It's not even Thanksgiving but the Christmas celebrations kick into full swing this weekend. As a life-long Cincinnatian, there are two events on this weekend's list that I attend every year: the holiday show at the Krohn Conservatory and Balluminaria at Mirror Lake.If you've never been to either one, you have to check them out. These two are guaranteed to get you into the holiday spirit. Promise. And it makes things a lot easier for everyone that they're both in Eden Park! All the events listed here are completely free, so get out there and have some holiday fun. And speaking of holiday fun, we won't be publishing a best bets for next weekend. Don't worry though, the Krohn Conservatory event listed below will still be going on so if you don't make it this weekend, go next weekend -- if you're not too tired from all that Black Friday shopping. Click that link for our full guide to save yourself a ridiculous amount of money! November 19 Give a can, help a family Even one can of peas can make a difference! From 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day until November 28, stop by the Jewish Discovery Center in Mason to drop off non-perishable food and toiletries for local families in need. With convenient hours like this, there's no reason for you northerners not to stop in and help out. Bring the kids and remind them about the real reason for Thanksgiving. [caption id="attachment_13901" align="alignright" width="194" caption="Catch a Christmas parade or two this weekend."] [/caption] Hamilton Christmas Party From 6-9 p.m., bring the family to the Butler County Courthouse in Hamilton and watch the mayor light the tree, and enjoy free hot chocolate, cookies and carriage rides. Christmas in Springboro Head to downtown Springboro for its annual Christmas celebration. From 6-10 p.m., watch the tree-lighting and a take part in a candle-lit walk through downtown. The festival continues throughout the weekend, including a parade at noon Saturday. This three-day festival attracted more than 60,000 people last year, so it must be a good time. Light Up the Levee Every night until January 2, Newport on the Levee celebrates the holidays with an LED light show featuring more than 1 million lights along the riverwalk. Programmed to run 18 times a night from 6:10 p.m. until midnight, stroll along the river for some free family fun. Each show lasts 20 minutes. Just enough time to enjoy the brisk winter air before dashing into a store to warm up. Saturday, November 20

[caption id="attachment_13903" align="alignright" width="153" caption="It's not Christmas without the Krohn Conservatory holiday show."] [/caption] Krohn Conservatory Holiday Show The Krohn Conservatory's annual holiday show features more poinsettias than Santa can twinkle his nose at, a train display, live animals in the manger and a giant Christmas evergreen tree decked to the max with homemade ornaments. Krohn is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. seven days a week, and offers extended hours for this show (until 7 p.m.) December 18-24, and again December 26-30. Road Trip! From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., have fun at Family Day at the Air Force Museum at Wright Patterson Air Force Base. Take part in hands-on activities, story time and demonstrations. This month's family day is all about the Space Shuttle. Kids can try to land a model of the space shuttle, or build and fly a paper obiter during the Aerospace Adventure. Arts and Crafts If you live near Colerain, stop by the Farbach-Werner Nature Preserve from 1-4 p.m. today or Sunday for family arts and crafts time to celebrate Thanksgiving. If the weather's nice, you could go for a hike on its Pin Oak Trail before or after your glue-stick adventure. Light-Up Goshen I love a parade, and this one ends with a visit to Santa, which makes it all the more special. Starting at 4:30 p.m. at Marr-Cook Elementary, check out the Goshen Marching Band, vintage horse-drawn vehicles and of course, fire trucks in Goshen's annual parade. They'll also light the tree at the end of the parade, and Santa will stick around to hear the little one's wish lists. [caption id="attachment_13905" align="alignright" width="300" caption="See the balloons and enjoy the strolling carolers at Balluminaria Saturday in Eden Park."] [/caption] Balluminaria, Baby! Another one of my favorite events, Balluminaria, takes place from 4-6 p.m. Saturday around Mirror Lake in Eden Park. There's hot-air balloons around the lake, strolling entertainers and carolers, balloon artists and of course, Santa Claus. Get there early if you want to park remotely close. This one packs a crowd. Sunday, November 21 There's lots left over from Saturday including the Krohn, the arts and crafts time at Farbach-Werner and Christmas in Springboro if you haven't hit them yet, but other than that, this day is very light for fun, free activities. Sketch in the Museum Fancy yourself a good artist? Even if you can't draw stick figures, check out Studio Sunday from 1-4 p.m. at the Cincinnati Art Museum. All materials are provided, and the Museum's staff will be on hand helping out. If you're new to this column, you know parking costs $4 per car, so to get around this fee, park in the circle to the left of the Museum free and walk up the hill. Wrap It Up If you can make it out of the Container Store in Kenwood Towne Place without spending any money, take a free class every weekend from 2-4 p.m. until December 19 to learn how to wrap presents and create bows with style. I need this class because I'm the world's worst wrapper, but I love this store so much that it would be cheaper to pay someone to come to my home and wrap all my presents for me rather than risk going in there. But if you can handle it, this class should be fun. And they give away $25 in store credit to one lucky participant each class. Know an event that's not listed here, leave a reply with your favorite FREE event to share with everyone!