A festive kick off to the Christmas season downtown

It's Black Friday, the unofficial kickoff of the Christmas season, and Downtown Cape Girardeau is ready to celebrate.

The new lights along Main Street are attractive and bring a new freshness to downtown.

One of our favorite Christmas features in all of Cape Girardeau is the fun window display at Hutson's Fine Furniture, a must-see tradition.

And, of course, there's the downtown Parade of Lights. This will take place from 5 to 8 p.m. Sunday. It's a great chance to bring out the family and a blanket, sip some hot chocolate and watch the lighted floats drive by as Christmas tunes fill the air. And it's a special treat for the children to wave to Santa Claus as he passes. The parade starts on Broadway at West End, and ends at Hutson's store on Main Street. This year's parade theme is "Christmas Fantasy."

On Friday, Dec. 1, downtown merchants will hold their Downtown Christmas Open House. There will be carolers, special activities planned for children and opportunities to win a downtown shopping spree.

So as we start the Christmas season, make sure that visiting downtown is part of your plans. We hope to see you at the parade on Sunday.

For more Christmas and other events, make sure to check out semoevents.com and Page 2 of the Southeast Missourian.

Merry Christmas!