Flower Mound's Christmas season has its first deadline this week. The Reindeer Run 5K's registration page says the price goes up after Friday, Oct. 30, at 11:59 p.m. The Town's listing gives Nov. 1, so registering by Friday night beats both dates. The race is on Saturday, Dec. 5, the same day as the Town's Christmas Parade and Tree Lighting. That makes Dec. 5 a full day spread across two parks. It starts at 9 a.m. at Bakersfield Park on Duncan Lane and ends with fireworks on Gerault Road.
The town's holiday calendar runs from late October to mid-December. The parade sits in the middle of it, and the week after it is busy. If you plan only for the parade, you'll miss most of it.
The season, in the order it happens
| Date | What | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Fri., Oct. 30 | Reindeer Run 5K price increases after 11:59 p.m., per the race page | Online registration |
| Sat., Nov. 7 | Make Your Mark community art event, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. | Community Activity Center, 1200 Gerault Road |
| Fri., Nov. 20 | Parade float applications due by 5 p.m. | Town of Flower Mound |
| Nov. 20 to Dec. 6 | Library collects gift-wrapping supply donations | Flower Mound Public Library information desk |
| Sat., Dec. 5, morning | Reindeer Run 5K and Grinch Sprint | Bakersfield Park, 1201 Duncan Lane |
| Sat., Dec. 5, evening | Christmas Parade and Tree Lighting | Gerault Park, 1200 Gerault Road |
| Mon., Dec. 7 | Holiday Gift Wrapping, 6 to 8 p.m. | Library, 3030 Broadmoor Lane |
| Dec. 7 to Dec. 12 | Santa Around Town on a fire truck | Communities across town |
| Sat., Dec. 12 | Old Settlers Christmas, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. | Gibson-Grant Log House, 3615 Grant Court |
Before Thanksgiving, the season's first stop is a free art event. Make Your Mark runs Saturday, Nov. 7, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Community Activity Center on Gerault Road, and the Town asks people to register. Four weeks later, the parade ends at that same address.
Dec. 5 starts with a 9 a.m. race at Bakersfield Park
Flower Mound Rotary Charities hosts the Reindeer Run 5K and Grinch Sprint in partnership with the Town, according to the Town's event listing. The race page calls it part of the Town's Christmas program. Cross Timbers Gazette reports that this is the race's fifth year.
Here's how the morning works, according to the race registration page:
- Day-of registration opens at 7:30 a.m. at Bakersfield Park, 1201 Duncan Lane.
- The 5K starts at 9 a.m. Registration is $37 until the price increase.
- The Grinch Sprint fun run for ages 1 to 12 starts at 9:40 a.m. It costs $20, and registration closes at 9:45 a.m. on race day.
- After the runs, Santa and the Grinch pose for pictures. Runners get coffee, hot chocolate, cookies and pancakes.
The race page says shirts and medals are first come, first served. If your kids care more about the medal than the running, register early. Rotary says all of the race's income goes to its local and international charity work.
The race ends by 10 a.m., and the parade starts in the evening. That leaves a free afternoon in the middle of the day, so a family can do the morning race and the evening parade without rushing.
Dec. 5 ends with lights on Gerault Road
The Town's Christmas Parade and Tree Lighting is free. The Town's late-October notice describes a lighted parade to Gerault Park, live performances, children's activities, food trucks and a community tent. The tree lighting is at the Community Activity Center, and Cross Timbers Gazette reports that a fireworks show follows it.
Town materials list two start times. The Town's September announcement says festivities start at 5:30 p.m. Its October notice lists the event as running from 5 to 9 p.m. If you're aiming for a good curb spot, plan around the earlier time and check the official parade page as the date gets closer.
This year's theme is "A Star-Spangled Christmas: Celebrating 250 Years of Freedom and Festivity." The Town announced it in August so it could keep its celebration of the country's 250th birthday going through the end of the year, Cross Timbers Gazette reported. That means floats will likely mix red, white and blue with the usual Christmas lights.
The Town also explained, in a social media post quoted by the Gazette, how the event stays free:
"Every year, we're able to host this wonderful event for free for our community thanks in part to our generous sponsors."
If your street wants to be in the parade
Neighborhoods can enter floats, along with local organizations, youth groups, businesses and nonprofits. There's no entry fee. The Town asks each participant to donate at least one canned food item to the Christian Community Action Canned Food Drive. Applications are due Friday, Nov. 20, at 5 p.m. The group whose float the judges like best could win a non-cash prize. If you're thinking about a lighted float, the Nov. 20 deadline leaves about three weeks after this post goes up to pull a group together. Groups that want to perform on the main stage or host a table can reach the Town's Special Events team at [email protected] or 972.874.6292.
The week after the parade comes to your street
After Dec. 5, the events stop asking you to come to one park and start coming out to the neighborhoods.
From Monday, Dec. 7, through Saturday, Dec. 12, Santa Around Town has Santa riding through communities on a fire truck, according to Cross Timbers Gazette. If your kids missed Santa at the race, this week gives them another chance without leaving home. The Town's parade page is the place to watch for the route.
That Monday night, Dec. 7, the Flower Mound Public Library holds come-and-go Holiday Gift Wrapping from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Community Program Room at 3030 Broadmoor Lane. Registration is recommended. The event also works as a supply exchange, and the library collects donations ahead of time. From Friday, Nov. 20, through Sunday, Dec. 6, the information desk takes wrapping paper, gift bags, tags, bows, ribbon and tissue paper. The donation window closes the day after the parade. If you have extra rolls in the garage, drop them off any time before that Sunday, and the gift wrapping on Monday is the next night.
While you're at the library, the children's play patio there is now open.
The season closes at the Log House
The week of Santa visits ends on Saturday, Dec. 12, with Old Settlers Christmas at the Gibson-Grant Log House, 3615 Grant Court. It runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and is hosted by the Town's Historical Commission. The Town's event listing describes frontier holiday traditions, butter-churning and corn-shucking demonstrations, Christmas caroling, making tree decorations, warm cider and popcorn balls. No registration is needed.
The parade is about lights, floats and fireworks. The Log House is quieter and hands-on, and it's built around how earlier settlers here kept the holiday. The Log House stays decorated for Christmas until the new year. If Dec. 12 is already booked, you can still stop by later in the month and see it decorated.
A practical plan for the whole stretch
Most of the planning comes due weeks before the events:
- By Friday, Oct. 30: Register for the Reindeer Run before the price goes up.
- Nov. 7: Make Your Mark at the Community Activity Center. Register in advance.
- By Nov. 20: Send in float applications if your neighborhood or group wants a spot in the parade.
- Nov. 20 to Dec. 6: Drop wrapping supplies at the library information desk.
- Dec. 5: Race in the morning at Bakersfield Park, parade and tree lighting in the evening at Gerault Park, with an open afternoon between.
- Dec. 7 to 12: Watch for Santa's fire truck, and wrap gifts at the library on Monday night.
- Dec. 12: Old Settlers Christmas at the Gibson-Grant Log House.
The Town hasn't posted the parade route, spectator parking or road closures for Dec. 5 yet. Check the Town's parade page for those details as the date gets closer.
The holidays are often when families start thinking about next year, whether that means more room for the people at the table or a home that fits a new season of life. When you're ready to talk about where your Flower Mound home stands, Miranda Realty Team would be glad to help, no pressure and no rush, after the fireworks are over. Get Your Free Home Valuation.
