This Friday, downtown Bloomington businesses are combining forces to bring winter’s festivities to the community.

F1rst Fr1days take place on the first Friday of every month, and this one will focus on holiday activities to bring about Christmas cheer.

Taking place from 5-8 p.m., a variety of businesses will have window displays and viewers will be able to take a look at what the shops have created, as well as be served refreshments by the businesses.

The family friendly event is full of activities for kids, such as Bill’s Key & Lock Shop’s “Toys of the Christmas Past Display,” Hobbyland’s train set window display, free face paintings at Gregor Gallery and more. But this should not stop plenty of college students from enjoying them all the same.

To help audiences see all the sights, free carriage rides throughout the downtown area will also be available to anyone who wants a lift.

“I’ve always had a ton of fun on carriage rides, and also they are a great cheap date for broke college kids,” Tara Crampton, sophomore accounting major, said.

This weekend will also include the annual Pantagraph Holiday Spectacular performance, a Christmas musical, which will be performed during the evening on Dec. 7 and 8, and during the afternoon on Dec. 9.

Also featured is Gingerbread House Building at Kelly’s Bakery & Café at 5 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. on Dec. 8. Registration is required for this event, so email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it if you are interested in more information.

Perhaps more interesting for the college crowd, Flinger’s Pizza & Pub is offering a free slice of pizza with the purchase of a draught beer, and the Pepsi Ice Center will have an ugliest sweater skate competition from 7:30-9 p.m.

Practically every storefront will feature activities for the season, so for students looking for a temporary stress reliever with finals around the corner, F1rst Fr1day may be a fun way to spend this Friday evening.

For more information and a map of locations, go to downtown Bloomington’s website at www.downtownbloomington.org.