Part of our family’s tradition each year is to visit the different tree-lighting ceremonies that take place around the Valley. We are so lucky that we live in a mecca of resorts and festive cities, where there are so many different events from which to choose. If you haven’t participated before, hopefully this may persuade you to give it a go.
It seems a bit of the old-fashioned holiday spirit has escaped our world today and tree lighting ceremonies hearken back to a time of family and community that we just love. Imagine bundling up (within reason; we ARE in the desert) and loading up in the car as a family, off to a destination within 15 minutes of your home, but a world away when you get there. You arrive at a place that is not indigenous to our desert, but certainly looks as if it could be.
Typically, there is an enormous tree adorned with oversized ornaments and surrounded by huge presents. We’ve seen life-sized gingerbread houses, candy cane lanes, story-book scavenger hunts, Santa’s villages, elves and even snow! Usually the make-up of attendees ranges from babies to grandparents, all of whom are delighted to celebrate the season together. Most places offer arts and crafts and activities for the kids to do that are holiday-themed, allowing them to bring home a little souvenir to remind them of the evening. Holiday music and the smell of cocoa fill the air and people just look HAPPY.
It is an evening without television, without video games, without work pressure or life pressure. It is a moment of magic, felt together. When the time comes for the actual tree-lighting, everyone gathers and participates in carols and merriment and then when the countdown begins, it begins in a different way for me as a parent; for when they say, “3-2-1”, and the switch is flipped…every kid’s eyes light up with wonder, with mouths agape and gasps of surprise fill the air. You can’t help but get teary-eyed and reminded of a time when you were little and how the marvel of the season filled your heart. It’s a great opportunity to make these same memories with YOUR family.
Pro Tip: The best places to find tree lighting ceremonies are at larger resorts (e.g. La Quinta Resort, Westin Mission Hills) and programs at City Halls across the valley. Thanksgiving weekend is the largest concentration of tree-lighting ceremonies, with Black Friday as the most popular date.
