Photo Photo Courtesy Of Los Altos Hills Parks And Recreation Department

Santa and an elf, above, appear at the annual Westwind Barn lighting ceremony.

It’s a given: The moment the pumpkins and copious supplies of Halloween candy are removed from store shelves, signs of Santa Claus and Christmas candy replace them.

But there’s something significant in the ornamentation that heralds the holidays – a certain level of comfort that no matter how much the world is changing, some things stay the same.

Locally, you can sit in Los Altos’ Community Plaza on a cool, crisp evening and enjoy the sight of festive lights wrapped around trees, inhale the aroma of freshly cut evergreens outside Lucky Market or hark a herald of angels in the form of holiday carolers strolling downtown.

Here’s a sample of the holiday events in and around Los Altos.

Lighting the way

The annual Festival of Lights Parade, scheduled 6 p.m. Sunday downtown, is Los Altos’ rendition of Disneyland’s electric light parade, with Santa Claus, his sleigh and reindeer caboosing the procession. It is by far the city’s most popular holiday event.

“It was a LAVA event in the beginning, but it got too big so fast,” said Nancy Dunaway of the Los Altos Village Association.

The parade is put together by an all-volunteer committee.

The Holiday Tree Lighting, slated 6 p.m., Dec. 4 in the Community Plaza, will feature local school choirs singing in anticipation of the traditional cameo appearance: “Santa arrives at the stroke of 7 o’clock in a horse-drawn carriage,” Dunaway said. “It’s only an hour long, but it’s very hometown.”

A Hanukkah/Menorah Lighting is scheduled Dec. 15 in the Community Plaza. The event includes music, crafts and treats.

“We get a nice turnout for that,” Dunaway said.

Breakfast with the big guy

Breakfast with Santa – another opportunity for children to ply Santa with their Christmas wishes before he heads to the North Pole – is scheduled 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., Dec. 5 at Aldo Los Altos.

Season shoppers

The Los Altos Village Association is sponsoring a contest to stimulate friendly competition among merchants for the best holiday window display. Window shoppers and watchers can qualify for prize drawings by voting for their three favorite displays.

“We’re just trying to encourage people to come downtown,” Dunaway said. “This will give them incentive to walk around a bit.”

Carriage Rides will be available 5–9 p.m. Dec. 11 through Dec. 27 by appointment only.

For more information, call 949-5282 or visit www.downtownlosaltos.org.

Bus Barn ‘Pudding’ on a play

Barbara Cannon believes she might have a remedy for those dreading the long lines, lack of parking and other annoyances that come with the holidays. It’s Bus Barn Stage Company’s production of “A Christmas Pudding,” now playing in Los Altos.

“I am sure this show will put people in the Christmas spirit,” said Cannon, the director.

Cannon said she selected the play “because I thought people might be wanting something more traditional this Christmas.”

Created, compiled and adapted by David Birney, “Pudding” is told in song, stories and poems. It comprises a collection of Christmas memoirs featuring stories by Charles Dickens, Mark Twain, Shakespeare, Emily Dickinson and George Bernard Shaw, interwoven with traditional melodies.

“While this contains music people know, it also contains a lot of music that isn’t heard all the time, plus we’ve selected some very different arrangements,” Cannon said.

A choir of 12 (eight women and four men) performs the songs, accompanied by keyboard, cello, flute, penny whistle and guitar.

“I’d say the show has a very Celtic quality in the music, especially since some of the music and poetry is from the 15th and 16th centuries,” Cannon said.

She’s added a few new ingredients to the “Pudding” as well.

“There’s a bah-humbug section with pieces by Victorian writers, a food section that includes a hilarious fruitcake recipe, a lovely memory piece about Christmas during World War II, a little bit of Dickens’ ‘A Christmas Carol’ and so much more,” she said. “There’s a little something for everyone.”

Performances are scheduled 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays, 8 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays and 3 p.m. Sundays (except today and Thanksgiving) through Dec. 19 at the Bus Barn Theater, 97 Hillview Ave. Tickets are $24-$32.

For ticket reservations and more information, call 941-0551 or visit www.busbarn.org.

Rancho roundup

Rancho Shopping Center’s annual tree lighting is scheduled 5-7 p.m. Dec. 4, and visitors may want to take note of when the jolly old man in the red suit arrives.

“Santa will light the tree promptly at 6 p.m.,” said Hope Patricia Daly, the Los Altos center’s public relations director.

The holiday wonderland-themed event will offer an array of goodies, including pony cart rides and photos with Santa Claus. Hot chocolate and peppermint mochas will be served, along with fresh gingerbread cookies and other treats while carolers entertain with holiday melodies. Sugar Plum Fairies from Marti’s Dance Studio will dance and pass out treats to onlookers.

Once Santa lights the tree, he will participate in the Holiday Hunt and Santa’s Workshop 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Dec. 5. The holiday-themed activities include cookie and ornament decorating, face painting, games, pony rides with Santa and prizes.

In addition, an art gallery will showcase holiday-inspired art created by Los Altos schoolchildren.

Bring a new unwrapped toy or canned or packaged food for Rancho’s holiday fundraising drive and have your photo taken with Santa.

For more information, visit www.ranchoshoppingcenter.com.

Gingerbread House exhibit

Promote your creative side by making a gingerbread house that will be displayed through Dec. 4 at the Hillview Community Center. The Los Altos Recreation Department sponsors the exhibit.

Entry forms must be submitted by Monday. Participants and their families are invited to an opening reception 5:30 p.m. Tuesday at Hillview.

For the application form, guidelines and information visit www.ci.los-altos.ca.us/recreation/specialevents.html.

’Tis a ‘small’ season at museum

If you’re into small pleasures, try on the “It’s a Small World” exhibit for size. The display is scheduled to run through Jan. 17 at the Los Altos History Museum – and there’s a holiday aspect to it.

“Small World” features miniatures – antique and modern – from throughout the United States and around the globe. There are scaled miniatures of dollhouses, books, dishes, ships, automobiles and trains. In keeping with the season, the exhibit features a holiday tree and the J. Gilbert Smith History House is decked out as well.

There is also an opportunity to take home a small memento. The museum has scheduled the World’s Smallest Post Office noon to 4 p.m. Dec. 12.

Los Altos postmaster Lea Redmond will set up a tiny mobile office where visitors can write a letter that will be downsized. Redmond will transcribe the letter on a miniature desk in the tiniest of script, seal it with a miniscule wax seal with the sender’s initial pressed into it, package it with a magnifying glass in an envelope and finish it off with a large wax seal.

“It’s a real kick,” said Laura Bajuk, the museum’s executive director. “Lea Redmond is such a tiny, petite person herself and she does these wonderful miniatures – tiny characters for miniature plays and other delightful things.”

Bring a real letter or a holiday card to convert it into a miniature for $8.

For more information, visit www.losaltoshistory.org.

Caroling along

Those who sing in the shower, car – or anywhere else they think no one else can hear them – will have an opportunity next week to belt out holiday favorites with like-minded folks.

Schola Cantorum invites people of all ages – and voices – to join them at Christ Episcopal Church in Los Altos 3 p.m. Dec. 6 to sing Christmas carols.

Dawn Reyen, accompanist and assistant conductor of Schola Cantorum, a Mountain View-based choral group, will lead the singing. The lyrics will be displayed on a large screen.

Santa Claus is scheduled to stop by, and apple cider and cookies will be provided for everyone.

Christ Episcopal Church is located at 1040 Border Road.

Tickets are $7-$15; free for children under 5. Receive a $2 discount for a can of nonperishable food, to be donated to a local food bank.

For more information, call 254-1700 or visit www.scholacantorum.org.

More musical merriment

Children, holidays and music seem to go hand-in-hand, so what better way to feel the holiday cheer than by visiting a local school to hear a musical performance befitting the season?

The Los Altos School District has scheduled three holiday concerts at its elementary schools, while Blach Junior High School has planned instrumental and choral concerts.

Mountain View High School has scheduled a variety of instrumental winter concerts and choral performances featuring the Mountain View Madrigals.

Los Altos High School has scheduled three concerts showcasing its students’ instrumental talents. Los Altos High’s vocal group, the Main Street Singers, have four performances planned in December as part of their 25th anniversary.

St. Francis High School hosts instrumental and choral concerts in its new Performing Arts Center on campus.

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