Well, the big turkey day is over and everyone should be rested up now to head out and do your Christmas shopping, and we’re hoping you shop locally here in the city and support our local retailers and shops. 21 days until Christmas. Are you excited?

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The City’s annual Christmas Tree and Menorah Lighting Ceremony will take place tomorrow, Thursday, Dec. 5, at 5:30 p.m. on the City Hall Concourse, followed by a meet and greet with Santa Claus in the Somerville High School Highlander Café (atrium entrance). The tree lighting ceremony will feature musical entertainment by the Somerville High School Band and Orchestra, the Somerville Community Chorus, El Sistema Somerville, and grade four students from the Arthur D. Healey Elementary School. Special guest Santa Claus will be escorted by the Somerville Fire Department for the ceremony and will be available for photos following the tree lighting. All children attending the ceremony will also receive a gift from Santa. The menorah was first lit on Wednesday, Nov. 26, on the first day of Hannukah, tomorrow night, a brief ceremony will mark the end of Hannukah.

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Thursday, the 5th, join the Chamber’s special holiday Business After Hours get together. This month it will be at the Center for the Arts at the Armory, 191 Highland, beginning at 5 and going until 7 p.m. Free appetizers, excellent networking; free business card drawing, and a cash bar. Guests are welcome to bring unwrapped Toys for Local Children, sponsored by Bonney Automotive and the Law Offices of Isaac M. Machado. Hosted by Dana Iacopucci of Cubby Oil and Energy. RSVP with name(s), affiliation(s), and number of guest(s) to smackey@somervillechamber.org.

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Happy Birthday this week here and elsewhere around the Ville. To Peter Forcellese, a great guy and wiz at the computer and still very much a part of Somerville, we wish Happy Birthday.  Then there is good friend and local union guy Peter Blaikie, a good guy and with many hats, all good right here in Winter Hill. We salute him on his day. For one of the nicest and constantly good humored ladies, Nancy Moccia, of Victors in Ball Square. What a great personality and all around nice person. We salute Nancy. When you go to Victors this week and you should say Happy Birthday to her. She’ll love it! And a good old guy, John Pino of East Somerville. We’ve known him many years and we salute him as well. A big Happy Birthday.

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The Winter Farmers Market Opening Day celebration is this Saturday, December 7, from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Arts at the Armory on Highland Avenue. The market is back, so join them on opening day to celebrate local farms, great food, friendly faces, and a fantastic community.  There will be live music, prizes, returning vendors to welcome back and new vendors to meet. Support and celebrate our farmers who work hard all year ‘round to keep us stocked with fresh local produce and more in the New England winter.

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The City of Somerville will join Federal Realty Investment Trust for its first annual Holiday Arts and Eats Festival this weekend starting Friday and running through Sunday, Dec. 6, 7, and 8. The festival will feature food trucks, a large holiday market including 60 artists, a 21+ event on Friday night and family-friendly activities and live music all weekend long. It will be hosted under a large heated tent at Assembly Row. For more information and schedules, visit www.assemblyrow.com/events.

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Check out the Vernon Street Open Studios on December 7 and 8, at Vernon Street Studios, 20 Vernon St., starting at 6 p.m. Each year the artists of 6 and 20 Vernon Street welcome the public into their work spaces, a community well known throughout the area for the quality of their work. During this showcase for the arts, mid-career and emerging artists working across a broad spectrum of fine art styles and craft media – including painting, photography, print-making, sculpture, glass, fiber, jewelry, furniture, and ceramics – will exhibit and sell their work, just in time for the holiday season. Located in an historic 19th century brick industrial building, Vernon Street was one of the first groups of artists in the Greater Boston area to open their studios to the public in 1974. The Open Studios event allows attendees to learn about the creative process, interact with artists in the spaces where they create, purchase original artwork, and discover new talent. The studios are located in the Rogers Foam facility, which is comprised of two buildings on the corner of Central and Vernon Streets. Parking is available in the large lot behind the buildings.

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Congratulations to the proud new parents Nikki and Brandon Ferriera on the recent arrival of their daughter Christiana Chanel Ferriera. Also, congratulations to her grandfather, Jimmy Del Ponte, the newest grandfather in town. A long life and many joyous times.

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The Art of Business and the Business of Art: Free Workshop Series is presented by arts marketing specialist Jesa Damora of FunnelCake Marketing and Karen Christians of Cleverwerx. The lecture series will feature experts on a variety of business concerns of particular interest to artists and makers alike. All talks are free, created especially for Artisan’s Asylum community members, but applicable to all makers and creators that want to sell their work. Lecture and Q&A from 7-9 p.m. on Friday, December 6, at Artisan’s Asylum, 10 Tyler St., Somerville.

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The annual Illuminations Trolley Tour of East and Central Somerville will take place Saturday, Dec. 14, with tours departing from the City Hall Concourse beginning at 4:30 p.m. The 45-minute tours will showcase holiday light displays in our own Somerville. Tours leave from (and return to) Somerville City Hall where coffee, hot chocolate, and cookies are served. Entertainment at City Hall includes choral music and craft activities for children. Trolley Tour tickets will be available at the Blue Cloud Gallery, 713 Broadway, beginning Monday, Dec. 2. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children and seniors. For more information, visit www.somervilleartscouncil.org.

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On Saturday, December 14 is the Somerville Illuminations Bicycle Tour, a wintry nighttime ride amongst warmly lit homes. The Somerville Bicycle Committee holds this event in conjunction with the Somerville Arts Council’s Illuminations Trolley Tour the same evening. Meet at 5:50 p.m. in front of the main entrance to Somerville High School, 81 Highland Ave. (next to City Hall). They’ll depart promptly at 6 p.m., riding for about an hour. Please wear warm clothes and light up your bike – the more lights, the merrier! Costumes are encouraged but not required. A $5 donation is suggested to support the Somerville Arts Council. After the ride, enjoy hot drinks, treats, and good cheer at City Hall.

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The Somerville Museum invites the public to celebrate The Spirit of Somerville, an afternoon with former mayor Gene Brune. He will discuss his new book, followed by a reception and book signing. The event takes place Sunday, December 8 from 2 p.m.- 4 p.m. at the Somerville Museum, One Westwood Road, Somerville.