The rain gods were merciful on Saturday, and held back the downpour long enough for Redwood City to celebrate its beloved annual Hometown Holidays Festival.
For most of the day, a light mist was the worst of it, so vendors lined up at 9 a.m. to set up their booths full of delicious food, beautiful handmade creations and business information up and down the streets of downtown.
Courthouse Square served as the center of the festival, with a community stage full of local performers like choirs and dancers, and, of course, Santa Claus.
Kids had a grand time frolicking in the mini snow lot, tossing snowballs at each other; riding ponies; making holiday-themed crafts like tree ornaments and gifts; and scoring free teddy bears from the folks at the Kaiser Permanente booth.
The ice artists also attracted quite a crowd as they shaved and sawed huge blocks of ice into beautiful holiday shapes.
We here at Patch also had a wonderful time meeting all the nice people who stopped by our booth to say hi, sign up for our daily e-newsletter and spin the prize wheel for some swag!
Photos by Jennifer van der Kleut and Mike Skyba.
See photos of the Children's Parade here.
See photos of the Tree Lighting and Fireworks show here.
See our video of festival highlights here.
Did you go to this year's Hometown Holidays Festival? If so, what was your favorite feature? Tell us in the comments below.
Snap a few photos at the festival? Share them with Patch! Just click "Upload Photos and Videos" above.
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