WEST PITTSTON — The West Pittston Library celebrated the upcoming Christmas holiday Saturday at its second annual Holiday Hoopla.
Dressed in holiday-themed pajamas, Summer Belles, youth services coordinator for the library, helped children and their parents make ornaments and sing Christmas carols.
Belles said she has to start planning the event in the fall. Her research starts in October.
The children created a Santa ornament with a clear plastic ball, which was filled with red construction paper and had black tape for the belt. They also made a hanging red-and-white-striped ornament.
Falls residents Daniel and John Parry, 11 and 5 respectively, made their way through afternoon snow flurries and the cold wind to attend the event.
For Daniel, the best part of the afternoon was making the Santa ornament.
“We put red (construction) paper in it to make it look like Santa’s belly,” Daniel said. “It was a lot of fun.”
Daniel said when he and John get home, they were going to add the ornaments to their Christmas tree.
Belles stressed the ornaments weren’t the typical, run-of-the-mill kind.
“I want good quality, proud to hang on the tree ornaments,” Belles said.
The adults had a more challenging task. Belles provided glue dots — double-sided adhesive — and glitter enabling the adults to create a design on a plastic ornament. She also instructed them on how to create a Christmas tree fan ornament, complete with a Popsicle-stick trunk and a glue-dot star.
Heather Bocker, of West Pittston, brought her children. She has been helping the library “for years,” she said.
“The crafts were genius,” Bocker said. “Vintage.”
While the adults were finishing up their Christmas tree ornaments, Belles was serenaded by the handful of children in attendance with songs like ‘Jingle Bell Rock’ and ‘Rudolph, the Red Nosed Reindeer.’ Bocker produced her smartphone with a ringing-bell app and handed it to Belles, who shook it in time with the singing of ‘Jingle Bells.’
Belles’ daughter, Andie, 8, danced along with the music while everyone sang, saying she learned her dance moves “at school.”
While the children were caroling, Belles handed out hot chocolate and donuts to both the children and adults. Laughter ensued when John Getzie, 9, of West Pittston, called the hot chocolate “little kid coffee.”
For Bryce Bocker, it didn’t take long for him to decide which part of the day was his favorite.
“The food,” he said.