Sitting in their lawn chairs covered with blankets and sipping tasty hot chocolate, the McGuffin family waited for the annual Holiday Lights Parade to start in Downtown Arlington on Saturday night. Justin and Tiffany McGuffin and their two children had already taken part in the reindeer games and watched a show by performers from the Miss Persis Studio of Dance before floats covered in lights filled East Abram Street in front of City Hall.
This being their fourth event, the McGuffins set up their chairs to save front-row seats for the parade before grabbing dinner at Mellow Mushroom down the street, making a complete night of the event.
"Arlington does a good job putting this together, so we try to support it," Justin McGuffin said.
The Holiday Lights Parade is more than a procession, with festivities starting at 2 p.m., including kids' games and entertainment at the Levitt Pavilion. The parade started at 6 p.m., followed by the tree lighting at City Hall, pictures with Santa and a screening of the Christmas movie favorite, "Elf."
Floats dazzled the crowd and ran the gamut. From DeLoreans and Elvis impersonators on tiny motorcycles, to festively dressed dogs and acrobats tossing flashing hula-hoops, the parade participants were as diverse as those in attendance. Competitive performance group "Amor A Nuestra Cultura" danced down the streets with lighted capes while the UT Arlington marching band's notes floated in the air and the color guard whipped their orange flags in unison.
Joyce Pierce, who has lived in Arlington off and on for 12 years, said she like how the parade and surrounding events include local business, schools and organizations from across the city.
Felecia Dunson and her family started attending the parade five years ago because her daughter, an Arlington High School Colt Kicker, participated in the parade. Even after her daughter graduated, she brought everyone back this year because it was enjoyable, in part because there were no long lines in which to wait and no entrance fees.
The American Dream City was full of laughter and smiles on Saturday night in the crisp, cool air, as the Holiday Lights Parade once again entertained and delighted residents close to home.
Downtown Arlington, Holidays 2017
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