Now that you’ve finished that Thanksgiving feast, how are you going to spend the rest of this weekend?
Lots of people likely will head out shopping to take advantage of Black Friday deals. So whether you’re headed to the Riverchase Galleria, The Grove, The Village at Lee Branch, Inverness Corners, Hoover Commons, The Plaza at Riverchase or one of the dozens of other shopping centers in Hoover, be careful out there and remember to share the generous holiday spirit with your fellow shoppers.
Here are a few other options of things to do around Hoover this weekend:
Pictures with Santa: Kris Kingle will be at the Riverchase Galleria for photos with children this Friday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Saturday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 6 p.m. You can reserve a time online or make a walk-up visit, but there is a cost. Photo packages start at $39.99. He’ll be at the mall every day through Christmas Eve. Most days are 11 a.m. to 7 p.m, but the hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Dec. 7 and 23, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Dec. 14 and 21 and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Dec. 24. There are special times for pets to get photos with Santa from 4 to 7 p.m. on Dec. 2-3 and 9-10. Make reservations or see more information here.
Walk off that Thanksgiving feast: If you don’t feel like walking around from store to store, another way to burn off some of those calories would be to take a hike through the Moss Rock Preserve or on the trails at Veterans Park. It’s supposed to be sunny Friday and Saturday and partly cloudy Sunday, with the chance of rain 4% or less throughout the weekend. But you might want to wear layers. The expected highs are 48 Friday, 53 Saturday and 57 Sunday, and it should go below freezing each night, according to The Weather Channel.
Indoor activities: If you’d rather stay indoors, the Finley Center at the Hoover Metropolitan Complex is open 8 a.m.-noon Friday and 8 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday for pickleball, basketball and walking on the indoor track. Also, the Hoover Heights Climbing Center is open 2-6 p.m. Sunday, and the Hoover Metropolitan Complex tennis center is open noon-5 p.m. Sunday.
Bingo Loco: The Stardome Comedy Club is putting on a Bingo Loco event Friday night at 7 p.m. that includes comedian emcees, throwback anthems, lip sync battles, dance-offs, dancers, confetti showers, CO2 cannons, rave rounds, conga lines and, of course, bingo games. But it’s already sold out.
Auburn University Marching Band: If you like marching bands, Auburn University’s marching band will be doing its pre-Iron Bowl rehearsal at Hoover High School’s on-campus stadium at 1000 Buccaneer Drive from 8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. Saturday. Visitors are welcome to watch.
WEEK IN REVIEW
If you think you may have missed out on some of the news this week, here’s a recap of some of our stories from Nov. 22-28:
The Hoover school district saw its annual state report card grade rise from a 93 in 2023 to a record 95 in 2024. Ten Hoover schools saw their scores increase, while the other six maintained the same overall score. See details.
Starnes Media named its All-South Metro Volleyball Team for 2024, and Hoover’s Sydney Durban was named Defensive Player of the Year. See who else from Hoover, Spain Park, Briarwood and John Carroll made the team.
The Hoover Randle Home & Gardens has reopened after being closed six months for an $800,000 renovation. See that report here.
Both the Hoover Bucs and Spain Park Jags football teams came to the end of their seasons with losses in the third round of the playoffs. Kyle Parmley and Gary Lloyd discuss the wrapup of the two teams’ seasons in their Under the Lights podcast here.
Meanwhile, the Spain Park girls flag football team punched their ticket to the 6A-7A state championship game with an overtime win over Hewitt-Trussville on Wednesday night. See the recap of that game here.
Also, get to know Sandy Naramore, the executive director of Magic Moments, a nonprofit that grants wishes for children in Alabama diagnosed with life-threatening or acute life-altering medical conditions.
