On Saturday, Dec. 17 the second annual Vail Family Holidaze kicked off the holiday season in Vail. Locals and guests gathered at Slifer Plaza in downtown Vail to sip hot chocolate, listen to carols and see the Grinch. The holiday festivities culminated with the annual tree lighting ceremony.I stood in a sea of holiday revelers, here and there seeing a familiar face, as well as a snowman, some dancing Christmas trees, a Godzilla-sized reindeer and Santa himself. Kids and adults shared laughs and snapshots together, eating candy canes and listening to live music played on the snow covered banks of Gore Creek.Is that an alpine horn?Mayor of Vail Andy Daley, dressed like a character from a Dickens novel, was the emcee for the ceremony. Everyone that was gathered by the unlit tree enjoyed a festive tapestry of holiday characters, heart-felt blessings and a variety of live music including local celebrity Helmet Fricker on the alpine horn.The events concluded with the annual tradition of lighting the 50 foot tall spruce tree that grows alongside Vail’s iconic covered bridge. The crowd of holiday merrymakers stood gazing up under the towering tree covered with an elaborate network of Christmas lights. Amidst the holiday fanfare, the huge tree was suddenly ablaze with a display of colored lights that would make Clark Griswold cry.Vail Family Holidaze eventsVail Family Holidaze is now in full swing with tons of events kids from 1 to 92 can enjoy. Events like the Winter Solstice on Ice skating shows that will include performances by current World Champion Patrick Chan and 2010 US National Champion Rachael Flatt this Wednesday, Thursday and Friday at the Solaris Plaza ice rink starting at 5 p.m. All shows are complimentary and open to the public. Check out photos from last year’s Vail Family Holidaze and get all the details on this year’s events here.Vail is beautiful in every season, but it’s hard to beat the Holidays here with all the sparkling snow in the day and all the sparkling lights at night. And maybe all the holidaze celebrations will please the snow gods enough to smile on our valley while you’re here. Happy Holidaze!--Steven DeWitt