Night
Nov. 9-Dec. 30, 6-9 p.m. (except Christmas Eve and Christmas)
dallasarboretum.org
4 nontraditional holiday traditions
1— Not every holiday tradition is centered on shopping or Christmas treats. Sometimes the winter months means lacing up your sneakers, pulling on a warm hat and pounding the pavement with hundreds of other people. The BMW Dallas Marathon as well as the Half Marathon and Behringer Relay are celebrating 46 years of athletes running the city course. This year’s event happens on Dec. 11 with races stepping off at 8:05 a.m. Find out more at bmwdallasmarathon.com.
2— Though it takes place after Christmas, La Popular Tamale House will be ringing in the New Year by bringing back the black-eyed pea tamales. Why peas? Owner Jesse Moreno says they represent good luck and prosperity — a perfectly delicious start to 2017. The tamales will be sold Dec. 29–Jan. 3 at the restaurant, 5004 Columbia Ave. Moreno warns that the wait for tamales can be up to two or more hours, so consider pre-ordering at 214.824.7617.
(Photo by Jenn Ackerman/The Dallas Morning News)
3— Christmas and local history are intertwined at the Alexander Mansion, 4607 Ross Ave., during the Dallas Woman’s Forum Holiday Celebration. The festivities also include an afternoon tea, the proceeds of which benefit local charities. The holiday celebration runs from Dec. 1–4, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. The tea takes place Dec. 7–10 and 14-18 at noon. Call 214.823.4533 or visit dallaswomansforum.org for tickets.
4— Bad Christmas sweaters — the gaudier, tackier and more three-dimensional, the better, are all the rage thanks to ugly Christmas sweater parties. Thankfully there is The Ugly Christmas Sweater pop-up shop, which offers a concentrated inventory of tasteless Santa and snowflake emblazoned knits. It opens late November at 6333 E. Mockingbird, suite 141. Get more at uglychristmassweater dallas.com.
3 holiday highlights we miss
1— The Casa Linda Tree Lighting was like a party for residents.It was a chance to gather the neighborhood and give good cheer, and it is sorely missed. Talk around the Casa Linda Plaza water-cooler is that merchants are hoping to bring it back, or perhaps launch a new holiday tradition.
2— For years, the stately tree on Lakeshore at Boulevard Drive has been a holiday bright spot for residents. The tree long stood aglow with the twinkle of hundreds of lights, but this year will remain dark. The new property owner, however, says it might happen again in the future.
3— Nothing brings about nostalgia like watching the 1954 movie, “A White Christmas.” And while the Lakewood Theater’s tradition of showing the musical may have discontinued, that doesn’t mean we can’t still sing the songs so many have grown up listening to during the holidays.
