I couldn't help but hum that classic song, "It's Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas" as I hung ornaments on my Christmas tree last weekend. Even though the chill that's usually hanging in the air right about now is distinctly absent, the spirit of the holidays is present and accounted for! It seems everywhere you turn, there's another sign that the holiday season has indeed arrived in Corning & the Finger Lakes.

Look no further than Pulteney Square in Bath this Friday evening from 6-8:30 p.m. The "Spirit of Christmas" will have you celebrating the sights and sounds of the season, as you gaze at church nativity scenes while listening to live music and carolers. And the tastes will be pretty good, too! Enjoy chili, donuts, popcorn, cider and hot chocolate. Meet Santa and Mrs. Claus and peruse the stands of food and craft vendors – maybe even get a few people checked off your holiday shopping list!

Feeling both festive and creative? On Saturday, you'll have so many opportunities to try your hand at all sorts of fun activities from glassblowing to making handcrafted clothespin dolls to cooking up a holiday feast. No matter where you go, make sure to take your creativity with you this weekend!

The Holiday Open House at The Corning Museum of Glass kicks off the holiday season with free admission, craft activities, live music, breakfast or lunch with Santa, and discounted rates at The Studio. On both Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m., make an ornament or glass flower for only $12 per item, or create an icicle at the torch, fuse flat glass ornaments in the kiln, or sandblast festive designs onto drinking glasses for only $7 per item. Take the kids on a Winter Wonders Hunt through the galleries, and get their picture taken with Santa in front of a giant glass ornament tree.

The Benjamin Patterson Inn Museum is also having a holiday open house on Saturday from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. Make-and-take crafts will be set up for children in the schoolhouse, while a "trash to treasures" sale of holiday items will delight the adults. Also enjoy browsing a special handmade gift boutique and an exhibit of snowmen loaned from members. There will be a raffle, music, hearth cooking, and holiday decorating demonstrations. Admission is free.

Want to have a menu that wows everyone at your dinner table this year? "Tastes of the Season: Harvest and Holiday Menus" is a cooking class taught by chef Brud Holland of Red Newt Bistro in Hector, NY. Brud will introduce a Yuletide menu from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. this Saturday at 171 Cedar Arts Center. Once you've learned to cook this festive food, you'll be able to both feed those celebrating the holiday with you, and still get to enjoy the festivities yourself! Register early.

If you have some very special women to shop for this year, why not visit Goff Creek Pottery in Bath during their open house from 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. (Sunday, too!) where you can get handcrafted flower pots, bird baths, wall plaques, sculptures, tableware, home décor and so much more. If you can't find enough there, you can head over to the Rockwell Museum of Western Art's jewelry trunk show and sale from 9 a.m. – 6 p.m., where you'll find handcrafted jewelry from artisans in the Southwest and Mexico. In addition to jewelry, the Museum Trading Post shop has a wide variety of unique gifts and great seasonal discounts.

If the kids haven't had enough craft-making fun, stay at the Rockwell for Family Sparkle. From 3-6 p.m., free admission, art activities, gallery art hunts and more abound at the museum! Visit the Education Center and participate in the time-honored tradition of making a handcrafted clothespin doll – just like they used to make in early America, when most dolls were crafted from scraps of fabric, whittled sticks, clothespins and corn husks.

After the kids play at the Rockwell, it's time to head outside to ring in Crystal City Christmas with the 37th annual Sparkle. From 5-9 p.m., Market Street will bustle with everything from horse and carriage rides to ski and snowboard demonstrations. Many storefronts will have entertainment and games for children, and real reindeer and alpacas will be on hand for much adoration.

Music from carolers fills the air. Audiences delight in holiday music performances in Centerway Square. Imagine picking up a cup of hot chocolate or cider from one of the art galleries offering refreshments and strolling down a street filled with twinkling lights and gently-falling snow, while listening to the refrain of "Silent Night." Hundreds of people, young and old, welcome the Christmas season this way every year when they come to Sparkle. And you can, too!

The next day, join the Middletown Historical Society for "'Tis the Season: A Festive Feast" from 12-5 p.m. at Fran's Landing in Addison. The menu will feature stuffed chicken breast, ham, mashed potatoes, and much more. There will be two seatings at 12 and 3:30 p.m. Enjoy raffles, entertainment and door prizes. The cost is $20 per person and reservations are required. E-mail tpreston@stny.rr.com or call 607.359.4646 to reserve your spot. Join them again for the Holiday of Lights lighting ceremony the next Saturday from 1-4 p.m. on Main St. in Addison.

Also on the 10th, you can test your creativity once more at Watson Homestead in Painted Post, where you can build a gingerbread house. All materials are provided in the cost of $30 per gingerbread house. Up to 4 people can build a house together. Enjoy hayrides, ornament creating, cooking decorating, and holiday refreshments, and a raffle – you could win a stocking stuffed with treats!

As you can see, there's certainly no lack of holiday festivities and fun here in Corning & the Finger Lakes. The spirit of the season is alive and well – and busier than ever this year. Make sure you're here to be a part of it!