{"id":72078,"date":"2019-12-06T15:44:03","date_gmt":"2019-12-06T21:44:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kjhk.org\/web\/?p=72078"},"modified":"2019-12-06T15:44:29","modified_gmt":"2019-12-06T21:44:29","slug":"holiday-activities-to-brighten-up-a-dark-dark-winter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kjhk.org\/web\/2019\/12\/06\/holiday-activities-to-brighten-up-a-dark-dark-winter\/","title":{"rendered":"Holiday Activities To Brighten Up a Dark, Dark Winter"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Trip Advisor<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s officially winter, which also means it\u2019s officially that time of year when the sun sets at 5pm. It\u2019s all so disorienting, you get home from class or work at 11:00PM only to check the time and realize it isn\u2019t even past 6:00! And if you\u2019re like some 10 million Americans, it\u2019s possible you suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder (aka the Big SAD). So, I\u2019ve compiled a list of fun holiday activities that, hopefully, will help brighten up your winter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Santa\u2019s Rescue from Weavers<\/strong> | Friday, December 6; 5:30 – 8:30PM<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You would think by now that Santa would learn what a hazard\nflying over Lawrence, KS is since he needs to get rescued from the top of\nWeavers every year. Actually, it has happened so often that the city knows\nexactly what time he\u2019ll be there! Starting at 5:30PM, the 900 block of\nMassachusetts will be alive and buzzing with anticipation. There will be plenty\nof opportunity to sing Christmas carols (if that\u2019s your thing) and to take in\nthe beauty of the lit trees lining downtown. Parents! After Santa\u2019s rescue, he\nwill stick around and get gift requests from children so you don\u2019t have to.\nThanks, Santa!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Lawrence Holiday Extravaganza<\/strong> | Saturday, December 7; 9:00AM \u2013 4:00PM<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you put off getting Christmas presents? Are you horrible\nat buying gifts? If so, don\u2019t stress! The Lawrence Holiday Extravaganza can\nhelp you out. This wholesome, happy, bright event features several local\nartists and business owners who showcase and sell their work. It will take\nplace at the Rock Chalk Park Sports Pavilion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

27th<\/sup> Annual Lawrence Old-Fashioned Christmas Parade<\/strong> | Saturday, December 7; 11:00AM<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lawrence loves it\u2019s traditions, and this parade is no\nexception. As usual, it will feature several beautiful horses, riders, and\ncarriages. The Christmas Parade is a great way to start feeling that \u201cmay your\ndays be merry and bright\u201d vibe that White Christmas always talks about. It is\nwell-suited for everyone, so bring all your (Big SAD) friends and family.\nThere\u2019s something so joyful about watching a horse parade knowing that you\nwon\u2019t be the one left to pick up what they leave behind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Arts Center\u2019s \u201cThe Nutcracker: A Kansas Ballet\u201d<\/strong> | Weekend of December 13 & Weekend of December 20<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Arts Center\u2019s annual performance of \u201cThe Nutcracker\u201d is\nperfect for anyone that enjoys the music and basic premise of the ballet but\ngrows increasingly uncomfortable with the problematic stereotypes in the\noriginal. It provides a nice sense of comfort and visibility as the story takes\nplace entirely in Kansas. And as someone who used to perform in it every year\nand watched it for several years after, I will say that it is reliably\nentertaining. Tickets are reasonably priced and can be bought either at the\nArts Center front desk or on their website<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those cool houses that sync their lights up to the radio<\/strong> | Dates vary<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re musically inclined but unsatisfied with the\nmonotony of traditional Christmas music, these houses are for you. The\ninhabitants of the houses put up lights all over the yard and sync up the\nsequences to a radio station. They even have a sign to tell you what the radio\nstation is! So helpful. The outcome is a really entertaining, mesmerizing light\nshow for all ages to enjoy. One house plays the most epic rendition of \u201cCarol\nof the Bells\u201d I\u2019ve ever heard, complete with electric guitar. This handy-dandy website<\/a>\nhas the comprehensive list of houses and addresses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Powell Gardens<\/strong> | Thursdays \u2013 Sundays until January 5, 2020; 4:00 \u2013 10:00PM<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Powell Gardens doesn\u2019t let winter stop their cute\nactivities! This year the theme is \u201cLuminosity;\u201d colorful lights are placed\nacross the gardens and all along the main path. They also provide spiked hot\nchocolate for that *ahem* extra little pinch of joy. I have never been myself,\nbut I\u2019ve heard only good things. Tickets are available on their website<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kansas City Southern\u2019s Holiday Express Train<\/strong> | December 18 \u2013 22<\/p>\n\n\n\n

KC\u2019s Holiday Express Train is a free (free! + parking)\nexperience fit for all. There are several cars available to tour, all of which\nare elaborately decorated inside and out. The train will pull into Union\nStation and stay for the whole weekend. A perfect activity to take that one\nreally extra friend, family member, or partner to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Crown Center Ice Terrace<\/strong> | Open November 2019 \u2013 March 2020<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A personal favorite of mine, Crown Center Ice Terrace gives\noff great, no judgement vibes. Skaters of all ages and all levels of experience\ncome together to have some winter fun. There are beautiful lights surrounding\nthe rink, and the Zamboni provides an awesome, almost ASMR level of\nsatisfaction. Adding to the excitement is Fritz\u2019s, which is located just across\nthe street inside the mall. I can say with confidence that their train service\nis the best I\u2019ve ever had. Besides, there is no better remedy to cold, bruised\nlegs than fairly decent diner food.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s officially winter, which also means it\u2019s officially that time of year when the sun sets at 5pm. It\u2019s all so disorienting, you get home from class or work at 11:00PM only to check the time and realize it isn\u2019t even past 6:00! And if you\u2019re like some 10 million Americans, it\u2019s possible you suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder (aka the Big SAD). So, I\u2019ve compiled a list of fun holiday activities that, hopefully, will help brighten up your winter. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21872,"featured_media":72092,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,3226,15],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-72078","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culture","category-culture-articles","category-featured-on-kjhk"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/kjhk.org\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/parade.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kjhk.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72078","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kjhk.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kjhk.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kjhk.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/21872"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kjhk.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=72078"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kjhk.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72078\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kjhk.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/72092"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kjhk.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=72078"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kjhk.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=72078"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kjhk.org\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=72078"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}