We hope you all had a wonderful holiday weekend and enjoyed spending time with your friends and family.
If you like Parades, Holiday Markets and Christmas Tree Lightings this calendar is for you! This coming weekend is packed full of Holiday fun for the entire family!
The Winter Wonderland is open at McWane and Zoolight Safari Kicks off later this week. If you’re still looking for Santa, make sure to check our list of Santa Sightings to see where he’ll be and when.
It’s Not Our Fault if Your Kids are Bored!
Sunday December 1st:
Grinch Day – Barnes and Noble Summit
Join us for a reading of the Dr. Seuss Classic, How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, followed by Grinch-themed activities and holiday goodies. This event kicks off “ 25 Days of Grinch-Mas,” a campaign to encourage kids to do one good deed each day.
1pm
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Monday December 2nd:
Holiday Monday Movie – Homewood Public Library
Join us for some fresh-popped movie popcorn and a holiday movie.
3:30
Tot Time with Ms Eve – Avondale Library
Storytime for 2-4-year-olds with a caregiver. Includes stories, songs, and craft. 24-hour advance registration required.
10:30am
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Tuesday December 3rd:
Homewood Lighting of the Star – 18th Street in Homewood
For over 60 years and a Homewood tradition, the huge star that hangs at the top of 18th Street symbolizes the Homewood holiday’s. The “Star” will be lit by Mayor Scott McBrayer. The celebration will be much larger this year with school choirs, hot chocolate from Savages, coffee from O’ Henry’s, cookies and many more surprises. Make this a family tradition and come join us at the top of 18th Street by the LAH Real Estate building.
5:30pm
Vestavia Hills Tree Lighting – Wald Park
Enjoy live entertainment, a business expo, the lighting of the tree and a visit with Santa!
6pm
Family Tours – Birmingham Museum of Art
FREE // Meet in the Main Lobby
Join us for an in-gallery family experience! Children aged 3 – 8 and their adult companions are invited to join Museum educators to explore our collection, discover activities that make looking at art fun and exciting, and create new family memories about art.
No reservations required. Family Tours are also available by appointment for groups of 10 or more children aged 3 – 8. For more information or to schedule a tour, call 205.254.2964.
10:30am
Storytime for All Ages – Homewood Public Library
Story Time
10:30am
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Wednesday December 4th:
Family Story Time with Mr Mac – North Shelby Library
Storyteller Extraordinaire – Come join Mr Mac and his musical storytime complete with puppets! All Ages, no registration required.
10:45am
Storytime – Barnes and Noble Summit
If a big hungry moose comes to visit, you might give him a muffin to make him feel at home. What will he want next? In this hilarious sequel to If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, the young host is again run ragged by a surprise guest.
11am
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Thursday December 5th:
11th Annual Columbiana Christmas Parade – Downtown Columbiana
The 2013 theme is “A Southern Experience”; with Grand Marshal, Dell Moody.
Prior to the parade, from 5:30pm to parade time, Robert Robinson will be performing Christmas Carols and Dream Makers Dancers will dance. Following the parade, children can enjoy cocoa from Jacks and cookies from Wooden Spoon Bakery with Santa. Santa will be taking pictures with children by the City Christmas Tree. Be sure to bring your own camera.
Sloss Holiday Market – Sloss Furnace
Celebrate the Holidays Birmingham-style with Sloss Furnaces! Sloss Arts is excited to announce it’s first Holiday Market. Taking place under the viaduct, the Holiday Market will feature local vendors selling art, crafts, food, and more, just in time for the Holiday Season. The Market will run for three days, starting with a kickoff preview party on the evening of Thursday, December 5th. At the party, each vendor will have one item available at the silent auction, benefiting the nonprofit. The winning bidders will be asked to pick up their items over the next couple of days. With food and music, the party will be a great way to get a look at what the following days will have to offer. The Market will open the following day. Vendors will be showcasing their products for convenient holiday shopping – something for everyone!
6pm – 9pm
Pleasant Grove City Lighting – Steps of City Hall
7pm
Mommy and Me Storytime – Homewood Public Library
Story Time for our younger patrons (birth to 30 mo.) and their lap partner.
10:30
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Friday December 6th:
Zoolight Safari – Birmingham Zoo
Celebrate the Holidays at Wells Fargo ZooLight Safari. Plan ahead for this exciting holiday-centric event! Be amazed by more than half a million lights, holiday music and plenty of festive activities as the Zoo comes alive for 18 nights of fun in this transformed winter wonderland!
$8 Non-members
Members free
5pm – 9pm
Sloss Holiday Market – Sloss Furnace
Celebrate the Holidays Birmingham-style with Sloss Furnaces! Sloss Arts is excited to announce it’s first Holiday Market. Taking place under the viaduct, the Holiday Market will feature local vendors selling art, crafts, food, and more, just in time for the Holiday Season. The Market will run for three days, starting with a kickoff preview party on the evening of Thursday, December 5th. At the party, each vendor will have one item available at the silent auction, benefiting the nonprofit. The winning bidders will be asked to pick up their items over the next couple of days. With food and music, the party will be a great way to get a look at what the following days will have to offer. The Market will open the following day. Vendors will be showcasing their products for convenient holiday shopping – something for everyone!
3pm – 8pm
Polar Express Storytime – Barnes and Noble Summit
All aboard The Polar Express! Enjoy a reading of the holiday classic The Polar Express, along with fun activities and holiday treats. Register to win four tickets to McWane Science Center during the event!
7pm
Storytime, Special Event, Children’s Event
All aboard The Polar Express! On Friday, December 6 at 7:00 pm, enjoy a reading of the holiday classic The Polar Express, along with fun activities and holiday treats. Register to win four tickets to McWane Science Center during the event!
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Saturday December 7th:
Winter Wonders Day – Birmingham Museum of Art
Join Bart and his friends for fun in his winter wonderland! Enjoy holiday scavenger hunts, crafts, storytelling, and more. Take a photo with Santa Claus and tell him your holiday wishes!
FREE biscuit breakfast begins at 8:00 am – first come, first serve.
Photos with Santa begins at 9:00 am.
8am – 3pm
Zoolight Safari – Birmingham Zoo
Celebrate the Holidays at Wells Fargo ZooLight Safari. Plan ahead for this exciting holiday-centric event! Be amazed by more than half a million lights, holiday music and plenty of festive activities as the Zoo comes alive for 18 nights of fun in this transformed winter wonderland!
$8 Non-members
Members free
5pm – 9pm
Holidays around the World: St Nicklaus Day – Hoover Library
Join us as we travel to Germany for a traditional celebration complete with candy filled shoes and pickles! All ages
10:30am
Alabaster Christmas Parade
The route will begin at Ernest McCarty Ford and end at the stop sign in front of Southbrook Village on 1st Street Southwest. This year’s theme is “Wishin’ For A White Christmas”.
10am
Helena’s Christmas Parade – Helena Amphitheater
The theme this year is ” A Helena Christmas Past, Present and Future”. The parade route begins at Highway 261/Helena Road and ends in Old Town Helena.
1pm
LEGO Club – North Shelby Library
The library provides the Legos, the kids provide the imagination and creativity. Families are welcome to drop in anytime between 10:00 and 11:00 am to build spectacular creations. Creations will then go on display in the Children’s Department. All Ages Welcome. No registration is required.
10am
Pleasant Grove Christmas Parade – City Hall
Parade officially begin at 9:00 A.M.
A quality, entertaining holiday parade, suitable for the entire family.
Holiday Faire – Waldorf School
Join us for Alabama Waldorf School’s 26th annual Holiday Faire! Celebrate the season with an international buffet and bake sale, live music, games, climbing wall from Idelwild, and vendors featuring local artists, crafts & handmade goods.
10am to 3pm
Storytime on the Mountain – Ruffner Mountain Nature Center
Come up to the Tree House with the kids for Story Time the first Saturday of every month. Miss Jerri will be reading a book about nature, wildlife, or the great outdoors. After the story, make a craft that reflects the theme from the book.
10am
Ross Bridge Holiday Market – Ross Bridge Welcome Center
The Holiday Market at Ross Bridge is a free market full of ideas for holiday decorating, entertainaing, and gift giving. Spend the first Saturday after Thanksgiving getting everything you need to kick the Christmas season off right. The boy scouts will be selling freshly cut Christmas trees. Dorothy McDaniel’s Flower Market will have a great selection of fresh garland, wreaths, and mailbox swags. There will be caterers sampling holiday favorites and unique gift vendors with hand knitted scarves, jewelry, and much more. Come and enjoy the fun.
10am – 3pm
Sloss Holiday Market – Sloss Furnace
Celebrate the Holidays Birmingham-style with Sloss Furnaces! Sloss Arts is excited to announce it’s first Holiday Market. Taking place under the viaduct, the Holiday Market will feature local vendors selling art, crafts, food, and more, just in time for the Holiday Season. The Market will run for three days, starting with a kickoff preview party on the evening of Thursday, December 5th. At the party, each vendor will have one item available at the silent auction, benefiting the nonprofit. The winning bidders will be asked to pick up their items over the next couple of days. With food and music, the party will be a great way to get a look at what the following days will have to offer. The Market will open the following day. Vendors will be showcasing their products for convenient holiday shopping – something for everyone!
9am – 8pm
Bart’s Art Cart – Birmingham Museum of Art
This drop-in art program for kids and families features a different theme from our galleries and art activity each month. Stop by to make art with Bart! Portrait Project // Look at the people around you. Who do you see?
11am – 1pm
Family Storytime – Emmet O’Neal Library
Bring the entire family and join Mr. Mac for stories and music each Saturday morning.
10:30 a.m.
Storytime – Barnes and Noble Summit
If a big hungry moose comes to visit, you might give him a muffin to make him feel at home. What will he want next? In this hilarious sequel to If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, the young host is again run ragged by a surprise guest.
11am
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Sunday December 8th:
Zoolight Safari – Birmingham Zoo
Celebrate the Holidays at Wells Fargo ZooLight Safari. Plan ahead for this exciting holiday-centric event! Be amazed by more than half a million lights, holiday music and plenty of festive activities as the Zoo comes alive for 18 nights of fun in this transformed winter wonderland!
$8 Non-members
Members free
5pm – 9pm
Liberty Park Christmas Parade
Enjoy the city’s official parade followed by the Liberty Park Christmas Celebration with children’s activities, refreshments, live entertainment, pictures with Santa, and more!
Parade route: Liberty Park Sports Complex to Alston Meadows
2pm – 4pm
Mountain Brook Holiday Parade – Mountain Brook Village
Holiday floats, a marching band, music, elves, photos with the Mayor, who will arrive on a FIRE TRUCK – all to be a part of the Holiday parade with a new longer route through Mountain Brook Village. Parade activities begin at 3:00 PM with live entertainment from the center stage in Mountain Brook Village as Santa and the parade make their way through Mountain Brook. Plan to line the streets for surprises from the floats! The procession will meander through historic Mountain Brook Village on Cahaba Road, Culver Road, and Petticoat Lane. Lots of surprises are in store, but the special guest will arrive in his traditional fashion. Pictures with Santa, sponsored by Village Living, will be taken after the parade on the center stage in the village.
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Local Attractions Open Daily!
McWane Science Center:
IMAX
McWane Science Center’s IMAX® Dome Theater puts you in the center of the action by projecting breathtaking quality images onto the 5-story-tall dome screen and delivering intense surround sound through almost 3 tons of speakers and subwoofers.
Now Showing: Flight of the Butterflies, Titans of the Ice Age
Unearthing Alabama’s Ice Age – through December 31st, 2013
McWane Science Center is home to Alabama’s second largest natural history collection. Made up of over 500,000 specimens and objects pertaining to the natural history of the state, this important collection focuses on the preservation, education, and research of Alabama’s rich biodiversity and paleobiodiversity. One of the more significant subsets of the collection is Alabama’s largest collection of Late Pleistocene faunal remains – or Ice Age fossils.
Made up of nearly 10,000 cataloged specimens, the McWSC Pleistocene collection contains a unique diversity of fauna that not only includes those native to North America, but migrants to the state from both South America and the Old World. This collection includes mammals, both extant and extinct, reptiles, amphibians, birds, fishes, and botanical remains collected from both cave and stream localities in the state. Extinct mammals represented in the McWSC collection include mammoths, mastodons, giant beavers, saber-toothed cats, giant armadillos, tapirs, peccaries, and giant ground sloths.
This spring, visitors will have an opportunity to view some of the fossils in the collection with a new exhibit titled — “Unearthing Alabama’s Ice Age.” This exhibit will not only highlight many of the Ice Age animals from the McWane Science Center Collection, but will highlight and dispel many of the common misconceptions surrounding the Ice Age in the state. The goal is for visitors to have a better understanding and appreciation for this time in Alabama. For example, guests might learn that Alabama was on average only five degrees colder than today, glaciers did not reach farther south than southern Illinois or that all the Ice Age animals did not go extinct at the end of the Ice Age. While the largest animals, such as mastodons, giant ground sloths, and saber-tooth cats died out, nearly all the animals that are living in Alabama today were also around in the Ice Age.
The Unearthing Alabama’s Ice Age Alabama display is located in the City Gallery on Level 2 of the museum. It is included in the cost of admission to the museum and free to members.
Birmingham Zoo:
Lorikeet Aviary – Our Lorikeet Aviary has more birds than ever! Zoo guests can feed these exotic birds every day. You and your family will see these birds’ behavior as they eat nectar out of your hand.
Weekends 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
PELICAN FEEDING – A great way to see our pelicans in action is to witness them eating their favorite treats near the pelican boardwalk.
RHINO ENCOUNTER – Embark on an African adventure and experience one of the world’s most extraordinary animals, the Southern White Rhino. Watch from only feet away as our zookeepers engage in hands-on interaction with the animals inside their African-themed exhibit. Don’t miss this exciting encounter with one of the largest mammals on the planet!
Weekdays: 3pm – 3:30pm
Weekends: 11:30am – Noon & 3pm – 3:30 pm
GIRAFFE FEEDING – This up close and personal animal encounter is a memory you and your family will have for a lifetime.
Weekday: 11am – Noon
Weekends: 10am – 11am & 2pm – 3pm
Vulcan Park and Museum:
Vulcan is the world’s largest cast iron statue; made of 100,000 pounds of iron and 56 feet tall, he stands at the top of Red Mountain overlooking the city of Birmingham. But, Vulcan is more than a statue. Vulcan Park and Museum features spectacular views of Birmingham, an interactive history museum that examines Vulcan and Birmingham’s story, and a beautiful public park for visitors and locals to enjoy. With an official information center that is operated by the Greater Birmingham Convention and Visitors Bureau, Vulcan Park and Museum serves as the first stop for visitors to the Birmingham area!
Railroad Park:
Railroad Park is a 19 acre green space in downtown Birmingham that celebrates the industrial and artistic heritage of our great city. Situated along 1st Avenue South, between 14th and 18th Streets, the park is a joint effort between the City of Birmingham and the Railroad Park Foundation. Hailed as “Birmingham’s Living Room,” Railroad Park provides a historically rich venue for local recreation, family activities, concerts, and cultural events, while connecting Birmingham’s downtown area with Southside and UAB’s campus.
Southern Museum of Flight:
Earn Your Wings – Bring your little pilot and soar above the clouds in our little pilots room. Kids enjoy building aircrafts, flying kites, and more.
Museum Open Tuesday – Thursday
9:30am – 4:30pm
Do you have or know of an event you would like to have added to our weekly calendar? Please email us at contact@birminghammommy.com, subject line “Events Calendar” – We would love to hear from you!
** All information listed on our calendar is subject to change without notice to us or you… We do our best to keep the information accurate and will always update as soon as we learn that something has changed. It’s always best to double check with the event via their website or a quick call, especially when weather can impact the event.
Zoolight Safari kicked off this past weekend at the Birmingham Zoo and will run until the end of December.
